Judas Priest/Alice Cooper: Kia Forum - Los Angeles, CA - 10/19/25
If you’re involved in the rock and metal community then you know the names Judas Priest and Alice Cooper. Both bands are some of the most legendary in the music world. Both bands have also been touring and making music for over 50 years. Judas Priest and Alice Cooper announced a co-headlining tour that would take them across the USA. On support for the tour is Corrosion of Conformity. Nearing the end of the tour, the Southern California stop was at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, California. Plenty of metalheads of all ages showed up to pack the venue and show their appreciation for two musical giants, and it was set to be one of the best tours of the year.
Since releasing his first album in 1969, Alice Cooper has since then released a total of 30 albums which include his band albums and solo albums. He is, without a doubt, the king of shock rock and is known for his horror themes and theatrical performances. The lights went out and the LCD screen on stage lit up signaling the arrival of Alice Cooper and his band. The members made their way to the stage as Alice was the last one to make an appearance by coming out of a giant book. Alice Cooper began their spook-tacular show with “Who Do You Think We Are” and so began one of the greatest shows on earth. Being a theatrical show, Alice brought out a sword that he would swing around as he sang. One of his best songs “No More Mr. Nice Guy” was played and made for a great song to sing along to. During his performance of “I’m Eighteen,” Alice brought out a crutch and swung it around while he sang the song. Even at 77 years old, Alice Cooper still moves around as if he’s still in his younger years and still sounds amazing live. Alice went on to play many of his hits including “Feed My Frankenstein,” “Hey Stoopid,” and “Poison.” One of the best moments of the show was when guitarist extraordinaire Nita Strauss was given a chance to shine and delivered a guitar solo. She has been rising to fame for the past several years as a touring guitarist for Alice and was recently a guitarist for Katy Perry. She also has two solo albums out that shred. Strauss was joined on her solo by guitarists Ryan Roxie and Tommy Henriksen. The song “Ballad of Dwight Fry” is one of Alice’s best songs performed live. Alice puts himself in a white straitjacket and sings the song while being attacked a character who keeps electrocuting him. The finale of his show was “School’s Out” which is his most famous song and one of the greatest songs in rock history. Confetti were shot out and covered part of the audience on the floor. The show came to an end with the band members saying goodbye to the packed venue as the crowd cheered for an amazing performance. Another act down and now to make way for the headlining band of the night.
Judas Priest are the Gods of heavy metal, and they hail from England. Since releasing their debut album in 1974, they have gone on to release 19 studio albums with the latest being Invincible Shield in 2024. They are without a doubt one of the greatest metal bands of all time as well as one of metal’s biggest influences. Plenty of Judas Priest fans were in the audience sporting their merch. The lights dimmed and “War Pigs” by Black Sabbath started playing over the speakers as an obvious tribute to Ozzy Osbourne. The nearly sold-out venue sang along to the song making it for an impressive sight. The band members came out and started their show with “All Guns Blazing” from their 1990 album, Painkiller. Metal God and vocalist Rob Halford still sings to perfection with ear-piercing shrieks and screams. His performance was only matched by guitarists Richie Faulkner and Andy Sneap. Up next was another song from the Painkiller album, “Hell Patrol.” A very strong start to yet another legendary performance by one of metal’s greatest bands. The third song of choice was "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" as it is one of their well-known songs and one of the greatest songs in metal. The crowd loved singing along to the chorus. Another one of their best songs is “Breaking the Law.” Halford lets the audience sing the chorus in unison and is great to hear everyone coming together to sing another one of metal’s best songs. Judas Priest plays every song to perfection and more of those songs included “Night Crawler,” “A Touch of Evil,” and “Electric Eye.” Lots of songs were played from the Painkiller album, so you know that it’s easily one of their best albums and fans loved hearing more songs from that album. The new album’s finale song is “Giants in the Sky” and, during its performance, images of rock stars who have passed away were shown on the LCD. The last one shown was Ozzy himself and received thunderous cheers from the audience. The stage went quiet for a bit as drummer Scott Travis performed his signature drum intro to the song Painkiller, another one of their best songs and is a staple in their live performances. The guitar solos between Faulkner and Sneap are undeniable. Halford’s screams are still legendary. The members went backstage for a bit. Halford came back out riding a motorcycle. that could only mean one thing. travis once again started a very familiar drum intro which could only mean the song “Hell Bent for Leather” was about to be played. The fans once again loved singing along to the super catchy chorus. It was time for the show to unfortunately come to an end. For the grand finale, Judas Priest played their usual ending song, “Living After Midnight.” In the middle of the song is when Travis plays the drums by himself and Halford holds out the microphone and allows the audience to sing the chorus a few times. The song came to an end, and it was a glorious finish. Halford thanked the audience for supporting Judas Priest even after 56 years of making music. Judas Priest left the stage for the last time. Fans were left in awe after an amazing performance. Both Alice Cooper and Judas Priest are an absolute must see even if you’re not a fan of their music and they still have plenty of gas in the tank to continue touring for the foreseeable future.
