Jimmy Kay and Alan Dixon from Canada’s The Metal Voice recently spoke to Accept’s co-founder and guitarist Wolf Hoffmann about the bands upcoming studio album ‘Too Mean to Die’ which will be released January 15 2021 via Nuclear Blast Records.
During the chat Hoffmann also gave his thoughts on the departure of Peter Baltes, the influence of Eddie Van Halen and revisited the legacy of Accept’s classic albums Restless and Wild and Balls to the Wall
When asked about the making and style of new Accept studio album ‘Too Mean to die’ “Brand new songs in the traditional form of Accept and better than ever. It’s got a whole bunch of stuff on it which surprised a lot of the people. I have heard comments from people that say it reminds them a little bit of the Blood of the Nations album as far as the vibe is concerned. Another comment I got was there is a lot of surprising variety on this album. When we started recording and writing the songs we never had a goal or a plan of what we are trying to achieve that we must do this or do that, we just basically followed where the songs took us and that kind of shaped the album in the end. “
What were the pros and cons of releasing an album during a pandemic “Ask me again in three months and I will tell you of how good of an idea it was (laughs). We don”t know when everything is going to go back to normal, if ever, so how long do you postpone everything? Is it really such a good idea to let the album just sit there in the archives until day X which may or not be anytime soon or is it better to give the fans now so they can at least enjoy the music and when the day comes we will see each other on tour again. In a weird way this might actually help album sales because people don’t have to buy concert tickets because they can’t, maybe more people will buy the album ? “
When asked about the absence of long time bassist Peter Baltes “It was a little strange for me I was kind of heartbroken and sad when it happened but at the end of the day what are you going to do, you have to keep on moving, the show must go on. We got a great new guy on bass his name is Mark Motnik and he actually contributed quite a bit to this album, songwriting wise which really surprised me in a good way. I miss Peter but it has been two years and the ship rolls on what can you do.
When asked if Eddie Van Halen influenced by his guitar playing “At the end of the day he influenced everybody, anyone who heard him was blown away. He opened up a whole new chapter for every guitar player but I personally was never really influenced by him I was more drawn to Ritchie Blackmore and Uli Jon Roth and other players with a little more of the classical European style of playing.”
ACCEPT’s lineup has also been expanded with the addition of a third guitarist, Philip Shouse, who originally filled in for Uwe Lulis during last year’s “Symphonic Terror” tour, before being asked to join the band permanently.
“Too Mean To Die” was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee with British producer Andy Sneap (JUDAS PRIEST, MEGADETH), who has been responsible for the magnificent studio sound of ACCEPT since 2010.
During these difficult times, there is always some positivity to be found when it comes to music. So, we are very lucky that metal giants ACCEPT were not going to let a pandemic stop them and have created their forthcoming 16th studio album “Too Mean To Die” over this last year! The album is set for release on 15th January 2021 via Nuclear Blast.
Metal Shock Finland Senior Manager Alison Booth, recently caught up with ACCEPT mastermind and guitar legend Wolf Hoffmann, who was a guest on her radio show Blackdiamond’s Metal Mayhem at TotalRock. The whole show can be heard at this location. Of course the new album was discussed, plus lots more! You can hear the chat on the audio player below, along with a few excerpts to read:
Discussing the recording of the album, Wolf explained:
“Yeah it’s crazy, we couldn’t finish. We had about half of it recorded and we all went back home to regroup and write the rest of the materialand we wanted to meet again later in the year and all of a sudden the countries were closing down and nobody could come or leave. I mean, we could travel within the U.S. but Andy couldn’t come back. So we had no choice but to try to find a remote solution and after lots of trial and error, we found a solution that seemed to work technicallyquite well. Unfortunately, my internet connection broke down the whole time. But we made it work in the end and when the connection was stable, it worked surprisingly okay. You know, it’s not your first choice, but it worked. It was almost like a Zoom call, it’s kind of okay. It’s not perfect, but it’s still better than nothing if it gets the job done.But you would still want to be in the same room with people you talk to basically.
