Judas Priest, Pantera and Rainbow Members Comprise New Supergroup, Elegant Weapons

2022-11-24

Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner performing live.

Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner – Story by Charles Ken, photo by Anne Erickson

Elegant Weapons is a new supergroup bringing together members of Judas Priest, Pantera and Rainbow

Members of Judas Priest, Pantera, and Rainbow have come together to create a new supergroup called Elegant Weapons. They’ve also already announced their debut album, “Horns for a Halo,” due out Spring 2023 via Nuclear Blast.

The band brings together Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner and drummer Scott Travis, as well as Rex Brown of Pantera on bass and Rainbow/MSG singer Ronnie Romero on vocals. Judas Priest touring guitarist and producer Andy Sneap will be producing the band’s debut album.

“It’s exciting to be part of a label like Nuclear Blast that has such a rich history and level of respect among fans and the music industry,” Faulkner said in a statement. “Monte Conner [Nuclear Blast VP A&R] knows Andy Sneap well, and Andy has always held Monte and label in very high regard. Monte has loved the record from the very early demo stages. It’s very valuable and important to me that the label I sign with understand and connect with the music.”

Faulkner continued, “This record represents for me more of my DNA as a guitar player and a songwriter. Heavy, but moving slightly outside the realms of ‘heavy metal.’ Those roots are obvious, but I wanted to reach in a bit and see what else came out that wasn’t necessarily ‘expected.'”

The guitarist added that as far as Elegant Weapons’ style, it’s a “a mix of Jimi Hendrix, Priest, Sabbath, solo Ozzy, and Black Label Society.” He also gushed over the project’s lineup.

“I’ve always wanted to make a record with Scott [Travis] outside of Priest,” Faulkner said. “Add to that Rex Brown’s unmistakable tone and attitude is something special. Having those guys as the rhythm section is a guitar players dream. The icing on the cake was Ronnie Romero. One of the new breed of instantly classic vocalists, Ronnie brought a character and a swagger to the songs that is instantly iconic, making these songs his own.”

No word yet on the release’s track list, but the record is slated to arrive in spring 2023. In other news, Faulkner and Travis are currently on the road with Judas Priest for the fall U.S. leg of the group’s “50 Heavy Metal Years” tour. The tour runs through a Nov. 29 date in Houston.

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Charles Ken

Meet the expert - Charles Ken is a graduate of Michigan State University where he studied writing and history. He's a longtime music buff and covers classic rock for Audio Ink Radio. Contact him at ken@audioinkradio.com.