Accept - Balls to the Wall

Balls to the Wall is Accepts follow up to 1982s Restless and Wild. It keeps the Priest meets AC/DC influence. Not as much speed metal on this album and a lot more slow, heavy melodic tunes on this album.

Band - Accept

Album - Balls to the Wall

Genre - Heavy Metal

Year - 1983(4?)

Country - Germany

Well that’s certainly an eye catching album cover isn’t it…? Anyway, the album kicks off with the title track. It’s that song that everyone thought was AC/DC for some reason as well as the only Accept song most people recognize. It’s a great, moody midpaced tune and far better then most of what AC/DC ever did… It’s catchy and heavy. The bridge section after the solo is a great sing along part. I love the guitars harmonizing with the group singing. Bass is great in this song as well. Next up is London Leatherboys, yes, LONDON LEATHERBOYS. Anyway, this tune has a pretty catchy verse and the chorus is nothing to scoff at either. Udo sounds pretty crazed in this one. A bunch of good solos in this tune as well. Fight it Back is a speed metal tune. The verse is very vocal driven with single power chords played to back Udo up. The riffing really picks up during the chorus’. By the way, Udo waits like a madman in this tune! Sounds amazing! Soloing is, as usual top notch. Head Over Heels starts off with some bass plucking, the goes into a midpaced riff. It’s a pretty melodic tune, not very heavy for the most part though. Soloing makes up for that though. I swear these Accept guitarists are so underrated! Next up is Losing More Then You’ve Ever Had. Long ass song title but a pretty good song! As with most of the songs on this album it goes more of a melodic route over the pounding heavy riffs of the previous album. It sort of sounds “ballady,” It’s a pretty slow tune and very melodic. Love Child is a great, up tempo tune. Great melodic pre-chorus thingy! I love that part, the guitar and vocals are totally in tune then it breaks into the chorus! It’s a really catchy song as well as some great riffing and soloing. Turn Me On is next. it starts off with a good, heavy riff. It’s also worth noting the riff is a very typical “metal” riff. Lots of people have imitated it and I’m sure Accept weren’t the first to use it either. The chorus is very melodic (and just a little cheesy sounding), then it goes back into the slow, heavy riffing and then more brilliant classical soloing. The bass line really stands out in this tune. It’s nothing special but it’s very driving and heavy so it fills out the sound nicely. Next is the ripping speed metal track Losers and Winners. Ok maybe not THAT ripping but it’s pretty awesome anyway for 1983 and today! In 1983 the only real competition was Metallica, Slayer and Venom when it came to the high speed shit. Nice fast riffing and like the other tunes on this one, really catchy melodies to go with the furious riffing. Guardian of the Night is slow and heavy. It once again shows the importance of Bass in Heavy Metal. Winter Dreams starts of with some acoustic guitar and bass. It’s not long before some electric guitar comes in but it’s still mostly acoustic. This tunes a ballad. It’s a nice, sort of relaxing tune. You can hear a bit of influence from some of Priest’s Ballads.

This album is rather different from the previous. It’s more focused on melody then speed and heaviness. Not to say this isn’t a heavy album, it is, but its heavy in a different way. The riffing is great and the songs are composed brilliantly. The soloing is off the charts amazing! These guitarists should get way more credit for the skills shown on these last two albums. I love the guitar playing on this record. The drumming is good, nothing special though hjust drumming as drumming should be. There are a few cool fills throughout the album though. The bass playing stands out at times more then it did on the previous record, lots of cool basslines on this album. Udo sounds as good as ever. He isn’t quite as maniacal on this record, but he has him moments. Especially in Fight it Back. There are two very badass screams delivered in that tune. Udo really deserves a place with the other great vocalists of metal. Once again, a great album from a very underrated band. Pick it up along with the previous if you dig old school metal. Oh and don't let the album cover turn you off, its a great album.

Here are four tunes to wet your whistle.