Judas Priest’s Ian Hill Recorded His Bass Parts for Invincible Shield on the Go
When it came to some of the best albums from last year, you’d be hard pressed to find many metal fans that didn’t at least consider putting Judas Priest‘s Invincible Shield in the realm of consideration. But as far as working on that album was concerned, it turns out things were less than ideal for most of it, thanks to that pesky COVID-19 pandemic and the fact that the band’s members live in different parts of the world.
During a recent interview with Radioactive MikeZ, host of the 96.7 KCAL-FM program Wired In The Empire, Judas Priest bassist Ian Hill discussed just how unorthodox things were for the iconic heavy metal band while writing and recording Invincible Shield.
“Yeah, it was it was a longer gestation period, definitely, because of the pandemic. The big problem was that Glenn [Tipton, Priest guitarist] and myself were stuck on this side of the pond and everybody else was in the States. We weren’t allowed to travel. So, I was rushed a little bit. The other guys managed to get around it. Scott [Travis, Priest drummer] and Richie [Faulkner, Priest guitarist] are in the Nashville area now, so it was quite easy for them to get their parts done. Well, not easy, but more straightforward. Nothing’s ever easy. And Rob [Halford, Priest singer], of course, he’s out there in Phoenix, and that was comparatively straightforward as well.”
Logistical issues aside, things ended up getting even more unconventional for Hill when touring kicked up following the pandemic. Rather than record his bass parts in a studio, Hill revealed the bass parts were committed to the mix in a more ad hoc way.
“When it came to the bass lines, we went straight out of sort of the pandemic and straight into the 50th-anniversary tour, and the bass lines ended up being done in hotel rooms on the European tour on days off. I mean, Andy’s [Sneap, Priest touring guitarist and producer] with us anyway, the producer.
“Of course, he got his laptop with all the information on it. I only ever Direct-Input the bass anyway; that goes straight into the desk. Any effects, it’ll just go on afterward sort of thing. So it was a straightforward thing. I just carried a bass around with me and went to Andy’s room. He was set up. One song, one day. It was great. Richie came in from time to time, just to nod his head and see how we were getting on. And it was done like that throughout the European tour. So it was, like I say, a very tranquil way of recording. You don’t have other people — there’s six or seven other people, whether it’s a studio person or whatever — breathing down your neck. So, yeah, it was great. It turned out really well. “
You can check out the full interview, along with additional insights from Hill, below.
