Heavy Maytal- Dio's "Holy Diver"

Ok, now it's time to dig into Dio's solo album. Sure, Dio is also what he named the project, but it's clearly his band. This album is perhaps his best. I guess we will uncover that as I tackle his work, the only album I won't be reviewing again is "Sacred Heart," which I already covered last November. "Stand Up and Shout " is a faster, more aggressive anthem that serves as a suitable anthem. His calling card for his solo work is, without a doubt, the metal classic and title track.  The vocal is perfect, the lyrics mysterious, though he has gone on record saying "ride the tiger" which comes from a Chinese proverb that states 'he who rides the tiger is afraid to dismount. Not sure where the stripes being clean come into play. 

"Gypsy" is more of a straightforward rocker that works off its energy. Dio belts it out with more grit but the vocal hooks are not as memorable as the first two songs. "Caught in the Middle" has more groove and gives his vocals a clearer space to occupy, thus a better vocal performance from him. It is more upbeat musically and the chorus more melodic. He adapted to the 80s well. "Don't Talk to Strangers" is darker , is more subdued vocal tone sets this up for when things take dynamics shift that is foreshadowed in the lyrics. This shift makes it even more sinister. "Straight Thru the Heart" sounds like it could have been written during his Black Sabbath days. The melodic middle section is a staple in the Dip songwriting formula, but it also showcases some nuance in his voice.

It's cool going back and listening to these albums as I was 12 when I first got this album, and had almost forgotten about the song 'Invisible' which taught me how melodic metal can be while still packing a punch. Lyrically there is a lot going on here with the story it tells , which Google might not want me to lay out in detail for you here with it's abuse themes. If the keyboards were not present on "Rainbow in the Dark' were not present, I might like it more. Dio's vocals are great but the synth sound ruin the chorus for me as it makes it too happy.  

"Shame on the Night' has a darker creep to it. His lyrics are great , and vocals runs remarkable. This album is a classic but I am going to give it a 10 which is a perfect score, but it does not quite hit the 11 mark like some of Maiden's albums, but that does not mean it's not in the upper tiers of classic metal, someone the sound might just be a product of the time but it's flawlessly performed. 

pst195

November is Doom- Black Sabbath :"De-Humanizer"

The Dio reunion worked really well to put all the pieces back together in a way that would survive the rising grunge landscape of 1992. This was heavier than either of the previous two Dio albums. Perhaps not as airtight from a songwriting perspective, as listening back, it kinda sounds like the direction Dio was headed on "Strange Highways". His voice still sounds great here. He carries a little more grit. Lyrically, the more sci-fi themes seem like commentary on today's news with AI. 

With "The Mob Rules" era band back together, there was a clear-cut, darker vibe to songs like " After All". Knowing my taste, this darker vibe is what sold me on this album when it came out and restored my faith after the Whitesnake-sounding years. "TV Crimes" was the lead single and a more up-tempo rocker. Dio's hooky vocal lines are the driving force that the band rallies around. Tele-Evangelists were once since as the biggest threat in the 90s, so that is a little dated, but oh well. "Letter From Earth" is a little more interesting lyrically and a slow, more foreboding doom number. It is after repeated listens that I heard this as a heavier version of 'Snowblind' when it comes to some of the riffing.  

"Master of Insanity' is a more technical bass line than what you think of Geezer Butler doing. The album does fall more in line with the Dio years, as there is a Led Zep syncopation to the verses. 'Time Machine" is a little less compelling but works well enough. It was used in some foolish movie like "Wayne's World' I do not recall anyone ever telling me they discovered Black Sabbath through that movie, but I suppose they are out there. There is a more Soundgarden-like feel to the riff that opens " Sins of the Father' that conveys they understood metal's need to open its sonic spectrum. This should have been the single rather than 'TV Crimes". 

"Too Late" is a dark power ballad of sorts that reminds me more of Dio's solo work. He belts it out with a great deal of menace for a little guy. "I" is my favorite song on the album, it's got an aggressive yet deliberate riff, great lyrics, and over epic sound. The last song is also a killer and is the second-best song on the album, but overall it's a killer Dio album that is on par with the first two.It's a 10. 

pst580

November is Doom - Black Sabbath : "Mob Rules"

 

Listening back to this album, the opening track "Turn Up the Night" feels more like a Dio song than a Sabbath song. This is more noticeable as it is also the first album with Vinny Appice on the drums. A more metal album, thanks to Iron Maiden, producer, Martin Birch. It was also written in the studio ranked up to 11, so that affected the writing approach, making things sound more powerful. This can be heard in the chug leading into "Voodoo" is classic 80s metal, and meets somewhere in the middle between solo Dio and what Sabbath should sound like, even without Ozzy. 

'The Sign of the Southern Cross' might be my favorite song on this album; it definitely shows Sabbath can sound like Sabbath without Ozzy or Bill Ward, for that matter, if the right sonic darkness is in place. It might be the album's darkest and most hard-hitting song, though songs like the title track are energetically more in your face thanks to the tempo. Speaking of the title track, it's a rocker, so a crowd pleaser, but not the most Sabbath sounding song on the album.

While "Country Girl" is more of a rock song, it's well-written and works for what they are doing here; it's strong and does not feel like filler. The more aggressive guitar crunch helps with this. There is a more Led Zeppelin-like groove to "Slipping Away," which was an influence on Rainbow's more mystical slant, but they felt more like peers of Sabbath. When we get to "Falling off the Edge of the World," it is clear that this album is lyrically more melancholic and darker than the previous one. "Over and Over" works off a similar doomy melancholy as the previous song. Toni's solo rips at the end. Overall, I think that hsi album is a little better than the first album with Dio, despite the fact it was harder for them to make. 

pst563

November is Doom -Black Sabbath :"Heaven & Hell"

TWO years after their last album with Ozzy, the band returns in a new, more metallic incarnation fronted by Ronnie James Dio. The former Rainbow frontman has been elevated to the pedestal of being one of metal's greatest singers, but while his preformance on these Sabbath albums is great, his superior technique does not match Ozzy's charisma and emotional intensity. That is why Dio works better in the fantasy realm, and Ozzy is more convincing telling you about how the devil is driving him insane. They go straight for what we know now as a power ballad of sorts, with the calm before the storm dynamic employed on "Children of the Sea".  I like the heavier edge that Dio's at the end of these more commanding phrases. The chorus to this song is also great. 

"Lady Evil" is a little more rock n roll. The lyrics are the fantasy gobbledygook about witches. It works well enough, but it's not as stellar as the title, which is perhaps the album's best song. It feels like Iommi found his fire when it comes to the guitar solos. They give themselves breathing room to turn this one into more of jam live. "Wishing Well' is more upbeat and almsot feels more like a Rainbow song. "Die Young might be the album's best vocal preformance from Dio, as we get to hear a wide range of his vocal colors, which is the edge he has over Ozzy, as there is no way Ozzy could sing this one. 

'Walk Away' is more like the kind of 80s rock everyone was about to start pumping out, and it's the most accessible song so far. It's also the first song that feels like filler but is balanced out by the fact it's sandwhiched in between two amazing songs, so it does not tarnish the album. "Lonely Is the Word" has a more blues-based throb to it which is effective. Iommi is back to his signature phrashing on this one. The solo section is jammed out an powerful with more of a melnacholic tone cast over things. I will give this album a 10, I think the fact it is better than the last two Ozzy album makes it fee like the Dio years are comprable to the Ozzy onces, but they are not though this feels like a different animal special in it's own way. 

pst561