Richie Faulkner Says Armchair Critics Don’t Matter: “‘Turbo Lover’ Gets a Great Reaction”

You know, sometimes the internet feels like a massive fucking mistake. And that’s coming from someone who makes a living off of it. Too many people have too many opinions and sometimes that shit poisons the well. Case and point is the constant debate by the terminally online about what constitutes as “real metal” and all that bullshit.

During a recent interview with Ben Brown, of Cam 97.2 FM, Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner weighed in on the concept of “real metal” and the sort of bullshit discourse that crops up online. And while most people revere Judas Priest as one of the greatest bands of all time, that doesn’t mean everything they’ve ever done has been well. But just because past releases like Turbo and the campy track “Turbo Lover” get bashed online, that doesn’t mean it’s hated by all fans, he said.

“I’ll always say to people, one of the songs that gets the biggest reaction when we play it live, and whether the Internet likes it or not, is ‘Turbo Lover’… It gets a great reaction. It’s great fun. It’s a great song… There’s some good songs on that record, ‘Out in The Cold’ is another one.”

Having only been young at the time of Turbo‘s release, Faulkner said he does however understand where fans of that era might be coming from when it come to that particular album — even if there are some bangers on it.

“In 1986, I wasn’t really aware [of the album’s reception; Faulkner was 6 at the time]. I hear it from other people that were around at the time, and they said they were kind of disappointed; a lot of people that I’m close to [from] that generation. They were pretty bummed out by it.”

What’s extremely likely to not bum out Judas Priest fans is the upcoming album Invincible Shield, which is due out on March 8. The first single “Panic Attack” rips. You can preorder your copy of the forthcoming album today.