Wolf discussed how the pandemic has affected ACCEPT:
“Tell me about it, it’s been terrible for us. We had all of last summer’s festivals cancelled and pushed back to 2021. So everything was pushed back to next year for the festivals and then our headline tour was to coincide with the release of the album in January, but that won’t happen. It’s all been pushed back one complete year to 2022. Yeah it’s a long time, so we have to wait and see how things are going.
A lot of bands have been postponing their releases, but we decided that it’s probably not a bad idea to just go ahead and release it now, give the fans at least something to listen to. I’m sure we can all meet again basically, but it serves nobody’s interest if we just wait with the release until we can tour again, because who knows when that is.“
Talking about the new songs:
“‘Symphony Of Pain’ was one of the songs that was actually written first. I had that sort of more or less finished, just sitting there waiting to be performed. And then one of the other earlier songs I did was ‘Undertaker’ which was based on some lyrics Mark wrote. Mark gave me these lyrics and he wrote ’em sort of like a poem without any music in mind, just a bunch of words about an undertaker. I thought it’s kind of a cool subject title and I wrote the music sort of to fit the lyrics and you know, with that little intro it turned out quite a little eery and spooky, which kinda fits the subject obviously and turned out alright.
It’s nice to see people’s reaction. But I’m getting different reactions from journalists and big fans all over the board. Some people like the more moderate songs like ‘Undertaker’ and ‘Overnight Sensation’ and then other people go for the kill basically, with ‘Zombie Apocalypse’ and ‘Too Mean To Die’ – the more in your face metal kinda riffs and songs.“
Wolf talked about the changes in the band:
“Yeah it’s crazy – we lost one guy but gained two new guys, two for one (laughs). I mean with Peter, it’s just sad. It just killed me at the time but I’m sort of over it now, because it’s just after all these forty years, it was a sad departure. But I have to respect it and I mean, people move onand he made the decision. He no longer wanted to be in the band and what can I do? I just move on and move forward. I wouldn’t say Martin stepped right in his footsteps, that would be ridiculous because hey, I played with Peter for forty years. But Martin really is doing his best and he’s doing a tremendous job filling in, he’s great. He even contributed a lot to the songwriting, which took me completely by surprise. He wrote some great songs for this album and that was a blessing, he’s awesome. I really didn’t want the album to be all mine, mine, mine – I didn’t want it to be like a solo album, so I welcomed input from everybody and Martin was the guy who really stepped forward and delivered some cool stuff.“
Wediscovered what a great player, nice guy and easy going and perfect fit for the band Phil is. You know, when we toured with him on this orchestra tour last year, Headbanger’s Symphony, Symphonic Terror tour and we found out what a great guy he is. We basically didn’t want to let him go after this tour, it’s as simple as that. And we decided, why not have three guitar players? We did some shows together and it worked brilliantly. I gotta say I was not one hundred percent sure it would be as good as it is, but I was actually pleasantly surprised how well it sounds and how well it looks and how well it works on stage. It’s a good camaraderie in the band and yeah, it’s just one more guy, awesome! And he plays a lot of lead on the album too, so we deliberately made enough space for him to be on the album and especially with that in mind for live shows. We gave him enough space to play leads and with trading licks and we do a lot of twin leads together – so there’s a lot of room for Phil on this album.“
ACCEPT‘s ‘Pandamic‘ official video clip reached more than 3 Million views on YouTube, which seems to be one good side effect of COVID 19 pandemic . The band has posted the following statement:
“We all hope that our fans across the world remain safe and healthy wherever they live or work! We all must band together to defeat this nasty virus!!! You are not alone – the ACCEPT Family will STAND TOGETHER and we shall all continue to help and support each other! We will stay connected … today and tomorrow and forever! The sad reality today: This is A PANDEMIC – but, when we wrote this song ten years ago, we were pushing the idea that it is THE LOVE FOR HEAVY METAL that is spreading like a disease; this is true for the past, the present and the future. Today we believe that when you are head banging’ to our song … that song is a Heavy Metal DISEASE, one that will make your day brighter and help you through this “other” disease!😊
Let’s unite virtually in metal, stand together STRONG. Please obey social distancing! #stayhome”
Take good care of yourself and your family! Stay safe! With eternal love,
ACCEPT ❤️”
Teutonic metal gods, ACCEPT released this song through their epic return album,”Blood of the Nations“, which was released on 20 August 2010 via Nuclear Blast. The album was a successful release for the band, which hit the charts on many country like USA, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Sweden, Japan and Austria. It was also the first album to feature the amazing vocalist Mark Tornillo, who replaced Udo Dirkschneider successfully for the fans.
