Resurrection Kings ~ Skygazer (album review) ... Proggy adventures to sooth the wild king!

Style: hard rock, metal, prog

Label: Frontiers
Year: 2021
Home: n/a

Members: Chas West ~ vocals
Craig Goldy ~ guitars/keyboards/bass
Vinny Appice ~ drums
Alessandro Del Vecchio ~ bass/keyboards

Resurrection Kings includes vocalist Chas West of Foreigner & Lynch Mob & the Jason Bonham Band, multi-instrumentalist Craig Goldy of Dio & Giuffria, bassist/keyboardist Alessandro Del Vecchio of Hardline & Jorn, & iconic drummer Vinny Appice of Black Sabbath, Dio, though he needs no introduction. Thus, supergroup is the name of the game here. This is their second release following their 2016 self-titled debut. The band started from Goldy & West doing some demos together. The power hitting label Frontiers liked what they heard & encouraged a formal line-up to be assembled. As I wrote that phrase I had Captain America calling for the Avengers to assemble, but it kinda feels like that. I'll confess that when this was shared with me this morning, while the line-up piqued my curiosity I have a lot of other stuff to listen to & blog about. Like I'm in the middle of reviewing all of Ace Frehley's solo albums & I'm a big Kiss fan. Its nearly sacrilegious to interrupt this journey through space. Then I saw this was released by Frontiers of Italy. Seriously, I believe anything they put out is worth a listen sooner than later, even if you're skeptical of what you're going to hear. Between that & the line-up, Ace will will have to float in space on his own for a bit. Sorry, Spaceman. I've reviewed Frontiers' albums before & heard so much by them that I truly believe they have more home runs than strike outs. I will review happily anything they have their name on, & I have never said that about any other label. I will be honest, they've had some releases that haven't done much for me, could have used a few less guitar fireworks & instead more memorable melodies, & were better ideas on paper. I'm not gloating & loving everything released by them by default, & readers of this blog know that I don't do that, even for musicians I adore. Yet, the production quality is always top, the artwork great, & I've never read any interview with a musician not thrilled to be working with them. As a bassist I know how important a good label is. For the record, I listened to tons of interviews when writing the history book "Drivin' Sideways: The History Of The Band Danger Danger", published 2019, on the '80's band Danger Danger & their spin-off the Defiants. Both are on Frontiers. This is not to mention that the label is by folks who really love music, truly, & have solid tastes not warped by trends & whose who parties in L.A.. They've given great comebacks to older bands who likely gave up on being on the charts again, & kept many musicians releasing albums when bigger labels catering to Millennials were not interested. They're like Metal Blade to heavy metal, Sub Pop to grunge, Verve to jazz. Given I know the woman, as in sat in her living room, who signed John Legend & the Black Eyed Peas & Billy Joel .... I've seen firsthand a CEO who puts money & trends first & hopes the music finds an audience. Frontiers knows music & have literally created a music revolution by having amazing product. The music came first & the audience appears, or if you build it they will come. Okay, okay, this is not a review of a label, but I've long wanted to give them a wave & it seemed like a great time. I'm also kinda hyping this album up without saying a word about it! So, sorry for the intrusion, back to Ace Frehley now ... sorry, I mean the Resurrection Kings! Given I've been listening to Ace's 1978 solo album on repeat, one thing that's ringing in my ears is music with personality & distinctive melodies. In the first minute of the Resurrection King's opening track, the title track, personality abounds! Electronic & acoustic