Fans are super excited to hear KK Downing at upcoming Bloodstock Open Air.
In a new interview with Jimmy Kay of The Metal Voice, KK was asked if is he is nervous about performing again after such a long time away from the stage.
He said:
“Absolutely not. It’s just like riding a bike. It’s not as though I haven’t played guitar since quitting the band; I have. Once you learn those chops and you’ve toured extensively over the years — dare I say decades — it’s very easy to do. But having said that, I’m always up for a challenge.
And as much as the anticipation would be for probably me to jump up on there and play some PRIEST stuff, I said to Ross just earlier today, I said, ‘I’m open to any suggestions, really. Let’s just meet up and let’s set up a jam the day before and let’s see what we feel like doing.
If we can mix it up and bring something a bit different to the table, it’s all well and good. But we’ll make those decisions when we get together and do the handshake and put the guitars on and have a blast, really, and, as I said, just jam it out.”
When asked why it has taken him so long to perform live again following his split with PRIEST, Downing replied:
“To be honest, the frank answer would be I really was expecting that at some point, there would be a willingness and an opportunity for everyone involved for me to step back in the band. You know what bandmembers are like — lots of things are said in haste, lots of things go down, inevitably. It’s a relationship. So it’s tough to hold together, for whatever reasons, but I thought probably at some point, it would be inevitable that a time would come around that would be my time to potentially re-enter the band and carry on where we left off. But it’s proved not to be the case, so, obviously, I have to accept that and just move forward. So I’m looking forward to the opportunity immensely. And I do extend my gratitude to Ross and the band for inviting me up to the special guest.”
K.K. added:
“The one thing I like about Ross and the band is, obviously, they’re full-on metal, they’re true blue, they’re dedicated and it’s good to be on stage with people that, obviously, not only think like me, people that have played like me through the decades.”