When I last interviewed German metal god, Udo Dirkschneider, I asked about the possibility of a full length from his Dirkschneider & the Old Gang project, only to be met by a sly grin and laughter, followed by a cryptic message: “Wait and see!” Well, we’ve waited, and here we are, face to face with the debut album from said project, Babylon. If U.D.O. is more Accept than Accept these days, then the Old Gang is even more Accept than Accept. Babylon sees Dirkschneider reunited with fellow ’80s Accept members Peter Baltes on bass and Stefan Kaufmann on guitar, as well as original U.D.O. guitarist Matthias Dieth, hence the band’s moniker. Son Sven holds down the beat, while newcomer Manuela Bibert provides additional vocals.
Together, this gang have turned in an album that’s bound to hit close to home for every old school headbanger. With all due respect to 2023’s Touchdown, which was a real return to form for U.D.O., Babylon has to be the strongest collection of songs to feature Dirkschneider’s iconic voice in years, largely sounding like the missing link between Accept’s Russian Roulette and U.D.O.’s Animal House. The arrangements and delivery are pure euro metal mania, heavy, unrelenting, and riff-driven, but with an emphasis on melody, and even an occasional nod to the ’70s hard rock of Dirkschneider and company’s youth.
“It Takes Two to Tango” sets the stage for this rollicking affair, bursting out of the gate with air-guitar friendly riffs, old school synths, and a larger than life, shout-along chorus. The exotic flavored title track follows, sounding less reminiscent of Dirkschneider’s past catalog and more like a lost Dio tune, but I’m not complaining! When the first two songs are this strong, one should worry about the rest of the album losing steam. Yet as the fist-pumping “Hellbreaker” gave way to the melodically inclined “Time to Listen”, and “Metal Sons” came ripping in like a euro festival anthem, it became apparent: There’s no stopping the Old Gang!
Two of the most interesting cuts on here are “Dead Man’s Hand” and “The Law of a Madman”: Both songs that I enjoy thoroughly for different reasons. “Dead Man’s Hand” could pass for a Night Flight Orchestra song with its retro demeanor and disco beat (yes, you read that correctly), showcasing a side of Udo I’m sure few fathomed. Meanwhile, “The Law of a Madman” fuses Teutonic metal fury with musical finesse reminiscent of Mk. II Purple, especially in the intro and solo passages. Indeed, it was upon the rock of In Rock that a band like Accept built their own metallic dynasty.
Come Babylon‘s homestretch, we’re treated to an obligatory speedster (“Propaganda”), yet another fist-pumper (“Batter the Power”), and a dreamy slab of metallized AOR (“Beyond the End of Time”), the latter of which I’d be shocked if Baltes didn’t at the very least co-author (I need to dive into the liner notes of this album). To say Babylon beats Accept at their own game would be a copout and cheap closing to this review. I mean, it DOES, but more importantly, it highlights the unbreakable musical bond between these metal legends, who are still writing and playing at the top of their game after all these years. A metal heart goes a long way!
8 out of 10
Label: Reigning Phoenix Music
Genre: Heavy Metal
For fans of: Accept, U.D.O., Judas Priest