It was written in the stars that ex-Accept vocalist Udo Dirkschneider, a man rarely seen out of combat trousers, would one day collaborate with the concert band of the German armed forces. And the results are very Germanic indeed. Which has always been a good thing when it comes to heavy metal.
With this album you can’t help feeling that Dirkschneider really enjoyed writing with former Accept members Stefan Kaufmann and Peter Baltes and two German armed forces composers.
It is, after all, an epic album, running to 15 tracks. It’s also hugely enjoyable, with Dirkschneider’s trademark sandpaper-throated apoplexy in fine fettle and the 60-piece orchestra doing much to extend the range of his usual material.
In these incredibly difficult times a collection of fist-pumping anthems like highlights Love And Sin, Rebel Town and We Strike Back are just what the doctor ordered.
