U.D.O. frontman Udo Dirkschneider recently spoke with Jeb Wright at Classic Rock Revisited. An excerpt is available below:

Jeb: The legacy of ACCEPT and U.D.O. is worldwide. More than just the music, people are drawn to you. Do you ever wonder what it is about you that people like?

Udo: "Why me? I don't know. That is a really good question. I can think about it, but maybe the answer to that you should get from the fans and not from me. Maybe there is something special, or something different about me, but what can I say?"

Jeb: You are a very genuine person. What you see is what you get.

Udo: "The music, for me, is what it is all about. After all of these years, I still play some Accept songs in my concerts. I see people in the audience who are only fifteen, or sixteen years old, and they sing along with all of these old songs. They sing along with both Accept songs and from some of the old U.D.O. songs like those from 1987 from Animal House. This is very interesting to see and it means that I did something in this business that will stay forever."

Jeb: Do you control U.D.O. or are you a democratic band?

Udo: "We are democratic in this band. Of course, in the end, I say yes or no, but it is a very democratic thing. A lot of people say, 'Oh, he is doing a solo project...' and it is my name, but it is very important for me to work as a band. It was always very important for me.

I do say yes or no, in the end, but we talk about things. We have new guitar players who are really young and I said to them, 'As a U.D.O. fan, if you go to a U.D.O. concert, what songs do you want to hear?' They started making up lists. It was very interesting. We have put two songs in the set for the US that I have never played because of that. I am very happy with the new guitar players. They are 29 and 32 and they really keep things fresh and they really keep me moving."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

U.D.O. are currently on rare North American tour, and have uploaded a trailer promoting the dates. Check it out below:

Remaining dates are as follows:

April

18 - Cleveland, OH - Peabody's
19 - Westland, MI - Token Lounge
20 - Joliet, IL - Mojoe's
21 -Seattle, WA - Studio Seven
23 - West Hollywood, CA - Whisky-A.-Go-Go

Check out BraveWords scribe Mark Gromen's new U.D.O. story at this location.

U.D.O.'s forthcoming album Steelhammer - produced by Udo Dirkschneider and Fitty Wienhold - will be released on May 21st in North America and May 24th in Europe via AFM Records.

"Our new album is a real battering ram," Udo says. "That's why we have chosen this cover. It really shows best that U.D.O. is pure heavy metal! U.D.O. is back!"

The editions and tracklistings of the album are as follows:

Normal CD:

'Steelhammer'

'A Cry Of A Nation'

'Metal Machine'

'Basta Ya'

'Heavy Rain'

'Devil's Bite'

'Death Ride'

'King Of Mean'

'Time Keeper'

'Never Cross My Way'

'Take My Medicine'

'Stay True'

'When Love Becomes A Lie'

'Book Of Faith'

Digi-Pack:

'Steelhammer'

'A Cry Of A Nation'

'Metal Machine'

'Basta Ya'

'Heavy Rain'

'Devil's Bite'

'Death Ride'

'King Of Mean'

'Time Keeper'

'Never Cross My Way'

'Take My Medicine'

'Shadows Come Alive' (bonus track)

'Stay True Stay You'

'When Love Becomes A Lie'

'Book Of Faith'

Japanese Version:

'Steelhammer'

'A Cry Of A Nation'

'Metal Machine'

'Basta Ya'

'Heavy Rain'

'Devil's Bite'

'Death Ride'

'King Of Mean'

'Time Keeper'

'Never Cross My Way'

'Take My Medicine'

'Stay True Stay You'

'When Love Becomes A Lie'

'Book Of Faith'

'Dust And Rust' (bonus track)

A new audio preview can be heard below:

The band have uploaded footage from the studio featuring Francesco Jovino pounding out the drones for the new album. Check out the footage below: