Accept

Accept is the debut on which Accept presents, with a rough heat, the archetype of the hard-edged heavy metal it would later polish. The guitar chops short, sharp riffs, and Udo Dirkschneider’s gritty, distinctive voice gives the songs a particular tension. The fresh energy of a young band, before its style hardened, fills the whole. From the momentum of the opener “Lady Lou” and the shading of “Seawinds” to the drive of “Tired of Me” and the aggression of “Helldriver” and “Street Fighter,” the songs show the many sides of a young band. It is intriguing how a roughness natural to the transition from hard rock toward heavy metal coexists with a sure melodic sense. Precisely because it is a stage before the completed style, the raw feel of the playing and a strong will to move forward come through directly. The bud of the steel-hard riffs that would characterize later Accept can already be heard here. It is a rough but important starting point for a band that would lay a foundation of German heavy metal.