[youtube]http://youtu.be/1iiFBgtyN1A[/youtube]
I actually had a New Year’s resolution this year! I have been personally listening to an album since the year started that was released on each day of the year. Some of them are albums I’ve listened to before, and others are brand new ones that I’ll be listening to for the first time. Today, on January 16th, I listened to an album for the first time. Accept’s self-titled debut album, which was released on January 16th, 1979 on German label Brain Records. Humble beginnings.
The first thing I need to comment on here is that the album cover is awesome. Seriously. The album is a LOT happier sounding, and melodic than most Accept material. Udo doesn’t use the same gritty, angry voice as he uses on future albums. He definitely tries to sing in a traditional sense a lot more, which is great in some ways, and horrible in other ways. It’s good, because it shows that Udo really does have a nice range, and can sing with variety, but it can also be bad, because his famous throaty voice brought a lot of power, and intensity to Accept. It’s an album that has more of a classic rock sound than metal. It still has solid riffs here and there, too. It has quite a few memorable choruses peppered throughout on top of that.
If the band continued in this direction, they would have never went anywhere. They would have been lost in the increasing wave of classic rock bands. There’s not much bad about the album besides the fact that it’s one that could easily get lost in time. It can get quite silly here and there. So, some that dislike silliness in metal may find that off-putting. It’s different, but not really bad.
Favorite Tracks: “Take Him In My Heart,” “Lady Lou,” “Sounds of War”
If you want to give Accept a try with a different sound, give this album a listen. I think people who lean on the softer, or classic rock sound of metal will like this album. If you liked early Judas Priest stuff, (Sad Wings of Destiny, Stained Class, etc.) you’ll like this album. It’s worth a listen, for sure. It’s just very different than what we know of the band today.
