The name Udo Dirkschneider is synonymous with metal, more specifically with German Heavy Metal.
Dirkschneider forged his name in the metal world as the voice of the classic Accept lineup but that was years ago.
For the last three and a half decades, Dirkschneider has been marching forwards in the metal world as the voice of U.D.O. Through this time, the band has released 17 studio albums dating back to the 1987 debut Animal House. The most recent studio release Game On is just a little over a year old releasing in October 2021.
The time has now come for U.D.O. to release an extensive, career spanning collection of these songs from the past 35 years. The treasure trove, best of compilation, is simply titled The Legacy (Best of).
The majority of U.D.O. albums are present on the two-disc set. All selections were carefully considered. Unique with the release, there are four rare bonus tracks included bringing the total song tracking to 33.
These bonus tracks, “Wilder Life,” “What a Hell of a Night,” “Fallen Angels” and “Dust and Rust” fall on disc one. For the U.D.O. loyalist, many may have never heard these songs before. The inclusion of these tracks on The Legacy is an ideal placement making them available for U.D.O. troopers.
The disc tracking flows in reverse chronological order beginning with “Fear Detector” and “Metal Never Dies,” both from Game On. The tracks then work their way back through the U.D.O. discography timeline. Disc one concludes with “I Give as Good as I Get” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Soldiers”, both from 2011’s Rev-Raptor.
The second disc begins with “Mastercutor” and “Vendetta,” both from the 2007 Masecutor release. Disc two wraps up with “Go Back to Hell” and “They Want War,” both from Animal House.
Upon deeper discography research, the 2009 release Dominator is the only studio album that has no representation on The Legacy. If so, selections from the album would have fallen between Rev-Raptor and Mastercutor on the The Legacy (Best of) tracking.
Not all loyalists of the U.D.O. following may agree on the entire tracking. There is plenty of diversity with the 33 total tracks on The Legacy. It’s a great representation of the band U.D.O.
One song though may be agreeable by all as a must have for compilation. The song, “Pandemonium,” sits at track four on disc one. It’s not the typical or normal U.D.O. song. The song is quite different and appealing. It’s a special track from 2020 and recorded with Das Musikkorps Der Bundeswehr (The Music Corps of the German Armed Forces).
Das Musikkorps Der Bundeswehr is a “special commission” German Army orchestra. The music corps is part of the German Military Music. The purpose of the group is to represent the German Armed Forces on major concert stages at home and abroad.
Hearing the U.D.O. with German military instrumentation is something unique. Both musical groups compliment each other on the track.
U.D.O. ‘s The Legacy is a fine addition to any music collection. With such an expansive history of heavy metal songs, The Legacy serves as a grand representation of the band.
The Legacy will be available on Friday, November 18, 2022 in a two disc digipak format through AFM Records.
