Dio – Holy Diver Live (Eagle Blu-ray)
Picture:
B- Sound: B Extras: C+ Concert: B-
Ronnie
James Dio was every bit as important as Ozzy Osbourne when it came to the Rock
genre, Heavy Metal (they were both part of Black Sabbath) and left a permanent
mark on the genre (he came up with the “devil horn” hand gesture) and even as
the Rock genre declined, he kept playing as if it were the dominant genre,
alive and well. Passing away after a
brave struggle with stomach cancer in May of 2010, he was part of six (!) bands
including Sabbath, Rainbow and his self-named Dio. It is with the latter
he made Holy Diver Live, an HD-taped
concert that turned out to be one of his last records as a rocker who at 65
(when the show was performed) had more energy than most of his contemporaries a
third of his age.
It is a
long concert, so he did not get lazy and he was not rushing along to do his
songs as if he did not want to be there (how many big performers do that these
days? Too many!) performing the
following:
1)
Tarot Woman
2)
The Sign Of The Southern Cross
3)
One Night In The City
4)
Stand Up & Shout
5)
Holy Diver
6)
Gypsy
7)
Caught In The Middle
8)
Don’t Talk To Strangers
9)
Straight Through The Heart
10) Invisible
11) Rainbow In The Dark
12) Shame On The Night
13) Gates Of Babylon
14) Heaven & Hell
15) Man On The Silver Mountain
16) Long Live Rock & Roll
17) We Rock
Like
Alice Cooper (just finally getting his overdue recognition), Dio is an American
original, a Rock original and did the kind of Rock music that was considered
radical (not even politically, but just to raw and on the exploitive end that
he was always marginalized) that some so-called rockers who forgot what Rock
was (if they ever knew it, but that is a separate essay with a separate list)
looked down on him and his category of the genre. These days, being wild and partying in this
way is an act of bravery, not worrying about what others think and enjoying
your life, which is what Rock originally was really about. Mr. Dio was the real thing, which most of his
critics can say nothing about, do nothing about and do anything to rebuke. This 2008 show turns out to be one of his
last testimonies.
The 1080i
1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image is a pleasant surprise with limited
motion blur and good color throughout, but it still has some weak shots that
reveal the mode of image capture. Still,
the editing and blocking are a plus. The
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix is superior to the Dolby Digital 5.1 and
PCM 2.0 Stereo mixes, which all show the fine recording quality of the soundmaster,
further thwarting another stereotype of the music (loud and rough). The combination will impress Rock fans, Dio
fans and is one of the better concert Blu-rays we have seen to date.
Extras include
a booklet inside the Blu-ray case and interviews on the Blu-ray, now with a new
irony. Mr. Dio went out doing what he
loved and did it well (and better than most of his younger imitators to the
end), right into the HD era. Most people
in music can only dream of such success.
- Nicholas Sheffo