drums, prominent keyboards, a moody proggy interplay of finger poppin' guitars & keys, double-tracked vocals ... this is really interesting. Emphasis on 'really.' Its also really great. I've probably listened to this opening track like six times today & its always a high energy proggy hard rock delight. I really like that its more than just a riff with a lead line & some ambiance & vocals laid over it. This feels more like a stew where everything is so intricate that if you take out one instrument the whole flavor collapses. My favorite part is when the rhythm guitar changes underneath the solo, then moving into something new as though the song has little chapters. It is subtle, cool & unpredictable. While after two guitar solos we also get a proggy keyboard solo to close the song out with ... totally breaking expectations right to the end. Its great to see keyboards given a stronger role in a band where they work with the guitar, as it makes this feel like something more than just a guitar focused band. Obviously, this is for folks who like their metal melodic & proggy, but shying on the safe side of proggy where its the influence without the style. Note, this raving is just the opening track! There's ten more & its a constant roll out of breaking expectations. Whitesnake has been used to describe the band. Moments of "Tears" might recall early '80's Whitesnake due to some melody quirks, along with the singing on "Troubled Soul" & "Fight Against Our Pride", yet I don't think that comparison does the band justice. This is not half as slick nor commercial. It also feels more coincidental than deliberate. Dio has also been mentioned. I can hear that on the rolling "World's On Fire" & slower "Angel Demons" & in West's powerful singing. But, its another weak comparison. West is a powerfully strong singer that fills up the air & lifts the music up with him, or I should say he's as dynamic as the music. When one thinks powerful singing Ronnie James Dio comes to mind. While two members played with Ronnie, again I think this is more coincidence than deliberate. The influences are worn on the sleeve here, but not deliberately imitated. Comparisons to other musicians is how we tell someone that if they like X then they'll like Y. As I enjoyed this album on repeated listens, including lip-syncing along, I've been trying to think who the Kings sounds like. I've got 700 reviews on this blog & more albums I've heard that  I've not written about & I'm drawing a blank. They've taken their influences & put their own personality into it for something unique. Not unique as in odd, but unique as in golden, must hear, impossible to find something bad here unique. I rarely write this & usually criticize bands for ignoring their personality to sound like everyone else. I'm finally finding a band that is doing what I want & the music is screaming to me how my recommended approach is right. This is an album I want to keep listening to & get cozy with. This has personality like Ace's 1978 solo album has personality with not a bad track. Its big without being in your face guitar pyrotechnics. I love that. I'm also biased as a bassist. The songs have emotion, versus just relying on riff after riff. Though, when the guitar wails like in "Savior Of Souls" its just a delight. Each song is full of little touches, while never cluttering up things with a wall of sound. The vocals & music work together instead of separate pieces that are disconnected. While the lyrics are something other than sex, or at least they lace sex under some more interesting themes. After awhile it becomes had to describe music, as sounds are really so abstract & personal on some level. I feel like I've gone in circles & not hit the target, but you should have picked up I'm really excited by this release & think it is something you must hear. Frontiers' track record remains intact & the Kings have an album to be very proud of.

Jorn ~ Dio (album review) ... Doing Ronnie proud!

Style: tribute, hard rock, classic rock, heavy metal
Label: Frontiers
Year: 2010
Home: Norway

Members: Jorn Lande ~ vocals/10 string bass
Tor Erik Myhre, Tore Moren, Jörn Viggo Lofstad, Igor Gianola ~ guitars
Ronny Tegner, Tommy Hansen ~ keyboards
Espen Mjøen, Steinar Krokmo, Nick Angileri ~ bass
Stian Kristoffersen, Willy Bendiksen ~ drums

There is no denying the influence of late frontman Ronnie James Dio from Elf to Rainbow to Black Sabbath/Heaven & Hell to his own group Dio. His voice, ubiquitous hand gestures, his elfish yet powerful stature & his songwriting has contributed much to heavy metal over the past decades. Where his legacy will go in the future is unknown, as really his influence is based on himself & not an array of songs like Lennon/McCartney. Consider that Dio only had a few certified hits early in its career; while RJD's time in Black Sabbath had its shares of musical stumbles even if many fans prefer him over Ozzy; few go around singing Rainbow songs, which is often just as much about guitarist Richie Blackmore than it is RJD; & as for Elf or Heaven & Hell ...? How will we remember RJD? The future it almost doesn't matter as right now RJD is the great icon whose voice can send shivers down your spine. Some of his ex-Dio bandmates have even toured as Dio's Disciples performing his songs & supposedly some unfinished material was handed over to the band by his widow. Books have been written & more are on the way. Right now, that's not a problem. Right now, there can not be enough tribute to the late singer. He deserves the honors. Thankfully, he got many in his lifetime. He died knowing where he stood in the metal pantheon. While the future may not necessarily dwell on him as we do now, it is only the fault of hindsight for we can still see the beginning of heavy metal not so many decades ago & that its just as much the personalities as anything else that has created the world & sound of metal. Where RJD might have lacked a hit he made up for it with an epic, literally, writing style that helped inspire many others that would have hits. He gave to heavy metal something that went beyond just some good songs - he gave a vision ... he also gave us the devil sign, regardless of what Gene Simmons claims. Everyone has to invent something ... yet RJD still gave the claim to his grandmother ... so there, Gene. Actually, my Italian father-in-law likes to do it to the tv so the football team he doesn't like will lose. I don't know if its works. Metal singer Jorn Lande, going simply by Jorn in his solo career, has done something many musicians might not dare to do - he released a tribute album covering RJD's songs. Who would have the courage to step into RJD's shoes, particularly so soon after his death? More importantly, who would dare? The irony is that the album was under construction before RJD's death, it became a tribute to the deceased by accident not intention. But, regardless of timing, who would think they could give justice to RJD's voice & an attempt a whole album to prove their skill? Well, Jorn is a pretty talented & experienced guy who can handle everything from blues to metal to pop. More importantly, he knows he's not RJD & he knows what he can do & shouldn't do & what he can do. This translates into not imitating RJD but trying to instead find the soul of RJD. & he indeed finds that soul & creates a pot of gold & a worthy tribute. Dio collects together the Dio songs: "Invisible", "Shame On The Night", "Push" "Stand Up & Shout", "Lord Of The Last Day", "Night People", "Sacred Heart", "Sunset Superman", "Lonely Is The Word - Letters From Earth", "Straight Through The Heart", "Kill The King" & "Don't Talk To Strangers" plus Jorn's original composition "Song For Ronnie James". Yes, one will notice my earlier thesis in play here - not a lot of hits that people may immediately know. Jorn has actually deliberately aimed for a collection that goes for the lesser known parts of RJD's pen & not the big hits. It would be nice to hear "Holy Diver", but its covered by every metal band in every rehearsal studio every where - I speak from experience playing the song in bands. Choosing lesser known songs might take some pressure off of Jorn's shoulders. We may not recognize the Black Sabbath song "Night People" so we don't critique it as harshly. On the other hand, we're liable to realize that RJD was more than just the hits. The hits were a side-effects of a very full career & have more to do with marketing than RJD's creativity. But, even if we choose to critique Dio harshly, Jorn has created a fine tribute that feels like RJD. It doesn't necessarily sound like him, he doesn't have RJD's vocals, but Jorn doesn't sound like he's overly straining to sound like someone's he's not. He's just having a good time. & one gets the feeling that RJD would approve of the effort ... maybe even go "I like those songs ... oh wait, they're mine!"

Black Sabbath ~ Heaven & Hell (album review) ... 2 sides of the same coin!

Style: heavy metal, hard rock
Label: Warner Brothers
Year: 1980
Home: England

Members: Geezer Butler ~ bass
Ronnie James Dio ~ vocals
Tony Iommi ~ guitar
Geoff Nicholls ~ keyboards
Bill Ward ~ drums, backing vocals

Few bands have replaced a key member, changed songwriters, updated their sound & found just as much success, particularly bands as musically influential in creating a genre, as Black Sabbath did in 1981 when they brought in horn waving elf Ronnie James Dio fresh out of Richie Blackmore's Rainbow. Dio took not just the vocal spot from iconic Ozzy Osbourne but also the writing spot from bassist Geezer Butler & helped moved the band away from being a gloomy blues based drug band to heavy 80's rockers reaching out to a new generation of fans as hair metal hit the airwaves. Many decried the plethora of changes, though in hindsight many may have forgotten that this reinvention came after Sabbath was on the decline. Heaven & Hell, the first of four outings from the new line-up, isn't strung with classic song after classic song like the 1970 legacy-making Paranoid, but it did contribute fan favorites "Neon Knights", "Children Of The Sea" the title track ... that are just as good as anything that came before & working hard to disprove the fans that said there was no Sabbath without Ozzy. The experimental nature of the later Ozzy albums, a weak point of contention for many fans, was largely retired for a more commercialized sound, while the drug & mysticism lyrics gave way to medieval imagery. It's easy to ignore the albums between Paranoid & Heaven & Hell & forget that this is actually a predictable steady progression of the band, it just came to fruition earlier than expected with Dio's arrival. It's really not a surprising change, nor by far a negative one & definitely reads more drastic than it really is. Tony Iommi's trademark de-tuned guitar lines remain slow & heavy with Geezer Butler's bass still slogging away ... a simplicity that would be lost in future heavy metal that came to believe guitars had to be fast & distorted to be heavy. Iommi plays like a big slow gorilla not a fast colorful tiger. While the lyrical move isn't really that big of a change as its more like two sides of the same coin. Decrying social ills remains a regular theme, with the step from witchcraft to medieval mysticism beyond distant cousins & both lending themselves to visual lyrics. The band couldn't have found a better writer without hurting the band, as would be shown by the weak material that followed after the departure of Dio & Geezer. Further, honestly, Dio is probably the better singer than Ozzy ever was or is. Ozzy has an instantly recognizable voice & style but he essentially just shouts, grunts & vocalizes with none of the range or control of Dio & if it wasn't for some great songs, both with Sabbath & in his solo career, one can only wonder if he'd be so popular as his vocals often sound sloppy. Dio & the boys proved to be a rocky partnership that produced The Mob Rules before collapsing & Dio forming his own band with replacement Sabbath drummer Appice, while successive Sabbath singers found the band at its lowest point, but a shadow of itself with only Iommi as a constant presence. The Dio era, as its called, was the light before the dark. Dio returned to the fold a decade later to produce Dehumanizer, again to see things crumble & eventually lead to a Ozzy reunion that produced only a live album & two weak studio tracks. Dio united again with the band under the moniker Heaven & Hell, making a strong case for the skeptics that still preferred Ozzy let alone that Sabbath was dead, with the powerfully dark The Devil You Know before his unexpected death in 2010. Of the four Dio era Sabbath albums, two are great, two are okay. But, the great ones are good enough to have divided the Sabbath camp into Dio fans vs. Ozzy fans. It's really two different bands. I saw Heaven & Hell/Black Sabbath in concert & didn't mind in the least that not a single Ozzy song was played. They weren't missed.

Dio ~ Diamonds: The Best Of... (hits comp) (album review) ... Going holy diving!

Style: heavy metal
Label: Vertigo
Year: 1992
Home: Los Angeles

Members: Ronnie James Dio ~ vocals/keyboards
Vivian Campbell, Craig Goldy, Rowan Robertson ~ guitars
Jimmy Bain, Teddy Cook ~ bass
Vinny Appice, Simon Wright ~ drums
Claude Schnell, Jens Johansson ~ keyboards

 
In honor of his death today, this review gets put up early form its place in the queue. Ronnie James Dio was a great singer, even if he's a walking elfin caricature who was performing as wild as ever well past retirement age. With Rainbow, Black Sabbath/Heaven & Hell, and his own band RJD has seen a stream of hits come from his pen and through his distinctive vocals, putting a stamp on all bands that no successor has been able to match. I'll even confess that I actually might like the Dio era of Black Sabbath better than the Ozzy days or, aghast, the Tony Martin albums. But, really, those are three different bands. I do know, after having seen Heaven & Hell last year at Madison Square Garden Dio was probably the far better performer and had more control over his vocals than his foe Ozzy. The problem with Dio, the namesake band formed with fellow Sabbath alum Vinny Appice, is, perhaps due to line-up changes, the hits just weren't always there. They have but a few classics which makes this collection both good and bad. Good in the sense that it has all the hits ("Holy Diver," "Rainbow In The Dark," "Don't Talk To Strangers" & "We Rock") spanning their career from 1983-94 and if you're a casual fan this will complete the Dio requirement for your album collection. There's a few later songs that don't hold up as well so the album starts stronger than it ends but it'll take care of all your needs without you having to week through the entire up and down discography. But, listening just to their hits, Dio pretty much has everything you want from metal, both in terms of the band and the man. Rest in piece one of our rock icons!