This was the band’s 4th studio album, and the one that broke them internationally. This album came out just before Metallica dropped Kill Em All, and I know James was a big fan of the band.
It’s the opening track, Fast As A Shark, that really grabs your attention. It starts with a German folk song played on a scratchy old record, that bursts into the heaviest and fastest song I had ever heard at the time. Man, it’s still a killer song! It has an awesome riff and double kicks that would have been hard to hold down live (back in the days of no triggers). The title track slows down to a more traditional pace, and the band live up to their German Judas Priest tag.
The other stand out track for me is the final track, Princess Of The Dawn, with its very simple riff and groove. It builds and builds to the big rock ending, but it has that very European feel to it that hundreds of bands would copy. Today there is a whole genre that comes under the banner of Euro Metal, which to me, Accept were the first.
The band are still making albums today, and IMHO, they are better today than they ever have been. This album is worth getting just for Fast As A Shark, as it’s such a trailblazing track. Or if you want to track it down, it was released as a single.
8/10 from The Grooveman.
