Oh great, because what the world really needed was another rant from Tim “Ripper” Owens about Judas Priest not streaming his era of the band on Spotify 🙄. In a recent interview with Gustavo Maiato of Whiplash.net, Owens once again addressed the fact that the two studio albums he recorded with Judas Priest — 1997’s “Jugulator” and 2001’s “Demolition” — are not available on major streaming services. Boo-hoo, poor Ripper 🎸.
So, what’s the big deal about these albums not being on Spotify? Well, according to Owens, it’s hard to draw new fans to his music when it’s not easily accessible. “You can find it on YouTube, I guess,” he said with a hint of sarcasm. Yeah, because YouTube is so last season 📺. Owens also mentioned that when he plays songs from “Jugulator” and “Demolition” on his solo tours, they go over really well with the crowd. Who wouldn’t want to hear “Burn in Hell” live, am I right? 🤘
The Great Streaming Debate
It’s not like Owens is bitter or anything, but he did say that Judas Priest “decided — their decision, no one else’s — to erase the records.” Erase, as in, not make them available on streaming services. Not, like, actually erase them from existence 🙅♂️. Owens also pointed out that the band included “Jugulator” and “Demolition” in their recently released box set, which cost a cool $500. Because, you know, who needs streaming when you can pay half a grand for a box set? 🤑
But seriously, Owens doesn’t seem to care that much about the whole situation. “It makes no sense to not have them available to fans,” he said. “But if people do wanna hear the songs live, they can come to my solo shows.” Fair enough, Ripper. We’ll just have to shell out the cash to see you live instead of listening to your music on Spotify 🎟️.
Iron Maiden: The Class Act
Owens also brought up Iron Maiden as an example of a band that actually plays songs from their Blaze Bayley era. “You just said Rob Halford ‘rarely performs’ it,” Owens said. “Rob Halford’s never performed [Priest songs from my era of the band].” Never, as in, not even once 🙅♂️. Can you imagine how great Halford would sound singing “Burn in Hell”? Probably better than Owens’ version, let’s be real 🤷♂️.
According to Owens, the difference between Iron Maiden and Judas Priest is that Maiden has great management and marketing. “They’re up here [at a higher level than Priest when it comes to their live draw],” he said. Yeah, no kidding 🤑. Iron Maiden can actually sell out shows, while Priest… well, not so much 🎟️.
But hey, at least we have KK’s Priest, which features Owens and former Judas Priest guitarist K.K. Downing. They’ll be playing all the hits from the Ripper era, so fans can still get their fix 🤘. And who knows, maybe one day Judas Priest will actually stream “Jugulator” and “Demolition” on Spotify. But until then, we’ll just have to keep on dreaming 🌙.
