Restless and Wild by Accept

Restless and Wild, the fourth album from Solingen's Accept, came out in continental Europe in 1982 before reaching the US and UK the following year, and it's heavy metal at full sprint. The band had moved from Delta-Studio to Dieter Dierks' studio in Stommeln, and with Michael Wagener back on recording and mixing and Accept producing themselves, the sound is sharper and meaner than ever.

It's also the first Accept record with Udo Dirkschneider singing every track, and his ragged, razor-throated howl owns it, while Wolf Hoffmann's guitar, Peter Baltes' bass and Stefan Kaufmann's drums hit like a pneumatic drill. "Fast as a Shark" is the lightning bolt, a breakneck blast that shows exactly why Accept get credit for helping lay the groundwork for speed and thrash, with "Princess of the Dawn" also making its way onto the countdowns. Manager Gaby Hauke, credited as Deaffy, also picked up songwriting credits here for the first time.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.