Steelfactory

Steelfactory is the sixteenth album, on which U.D.O. returned to straightforward, heavy metal against a background of strong performing unity among the members. It was made with Udo Dirkschneider, Andrey Smirnov (guitar), Dee Dammers (guitar), Fitty Wienhold (bass) and Sven Dirkschneider (drums). It is also the last album to feature Wienhold, who supported the band for 22 years, and the songs are co-written by all members. Songs like "Tongue Reaper," "Make the Move" and "In the Heat of the Night" reach riff and chorus without hesitation from a short intro. Fast songs have sharpness, and mid-tempo ones have a stamping weight, so the whole album does not stay in the same expression. The album's appeal is the persuasiveness of playing that keeps the conventions of classic metal without turning them into mere nostalgia. A record that robustly shows the unchanging strength of U.D.O.