Label Web Site: http://www.afm-records.de/
Band Web Site: http://www.udo-online.de/
Release Date: October 26, 2004
Thunderball represents the eleventh release from U.D.O., which features the legendary ACCEPT front man Udo Dirkschneider. To say that the previous ten U.D.O. releases had slipped beneath my radar would be a gross understatement. In all honesty, the last time I heard Udo sing was back in 1985, as he was methodically making his way across the Madison Square Garden stage, dressed in army fatigues, adorned in face paint and screaming out the chorus of Balls to the Wall. Suffice it to say, I had little idea what to expect from Thunderball, short of Udos unmistakable voice.
If you miss the days of power chords, separated by fret-abusing fills, pounding 4/4 beats and the sound of a squat German guy howling into a microphone like hes trying to pass a 2mm kidney stone, have I got the perfect CD for you. Thunderball is an uncompromising, in your face, (dare I say it) balls to the wall, aural assault.
Thunderball kicks into gear with an opening track of the same name. Right from the word go, you have one of two options:
1. Turn up your nose, hit the eject button and remind yourself that as a Metal fan who listens to everything from the Neoclassical stylings of SYMPHONY X to the Technical Death Metal onslaught that is DECAPITATED, the helplessly 80s sound of U.D.O. is beneath you.
2. Smile, turn the volume to eleven and roll down the windows (so all those fucking posers get an earful as well).
After a few listens, I decided Option 2 was the way to go. Plainly stated, this is a fun CD. This is your older brothers Heavy Metal. It aspires to be nothing more than good ole Heavy Metal, played by men in denim and leather, whose unfortunate hair spray addiction has spiraled completely out of control. Tracks like Pull the Trigger, The Land of the Midnight Sun, The Bullet and the Bomb and Tough Luck II are pure Metal anthems. These tracks could just as easily fit on any of the tapes that ACCEPT released back in Metals heyday.
Simply put, if youre in a nostalgic mood or just need something fun to crank up on a warm sunny day, look no further than Thunderball.
Rating: 7.0/10.0
Reviewer: General Zod
