Susemihl left the band, with U.D.O. now as a four-piece. The band shifted to a lighter approach with the third album Faceless World, which was released on 25 February 1990, achieving great success; this being their best selling album so far. It was produced by former Accept drummer Stefan Kaufmann. The fourth album Timebomb was released on 3 April 1991. It was a more heavier album than their previous releases. In 1992, Dirkschneider put U.D.O. on hiatus to reunite with Accept.
In 1996, Dirkschneider reactivated U.D.O. with a brand new line-up; Stefan Kaufmann, now undertaking guitar duties, with guitarist Jürgen Graf and bassist Fitty Wienhold from Bullet, and Stefan Schwarzmann returning to the band. They took part in the 1997 compilation album A Tribute to Judas Priest: Legends of Metal, in which they recorded the song "Metal Gods".
On 24 March 1997, U.D.O. released the fifth album Solid. It was featured on the Rock Hard magazine reader charts for more than a year after its release. The album was followed up with No Limits on 20 April 1998, featuring a similar songwriting approach from Solid. The album features a cover of the Austrian pop band Supermax's hit single "Love Machine". After the conclusion of the band's tour, Stefan Schwarzmann quit the band. New drummer Lorenzo Milani replaced him.
The seventh album Holy was released on 18 October 1999, which received critical acclaim. It was a return to the guitar-driven sound similar to the Balls to the Wall-era Accept. A world tour followed with dates in the United States and several other major countries. The band known as Vanize, fronted by Udo Dirkschneider's brother Peter, supported U.D.O. during the tour. Line-up changes occurred during the second part of the tour with Gotthard guitarist Igor Gianola replacing Jürgen Graf. The tour spawned the first live album Live from Russia, which was released on 15 October 2001, a 2-CD release featuring many of the classic Accept songs that have since become staples of U.D.O.'s set.
On 24 July 2002, the eighth album Man and Machine was released, receiving a somewhat lukewarm reception. Despite standout songs such as the title track and "Private Eye", the album was ultimately less successful than Holy. It is notable for the song "Dancing with an Angel", featuring a duet performance of Dirkschneider and vocalist Doro Pesch.
U.D.O. released their ninth studio album Thunderball on 29 March 2004. The follow-up album Mission No. X was originally due for release on 4 October 2005, but was pushed forward by one week and was released on 30 September 2005 instead. It was the first album to feature Edge of Forever drummer Francesco Jovino.
On 18 May 2007, the eleventh album Mastercutor was released. In August 2007, bassist Fitty Weinhold was unable to perform with the band due to "private reasons". He would be temporarily replaced with former Majesty bassist Marcus Bielenberg for touring purposes.
U.D.O.'s twelfth studio album Dominator was released on 21 August 2009. The next studio album Rev-Raptor was originally due for release on 14 January 2011, but was delayed until 18 March 2011 due to the recurrence of Stefan Kaufmann's back problems. It was delayed again, but was officially released on 20 May 2011.
In November 2011, Dirkschneider's son Sven supported U.D.O. on a date in Germany and became a permanent member of his father's band in February 2015. On the same year, the band was temporary renamed as "Dirkschneider" and embarked in a long tour called "Back To The Roots" where the band only performed Accept songs.
In September 2012, Kaufmann announced his departure for health reasons. He would continue to work in the surroundings of the band and produce for other bands in his own personal studio. On 15 January 2013, Russian guitarist Andrey Smirnov was recruited as the new member. A week later, Igor Gianola left the band "due to conflicts between band appointments and his private life and business." Following his departure, former Amberian Dawn guitarist Kasperi Heikkinen joined the band. The fourteenth album Steelhammer was released on 20 May 2013.
In December 2014, drummer Francesco Jovino left the band for personal reasons, joining Primal Fear in 2015. He was replaced by Udo Dirkschneider's son Sven in February 2015. U.D.O. released the fifteenth studio album Decadent on 23 January 2015.
In February 2017, Heikkinen announced his departure citing personal reasons. According to the band, no bad blood or drama were involved between the two. In March 2017, guitarist Bill Hudson was announced as the new member. On 24 April 2018, Hudson parted ways with the band "due to a difference in their individual visions for the future", according to Dirkschneider, adding that there was no "negative feelings on either side." In June 2018, Stefan Kaufmann temporarily rejoined the band only for the summer festival appearances until a new guitarist was found. The sixteenth album Steelfactory was released on 31 August 2018, with the first single "Rising High" being made available for streaming. On 19 September 2018, bassist Fitty Wienhold announced his departure from U.D.O., but stated that he would remain with the band if needed, " as a friend, as an advisor...whatever." The band soon recruited German guitarist Dee Dammers and Slovenian bassist Tilen Hudrap as their new members.
