When I was growing up there’s like a half a dozen or 10 big giant great bands that are super groups you know. Now it’s like there are thousands of bands. Picking through everything is hard. It’s stressful trying to find all the right music you know. George Lynch
It’s a good time for an artist to get their product out and streaming has moved distribution further away from the labels. And it pissed em off because their power came from controlling the distribution. Then the millions started coming in from streaming and suddenly their powerful again. And all they did was moan and complain.
8 Years Ago (2013)
I was writing about my fandom of Tesseract, who just released the excellent “Altered State”.
And it reminded me of an Australian band called Karnivool.
Tesseract also liked Karnivool as they had a few of the Karnivool songs in the Spotify playlists they created to promote the album.
Trivium was also doing the usual PR interviews about their new upcoming album called “Vengeance Falls”, produced by David Draiman from Disturbed.
And from the interviews, the theme was, “Bigger Melodies, Bigger Hooks, Bigger Riffs.”
And in 2021, I can say that the album proved just that, giving us the concert favorite “Strife” with its Judas Priest “Sentinel” Intro.
And the lyrics from Dave Mustaine seemed prophetic to me during this period.
I was questioning why artists would spend a lot of time putting together 12 tracks just to sell them as a packages for $10. It’s an old business model. In 2021, that business model is 55 plus years old.
I can’t recall a lot of companies doing the exact same thing they did 55 years ago and surviving.
But it looks like the album won’t go away anytime soon.
And I think he’s done that. Every FFDP album has a certification. It’s because of the songs, which Bathory said, a song needs to be there for anything else to be added.
And I think my final douche post was written and I was asking the question if having Portnoy in your band is a good thing or a bad thing due to the many projects.
As James Hetfield once said that he is anti-side projects because it dilutes the quality of the main product.
And in the end it is quality that the people want.
I was trying to be a sociologist with the post, “The Old Rock Star Is Dead, It’s Time To Create A New Rock Star”,
You don’t want to be an artist that becomes who others want them to be. It’s okay to not be liked by everybody.
“I’d been caught between two fires for a long time. One was the inferno that I had built with my success and addictions. The other was the fire that burned for my family”
It’s how Chapter 33 called “out of control like a bushfire” started from the “Working Class Man” book.
“Two Fires” is his fourth studio album released in 1990 and his first United States release for Atlantic Records.
This was the last proper attempt to break Barnes to the U.S market, as previous label partnerships with Elektra and Geffen for the earlier records fell apart due to various reasons.
It was also the first step away from the AOR sounding “Freight Train Heart”. Most of the song writing credits this time are shared by the band and unknown writers instead of Desmond Child, Jonathan Cain and Diane Warren.
“Lay Down Your Guns”
The album gave Barnesy a chance to work with some great players like Brian Setzer from The Stray Cats who plays guitar on this.
A sinister crime noir “Peter Gunn” style riff kicks it off. The song is written by Jimmy Barnes and Rick Nowels.
Nowels was still in his early days of becoming a huge songwriter. His credits now include Adele, Lana Del Rey and many more. Just go to his Wikipedia page.
Lay down your guns and surrender
“Let’s Make It Last All Night”
Very Foreigner sounding, the Chorus is massive as you would expect from a song written by Barnes, Diane Warren and Desmond Child.
It was also a hit in Australia and it’s a staple of his live show.
Let’s make it last all night This could be the last time I make love to you
“Little Darling”
A Barnes composition with Setzer on guitar again bringing some rockabilly to a soul rock tune.
Well I get to your house Like the rest of the band But somehow these things don’t always turn out as planned You called me a cab and yeah I walked out that door
Barnesy talks about this event in his book. he thought he messed up his chance with his future wife.
“Love Is Enough”
It’s got a feel like “Every Breath You Take” in the verses, just more rockier.
“Hardline”
It’s a hard rock track and one of the best on the album.
Well it’s late at night something just ain’t right I can tell by the look in your eye You don’t say two words You got a stare that burns It’s gonna be a long long night
“One of a Kind”
Another rocker with hard rock lyrics.
Tight skirts, like a flirt She don’t stop till it starts to hurt She’s sweet, what a treat Got to get her into my back seat
Mmmm. Flirt with skirt with hurt and sweet with treat and backseat. Overused terms but I would not have it any other way.
“Sister Mercy”
Cause a woman’s got the power To take control of me Well she can wrap me round her finger And make a damn fool of me
The blues songs from the 1930s had lyrics like this. That’s how much staying power the blues medium had.
“When Your Love is Gone”
A great ballad. The sound is dated as it uses a lot of 80s sounding midis.
Well, I missed all the signs, never read between lines
And the Barnesy kids make an appearance in the outro.
“Between Two Fires”
A track written by Barnes and Holly Knight.
As you would expect, it’s anthemic and melodic rock.
The Intro and verses riff remind me of “Rocking In The Free World”. And the Chorus soars.
Caught between two fires Losing control since I first met you
“Fade to Black”
This is a great rock song. Forgotten behind the hits.
When day fades to black I won’t look back, of that I’m certain
When you just want to escape the rat race for the night.
I wanna get of this one way street Don’t want to be among the faceless
“Hold On”
It sounds like a track from “Out Of This World” by Europe. With a bit of Led Zeppelin thrown in.
Like most albums of the time, the labels held the power, so they made artists write and write and write.
Barnes wrote over 30 tracks for the album with a lot of em still unreleased and some as B-sides to the singles.
And the fans rallied behind him once again, sending the album to number 1 on two separate occasions and making it 6x Platinum.
And that elusive break through into the US market still remained elusive.
They are one of the rare bands from the 80’s who keep writing and recording new albums. Although the time spans between albums has become bigger over the last 15 years, it’s not because they are lazy, they are just on the road or in the air, touring and doing what they do.
And a pandemic put a halt to their touring plans in 2020. So when artists have time, they normally write and here we are in 2021, with new music.
They have been teasing this new music for about a fortnight, and a lot of internet sleuths started piecing together all the clues about “Belshazzar’s Feast” from a T-shirt that Bruce Dickinson was wearing in an interview he did on Sky News.
And like all things Maiden, I am sure we will get to know more about Belshazzar’s Feast, because that’s what Maiden does, they get people like me into researching and learning.
It’s written by Adrian Smith and Bruce Dickinson, with production by Kevin Shirley.
The country blues rock in the intro has me interested. It’s a new style into the Iron Maiden family.
The verse riff reminds me of “Stormbringer” from Deep Purple played with a bluesy swagger. Vocally Dickinson is still a powerhouse.
How good are those guitar harmonies after the first chorus?
The lead that comes at the 4.27 mark, I am pretty sure it’s Adrian Smith as it sounds like his style, is excellent.
I keep re-listening to this song just to keep hearing the lead break.
James Durbin’s covers of Judas Priest on American Idol got me interested. The YouTube videos got some traction here in Australia. His debut album released in 2011, “Memories Of A Beautiful Disaster” rocked hard and I was a fan. “Celebrate” in 2014, lost me as it went way to poppy.
Then he hooked up (surprisingly) with Quiet Riot and he made me a fan again with the very underrated and forgotten “Road Rage” album released in 2018. “Space Cowboys” came out a year later but shit was going down in the Quiet Riot camp, as Durbin left the band before the album was released and drummer Frankie Banali was fighting for his life but we didn’t know it at that point in time.
And here we are with Durbin.
Joining James Durbin who does all vocals and guitars, is Mike Vanderhule on drums and Barry Sparks on bass. And from what I have read, different guitarists appear for the lead breaks.
The album came out in February, 2021 on Frontiers.
The Prince Of Metal
A perfect title to introduce his “Metal” album.
It’s like “Phantom Of The Opera” from Iron Maiden in the first few minutes and I’m all in.
James Durbin is killing it vocally and the guitar lead is also excellent. After the solo there is this slower “Heaven And Hell” groove and I’m banging my head to it.
The prophecy says / Raise Thy Horns / Bang Thy Heads / The Prince Of Metal
A QR reference. Perfect.
Kings Before You
Phil Demmel and Fozzy guest on this very Savatage sounding track, ala “Edge Of Thorns” in the verses.
I’ve always enjoyed Demmel’s playing in Machine Head and he delivers another guitar hero lead on this.
From the sky descends the wizard – As he spreads his hands apart / Manifesting right before me – Holding out the sacred heart
A Dio reference.
Into The Flames
It feels like it’s inspired by “Dance Macabre” from Ghost BC and I like it. Then again the riff is an overused riff from the 80s.
If anything the embryo of that riff can be traced back to “Don’t Fear The Reaper” from Blue Oyster Cult.
The Chorus is anthemic.
Now break the chains / Release the spell that you are under / This darkness will pass & give way to the light
The Sacred Mountain
It’s inspired by Dio and Sabbath’s “Heaven And Hell”. Durbin, Sparks and Vanderhule are firing on all cylinders here.
The vocal melody from Durbin is memorable and the guitar lead is fast and excellent.
The Beast Awakens
Great title track. More Metallica and Judas Priest like.
Killer vocals and killer leads.
Demons drawing nearer / Is your life forsaken / Time to face your fears / For The Beast Awakens
Evil Eye
Malmsteen has a song with this title.
Great riffs and the lead break is guitar hero worthy.
I’ll walk through hell alone & swear as long as I’m still breathing / I’ll live to overthrow the hellion & blind the Evil Eye
A Judas Priest and Malmsteen reference.
Necromancer
A power metal cut.
Riders On The Wind
One of my favorites, buried deep in the album.
It’s got Dio and “Heaven And Hell” influences all over it and I’m all in.
Check out the lead break as well.
Riders On The Wind / Searching for the sacred night
Calling Out For Midnight
It’s speed rock, Saxon like with a typical Durbin anthemic chorus.
Battle Cry
After the supercharged tracks, we get a slower tempo track, but don’t call it a power ballad. Because it’s not.
And the lead break is so Gilmour like with a bit of Michael Schenker added for spice.
By The Horns
It’s almost Megadeth like, a more rockier version of “Symphony Of Destruction”.
Rise To Valhalla
The closer and a cut for all those power metallers.
I’m ready to ride out and fight for Durbin.
Great lead playing and harmonies.
Also the bass playing from Barry Sparks is excellent on this song and throughout the album.
Durbin possesses a great vocal range and his prowess on the guitar is evident on this album. As a songwriter, all songs are written by Durbin.
If this is his first entry into the realms of Metal, then I will eagerly await his next.
I got “The Last In Line” album first (on cassette) and then went back to “Holy Diver”.
Ronnie James Dio success came from hard work and a commitment to stay the course. A true lifer in the music business.
Check out his release schedule.
Elf’s self-titled debut was released in 1972, “Carolina Country Ball” in 74 and “Trying To Burn The Sun” in 75.
Also in 1975, Ritchie Blackmore’s “Rainbow” was released, “Rising” in 76, “On Stage” in 77 and “Long Live Rock N Roll” in 78.
With Black Sabbath, “Heaven and Hell” came out in 1980, “Mob Rules” in 81 and “Live At Last” in 82.
By 1983, the “Holy Diver” release would be his 11th album in 11 years. An album I have on vinyl and CD.
And it’s funny how artists today are complaining that streaming services are forcing em to release more albums frequently but that’s how it was done, especially prior to MTV.
The band that Dio assembled involved some experienced players in Jimmy Bain on bass and Vinnie Appice on drums and an unknown youngster called Vivian Campbell on guitar, who was recommended to Dio by Bain after he saw Campbell tearing up the stage with Sweet Savage, his NWOBHM band that was struggling to get a record deal. Their song “Killing Time” would become another Metallica cover, used as a B side for one of the Black album singles.
