When Udo Dirkschneider established his namesake solo band in 1987, he was already a metal legend. His work with Accept was absolutely groundbreaking and remains some of the finest Teutonic metal ever recorded. Fast forward over 35 years later and the veteran singer remains prolific as ever. Just a month shy of the release of U.D.O.’s 19th studio album, Touchdown, we had the honor of sitting down with Dirkschneider. In this brand new interview, we discuss this new album, the impact of the pandemic on his band, the addition of former Accept bandmate Peter Baltes, and 40 years of two classic metal milestones. God bless Udo!
Greetings Udo and welcome to Defenders of the Faith! How are you doing today?
Udo Dirkschneider: I’m fine, thank you very much!
Thank you for taking the time to do this interview. I know you’ve had a busy summer playing the festival circuit across Europe. How have those shows been going?
UD: Oh, very good! We’re just in the middle of everything. Of course, in between now, there’s a lot of interviews for the upcoming album. Everything is going fine. There’s some really good festivals coming up. Next week, there’s one in Germany. Then, another one in Germany, go to Spain, Czech Republic…I don’t know *laughs*. Until the end of October, we are on the festival season.
Next month will see the release of your new album, Touchdown. When did work get started on this album?
UD: This time that was not so easy. We started slowly after the Game Over album. Of course, there was the pandemic going on. We said, “Before we go home and do nothing, let’s start on the album.” But there were so many things that happened. First, the pandemic stuff. Then, my son’s (Sven) house flooded. We had built a new studio in the cellar so we could do some pre-production stuff, gone. The next thing was the war between Russia and Ukraine. We had a problem with our guitar player Andrey (Smirnov). He was living in Ukraine for a long time and he couldn’t get out of there. It was like, what are we doing?
In the end, he found a way. He came by car with his family, which was also very dangerous. So we had to stop. Then he made it to Germany. Now he’s living in Germany, creating a new life, but it takes some time. When he came down here, he started working on some songs. In the end, we managed everything. The result of all of this is Touchdown and I think it’s a little bit more aggressive than the last album, Game Over. It’s more in your face.
Are there any recurring musical or lyrical themes on Touchdown? What sets it apart from past U.D.O. releases?
UD: On this album, a lot of things came together. The basics of U.D.O., but also modern stuff, different arrangements. We were trying some…I don’t want to say new things, but different things. Since the Game Over album, I’ve worked together with my son creating all the lyrics and the vocal melodies. The younger generation, they have different ideas. We also have younger guitar players now. They listen to different bands. I’m the old guy now *laughs*. I listen to the older stuff, but it’s interesting to come up with different ideas. I’m a guy who’s never said, “OK, this is not the way of what I’ve been doing the last 40 years.” No, I’m an open minded guy. It was like, “OK, let’s try this and this and this.” Again, for me, on this album, a lot of things came together, what we were creating the last couple of years. I’m really happy with the new album.
You mentioned writing with your son, Sven. When did he first get interested in music and when did it occur to you that you might have a musical partnership together in U.D.O.?
UD: He started when he was 4 years old with a little drumkit for kids. What a nightmare in the house! It was so loud and I thought, “OK, maybe he’s doing this for one year and then it’s over.” No *laughs*! Now he’s sitting behind the drums in U.D.O. He’s now nearly 8 years in the band. In my opinion, he’s getting better and better. He’s more involved in everything. Like I said before, we love doing the lyrics together and working together on vocal lines. It’s a lot of fun to work with him. It’s not like a typical father and son thing. It’s more a friendship. I’m really happy to have him. I’m really proud of what he is doing. It’s a good thing. He’s a young guy who pushes everything. What can I say? I’m happy to have him in the band.
Perhaps most importantly, Touchdown sees you reunited with your fellow Accept bandmate, bassist Peter Baltes. How did his inclusion impact the band and this album?