During U.D.O.'s touring in Europe in early 2019, Dirkschneider performed as a handicap after experiencing left knee pain. He vowed to continue without doctors' advice and without causing disappointment to the fans. The band was originally scheduled to perform at the Wacken Open Air festival in 2020 by performing Accept's 1985 album Metal Heart in its entirety to celebrate its 35th anniversary, with the addition of Das Musikkorps der Bundeswehr, but the festival was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, U.D.O. collaborated with Das Musikkorps der Bundeswehr to record an album titled We Are One, which was released on 17 July 2020. It reached number 8 in the official German album charts, the second highest position for any U.D.O album in 34 years, right after Steelfactory, which peaked at number 7.
A live album titled Live In Bulgaria 2020 - Pandemic Survival Show was released on 19 March 2021. It was recorded live on 18 September 2020 in front of 2500 fans in Plovdiv. The seventeenth studio album Game Over was released on 22 October 2021.
Dirkschneider
U.D.O. performed under the name Dirkschneider for an occasion in which Udo Dirkschneider described as his "farewell to Accept", stating that he would no longer perform Accept songs again in the band's live shows. In early 2017, they performed in North America. A 2-CD live album titled Live: Back to the Roots was released on 28 October 2016. An updated version titled Live: Back to the Roots - Accepted! was released on 4 August 2017, featuring a DVD of their performance from Brno, Czech Republic.
The band continued to perform Accept songs for at least another year, due to the request from fans. They returned to North America in early 2018 after a positive reception from their first visit the previous year. In 2018, Udo Dirkschneider put his side project to a close as he did not want to cause confusion between his main band and his side project.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/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)
Steelfactory (2018)
Game Over (2021)
Back Against the Wall
U.D.O. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
No turning back 不退転の player
Yeah, strike back against
Hey 唯我独尊 法度フレーズ
Speech!
B-A-D-A double S Temple
ナゴヤ発3本マイクで attention
滅法の菩薩 拙僧の御託
巻き込む大騒動 逃げ場ねえぞ
エゴ外道ども 竹箒で掃討
色即是空の空却 dope!
ブッ込むぜ仏法の刃
No turning back 不退転の player
冥加する炎炎の blazer
でらヤヴァイ 法度フレーズ
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
No turning buck 阿羅漢の preacher
唯我独尊の agitator
Delight ブッ放 bullet
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
ライム厳選 煙に巻こうぞ十四
韻の転々にメッセージ性重視
点と点繋ぎ線を円にする遊戯
ナゴヤ最前線に参戦
厳選の fellows 栄華 we're 制覇
パンドラの箱 開ける Bad Ass
手際 獄 鋭角 lawyer 的確
完膚無きまでぶっ潰す計画
Don't test 俺たちのペース
Next level 始めるぜゲーム
Like an inferno 言葉 infest
我に勝る者は無し!
No turning back 不退転の player
冥加する炎炎の blazer
でらヤヴァイ 法度フレーズ
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
No turning buck 阿羅漢の preacher
唯我独尊の agitator
Delight ブッ放 bullet
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
We in the house
Yo 世を問う法戦式の verse
殺伐 ba, Bad Ass 波羅蜜多 ヘイター
Lo, lock on evil monk が運心 thinking
慇懃無礼の fate
そこから何が見える? キサマに何が出来る?
中央直下 烈火 月下の騎士 直撃
革命連鎖 潰すべき保守的
終止符を打とう 因果応報
雑兵に評定、宣告 下す judgment night
C'mon louder!
Don't test 俺たちのペース
Next level 始めるぜゲーム
Like an inferno 言葉 infest
耳かっぽじって聞いとけ
No turning back 不退転の player
冥加する炎炎の blazer
でらヤヴァイ 法度フレーズ
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
No turning buck 阿羅漢の preacher
唯我独尊の agitator
Delight ブッ放 bullet
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
No turning back, no back again
No turning back 不退転の player
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
No turning back, no back again
No turning buck 阿羅漢の preacher
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
Bad Ass Temple
Strike back against
いつだって俺たちのペース
Bad Bad Bad Bad Ass Temple
The lyrics to U.D.O.'s song "Back against the wall" convey a strong message of resilience and determination. The song starts off with the phrase "Let it ride, no turning back," which sets the tone for the rest of the lyrics. It's a call to embrace challenges head-on and not retreat in the face of adversity. The phrase "strike back against" is repeated throughout the song, emphasizing the need to fight back against whatever obstacles or opposition may arise.
The lyrics also contain references to Buddhist concepts and philosophy, using phrases like "唯我独尊" (meaning "self-centeredness") and "阿羅漢" (meaning "arhat" or enlightened being). These references add depth to the message of the song, suggesting that one should have a strong sense of self and unwavering belief in their abilities.
The verses also mention Nagoya, a city in Japan, and the frontiers of battle. This could be seen as a metaphorical representation of facing challenges and standing at the forefront of one's own struggles.
Overall, "Back against the wall" is a powerful anthem about pushing through difficult times, standing up for oneself, and refusing to back down when faced with adversity.
Line by Line Meaning
Let it ride
Continue with what you're doing without hesitating or stopping
No turning back 不退転の player
Don't retreat or give up, remain determined and persistent
Yeah, strike back against
Fight back and retaliate against the opposition
Hey 唯我独尊 法度フレーズ
Confidently express oneself with unique and powerful phrases
Speech!
Speak up and make a statement
B-A-D-A double S Temple
Referring to a powerful and influential temple or group
ナゴヤ発3本マイクで attention
Gaining attention and recognition with three microphones from Nagoya
掻き乱す有為転変の如く
Creating chaos and disturbance like the ever-changing world
滅法の菩薩 拙僧の御託
Speaking with great authority and wisdom like an enlightened monk
巻き込む大騒動 逃げ場ねえぞ
Involved in a massive uproar with no escape
エゴ外道ども 竹箒で掃討
Sweep away the egoistic and corrupt individuals with a bamboo broom
色即是空の空却 dope!
Transcendental and mind-blowing in its emptiness, impressive!
ブッ込むぜ仏法の刃
Strike with the sharpness and power of Buddhist teachings
No turning buck 阿羅漢の preacher
A preacher who is unyielding, like an enlightened monk
唯我独尊の agitator
An agitator who believes in their superiority over others
Delight ブッ放 bullet
Release bullets of delight and excitement
ライム厳選 煙に巻こうぞ十四
Carefully select and wrap the lyrics like smoke, creating a sense of mystery
韻の転々にメッセージ性重視
Emphasize the message and meaning through the continuous flow of rhymes
点と点繋ぎ線を円にする遊戯
Connecting dots to form a circle, a playful game
ナゴヤ最前線に参戦
Join the frontlines in Nagoya
厳選の fellows 栄華 we're 制覇
Select the best companions and achieve dominance and success
パンドラの箱 開ける Bad Ass
Opening the box of Pandora, unleashing something powerful and unpredictable
手際 獄 鋭角 lawyer の確
A lawyer with excellent skills and precision
完膚無きまでぶっ潰す計画
A plan to completely destroy the opposition
Don't test 俺たちのペース
Don't challenge or disrupt our pace and rhythm
Next level 始めるぜゲーム
Starting a game at the next level
Like an inferno 言葉 infest
Words spreading like a raging inferno
我に勝る者は無し!
No one can surpass me!
Yo 世を問う法戦式の verse
A verse that questions and challenges the world's laws and traditions
殺伐 ba, Bad Ass 波羅蜜多 ヘイター
A fierce and aggressive hater of the Buddhist concept of Nirvana
Lo, lock on evil monk が運心 thinking
Focus on the evil monk's thoughts and intentions
慇懃無礼の fate
A fate that mixes politeness with rudeness
そこから何が見える? キサマに何が出来る?
What can you see from there? What can you do?
中央直下 烈火 月下の騎士 直撃
A direct hit from the central fire, the knight under the moon
革命連鎖 潰すべき保守的
Crushing the conservative elements of the revolutionary chain
終止符を打とう 因果応報
Putting an end to it, karma will hold accountable
雑兵に評定、宣告 下す judgment night
Passing judgment and sentencing on the common soldiers, a night of judgment
C'mon louder!
Encouraging everyone to be louder
耳かっぽじって聞いとけ
Listen carefully and with great attention
いつだって俺たちのペース
Always at our pace
Bad Bad Bad Bad Ass Temple
A temple that is very powerful and impressive
No turning back, no back again
Absolutely no going back
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Koji Ide
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind