Udo Dirkschneider
| Udo Dirkschneider | |
|---|---|
 Dirkschneider live with U.D.O., 2004 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 6 April 1952 |
| Origin | Wuppertal, Germany |
| Genres | Heavy metal, power metal |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1968–present |
| Labels | Nuclear Blast, Epic/Sony, PolyGram |
| Associated acts |
Accept U.D.O. Lordi HammerFall Aria Raven |
Udo Dirkschneider (born 6 April 1952 in Wuppertal, Germany) is a German heavy metal singer who rose to fame with German heavy metal band Accept. After leaving Accept in 1987, he formed U.D.O., with whom he has enjoyed commercial success as well.
Biography
Dirkschneider made a guest appearance on Eurovision Song Contest winner Lordi's 2006 album, The Arockalypse. Mr Lordi claims both "Don't Look Back" and "Blitz of Lightning" by U.D.O. as songs that changed his life in a Kerrang! magazine article. He also makes a guest appearance in the music video for the song "Shtil (Штиль)" by Russian heavy metal band Aria.
Dirkschneider recorded lead vocals with NWOBHM band Raven on their cover of "Born to Be Wild" on a 1983 single release. The song also appeared as B-side on "Break the Chain" from their album All for One. He is also famous for his duet rock ballad with Doro Pesch, "Dancing with an Angel". During Wacken 2008, he performed "They Only Come Out at Night" live with Lordi.
Dirkschneider's son, Sven, currently plays in the band Damaged, who recently supported U.D.O. on tour.[1]
Discography
Accept
Studio albums
- Accept (1979)
- I'm a Rebel (1980)
- Breaker (1981)
- Restless and Wild (1982)
- Balls to the Wall (1983)
- Metal Heart (1985)
- Russian Roulette (1986)
- Objection Overruled (1993)
- Death Row (1994)
- Predator (1996)
Live albums
- Staying a Life (Live recording from 1985, released 1990)
- All Areas - Worldwide (Live from 1994 and 1995, released 1997)
EPs
- Kaizoku-Ban (Live-EP, 1985)
- Rich & Famous (EP, 2002)
U.D.O.
Studio albums
- Animal House (1987)
- Mean Machine (1989)
- Faceless World (1990)
- Timebomb (1991)
- Solid (1997)
- No Limits (1998)
- Holy (1999)
- Man and Machine (2002)
- Thunderball (2004)
- Mission No. X (2005)
- Mastercutor (2007)
- Dominator (2009)
- Rev-Raptor (2011)
- Steelhammer (2013)
- Decadent (2015)
Live albums
- Live from Russia (2001)
- Nailed to Metal – The Missing Tracks (2003)
- Mastercutor Alive (2008)
- Live in Sofia (2011)
- Steelhammer - Live from Moscow (2014)
- Live - Back to the Roots (2016) (as Dirkschneider)
Compilation albums
- Best Of (1999)
- Metallized (2007)
- Celebrator (2012)
Singles/EPs
- They Want War (1988)
- Heart of Gold (1990)
- Faceless World (1990)
- Two Faced Woman (1997)
- Independence Day (1997)
- Lovemachine (1998)
- Dancing with an Angel (2002)
- 24/7 EP (2005)
- The Wrong Side of Midnight EP (2007)
- Infected EP (2009)
- Leatherhead EP (2011)
- Steelhammer (2013)
- Decadent (2014)
Music Videos
- They Want War (1988)
- Break the Rules (1989)
- Heart of Gold (1990)
- Independence Day (1997)
- Dancing with an Angel (with Doro Pesch) (2002)
- Thunderball (2004)
- Blind Eyes (2004)
- The Arbiter (2004)
- Trainride to Russia (2004)
- Mean Streets (2005)
- The Wrong Side of Midnight (2007)
- Black and White (2009)
- Leatherhead (2011)
- I Give As Good As I Get (2011)
- Metal Machine (2013)
- Heavy Rain (2013)
- Decadent (2014)
DVDs
- Nailed to Metal – The Complete History (2003)
- Thundervision (2004)
- Mastercutor Alive (2008)
- Live in Sofia (2012)
Duets
In the year 1999 he recorded the Helloween song "I Want Out". U.D.O. performed the rock ballad "Dancing with an Angel" with Doro Pesch and the version of Accept's "Head Over Heels" with HammerFall. He sang the song "They Only Come Out at Night" with Mr. Lordi on the 2006 Lordi album The Arockalypse, as well as performing it live on stage at the same years Wacken Open Air. He did guest vocals for a version of Aria's song "Shtil" released on a compilation of the same title (the original version from album Chimera does not feature Dirkschneider). He sang the lead vocals with the Raven cover of "Born to Be Wild" on a 1983. He also sings on Break the Chains with Raven as well.
In late 2014, Dirkschneider had a mildly successful duet with Furious Boron related to the game "Mount and Blade:Warband".
References
External links
- Official web site
- Interview with Udo Dirkschneider @ Metalpaths.com (2011)
- HardRadio.com interview with Udo Dirkschneider