Not Their Best Stuff But Fair 80s German Metal
' I listened to this album a lot when it came out and I still like Accept but this is really not their best stuff. 'Metal Heart' was the first hit that brought this German version of Judas Priest into the spotlight which was followed by the more popular 'Balls to the Wall. Like a lot of other metal from the mid-80s, it has just passed its expiration date. That's what happens when you put the date 1999 in your song with lyrics like:
It is 1999
The human race is dyiiing
No, actually, it's 2008 now and the human race is alive and kicking: 8 billion strong and growing! The only song with that date in its lyrics to have stood the test of time is, sadly enough, Prince's '1999. '
Udo Dirkschneider is a reasonably good singer to the likes of Brian Johnson and Wolf Hoffmann is a good lead guitarist which keeps Accept in the above average level of otherwise forgettable '80s bands like Armored Saint or Grim Reaper. Great transcription and adaptation of Beethoven's 'Fur Elise' as a solo on the title song. 'Midnight Mover' and 'Up To The Limit' are pretty good too. 'Too High To Get It Right' is another good one. The rest is pretty forgettable stuff. This is not the album you want to start with if you're going to listen to Accept though. I would choose this one over 'Balls to the Wall' if you are considering between the two. 'Restless and Wild' and 'Breaker' are their best albums in my book: heavier and more original.
Metal Heart
Liked the time in which it arrived and in good condition case not cracked as that can sometimes happen coming from overseas.
A good solid hard rock album
Not as commercially accepted but just as much hard rocking. If you liked Balls to the Wall, you'll like this one too.
Good old fashioned smash mouth metal!!
Udo is a unique vocalist to say the least, but it all comes together here perfectly. Accept totally rocks with aggressive sounding tunes and a massive wall of thick guitar tone. The twin guitar attack is to die for and the pounding rhythm section is full at right on the money. Gene Simmons from Kiss thought these guys kicked some serious butt back then and he wasn't wrong! Yes this is 80's metal at it's gnarly best!!
This release along with Balls To The Wall are their best cd's.
.
Lifeless piece of steel!
Metal Heart was Accept's 6th album and probably the slickest effort they ever released. After listening to this album for so long i finally got a chance to review this wicked work of metal goodness. For the first time Accept were getting a taste of superstardom that another german band,The Scorpions, had already been enjoying for a number of years now. Metal Heart saw Accept as headliners for the first time ever and were now argueably the best metal band in the 85-86 time period. You can talk all you want about Iron Maiden,Judas Preist,Dio-whatever about being the top metal acts of the 80's, but to me these guys were by-far the greatest heavy metal group of the 1980's. I seriously doubt that any band at the time had the virtous skills that these krauts possesed, Wolf Hoffman could of made Murray and Smith (of Maiden) sound poor. Stephan Kauffmann was the fastest metal drumer prior to Dave Lombardo of Slayer. And of course Udo's singing was something i have always loved.
Metal Heart is a fine choice if you are gonna start with on of Accept's albums. It is a commercial one for sure but i feel it is probably the best album they ever made. The title track alone is worth the price of this album,the song Metal Heart has a riff that chuggs along like a panzer. There is also the inexcapable dance metal of MidNightMover. It is important to know that this came out in the prime of the MTV hair metal age, so the move towards commercial metal was to be expected but this was still heavier then anything else being released at the time by those pathetic american pop metal groups.
MetalHeart 10/10, the opening track is one of the heaviest songs they ever wrote,very classicaly influenced and prophetic lyrics about mankinds future.
MidNightMover 10/10, the grooviest track on the album. It was a hit single and it got a video that made you puke from being dizzy.
Up to the Limit 10/7, an average song by Accept standards that is still pretty good.
Wrong is Right 10/11, WOW! this is the fastest song on the album! Udo's bloodcurdling scream kicks it off and it is the closest song to being almost thrash in structer.
Screaming for a Love-bite, 10/9 a infectious song with weird lyrics.
Too High to Get it Right, 10/6 This sounds just a little too much like AC/DC for my taste.
Dogs on Leads, 10/8 a very good song with a slow moody build up that turns into a flat out anthemic rocker.
Teach us to Survive 10/8 not a bad song at all, has some interesting toe tapping beats and the bass gets funky at times.
Livin for Tonight 10/10 Awesome song, it sounds like the Scorpions Big City Nights. It is a strait out @ss kicker with some raspy vocals courtesy of the Tank.
Bound to Fail 10/10 the last song on the album goes out with a bang. From the killer street gang chants in the background to Hoffmanns amazing solo, this is one of the stongest songs on here and a perfect way to close a perfect album.
Accept doesn't get much credit and that is a shame, not many people know about them. It's been twenty years almost since this was released, so why not go pick it up and discover a true metal classic? Accept have also recenty reunited, so that should be a very welcomed reunion indeed. In this age of Linkin park, Slipknot, Jessica Simpson, Black Eyed Peas, Ipods and countless other trendy crap that pollutes the braindead masses, i think this world needs an Accept reunion and tour.
We are glad to have The Tank and his soilders back once again to crush the opposition.
Peace out.
You can see a complete list of all Accept discography, or go back to the Accept tabs
|
