Jimmy Kay and Alan Dixon from Canada’s The Metal Voice recently spoke to acclaimed Metal author Martin Popoff about his new book Metal Heart-Aiming High with Accept

The book covers the complete Accept biography discussing all the bands  albums and songs. It explores all era’s, from the Udo Dirkschneider beginnings and success, to  the David Reece dramas and break up, to the rebirth and relevance with current singer Mark Tornillo.

Popoff tells ‘The Metal Voice’  about Accept’s break out album Balls to The Wall,” Balls to the wall had this uniform smoothness to it and edge in the lyrics and that’s a whole story that’s talked about in the book. Gaby Hoffmann at this point is writing all their lyrics, a female, the manager of the band  and some of the songs are written perhaps  from a  female point of view. Then they came out with this whole gay controversy on the album cause there is a picture of all of them with their shirt off and the Balls to the wall, the guy holding a ball, the big wrestler leg thing. It had this very funny sub current story line behind it. But I remember getting it and just thinking this is a really a multi dimensional band.”

Popoff goes on to discuss the bringing in of American vocalist David Reece and firing of Udo in 1989 an attempt for more commercial success (Eat the Heat album),” there is a funny quote from David Reece, Dieter Dierks takes David Reece  aside and says, if this album fails were both going to get blamed or if it’s successful we both going to be heroes, of course it fails.”

Popoff concludes on the overwhelming acceptance of Mark Tornillo in the present, “ This is a textbook example of being able to change their singer and having it work out perfectly because Mark Tornillo is totally accepted as a member of Accept.”

Watch the whole interview here: