| A one-off charity campaign during the pandemic grew into an all-star heavy metal project: Dirkschneider & The Old Gang – DATOG for short – united six seasoned musicians, many of whom have helped shape the metal genreβs legacy over the past four decades.
At the core: iconic vocalist Udo Dirkschneider, founder and longtime frontman of ACCEPT, and leader of U.D.O. and Dirkschneider. He’s joined by Peter Baltes (bass, vocals; ACCEPT, DIRKSCHNEIDER), Stefan Kaufmann (guitar; ACCEPT, U.D.O.), Mathias βDonβ Dieth (guitar; SINNER, U.D.O.), Udoβs son Sven Dirkschneider (drums, U.D.O., DIRKSCHNEIDER), and powerhouse vocalist Manuela βEllaβ Bibert, whose standout performances on the U.D.O. orchestra albumΒ We Are OneΒ (2019) solidified her place in the lineup.
Together, they released three singles between 2020 and 2021β”Where The Angels Fly,”Β “Face Of A Stranger,”Β and “Every Heart Is Burning”Β followed up by a special charity EP, calledΒ Arising, to help support artists, crews and musicians affected by the coronavirus lockdown. The immense success of their recordings and music videos surpassed every expectation, with more than 23 million streams and views in total to date. βThe whole thing developed a momentum of its own that we hadnβt expected,β recalls Kaufmann. βFans and labels immediately wanted to know: is there more to come?β
The answer has arrived.
After four years, DATOG return withΒ “It Takes Two To Tango”, a powerful new single and the first taste of their much-anticipated 2025 debut albumΒ Babylon, released via Reigning Phoenix Music – a trusted partner of both U.D.O. and Dirkschneider. The track kicks off the next chapter in DATOGβs journey, proving that the chemistry, passion, and fire between these six musicians is as strong as ever.
DATOG comment:Β βWeβre very happy about being part of the RPM family and continuing our work with Jochen Richert. We secretly startedΒ this joint campaign a while ago, and our mutual experiences behind the scenes have so far shown us thatΒ we are all definitely on the same page and driven by the same musical mutual factors: passion, loyalty, and the love for heavy music.β
Managing director Jochen Richert (Reigning Phoenix Music) adds:Β βGrabbing the chance of releasing DATOGβs much-anticipated debut album was a no-brainer, of course. After their first steps exceeded, by far, several hopes andΒ dreams,Β their new material is nothing short of a continuation, if notΒ now on a higher level. Thank you to the whole GANG forΒ your trust, letβs rock this together!β

Pre order the albumΒ HERE!!!!!
Photo credit: Eddi Bachmann
DATOG are:Udo Dirkschneider | lead vocals
Peter Baltes | bass, lead & backing vocals
Manuela βEllaβ Bibert | lead & backing vocals, key instruments
Stefan Kaufmann | guitars, backing vocals
Mathias βDonβ Dieth | guitars, backing vocals
Sven Dirkschneider | drums, backing vocals
More on DATOG:
datog.deΒ |Β FacebookΒ |Β InstagramΒ |Β YouTubeΒ |Β SpotifyΒ |Β Apple Music
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