Restless and Wild

Infobox Album | Name = Restless and Wild
Type = Album
Artist = Accept


Released = October 1982 (Germany)
March 1983 (UK), (US)
Recorded = February, March, June 1982
Dierks Studios, Stommeln
Genre = Heavy metal, Speed Metal
Length = 43:52
Label = Brain Records (Germany)
Heavy Metal Records (UK)
Portrait Records (US)
Producer = Accept, Dirk Steffens
Reviews = *Allmusic Rating|4.5|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:umfjzfoheh2k~T1 link]
Last album = "Breaker"
(1981)
This album = "Restless And Wild"
(1982)
Next album = "Balls to the Wall"
(1983) |

"Restless and Wild" is the fourth album by the German heavy metal band Accept, released in 1982. It was the first Accept album to not be recorded at Delta-Studio, the band moving to Dieter Dierks' studio in Stommeln. It is also the first Accept album in which Udo Dirkschneider sings every track, as well as the first in which manager Gaby Hauke ("Deaffy") gains credits for songwriting. Michael Wagener took engineering and mixing duties once again. The guitar on the finished product is done by Wolf Hoffmann and the new gitarist Jan Koemmet.

The album is best known for the opening track, "Fast as a Shark".

Another well-known track is album closer "Princess Of The Dawn", a tense Gothic song that Udo describes as "a Cinderella story" and "like a Lord Of The Rings fantasy" with no deep meaning. Wolf Hoffmann achieved the haunting mandolin-like effect by recording the guitar at half-speed, then having it played back at normal speed. [http://web.archive.org/web/20020208104455/wolfhoffmann.com/html/faq.html] He describes the sudden ending as "an idea that didn't work so well."

Udo agrees with the general assessment of "Restless and Wild" as a landmark heavy metal record, calling it "surely the most important Accept album". [http://www.hardradio.com/2005news/news03240502.php3] Wolf's praise is more reserved, calling it "just another record" and adding, "Looking back maybe we think Fast As A Shark was the first speed metal song ever, but at the time we sorta just had fun and we didn't think it was anything dramatically new. Obviously, maybe what was so cool about this time was that we weren't thinking so much. We were just ballsy and tried to do things without having much to lose."

Versions of the album released outside Germany were issued with a different cover, replacing the picture of burning guitars with a shot of the band live in concert.

Track listing

# "Fast as a Shark" (Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider, Baltes) – 3:49
# "Restless and Wild" (Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider, Baltes, Robert A. Smith-Diesel + Accept) – 4:12
# "Ahead of the Pack" (Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider, Baltes) – 3:24
# "Shake Your Heads" (Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider, Baltes) – 4:17
# "Neon Nights" (Deaffy, Robert A. Smith-Diesel + Accept) – 6:02
# "Get Ready" (Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider, Baltes, Robert A. Smith-Diesel + Accept) – 3:41
# "Demon's Night" (Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider, Baltes) – 4:28
# "Flash Rockin' Man" (Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider, Baltes) – 4:28
# "Don't Go Stealin' My Soul Away" (Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider, Baltes, Robert A. Smith-Diesel + Accept) – 3:16
# "Princess of the Dawn" (Deaffy, Robert A. Smith-Diesel + Accept) – 6:16

Credits

* Udo Dirkschneider - Vocals
* Jan Koemmet - Guitars
* Wolf Hoffmann - Guitars
* Peter Baltes - Bass
* Stefan Kaufmann - Drums