ACCEPT's WOLF HOFFMANN talks about his experience as a German immigrant in America
24-06-2024
In a new interview with Made In Metal, ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffmann, who moved to Nashville from his native Germany more than three decades ago, was asked to describe his experience living in the U.S. as an immigrant. He said: “Ooh, interesting. Nobody ever asked that question. (Laughs) Well, luckily, America is a very open country, very welcoming. So you never feel like a foreigner, because as soon as you come in — and I’ve got dual citizenship, so I’m both American and German at this point, but you never feel like a foreigner. You always feel like an American. Once you’re in, you’re part of the group, where in some countries, especially in Europe, like in Germany, there’s people who lived in Germany for 30, 40 years, and there’s still… some people say, ‘Well, he’s a foreigner.’ But in America, it’s different. Once you’re in, you’re an American, and that feels very good, but at the same time, I can just open my mouth and people say, ‘Where y’all from?’ They know that I’m not born in the United States. They can hear my accent and they know — to them, I’m very German still. And to my German friends, they think I’m a bit American now, so I’m somewhere in between. I’m like a bastard. (Laughs)”
Last month, Hoffmann told Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz about his decision to move to Nashville: “I wound up there the first one ever, I think. When I got there in ’93, a long time ago, there was nobody in the metal scene or even rock world out there. I remember the people, the locals telling me, ‘Oh yeah, there’s another guy that’s sort of heavy’ who is living in Nashville. John Kay from STEPPENWOLF‘ was supposedly out there. To me, that’s not really… Well, it’s kind of heavy… He’s all right. I mean, I never met the guy. But whatever. But that was the only other name that was considered maybe heavy. But I didn’t move out there to be in the local scene. I just liked it because it was involved and it was a city that was all about music and it seemed to be the right place. Even though shortly after I moved there, or sometime after I moved there, I left the music scene altogether. It was still a decent place to live. And it wasn’t until maybe 10, 15 years ago that everybody and their sister started to move to Nashville. And now it’s the Mecca of musicians, period. I mean, a lot of people that you never in a million years would think would move to Nashville, they’re all there now. It’s crazy.”
ACCEPT released their new full-length, Humanoid, last April, and celebrated by releasing the third single “Frankenstein”. The track is a take on the classic Frankenstein story, featuring a chanting chorus and riffs in trademark ACCEPT style, and it comes with a lyric video. “Humanoid” was once again produced, recorded, mixed and mastered by critically acclaimed heavy metal producer Andy Sneap.
ACCEPT on “Frankenstein”:
The story of Frankenstein is old and yet still relevant. The monster is created without being asked. Frankenstein is a human being and yet he is hated and feared by everyone.
Watch the previously released “The Reckoning” and “Humanoid” below.
Get “Humanoid” now AT THIS LOCATION.
“Humanoid” track listing:
01. Diving Into Sin
02. Humanoid
03. Frankenstein
04. Man Up
05. The Reckoning
06. Nobody Gets Out Alive
07. Ravages Of Time
08. Unbreakable
09. Mind Games
10. Straight Up Jack
11. Southside Of Hell
Together with the album announcement, ACCEPT has also revealed a massive European headline tour with more than 20 shows across the continent for autumn 2024. This summer, ACCEPT will also return to some of the world’s most important rock and metal festivals, like Wacken Open Air, Hellfest and more, following their South American spring tour.
ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffmann comments: “I am extremely pleased with ‘Humanoid’. The album has great energy throughout! Working with the best metal producer Andy Sneap was once again a lot of fun! We are a great team. We all love the new album and look forward to playing it live! Hope our fans will like it as much as we do.”
Fall 2024 European headline tour:
Oct. 17 – TR – Istanbul @ KCP
Oct. 28 – FR – Toulouse @ Le Bikini
Oct. 29 – FR – Lyon @ Transbordeur
Oct. 31 – BE – Antwerp @ Trix
Nov. 01 – FR – Paris @ Elysee Montmartre
Nov. 02 – CH – Lausanne @ Les Docks
Nov. 03 – CH – Zurich @ Komplex
Nov. 05 – DE – Saarbrücken @ Garage
Nov. 06 – DE – Oberhausen @ Turbinenhalle
Nov. 07 – DE – Langen @ Stadthalle
Nov. 09 – AT – Vienna @ Simm City
Nov. 12 – DE – Munich @ Backstage
Nov. 13 – DE – Berlin @ Huxleys
Nov. 15 – DE – Neu-Ulm @ Ratiopharm Arena
Nov. 16 – DE – Geiselwind @ Eventcenter
Nov. 21 – DE – Bremen @ Aladin
Nov. 25 – NO – Oslo @ Rockefeller
Nov. 26 – SE – Gothenburg @ Trädgår’n
Nov. 29 – SE – Karlstad @ Nöjesfabriken
Nov. 30 – SE – Stockholm @ Fryshuset
ACCEPT is:
Wolf Hoffmann – guitar
Mark Tornillo – vocals
Uwe Lulis – guitar
Martin Motnik – bass
Christopher Williams – drums
This past January, it was announced that ACCEPT will perform at all European festivals in 2024 and the South American tour in May with Joel Hoekstra.
Hoekstra will be standing in for Phil Shouse, who will remain with the band as their permanent live guitarist for all other gigs.
New York-based Joel Hoekstra is best known to fans as a current member of the legendary band WHITESNAKE and is part of TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA. He has also played with Cher, NIGHT RANGER and FOREIGNER, to name just a few of his numerous collaborations.
Hoffmann commented: “It is a great honor for us to be on stage with Joel Hoekstra. Joel is an exceptional guitarist and I have huge respect for him. The whole band is really looking forward to playing with this string magician.”
Hoekstra added: “I’m super honored and excited to riff out and rock out with Wolf and the guys! I’m really looking forward to meeting all the ACCEPT fans in South America and Europe! Let’s rock!!”
Last June, Wolf said in an interview with Cassius Morris about the progress of the recording sessions for the follow-up to 2021’s “Too Mean To Die” album: “Well, we have this place in Nashville that we have made the last five albums in. And we basically do drums at a place — it’s not quite sure where we’re gonna do it this time. And then guitars are usually happening here in Nashville and mixing happens in England. Nowadays, with technology, we don’t really need to be together in the same place for four weeks at a time; we do it here and there and everywhere. But it’s still important to know that we’re doing it kind of together; we’re not just sharing files over the Internet. ‘Cause that has never worked for us. So, in other words, (longtime producer) Andy (Sneap) has to be in the room, if possible, and then whoever gets to record their tracks, and then a bunch of others are usually around. So it’s a group thing, for sure, but it’s not (like) everybody’s there the whole, all the time together.”
In the fall of 2022, ACCEPT completed a North American tour with support from NARCOTIC WASTELAND. The band played a career-spanning set of new and classic tracks, including mega-hits “Balls To The Wall”, “Princess Of The Dawn”, “Fast As A Shark” and many more.
In February 2022, it was announced that ACCEPT had inked a worldwide deal with Napalm Records.
“Too Mean To Die” came out in January 2021 via Nuclear Blast. The LP was the group’s first without bassist Peter Baltes, who exited ACCEPT in November 2018. He has since been replaced by Martin Motnik. ACCEPT‘s lineup has also been expanded with the addition of a third guitarist, the aforementioned Philip Shouse, who originally filled in for Uwe Lulis during 2019’s “Symphonic Terror” tour, before being asked to join the band permanently.
“Too Mean To Die” was recorded in Nashville with Sneap (JUDAS PRIEST, MEGADETH), who has been responsible for the studio sound of ACCEPT since 2010.
Tornillo joined ACCEPT in 2009 as the replacement for the band’s original lead singer, Udo Dirkscheider. He can be heard on ACCEPT‘s last five studio albums, “Blood Of The Nations” (2010),“Stalingrad” (2012),“Blind Rage” (2014),“The Rise Of Chaos” (2017) and “Too Mean To Die”.
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