Hats off to Ripper Owens...
- Thread starter General Zod
- Start date
Tanelorn
On a quest...
Perhaps you're looking at this more from the perspective of an Yngwie fan, and I from that of a Ripper fan. Regardless, I couldn't disagree more.
For starters, Yngwie is an awful producer. The vocal track sounds as if it was recorded from the bottom of a well. And that is hardly a unique opinion. Many of the reviews of Perpetual Flame by Yngwie die-hards, plead with him to relinquish the producer role.
On stage, Ripper is relegated to performing on one third of the stage, along with the bass player, keyboard player and drummer, so that Yngwie, his giant ego, and his even bigger ass, can fit on the other two thirds.
Ripper has to leave the stage during every solo, to ensure that all eyes remain on Yngwie, as he plays the same scale over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over...
Finally, Ripper has to stand in the wings as Yngwie takes over the lead vocal duties (this is where the wife and I bailed). Yngwie's voice is so bad, we couldn't even tell what song he was trying to sing. For those who have never heard Yngwie sing, imagine if you will what it might sound like to overhear a pack of wild baoons, high on a cocktail of Viagra and Crystal Meth, gang rape a house cat.
Tim needs to hook up with a set of talented young songwriters and players, who are on his level, and do his own thing. Tim is a brilliant vocalist whose career shouldn't be wasted singing "I am a Viking" until Yngwie is 70.
Zod
Yes, I am an Yngwie fan first and a Ripper fan second. No contest there! I respect your opinions, as always, although we aren't going to agree completely this time. I enjoy readng your thoughts on metal, my friend! See ya at the Nightwish show!
BTW, I have not yet had the pleasure of seeing the Perpetual Flame tour, so I can't comment on what goes on during a typical show on this tour with the current lineup.
1- It's Yngwie's band and project.....he IS the main focus.
2- Yeah, Ripper sounds GREAT live, but he has awful stage presence. I've seen him four times with three different bands, and his act as front man was terrible each time (he sounded great though)
3-Perpetual Flame doesn't have the best sound, but it still is a GREAT cd, and I think it's one of Rippers best vocal performances, bad sound or not.
4-the best way to describe Yngwies voice is to call it a shitty Hendrix impression.
5-I doubt Ripper will EVER have the chops to write a classic like "I am a Viking". He sounded good singing it, though.
6- I think it's getting pretty clear by now that Ripper is going to be a good sounding hired gun for his career. I don't think that he has the charisma to carry a project on his own. Great voice, no personality.
JenniferLynn
AKA Irish
I got into IE with Glorious Burden but went back and got a couple of the previous CDs... Barlow's a cool singer but personally, I like Ripper better...
Unfortunately, I've never gotten to see Ripper live... Hopefully I'll get to one of these days!!
Unfortunately, I've never gotten to see Ripper live... Hopefully I'll get to one of these days!!
Perpet
Perpetual Motion
Thank you...Nothing against Ripper at all, but it's ridiculous to blame Yngwie for being Yngwie. After all this is his project and he signs the checks.
I think you may have misunderstood my point. No one is disputing whose band it is; it's right there in the name. My comments were in response to the idea that Ripper has "found his true calling" with Yngwie. First, all singers are called by Yngwie, because Yngwie fires a vocalist every 8 seconds. So if you sing, Yngwie will eventually call you. But my real point is simply that Ripper is underutilized in Yngwie's band. Be it in the studio, where it sounds as if he's singing from within a well, or on stage, where he spends most of the show off stage.
Whether Ripper is charasmatic enough a frontman isn't the issue. Nor is the issue whether Ripper has the songwriting chops to ever pen a song on par with "I am a Viking"*. The only issue I was speaking to is whether being Yngwie's caddy is as good as it gets for Ripper. I say no.
Zod
*While Ripper may never write a song on par with "I am a Viking", neither will Yngwie ever again.
No matter if he's with Yngwie, Iced Earth or Priest, Ripper will be someones "caddy" simply because he doesn't bring anything to the table other than a great scream and decent vocals. No stage presence and little to no writing chops will only get you so far (unless you're Ozzy, I guess).
* At least Yngwie is WRITING tunes. They might not be as awesome as the classic stuff (though Perpetual Burn has some great songs), his last few cds have been pretty solid. After 25+ years, that's not too shabby.
* At least Yngwie is WRITING tunes. They might not be as awesome as the classic stuff (though Perpetual Burn has some great songs), his last few cds have been pretty solid. After 25+ years, that's not too shabby.
Your certainly welcome to that opinion. However, with both Priest and Iced Earth, the vocals were out in front. They were an integral part of the music. In the context of the songs, be they Iced Earth or Priest, Tim's vocals were the strongest aspect of the song. Not only is Yngwie not on the same level as Priest or Iced Earth in terms of drawing power, the role of the vocalist in Yngwie's band is a much lesser role. And again, my primary point here is, I don't believe it's Tim's "calling" to be Yngwie's singer.
Actually, I'd take the Beyond Fear disc, where Tim was the primary songwriter, over anything Yngwie has done in 20 years (Odyssey).
Zod
Has it been mentioned that 3 songs off the latest Rising Storm album have were released on Rock Band as DLC? Caprici Di Diablo, Damnation Game, Red Devil. I haven't had a chance to play them but I bought the pack the moment I saw it. And before that they even released an X Japan song.
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