If you don't already have 'Metal Heart' in your collection ... what the hell are you waiting for?!

In the early 1980s, I vividly remember Kerrang! (the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal bible of the day) championing the then largely unheard of Accept who were a suitably mean and moody looking bunch from Solingen in Germany. The occasion was the UK release of their fourth studio album 'Restless & Wild', an album which despite the rather naff cover shot chosen by Heavy Metal Worldwide (why the hell they didn't go with the original German version one can only speculate) turned out to be one of those pivotal releases that would subsequently help to define Classic Metal in its purest form.

'Restless...' kick-started a truly unassailable run of quintessential albums from the band, a run that for my money reached its zenith in early 1985 with the release of 'Metal Heart', arguably one of the greatest (if not the greatest) Metal albums of all time. Combining scything riffs, deliciously caustic melodies and monumental hooks, it blew the long held myth that Metal bands couldn't write catchy songs clean out of the water, in the process setting in stone a stoic benchmark which has never been surpassed since.

Led from the front by the inimitable vocal snarl of Udo Dirkschneider (not to mention the precision engineered twin guitar gusto of Wolf Hoffmann and Jorg Fischer), '...Heart' showcased a well-oiled Metal machine, a band that over five previous albums had honed both its chops and song-writing skills to the point where truly great things were expected ... and boy did they deliver! Produced by long time Scorpions collaborator Dieter Dierks at his studio near Cologne, '...Heart' is rarefied audio dynamite and nowhere is this more obvious than on the earth-shattering title track which opens proceedings.

Built around a brace of classical themes from Beethoven and Tchaikovsky, 'Metal Heart' (the song) is a gargantuan riff strewn beast, a mutha of an epic that should be viewed with the same reverence as tracks like 'Stargazer' or 'Kashmir'. But more than that it defines precisely what Accept were all about and perfectly sets the tone for the rest of the album. I could wax lyrically for hours about 'Living For Tonite', 'Up To The Limit', 'Midnight Mover' or the oh so catchy 'Screaming For A Love-Bite', but for the sake of both your sanity and mine, I'll simply say that if ever some alien civilization decides to pay us a visit, '...Heart' is the de facto album that should be aired to introduce them to the delights of Metal!

Recorded later that same year in Nagoya, the six track EP/mini album 'Kaizoku-Ban' has been added to this particular re-issue, and if you wanted proof of just how potent a force Accept were on stage back then, as well as in the studio, this is it. Featuring no less than four tracks from '...Heart' and adding two from its predecessor 'Balls To The Wall', the all too brief 'Kaizoku-Ban' captures the band in all their glory laying waste to whatever stands before them.

Packaged with sleeve notes from Malcolm Dome and re-mastered by Andy Pearce (one of Rock Candy's go to guys), if you don't already have 'Metal Heart' in your collection ... what the hell are you waiting for?!

Dave Cockett