UD: When Peter came to the band…he’s now a permanent member of the band, but it was not planned. He was helping us out in the beginning. Our bass player (Tilen Hudrap) collapsed onstage after the third show in Germany. We thought, “What are we doing? Who can help us out so we can continue touring?” Then of course, I called Peter. We’ve done a lot of things together, like an album with Dirkschneider & the Old Gang and on and on. He said, “OK, I can do that. I’ll help you out until Tilen recovers.” But the thing was, Tilen…I don’t know.
In the middle of the tour, we get an email saying, “I don’t really want to be a member of U.D.O. Don’t ask me why.” Everybody was like, “Huh? What does that mean?” It was in South America where we were talking, “What can we do? We need a new bass player.” Then Peter came out and said, “I’d love to join the band. We have so much fun doing this. I like it.” I was surprised and asked, “Are you sure?” *laughs* “Yeah, give me 2 days! I have to do some things in America.” Then he joined the band!
I’m really happy now to work with him again. He was not involved in composing. Everything was done already, but he played the bass on this album. We said, “OK Peter. You know the arrangement, but feel free to put your own character on this. He did it. He also gave the album a push. I’m happy. Sometimes for me still, when I look on stage on the right side, it’s like, “OK, this is Peter! Here we go!” *laughs* It’s a lot of fun. We have a nice atmosphere in the band. He’s really into it and he’s looking already to work with us on the next U.D.O. album, but first we have Touchdown.
Expanding upon that last question, is it surreal to be playing with Peter again or is it like old times?
UD: Yeah, it’s like it was yesterday. Sometimes for me it’s still unreal, but it is real. The old feeling is back, also on stage. We’ve known each other for over 40 years *laughs*. It’s good. Like I said, he gives the whole thing another push. He works really good together with the guitar players. He works really good with Sven on drums. Everything is fine. I’m happy with everything at the moment.
As are the fans, who are loving the debut single off this album, “Forever Free”. It boasts that classic heavy melodic U.D.O. sound we all love. How did this song come to be?
UD: “Forever Free” is the most commercial song on this album. The record company said, “We wanna start with this song.” We said, “OK, here we go.” Andrey came up with this idea. There’s lots of interesting things with this song. We had another playback for this song. The melodies I was singing were still the same, but then Andrey said, “I got another idea for this. We’ll keep the vocals, but I’ll put something different underneath.” That’s how everything came together. It’s a good song with melody. Like you said, it’s a typical U.D.O. song.
Considering the title of this album, Touchdown, do you Udo have a favorite football team?
UD: Oh not really. To be honest, I’m not a real huge football fan, but I watch it sometimes here on TV. It’s interesting, but I didn’t get the rules. Now, since Peter’s joined the band, he’s explained how the rules are for football. He was like, “It’s like this and this and this.” “A-ha!” Also, we didn’t have a title for this album for a long time. We were in South America and sitting in a sports bar at the airport. There was a football game going on and we kept hearing the word, “Touchdown! Touchdown!”
I said, “Hey guys, I guess that’s the title for the album.” It fits together perfectly. Music-wise, we made a touchdown. We were bringing out music over the line. This game, football, is powerful. It’s like, “Yeah, go forward!”, so it fits together with the music on this new album. Then we said, “So what are we doing with the cover?” We put a football on it, made it a little bit more metal, and here we go. Everything was easy, onto the photo sessions and what we did. We did the group in football clothes.
Not many people have seen this already, but when the album comes out and you see the booklet, it’s really something. It’s different, but we said, “OK, we don’t wanna do any pictures again with leather jackets and chains, looking all heavy metal.” Of course, we also did some normal pictures, but that was the thing: Do something different. Why always do the same? Ever since we put it together, everything’s been perfect, so we’ll see how the reaction will be when the album is out.
This year is a big one not just for new material, but for anniversaries as well. 2023 marks 40 years of Accept’s Balls to the Wall, which happened to be the band’s breakthrough album here in America. Looking back now, what are your thoughts on its place in the Accept catalog and what are your favorite songs off of it?
UD: Definitely “Balls”. I like very much “Losers and Winners”. “Losing More Than You Ever Had”, that was a little bit different of a song. “Head Over Heels”, there’s so many good songs on that album. I think that was the album where for Accept, everything came together. There was Breaker and Restless and Wild and the first Accept album, but this was the point where everything was coming together. I think that’s also why this album was so successful, especially in America.
You mention “Losing More Than You Ever Had” being a bit of an outlier. It’s funny because that was always one of my favorites. It has that melodic edge that we would hear more of on Metal Heart and Russian Roulette. Who was bringing those influences into the band?
UD: The main ideas came from Wolf (Hoffmann) with the riffs. There was also a lot of influence from Lou Austin. He was one of the producers on this album. He was a really good guy. He’d say, “Yeah, maybe you can do it like this or this.” What I always do with the vocals, and still do today, is I get to playback or get an idea, a demo, and then I try to put some melodies on there. Sometimes with nonsense lyrics, but it’s just to find a melody. That was how we were working. I still do it like this. I do the same with U.D.O. First, I need some ideas from the guitar players. Then I can say, “OK, now it’s time to put the melody on the song.”
Are there any other major similarities or differences between recording with Accept and U.D.O.?
UD: Not really. The last 2 albums were a little bit difficult. Like we did with the Steelfactory album, normally when we have enough ideas, we go into a rehearsal room or small studio and then we start working on all the ideas face to face. It’s back to the roots. I know a lot of young bands don’t do that anymore. They do everything from home. What we did in a way, also with the last two albums, was the pandemic stuff. It was not possible to be in one room and stuff like that. I definitely know already for the next album we’ll do the same thing like we did with Steelfactory, which was also the same as what we did with Accept. In the 80s, you had 3 months time to do the pre-production. The record company would say, “We don’t care about money.”, but that has changed *laughs*. Things have definitely changed, but in a way, it’s still the same thing going on.
This year also marks the 40th anniversary of Raven’s All for One, which you produced alongside Michael Wagener. When did you first meet Raven and what are your memories of those sessions?
UD: At this time, I had a production company together with Michael Wagener that would travel. We did some stuff in Germany with some bands. Then we got a phone call from England, “There’s a band called Raven and they’re very interested in working with you.” We said, “Yeah, we need demos to hear what they’re doing.” We got the demos and I was like, “Uhh…we have to change a lot of things.” *laughs* We met the guys in Newcastle. To be honest, I didn’t understand nearly any words. When they were talking, it was like, “What?” *laughs*
They had a good rehearsal room and then we started working on the songs. We said, “Maybe we change this part and this part and this.” They’d say, “Uhhh, yeah, but why?” “Uhhh…” *laughs* We’d do this and the songs would be getting more and more better and having a bit of flow. In the end, we went to London for recording. This band was a miracle. They were playing live in the studio. They were not playing one by one. They were running around in the studio. It was a really funny time recording them. Also, the vocals were just over the top. I really have good memories about Raven. Whenever we see them on festivals, it’s like, “Oh, hello!” It’s still a really good friendship.
Speaking of over the top, who’s idea was it to cover “Born to Be Wild”?
UD: *laughs* That was a funny thing. We had a nice evening drinking. I think everybody was a little bit drunk. Then we said, “OK, let’s jam a little bit. Let’s do “Born to Be Wild”.” Michael, he was clever. He pushed the recording button and there was no overdubs, nothing. It was just live in the studio. It’s a funny thing that happened!
In closing, is there a possibility U.D.O. will return to the States in 2024?
UD: In ’23 already, I can tell you that. After 2 or 3 times of cancelling because the pandemic stuff, I’d say we’re 95%…you never know. Something can happen, but everything is now working and everything is already reserved, a nightlinger and all that stuff. It looks like that we are coming and the plan is that we are coming on the 3rd of November. That’s when we start the first show. We’re still working on the schedule and routing, and then it goes until the middle of December. I’m so happy that we can now make it to America again. I’m looking forward to this!
The new U.D.O. album, Touchdown, comes out Friday, August 25 on Atomic Fire Records. For more information on U.D.O., visit www.udo-online.de.
Great interview! Love Udo!!!