Intermission - Dio

Advantages: Great sound quality, some excellent songs
Disadvantages: Uneven release that runs out of gas by the end

..."Killing the Dragon" is a quality follow-up to the spectacular "Magica" album from a couple of years back, but overall this new record falls short of a masterpiece. I hear two different albums here; we have the astounding first half, and the meandering and wimpy second half. The first 5 songs are vintage Dio. The title track, "Along Came a Spider", Rock and Roll", "Scream" and "Better in the Dark" are all worthy Dio tracks and I would be more than happy to hear them played during a live set. No filler here; each song is a representation of the many voices of Dio over the years, and while there is nothing "new", it matters not since you are being treated to pristine metal from one of the originators of the genre. The SECOND half of "Killing the Dragon"... uggh. I understand that there's been a video made of "Push". I don... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Dio has returnd to his classical sound and lyrics
Disadvantages: today Dio's older than in 1983, so he's not as good as then

...I don't know if you have, but i've been waiting for that for many years. Of course, I loved 'Angry Machines' and 'Strange Highways', but I missed those classical DIO's songs like Holy Diver, Rock'n'Roll Children... You know all those song as good as I do, I suppose. I didn't think it could repeat again. I've got used to new DIO sound (it was great, too, wasn't it?). But here it is! Completely classical, absoulutely new, and fully conceptual album from Ronnie James DIO! I tried to find any weak track but I failed. There are only two negative points. The first (and the worst) - Ronnie, unfortunally, doesn't get younger, so his vocal is not as good as it was twenty years before. But, anyway, his voice is still one of the best on hard rock/heavy metal scene, in my opinion. And the second - track Annica (an excelent instrumental composotion... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: Brash, confident, powerful, melodic
Disadvantages: A little over the top

...Holy Diver came out in 1983 and is the first album by Dio, whose main man Ronnie James Dio was previously in Black Sabbath, and before that in Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow. For a first album by a band this is really a pretty good effort. Lyrically and musically it sounds perhaps not dissimilar to Iron Maiden, with themes of fantasy and spirituality being interwoven with the music. Musically it also sounds like a more Americanised New Wave of British Heavy Metal effort. There are some very good, melodic tracks such as "Don't Talk to Strangers" and "Rainbow in the Dark" and no bad tracks at all. If you like old-style melodic metal then this album is well worth getting. Granted, it is a bit overblown and cheesey, but all Dio albums are to one extent or another, and really it's part of the band's charm. There is a lot of posturing... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful