WOLF HOFFMANN: Why ACCEPT Doesn't Do Full-Blown U.S. Tours Anymore

ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffmann spoke to KNAC.COM about the band’s reluctance to stage full-blown tours of the U.S. due to worsening market conditions in the country. When writer Ruben Mosqueda pointed out to Hoffmann that ACCEPT has only performed in Portland, Oregon twice in the nine years since the band’s comeback with new singer Mark Tornillo, Hoffmann replied: “I remember those shows. We were excited to play Portland and were booked to play the smaller club [the first time, in April 2011]. Then when we came back [on a co-headlining tour] with KREATOR [in September 2012], [we] were booked to play the larger room, [and] we were excited. There were nights on that tour [with KREATOR] where we filled the room and other times where we’d have what you saw in Portland [with a disappointing turnout]. It was disheartening.”

He continued: “America is a hard market to crack, and it makes it virtually impossible for bands to tour here. You can’t make any money. And record sales? Well, you know that’s died down too. ACCEPT does great business in Europe — we’re playing major festivals and we headline our own shows to large audiences — so we concentrate on the European market.”

Hoffmann‘s interview with KNAC.COM took place just days before ACCEPT was scheduled to embark on a six-show run of dates in the U.S. The guitarist said that he and his bandmates had “no expectations of making money” on the trek, explaining that they were “doing this for the fans that have supported us in the United States.”

Hoffmann recently confirmed to The Foundry that ACCEPT has commenced the songwriting process for the follow-up to “The Rise Of Chaos” album.

“The Rise Of Chaos” was released in August 2017 via Nuclear Blast. The cover artwork for the disc was created by the Hungarian artist Gyula Havancsák.

The follow-up to 2014’s “Blind Rage” was the first ACCEPT album to feature the band’s latest additions, guitarist Uwe Lulis (GRAVE DIGGER, REBELLION) and drummer Christopher Williams.

ACCEPT parted ways with guitarist Herman Frank and drummer Stefan Schwarzmann in December 2014.

The band will release a live set, “Symphonic Terror – Live At Wacken 2017”, on November 23 via Nuclear Blast.

Fonte: Blabbermouth.net