A shocking piece of news hits the metal universe today; ACCEPT‘s founding member, Peter Baltes has recently revealed that he has quit the band! He posted the following statement:
“To all ACCEPT fans: I hereby like to announce my departure as bass player from ACCEPT. I have been with the band from the very beginning. Many of you have been there as well. I like to thank you all for the great years we shared together. Keep it metal.”
His old friend and another founding member of the band, Wolf Hoffmann has also posted his statement on his official Facebook page:
“We spent four decades together and went through thick and thin, ups and downs and I remember some incredible moments on stage. There was a blind understanding between us, personally and musically, that is very rare in this business!
Looking back, I will forever cherish the carefree early years, the countless hours we spent writing songs, goofing around or roaming the cities together on tour – just having a good ol’time!
Especially these last 10 years, after the revival of ACCEPT being so much fun and so successful that I thought we would continue forever and sail into the proverbial sunset together – maybe until one of us would drop dead on stage. But I guess I was wrong, it wasn’t meant to be.
To see Peter leave ACCEPT now saddens me immensely but there’s nothing I can do but to wish him well – hoping that this is the right decision for him and that he will find whatever he is looking for …
I will certainly miss my musical brother! One thing is certain, however : ACCEPT will continue full steam ahead !! Wolf”
“And there are days that you start them with some shocking and sad news… ” Chief Editor of Metal Shock Finland, Mohsen “Stargazer” Fayazi stated, “But I know Wolf Hoffmann and his passion for Metal. He’ll do it full steam ahead! Wishing him, Peter, all other band members and of course Gaby, the best of luck and success!”
The band has recently released a live album, “Symphonic Terror – Live At Wacken 2017” on November 23rd, 2018 via Nuclear Blast. This album is a unique one, features a unique ACCEPT show, shot on August 3, 2017 at the Heavy Metal Mecca,Wacken Open Air 2017, where the band played the biggest and most extraordinary show of its career in front of 80,000, on top of thousands more fans watching via a live stream.
For The Metal Voice former Anthrax singer Neil Turbin interviewed ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffmann in Pasadena, California USA at The Rose on September 29 2018. Wolf Hoffmann spoke about the bands upcoming plans to tour with an orchestra all over the world, new album update and their new live album Symphonic Terror Live at Wacken 2017 that will be released on November 23 2018 via Nuclear Blast.
Watch the interview here:
When asked about the new live album Symphonic Terror Live at Wacken 2017
“It’s going to be a live DVD/CD of the show we did live at Wacken with 50 piece orchestra it was incredible, I always wanted to do that and it finally all came together when we played at Wacken a 2 hour set. I also played some stuff from my solo album ‘Headbangers Symphony’ and we played a bunch of Accept songs that were never done with orchestra. I have always been a fan of classical music however I was never a classically trained musician. My solo album was more like a tribute from an outsider. I just grew up wanting to make noise with Marshall stacks. A lot of these classical pieces are beautiful and I always thought it would be so cool to have a bunch of violins on stage and combine the two worlds.”
When asked if they plan to tour with an orchestra
“The orchestra at Wacken was meant to be a one off but then everybody loved it so much and we loved it so much he decided to bring this out on the road with us somehow because that what it waere it was meant to be. So we will be performing with an orchestra next year all over the world. It will start in Europe then Russia then the rest of the world.”
When asked about details of an upcoming studio album
“We have been so busy touring and with the classical album coming out so no time yet to work on. Yes we will make a new album but when we will get started I don’t know yet. I can’t write on the road. Then will be a time when I set the time aside and focus and dig into it. The musical direction is not going to change dramatically we don’t want to, we haven’t changed our style on the last four albums.
When asked about his writing style
“I am not trying to write any different I’m trying to write in the frame of mind that we had back in the day, how we felt back then and trying to recapture that even though it’s 40 years ago. I think we found out style and we are trying to write songs that could have been written 30 years ago. We are trying to write old school songs with modern tools and technology. It sounds simple but it really isn’t. We are not trying to reinvent the wheel but we want to build on what we have.
Heavy metal pioneers ACCEPT will celebrate their newest album’s live premiere exclusively tomorrow at Wacken Open Air, “Night To Remember” which makes it very special. Our Mohsen Stargazer Fayazi had an interview with the legendary Wolf Hoffmann, they talked about “The Rise Of Chaos”, Wacken, his plan for retirement and much more.
I’d like to compare you with Jimi Hendrix, or better say you are the Jimi Hendrix of Heavy Metal.
W: (Laughs) I never thought of myself that way, it’s only one Jimi Hendrix. But Thank you very much!
I’d like to know your opinion on your guitaring skills and if you have any methods?
W: “I don’t think I really have a method – it really comes as second nature to me at this point in life. I guess I’ve been playing for so long and writing songs for so many years, it’s nothing I actively think about much any more. For me, the challenge is always to come up with something that I find exciting and if I find it exciting, then hopefully other people would too. You know, after you’ve written hundreds of songs in your life, of course it doesn’t get easier to come up with something that’s totally typical, but at the same time something new that you find yourself exciting.
So that’s why it sometimes takes many weeks and months to write these songs. In this case it took us the better part of last year, Peter and I were sitting there for months at a time.”
How does a song come together?
W: “It’s a little different each time. The Rise Of Chaos for instance for the longest time was just an empty riff song. It was just really almost like a jam session with a bunch of riffs and I had this just sitting there for a long, long time never really knowing what to do with it and I tried several other approaches. First of all where to sing and what to sing. And finally we came up with that line The Rise Of Chaos and it seemed to fit the spirit of these riffs, because they’re all very wild and a bit crazy in parts.
So The Rise Of Chaos was something that grabbed our attention. Other times it’s hook lines, like we’re talking about with Analog Man. It’s a saying that’s been around the band for years ’cause Mark has always been bitching about technology when things go wrong. He’s always been saying ‘I’m an analog man trapped in a digital world’, so we thought ‘wow that’s cool, we should just write a song’. So, with that in mind you sit there and think how you can sing that, what’s a good phrasing, what’s a good tempo, what’s a good riff to go with it.
But most of the time it’s the music first, where you have some sort of riffing and some groove and a drum beat. And you find that exciting and then you start thinking what to sing on that, ’cause it goes hand in hand. One without the other doesn’t help at all.”
How was working with Andy Sneap again?
W: “Oh it’s great! He’s like an old brother, he’s part of the team at this point. We didn’t really want to change any of that because we knew it works. We really wanted to concentrate on the songs and the material and not on any of the peripherals.”
Indeed on The Rise Of Chaos you were loyal to the ACCEPT traditional metal style, but I can say that you made it a little different this time with some elements – it’s more melodic, especially in the riffs and solos and song structures.
