PRESS RELEASE: Down, set, WATCH! Between summer festival activities (also as DIRKSCHNEIDER; all dates can be found below!) as well as following first musical glimpse ‘Forever Free,’ iconic German heavy metal group U.D.O. — singer Udo Dirkschneider and his son Sven (drums), a guitar duo consisting of Andrey Smirnov and Fabian Dee Dammers plus bass player Peter Baltes — have returned with a sportive music video for the title track of their forthcoming studio album »Touchdown« which will hit the shelves on August 25, 2023 via Atomic Fire Records. Musically, ‘Touchdown’ kicks off rapidly before culminating in an anthemic, fan block & stadium capable chorus, graced by a highly fitting violin solo contributed by Stefan Pintev. The aforementioned music video is in no way inferior and lets the worlds of both football and heavy metal clash brilliantly.

View ‘Touchdown’ over on YouTube:

Stream/purchase the track: https://udo.afr.link/touchdownsinglePR

Sven recalls: “The song but also album title began to take root when we were sitting in a sports bar in São Paulo [Brazil] where a football game was shown. The word that came out of the speakers the most and therefore was remembered the best afterwards was simply ‘Touchdown.’ That’s why my dad [Udo] suggested that it should become the name of our new album – and a touchdown is also what we have created musically with our new songs in my opinion. We’re very happy with the result! The title track deals, of course, with nothing but the type of sport itself, and it also represents us as a band very well: We’re a team that enters the stage together evening after evening to win the crowd. That’s what we do highly motivated, in a way aggressively but powerful too. Qualities that can also be found in football and lastly throw a bridge to our music.”

Pre-order »Touchdown« in the physical format of your choice (see below!), pre-save it on your favourite DSP or pre-order it digitally to receive ‘Touchdown’ and ‘Forever Free’ instantly now, here: http://udo.afr.link/touchdownPR

Also (re-)watch the lyric video for first digital single, ‘Forever Free’:

»Touchdown« will be available in the following formats:

  • jewelcase-CD
  • digipak-CD [EU; incl. bonus DVD »Dirkschneider – Live at Wacken 2022,« track listing below]
  • limited box set [available at Atomic Fire Records (yellow-green splatter vinyl), Nuclear Blast (purple black dust vinyl) & EMP (red-clear black dust vinyl)]
  • 2LP in gatefold: black, silver, clear/blue-white splatter (US excl.), clear-blue marbled (AFR excl.), yellow-green splatter (AFR excl.), purple black dust (Nuclear Blast excl.), red-clear black dust (EMP excl.) & clear-black vinyl (Sweden Rock Magazine excl.)
  • digital

»Touchdown« – Track Listing:

  1. Isolation Man
  2. The Flood
  3. The Double Dealer’s Club
  4. Fight For The Right
  5. Forever Free
  6. Punchline
  7. Sad Man’s Show
  8. The Betrayer
  9. Heroes Of Freedom
  10. Better Start To Run
  11. The Battle Understood
  12. Living Hell
  13. Touchdown

»Dirkschneider – Live at Wacken 2022« (Bonus DVD; digipak-CD only!):

  1. Starlight
  2. Living For Tonite
  3. Midnight Mover
  4. Breaker
  5. London Leatherboys
  6. Princess Of The Dawn
  7. Restless And Wild
  8. Son Of A Bitch
  9. Screaming For A Love-Bite
  10. Up To The Limit
  11. Metal Heart
  12. Fast As A Shark
  13. Balls To The Wall

Crafted with producer and mixing engineer Martin “Mattes” Pfeiffer at Redhead Studio (Wilhelmshaven, Germany), »Touchdown« was mastered by Stefan Kaufmann at ROXX Studio (Solingen, Germany). The record includes a guest appearance by violinist Stefan Pintev on the closing track, and bass tracks were recorded by new member Baltes. Artwork was provided by Martin Häusler who was also responsible for shooting band photos in support of the new album campaign.

Don’t forget to subscribe to Atomic Fire Records on YouTube to stay updated & to listen to ‘Touchdown’ as well as other new tracks in the »AFR New Releases« playlist on Spotify:

https://afr.link/spotifynewreleasesPR

U.D.O. / DIRKSCHNEIDER live:

Tickets: https://udo-online.de/tourdates.html

29.07.2023 DE Rottenburg-Seebronn – Rock Of Ages*
12.08.2023 ES Villena – Leyendas del Rock*
16.08.2023 DE Dinkelsbühl – Summer Breeze Open Air
17.08.2023 CZ Moravský Krumlov – Rock Castle Open Air
20.08.2023 CH Vallamand (VD) – Rock The Lakes
25.08.2023 DE Haddeby – Baltic Open Air
16.09.2023 DE Tuttlingen – Beast of Rocks @ Stadthalle
07.10.2023 DE Würzburg – Keep It True Rising III @ Posthalle*
22.10.2023 AT Linz – Wildstyle & Tattoo @ Tabakfabrik
29.10.2023 AT Salzburg – Wildstyle & Tattoo @ Messezentrum
10./11.05.2024 DE Braunschweig – Rock in Rautheim*

  1. – 06.07.2023 DE Ballenstedt – Rockharz Open Air*
    *as DIRKSCHNEIDER

U.D.O. / DIRKSCHNEIDER are:
Udo Dirkschneider | vocals
Andrey Smirnov | guitar
Sven Dirkschneider | drums
Fabian Dee Dammers | guitar
Peter Baltes | bass

U.D.O. / DIRKSCHNEIDER online:
www.udo-online.com
www.facebook.com/udoonline
www.facebook.com/dirkschneiderofficial
www.facebook.com/udodirkschneiderofficial
www.instagram.com/u.d.o.official
www.twitter.com/udoonline
www.youtube.com/udotubetv
https://label.atomicfire-records.com/project/udo/

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR