Former ACCEPT Guitarist HERMAN FRANK Didn't Want To Play In 'The WOLF HOFFMANN Project' Anymore

Former ACCEPT guitarist Herman Frank was recently interviewed by TNT Radio. You can now listen to the chat in the YouTube clip below.

Asked how he looks back on his contributions to ACCEPT, Herman said: "I mean, that's the reason why I left ACCEPT, finally. I thought they mind change their mind, or, let's face it, I thought Wolf [Hoffmann, ACCEPT guitarist] would change his mind and give me a chance to show a little bit of my talent, but hey, it didn't work out, so what can you do? And then, after the last five years, I said to myself, I don't wanna stay the rest of my life on the right, standing in the dark on stage and covering somebody's guitar. It's easy like that. Sorry, that's the truth. I really wanted to do my own thing. I was doing so many albums and composed so many songs, and I missed this. I didn't wanna be just equipment. I mean, I was getting tired. This was a one-day street for me."

Regarding his opinion on the current lineup of ACCEPT, Herman said: "I can't tell. I wish them all the best. I mean, they're doing good. [Mark Tornillo, ACCEPT singer] is a really nice guy, and I really miss my brother Mark."

Herman also talked about the main differences between Tornillo and his predecessor, original ACCEPT frontman Udo Dirkschneider. He said: "[The biggest difference between them is their] character of voice. I mean, it's kind of similar, but they're two different persons. They both are excellent singers and excellent showmen, and you shouldn't compare them. And to tell differences? They're two different persons — easy like that. Everybody tells his own story."

Asked what he thinks about Dirkschneider's recent decision to embark on one last tour on which he is performing classic ACCEPT songs from his era of the band, Herman said: "[I think it's a] great idea. It's a fantastic idea. Why not? He was doing for years and years the ACCEPT songs, and right now [since] there was an announcement that he was doing it for the last time, lots of people show up at the shows, so it was a smart move. And what I've heard — I mean, he released a couple of tracks, and you can see it on YouTube — he's doing great with the old ACCEPT songs. I mean, that's his music."

Pressed on whether it's true that he was in fact fired from ACCEPT and didn't quit, Herman said: "I mean, if you come to the point, in the end, I wrote a letter to the management and to Wolf and said, 'I can't take it anymore, and I don't wanna take it anymore.' But the situation was not quite satisfying for both sides. No wonder why. I mean, if you think about… We started five years ago in a different point of view, to do this ACCEPT thing again. For me, for myself, I got an opinion, 'Finally they wanna do a band thing, like a band thing,' but in the end, it was still the Wolf Hoffmann project like the years before."

On the topic of his current relationship with his former bandmates in ACCEPT, Herman said: "Mark is still my buddy in rock, and we write several times on Facebook or e-mails and stuff like that. And the rest, okay, fine… I wish them the best."

He also discussed his relationship with Dirkschneider, explaining: "Yeah, we call [each other] once or twice or three times a year and say, 'Hey, what's going on? What's new?' Actually, I was supposed to maybe support him for the second part of [his] tour, but the album came out too late and stuff like that. Otherwise, I get along with him in a nice, smooth way."

Herman Frank will release a new solo album, "The Devil Rides Out", on November 18 via AFM. It will be made available as a CD, limited digipak (including a bonus track),limited silver vinyl and limited box set. The CD was produced by Frank and mixed by Charlie Bauerfeind (BLIND GUARDIAN, HAMMERFALL, HELLOWEEN). It combines Frank's masterful guitar work with the raspy vocals of Swedish powerhouse Rick Altzi (MASTERPLAN, AT VANCE),the powerful drumming of Andre Hilgers (ex-RAGE) and the talent of Michael Müller (JADED HEART) on bass.

Herman joined ACCEPT in 1982 shortly before the release of the band's "Restless And Wild" album and exited the group for the first time after the arrival of 1983's "Balls To The Wall" LP.

When ACCEPT reunited for festival appearances in 2005, Herman handled second-guitar duties alongside founding axeman Wolf Hoffmann, with Stefan Schwarzmann sitting behind the kit.

Frank and Schwarzmann were involved in ACCEPT's comeback with Tornillo and appeared on their last three studio albums: 2010's "Blood of the Nations", 2012's "Stalingrad" and 2014's "Blind Rage".