Udo Dirkschneider (U.D.O., ex-Accept) appeared on The Metal Voice on March 1 to discuss his upcoming new live album, Live In Bulgaria 2020. He also talked about working on a new U.D.O. studio album, playing Accept songs live again, and working with former Accept bassist Peter Baltes. Watch below.

On the making of the new live album: "We had to rehearse before the show as everyone lived in another country. So we came together in Germany and started. We also did a photo session for the upcoming U.D.O. studio album just in case, to make sure we have everything. Then we flew to Bulgaria. Everything was well prepared, hotels were clean, restaurants were clean and everything was perfect. The only thing we were not allowed to do during the show was to have fans in the front of the stage. When we went on stage the fans were singing and shouting so loud, there were over 2,500 people there. There was so much emotion for us and the fans. This show will remain a long time in our minds as something special. I think when you hear it on the CD and watch the DVD you will know what I mean. What is also important for me is that there are no overdubs, this was live, we did nothing in the studio afterwards. We had a great sound engineer and Stefan Kaufmann did a great job on the DVD."

Will U.D.O. be playing Accept songs live in the future?: "In the beginning I said with U.D.O. I won't play any Accept songs but for this concert (Bulgaria) the promoter was really begging. He said is it possible to play Accept songs? I said OK, in the end we did five songs, we did the classic stuff. It's the same with the tour in America. The promoter in America said I heard you don't play any Accept songs with U.D.O. He said you can't do a tour of America and Canada without 'Balls To The Wall'. People want to hear that. I said I have no problem playing 'Balls To The Wall' and two other Accept songs. I can now definitely say on our upcoming US and Canadian tour (2022) we will definitely be playing some Accept songs."

About the new U.D.O. studio album: "It's already done, it's completely  done just little things left. In the end I can say on the special edition there will be 16 songs with straightforward metal songs. My son got more involved in the songwriting and the new two guys were also very much involved in writing. End of summer it is coming out. There is also a lot of stuff we learned from making the orchestra album harmony wise, vocal wise that we put into this album but it's still heavy."

U.D.O. return with their upcoming fifth live album. The year 2020 faced many with tough challenges, but U.D.O. managed to play a great show under pandemic conditions in front of the breathtaking backdrop of the amphitheater in Plovdiv/Bulgaria, making it not only one of the world's grandest shows under Corona, but also certainly beyond compare. This is exactly the feeling that the live recording captures.

There are certain events that put bands into the spotlight, even experienced musicians who have been in the business for over 40 years. This is one of those events, and happened on September 18, 2020 with U.D.O.

U.D.O., the band featuring German rock icon Udo Dirkschneider (the original voice of Accept) played a concert in the stunning Roman Amphitheatre in Plovdiv, Bulgaria in front of 2500 fans - in the middle of a year that is one of the quietest ever for musicians and bands, both at home and internationally.

Live In Bulgaria 2020: Pandemic Survival Show will be released on March 19, and will be available as CD/DVD, Blu-ray/CD and very limited vinyl (audio only). Pre-order here.

Tracklisting:

CD1
"Tongue Reaper"
"Make The Move"
"Midnight Mover"
"Wrong Side Of Midnight"
"Metal Machine"
"Independence Day"
"Rose In The Desert"
"Vendetta"
"Rising High"
"Prologue: The Great Unknown"
"In The Darkness"
"I Give As Good As I Get"
"Princess Of The Dawn"

CD2
"Timebomb"
Drum Solo
Bass Solo
"Hungry And Angry"
"One Heart One Soul"
"Man And Machine"
"Animal House"
"They Want War"
"Metal Heart"
"Fast As Shark"
"Balls To The Wall"
Outro ("Stillness Of Time")

"Wrong Side Of Midnight" video:

"Man And Machine" video: