With the 10th anniversary of the killing of Pantera guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott upon us this week (Dec. 8), Judas Priest singer Rob Halford recalled the first time he met Dimebag Darrell, and how they "hit it off instantly." Halford tells his story in the video above.

In the clip, courtesy of our sister site Loudwire, Halford says that he first encountered Darrell in 1990 while watching Canada's MuchMusic network. Impressed with his passion for metal -- and it didn't hurt that Darrell was wearing a 'British Steel' t-shirt -- Halford called the station, which was a quick walk from his hotel, to ask Darrell to wait so they could meet. Later that night, he sat in on a couple of Judas Priest songs at Pantera's show.

That led to Pantera opening up for Priest on the European leg of the 'Painkiller' tour. "The audience were just like, 'What the f--- is this?'" he said. "It was just so raw and primitive and real and so aggressive and new and this guy Dimebag was playing the guitar like nobody had played it before. And Phil and Rex and Vinnie, they were just going nuts.”

Loudwire has been asking many metal stars about their memories of Dimebag Darrell. You can find them here.

Judas Priest Talk About the Future

See Rob Halford and Other Rockers' Yearbook Photos

More From Ultimate Classic Rock