Apparently The United States Is “Just Not Metal Territory Anymore”

In a recent interview with The Metal Voice, Accept‘s Mark Tornillo shed light on the enduring challenges the band is facing when touring North America. The veteran singer, who stepped in for former frontman Udo Dirkschneider in 2009, candidly discussed the hurdles faced by the iconic German heavy metal band, especially in recent years.

One striking observation from Tornillo was his sentiment that the United States may no longer be the metal stronghold it once was. While Accept experiences no difficulty filling venues in South America and Europe, the American market presents unique obstacles.

“It’s always been difficult to tour North America. It’s mostly promoters and the fact that we need to play at least a big enough room where we’re gonna make some money. But it’s gotta have the turnout to do it. But we’re gonna make it happen this year no matter what. I know that. We’ve all decided that if we have to take a cut, we’ll take a cut. But we’ve gotta play — we’ve gotta play for the fans.”

“We have no trouble selling tickets in South America. No trouble selling tickets in Europe, or else. I think it’s just that the United States is just not metal territory anymore. I don’t know why,” Tornillo added.

However, amidst these challenges, Tornillo remained optimistic in their desire to tour the U.S. annually, underscoring the band’s dedication to their American fan base, and also hinted at a tour in 2024, with a promising line-up.

“I would love nothing better than to tour the U.S. every year. But we’ll see how it plays out. There’s definitely going to be a run,… I’m gonna say late August through October. And I can’t really say any more about it right now. It’s not confirmed and it hasn’t been announced, obviously, but it’s gonna be a very interesting bill.”

Considering the abundance of metal tours that consistently make the rounds across the United States, and the excitement that’s practically palpable at every show, I think we might have to disagree with Tornillo.