Album
Metal Heart
Metal Heart is the sixth studio album by German heavy metal band Accept, released on 4 March 1985 through Portrait. It followed Balls to the Wall and was the first record produced by Dieter Dierks himself, though the band had already worked at his studio. Guitarist Jörg Fischer returned after two years away, with Herman Frank having filled his place in the meantime.
The album was a careful bid to win over the American market, leaning on hooks, melodies and more accessible songwriting. Critics were unkind at the time, but fans have since come to rate it among the band's finest work. The title track and "Living for Tonite" are both classics, and "Teach Us to Survive" takes an unexpected detour into jazz metal, which makes it a curious highlight.
Metal Heart: tracklist, credits and charts
10 tracks · 39:38Tracklist
- 1Metal HeartBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann5:19
- 2Midnight MoverBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann3:05
- 3Up to the LimitBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann3:47
- 4Wrong Is RightBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann3:08
- 5Screaming for a Love-BiteBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann4:06
- 6Too High to Get It RightBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann3:47
- 7Dogs on LeadsBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann4:23
- 8Teach Us to SurviveBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann3:32
- 9Living for ToniteBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann3:33
- 10Bound to FailBaltes, Deaffy, Dirkschneider, Fischer, Hoffmann, Kaufmann4:58
- Produced by
- Dieter Dierks
- Recorded at
- Dierks Studios (Stommeln, West Germany)
- Recorded
- October–December 1984
- Mixed at
- Dierks Studios
- Engineered by
- Gerd Rautenbach
- Labels
- Portrait, RCA (Europe), Portrait/Epic (US)
- Length
- 39:38
Line-up
- Peter Baltes · Moog, electric bass guitar, background vocals, choir vocals, bass, acoustic bass guitar
- Jörg Fischer · electric guitar, background vocals, bass, finger snaps
- Wolf Hoffmann · electric sitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, background vocals
- Stefan Kaufmann · drums (drum set), timpani, gong, cymbal, background vocals, effects, other vocals
- Udo Dirkschneider · lead vocals, background vocals, choir vocals, finger snaps
- Günter Richard · brushes · guest
Singles
- “Midnight Mover” · March 1985
- “Metal Heart” · 1985 (Japan)
- “Screaming for a Love-Bite” · 1985 (EU)
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1985 | 50 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1985 | 94 |
| Swedish Albums · 1985 | 4 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1985 | 8 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1985 | 9 |
| German Albums · 1985 | 13 |
| Swiss Albums · 1985 | 14 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1985 | 47 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1985 | 86 |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
61.7
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
1.4k
ListenBrainz listeners
29k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
6.8k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Also released on 4 March
Every year →
More from Accept
Full discography →
Accept
1979
I’m a Rebel
1980
Breaker
1981
Restless and Wild
1982
Best of Accept
1983
Balls to the Wall
1983
Midnight Mover
1985
London Leatherboys
1985
Kaizoku‐ban
1985
Russian Roulette
1986
Generation Clash
1989
Eat the Heat
1989
Staying a Life
1990
I Don't Wanna Be Like You
1993
Slaves to Metal
1993
All or Nothing
1993
Objection Overruled
1993
Bad Habits Die Hard
1994
Death Row
1994
Predator
1996
All Areas - Worldwide
1997
Rich and Famous
2002
The Abyss
2010
Blood of the Nations
2010
Stalingrad
2012
Blind Rage
2014
Restless and Live
2017
The Rise of Chaos
2017
Too Mean to Die
2021
Humanoid
2024
Accept Losers and Winners 2026
Losers and Winners
2026
The best of 1985
All of 1985 →
Brothers in Arms
Dire Straits · 1985
The Head on the Door
The Cure · 1985
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac · 1985
Freaky Styley
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 1985
Fly on the Wall
AC/DC · 1985
Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good!
Megadeth · 1985
Fables of the Reconstruction
R.E.M. · 1985
Smoke on My Mega‐Mix
Deep Purple · 1985
Smoke on the Water
Deep Purple · 1985
Hell Awaits
Slayer · 1985
Love
The Cult · 1985
Spreading the Disease
Anthrax · 1985
More on Portrait
The label →
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata; also seen: 1985-04-21 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 21 April 1985 | ignored lone early release dated 1985-03-12 |
| Wikipedia infobox | 4 March 1985 | |
| Wikidata | 4 March 1985 | |
| US release | 24 May 1985 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 1985 | earliest UK or European date |
16 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | GB | Portrait | other | |
| 1985 | US | Portrait | 886972400921 | other |
| 1985 | JP | Portrait | other | |
| 12 March 1985 | DE | RCA | 0035627063817 | other |
| 21 April 1985 | JP | Portrait | other | |
| 22 May 1985 | JP | Portrait | other | |
| 24 May 1985 | US | Portrait | 07464399742 | other |
| 1989 | DE | RCA | 0035627420726 | other |
| 1989 | DE | RCA | other | |
| 1989 | DE | RCA | other | |
| 21 April 1989 | JP | Epic/Sony | 4988010239954 | other |
| 1997 | US | Portrait | 074643997423 | other |
| 21 May 2002 | DE | RCA | 743219321329 | other |
| 20 July 2005 | JP | Epic | 4571191053367 | other |
| 26 August 2009 | JP | Epic | 4547366048063 | other |
| 2025 | — | Silver Lining Music | 5034644361390 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · cropped: cropped from 3720x3697 to 3000x3000
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 3720×3697 | cropped: cropped from 3720x3697 to 3000x3000 |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |