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Abyss' Review (12/13/02, Roseland Ballroom, NYC):

Rock of Aged

King's X Photo by Hel

I can't help but be blown away by how well Ronnie James Dio's voice has held up over all these years. I can't think of any other artist that has sung so powerfully for so long. Be it Ozzy or Plant or Daltrey, age has definitely caught up with all of them to some extent. Dio seems to be the exception, and it's truly a wonder to behold. He's also ever the showman, always seeming to appreciate his fans and enjoy himself at the same time. This, plus a talented band and killer throat, ensures the average metal fan will have a great time at a Dio show, and the Dio enthusiast will be in heaven.

Dio Photo by Hel

What a difference two years makes. I last saw Dio at the same venue two years earlier with Doro and Malmsteen, and found myself unimpressed. My experience this night was a polar opposite. That last show, for me anyway, suffered a bit due to the fact that I wasn't that big a fan of Magica. Since that record was a concept album, it took a good deal of the set, blocs at a time, and I found the show dragging. While I'm not that well acquainted with Dio's new opus, Killing the Dragon, it suffered from no such tedium. The only moments where this show lost some momentum was during the lackluster song "Push" and the drum solo (not that it was a bad drum solo, but I find the average guitar solo boring, so even the best drum solo brings a show to a grinding halt for me).

While the show was far from sold out, the energy level was quite high. Dio has a solid band behind him, with Doug Aldrich on guitar being the highlight for me (I even paid attention to his solo). They presented Dio's material, past and present, with a pleasant thickness, giving me the impression of a very heavy set. This is no small feat for my ears, which are often inundated with much less melodic music. The set was awesome, and the energy levels for his most well known work seemed to top the scales. "Holy Diver," "Heaven and Hell," "Long Live Rock and Roll," and my personal fave, "The Last in Line," enveloped the listener in 80s metallic bliss.

Hammerfall Photo by J.C. Farthing

Opening for Dio this day where Swedish powermetallers Hammerfall, whom I only saw for a few songs. They were enjoyable, however, setting a good mood for my first few drinks of the evening. By the time I got my head together (read: the DTs abated), their set was over, so their few songs were a blur to me.

King's X were up next (Hey! That kinda rhymes!). I'll be the first to admit that this band has never really done it for me, but they did a good job of holding my attention here. I found myself recognizing a great deal more of their set than I would have expected, and Ty's guitar work was something that kept me interested with its combination of rock pomp and technical ability. The crowd seemed to concur, with the exception of a small group at the front of the crowd that seemed to get under their skin. What they were yelling, I could only speculate, but they got Doug Pinnick to invoke the fact that Dio wanted them to be there. The old, 'you might think we suck, but Dio likes us' defense. I must admit it made me smile. The crowd was overwhelmingly on the band's side, however, as everyone seemed to appreciate the southern trio's efforts.

 

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Death's Review (11/14/02, Universal Ampitheater, Universal City, CA):

Dio Photo by Hel

Late start + bad traffic + hassle getting in = no Hammerfall. Fuck. We got there, and they were done. I betcha we're not the only metalheads who encountered such difficulties on this tour; I'm told there were not many in the venue during the Hammerfall set here in L.A. Oh well. Anyway, we quickly ran into friends who remedied our photo credentials and hooked us with backstage guest area passes so we could go back and guzzle free beer. They actually have a pretty nice backstage area at Universal Ampitheater, with a cool shadow projection thing of the logos of the bands who are playing. It was cool to see the Hammerfall logo projected up on the wall like that.

Hammerfall Photo by J.C. Farthing

Meanwhile, King's X was on stage and most people hardly seemed to care. At first. By the time they were done, they had won over a significant portion of the crowd, which was nice to see. The old stuff is bar far their best, and this band always rocks, every time I see them live. End of story. They are the very definition of professional musicians yet they operate with a wise and weary yet ultimately invigorating earnestness that is almost impossible not to embrace. I was glad for King's X's presence on this bill - it was refreshing. P.S., Ty Tabor rocks on guitar.

King's X Photo by Hel

More drinking and hanging out followed, and soon it was time for Dio to take the stage. Doug Aldrich proved to be a worthy addition to the pantheon of great Dio guitarists. The drum solo was a bit labored and took momentum from the set, but drummer Simon Wright (ex AC/DC) definitely held down the beat with power and force. Bassist Jimmy Bain (ex-Rainbow) did an admirable job as well, his presence as historically important as it was musically. Of course, the highlight of the evening was Mr. Dio himself. The newer tunes, particularly those from Magica and to a lesser extent, those from Killing the Dragon were frankly a little boring, especially some of the slower, more plodding numbers. But classics like "The Last in Line," "We Rock," "Holy Diver," and my personal favorite Dio song ever, "Don't Talk to Strangers," totally made the night worthwhile from my perspective. Dio still delivers the goods vocally. As expected, a solid show and a fun night.

 

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Hel's Review (11/14/02, Universal Ampitheater, Universal City, CA):
Universal Ampitheatre is, at the same time, both a wonderful venue in which to see a show, and the biggest pain in the ass of a venue I have ever been to. From a purely fan perspective, it's cool: modern, spacious, good views from nearly every seat, good sound, nice lighting, that kind of thing. From the perspective of someone who is supposed to photograph the show: this is the worst venue ever. Every time I have come to this place to take pictures, it has been a nightmare.

Hammerfall Photo by J.C. Farthing

My ordeal begins from the moment I try to collect my photo pass. They have two windows for their will call, and there seems to be no rhyme or reason behind which window has what. So, invariably, I lose a lot of extra time at this point in my evening. Not to mention the fact that the shows at this venue start fairly early, and, as has been iterated in nearly every show review I have written since arriving in LA, getting anywhere at that time of day in a timely fashion is nearly impossible to begin with. So, whenever I come to this venue, I have to calculate at least twice the usual traveling time to just get to the venue, and then add on at least a half an hour to go through the guest list rigmarole. And that's assuming they actually have me down for the correct pass, which they didn't on this particular night.

So, after much confusion and many issues surrounding the pass scenario, it should be no big surprise that I did not see even a second of Hammerfall's set. The night would have been a total disaster, photo-wise, were it not for the kindness of this week's contributing photographer, J.C. Farthing, who not only has allowed us to use a few of her spectacular shots of Hammerfall, but also generously shared her photo pass with me, since the venue screwed everything up and gave me completely useless (in my book anyway) VIP passes instead of what I really needed. A HUGE thank you goes out to her.

King's X Photo by Hel

Once everything was finally squared away, I scurried down to the photo pit to snap a few pictures of King's X. This band puts on a show that few others can rival, with a delivery that absolutely oozes personality, and truly dazzling musicianship. Each member of the band really connects with the audience, and they look and act like they're having the time of their lives with each and every set they play. Tonight was no exception, and by the end of their set, they had transformed a bored and indifferent audience into a transfixed and enthusiastic one. King's X remains one of my favorite bands of all time, and their live performance has a great deal to do with that. Be sure to catch them the next time they roll through your town - considering the fact that I have seen them at least four times touring for this album alone, your chances for them doing so are very good indeed.

During the hectic craziness of trying to make sure I was able to take pictures of this show, Death and I bumped into Heather and Kelli from Metal Blade, who passed along a couple of extra King's X "after show" passes, which allowed us to go backstage into a beer garden area, after King's X left the stage, and before Dio took it. This proved to be a true LA "see and be seen" scenario, with lots of recognizable faces milling about. I don't happen to be the star struck type, in fact, I believe that fame is an elitist fabrication of society, but in any event, I'm told there were a lot of famous people there. I did see Hulk Hogan, but then, how do you not recognize that guy, especially when you're in his way, as I was when I noticed him. I passed Jon Bush in the hallway on my way to the bathroom back there, and I also saw Joey Vera, but that's all the name-dropping I'm capable of, since I have now listed for you every last person I saw and recognized.

Dio Photo by Hel

The moment I heard Dio come onstage, I blazed my way out of the backstage area and straight to the photo pit. One of the other annoying aspects of shooting pictures at this venue is their strict three-song rule for headline acts - once the first three songs are over, they kick all the photographers out for the rest of the evening. So I start snapping for all I'm worth, and I once again re-discover why Dio is still such a formidable front man. Despite the number of years he's been doing this for, he still gives his all with every note of every song. His only concession to his age seems to be the need for a break every four songs or so. During these breaks, a random band member had their moment in the spotlight. The first one up was the drummer, and I have to tell you, after only four songs, as an audience member, the extended drum-masturbation session is a little much. But Dio has earned the right to run his show however he likes, and so I'll stop griping right now. I can only hope that when I'm his age, I'm half as spry.

All in all, this was an excellent night. I do feel the need to knock a skull off for the venue, as they truly did put me through a special kind of hell this evening (and on many others), and are certainly partly to blame for my complete lack of Hammerfall - if I had just been able to get my pass and go, instead of arguing and waiting, etc., I am confident that I would have at least caught a song or two. Otherwise, I had a great time. Dio and King's X were both amazing, and I strongly recommend that everyone go out and see them both the very next opportunity you get.

 

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