Judas Priest's 'British Steel' Artwork Deemed Too Metal for Instagram | Revolver

Judas Priest's 'British Steel' Artwork Deemed Too Metal for Instagram

Social media platform removed iconic cover art for violating community guidelines
british steel

Judas Priest are apparently too metal for Instagram. Earlier today (April 14th), Revolver honored the birthday of Priest's 1980 classic, British Steel, by posting its iconic cover art along with a simple caption prompting our readers to name their favorite song on the track list. It's a post format that we and virtually every other digital metal publication have carried out hundreds of times, and while British Steel's artwork — picturing a hand gripping a razor blade adorned with the band's logo — had no problem cross-publishing to Facebook and Twitter, we soon received a message from Instagram stating that the post had been removed because it "goes against our Community Guidelines." 

In a brief dropdown menu laying out the platform's basic rules for what is and isn't allowed on the site, the primary content categories they're looking to take down are ones that depict "graphic violence;" "hate speech, harassment and bullying;" and "nudity and sexual activity." While the 30th anniversary reissue cover of British Steel removes the hand and adds a ton of blood splashing off the bottom of the blade, the original cover (the one we posted) is, while still totally badass and aesthetically pleasing, laughably tame by today's metal standards. 

Compared to recent posts of ours that Instagram hasn't touched — like Neurosis' Through Silver and Blood cover, which does depict blood, or Pantera's Far Beyond Driven artwork, which features a massive drill penetrating a skull — British Steel is totally kid-friendly. But apparently the content lords over at Instagram are shaking in their boots and chattering down their finger nails at the mere site of a razor blade — no blood, no nudity, no hate speech, just a blade being held by a hand. Unbelievable. 

Check out the full content violation message we received below, and think twice the next time you consider sharing your love for an album that came out 42 years ago and can be seen, displayed proudly, in any good record store in America.

British steel instagram community guidelines vert