W: “It really just so happens. You can never go out and say to yourself ‘ok I want to make an album that’s 20% different and 30% the same’, it just doesn’t work that way. You just write the best songs you can and they shape up in a certain way. It just takes on a life of its own and leads you to do different things, until one day you arrive at something that you like. And you do that many times over until you have a complete album.
It’s only now the album is finished and people hear it with fresh ears and they’re telling me it’s this or that and I always have to say ‘ok I have to take it for what it is’, it wasn’t planned that way.”
Since 2010 when you returned to the business, it’s obvious that your lyrics are now more adult, more serious and more about the world today in a direct manner unlike the days of ‘Fast as a Shark’.
W: “It’s usually Peter and myself together exchanging ideas, demo stuff. It can be quite funny sometimes (laughs). Sooner or later we’re looking at lyrical content and what inspires us. We have a cheat sheet of many hook lines and ideas and we go through that and see what’s best.
Those are usually based on stuff we find interesting that comes up in conversation and stuff we see on the news. We’re not doing fantasy because we have no interest in fantasy. Actual events or occurences right now.”
So let’s talk about the lyrics….
“Mark writes the lyrics, Peter and I usually just have a title or a hook line then we say ‘we’ve got a song called The Rise Of Chaos, here it is Mark. Write whatever comes to mind, whatever it means to you.’ I’m not involved in the actual writing and meaning of the lyrics that much.”
So let’s talk about the ‘Night to Remember’ at Wacken – are you excited about it?
W: “Very excited – this is the first time we’re gonna be onstage with an orchestra, it’s gonna be crazy.
It’s the first time that I’m gonna play songs from my solo album Headbangers Symphony. And it’s the first time you’re ever gonna hear Accept songs that you’ve heard before, but they’re gonna be completely differently arranged for the orchestra. I think it’s gonna sound killer.”
Accept seems to be built to create flames on stage and I know very well that you love to be on it, so can you tell me what is magical about it and if you have particular memories?
W: “It’s just something that’s unlike anything else in life. Just being out there in front of people and just playing songs and everyone reacting to them. It’s an unforgetting feeling, it’s almost like a drug – once you’ve had it, you want it again and again and more of it, it’s crazy man. I don’t know that there’s anything else in life that compares to it, at least I haven’t found it.
It’s an amazing feeling to start a riff and everybody recognises it and arms are flying in the air, people are singing along – it’s goosebump material right there. It’s just an amazing feeling.
I’m not interested in perfection, I’m just trying to get there and realising that nothing ever can be perfect, you take it for what it is. It’s why people like live shows – we’re not trying to have the kind of show where everything is choreographed and scripted and everything runs off a laptop, because there are performers nowadays where everything is basically run by a computer and they’re just lip synching along and moving to a scripted show. Not so much in metal. I think metal is something that’s made by humans and humans have their own characteristics and they perform slightly different every night – that’s why not every show is 100% the same.”
My next question might sound a bit silly, but it’s something that concerns me – do you think about retirement?
W: “No – because I’ve been retired already. I came out of retirement to start this whole thing again. I know what retirement is like and this is much more exciting, why would I look forward to retirement? (laughs)”
I would like to know what is the most interesting thing about heavy metal for you?
W: “It’s the fan connection I believe. It’s a very unique metal thing, where you have such a strong (or we as metal bands) loyal followers.In our case, they’ve been following us for years and years, decades really. I think it’s something quite unusual in the music world, where a lot of times it’s here today and gone tomorrow. The metal community is so loyal and so long term and this is something quite unique. I’m very aware of it and I think it’s fantastic.
It’s such a gratifying feeling to see that fans are listening to albums or songs we wrote thirty or forty years ago. If we make an album today, The Rise Of Chaos, who knows, it might be around twenty or thirty years from now, people might still be listening to it.
That’s why we have such a respect for what we do and for the fans, because it’s got such a long staying power. So we wanna be super careful not to release something that won’t stand the test of time.”
