Originally published by L.S. Media. April 10th 2012.
L.S. Media Rating ****
Arguably one of the best Heavy Metal bands to come out of Germany, Accept have released one of their finest albums in years and even though to the person who dips in and out of the genre and whose knowledge stops at the moment where “it becomes too loud” it has to be said they are missing out on an album of incredible intensity and sublime electric guitars coupled with lyrics that dig beneath the heart of any metal fans psyche and the reason why the music speaks to more and more fans.
Stalingrad not only brings the band to the forefront of the metal fans adoration again but also sees the musicians work with one of the best in the business in the shape of former Sabbat stalwart, Andy Sneap. Aside from the music created by the band, one of the major reasons to buy this album if you love the European Metal scene is that with Andy Sneap at the helm for the band for a second time, the music’s intense feeling is magnified substantially and with a certain rigorous discipline that can be missing in other groups.
Although you can trace the band’s genesis back to the late 60’s it’s in the last couple of albums alongside the 2009 reunion and with a stable line up that not only toys magnificently with the song’s lyrics but gives it deep dirty insidious feel as it crashes headlong into guitar riffs and booming and terrific drums patterns that to be honest should scare those happy in being comfortable listening to the equally terrifying “boy band” music.
On songs such as Revolution and the title track Stalingrad, with its colourful imagery of the famous Second World War battle, Mark Tornillo vocals dance and sing in the air like a Lancaster Bomber and its credit to the band that they have recorded a powerful song that can still bring bad memories of suffering to many. Look at the lyrics though, incredibly sensitive and with ideas that fly in the face of detractors of the genre.
There’s a reason why Accept have lasted in one form or another for so long and the reason becomes all too clear when fans hear this album. Genuinely stunning!
Ian D. Hall