Jake E Lee also auditioned but he missed out, only to get the Ozzy gig soon after.
Stand Up And Shout
You’ve got the power, stand up and shout
The opening song and it’s a call to arms right off the bat.
Written before Vivian Campbell joined the band, the opening riff has appeared in a lot of songs. I did a post called “The One Riff To Rule Them All”.
It’s fast and energetic.
Lyrically the song deals with breaking away from conformity. It was the same theme that Twisted Sister sold millions of albums on.
It’s the same old song You gotta be somewhere at sometime And they’ll never let you fly
The mysterious “they” could be your teachers, employers, leaders, mortgage brokers or some other entity/establishment holding you back.
You are the driver You own the road You are the fire — go on, explode
Damn right, we are our own driver but how many can truly say we made decisions without any influence from others.
Holy Diver
The lead single, sitting at 130.6 million streams on Spotify.
It’s “Heaven And Hell” re-cut in a new way.
How good is that groove from Appice and Bain under the iconic riff?
Vocally, Dio is fantastic and the guitar solo from Campbell is shredalicious.
Foo Fighters used it in the pre-chorus of their song “Something From Nothing”.
Gypsy
“LA Connection” comes to mind.
And the solo from Campbell is a standout.
Caught In The Middle
As soon as the opening chords ring out I was all in.
Looking inside of yourself You might see someone you don’t know Maybe it’s just what you need Letting the river in you flow
And the song goes verse and pre, then verse and pre, so when the Chorus comes in it’s well worth the wait.
You’re caught in the middle Just like the way you’ve always been Caught in the middle Helpless again
And how good is Dio’s ad-libing in the outro.
Don’t Talk To Strangers
The acoustic Intro. It’s enough for me to like it.
And the song percolates for a minute before the speed metal riff kicks in. If that fast riff sounds familiar, it should as they reused it again for “We Rock”.
This style of songwriting would also be used to perfection with “The Last In Line”.
The lead break is one of my favorites. It goes on for a while but I wanted it to go on longer.
And the song is then back to the acoustic intro before the speed metal “We Rock” riff kicks in to close it out.
Straight Through The Heart
I like the groove on this and the lead break from Campbell is another killer, especially towards the end of it when he harmonizes.
Invisible
A rewrite of “Straight Through The Heart”.
It wasn’t doing anything for me and then at 2.28, this Heaven and Hell like groove kicked in and Campbell is soloing over it and I’m playing air guitar to it and head banging.
Rainbow In The Dark
Sitting at 107.7 million streams on Spotify.
“Holy Diver” and “Stand Up And Shout” warmed up the fan base but it was “Rainbow In The Dark” that mobilised them and sealed the deal.
Dio is using the term rainbow as an analogy for a “light” in the dark.
Shame On The Night
The song is like “Sign of The Southern Cross”.
But it’s the ascending outro that rocks. I’m ready to take up arms and go to war.
This album unleased a new guitar hero in Vivian Campbell. But he would go on to leave the band bitterly. Only to join Whitesnake as a touring guitarist, then leave when David Coverdale told him he only wanted to write with Adrian Vandenberg, to Shadow King and then Riverdogs, before grabbing the Def Leppard gig in the 90’s.
Dio also knew how long an album should be.
“Heaven And Hell” is 39 minutes long and “Mob Rules” is 40 minutes. “Holy Diver” is at 42 minutes.
You don’t need 60 to 90 minutes’ worth of new music to be released at one time every two to three years. People don’t have spare hours. They have spare minutes. Release 30 to 40 minutes of new music on a frequent basis.
In the early 80s, Frank Hannon and Brian Wheat took a band name from a Y&T album and started playing UFO, Scorpions and Def Leppard covers. Jeff Keith, Troy Luccketta and Tommy Skeoch joined after and the band became known as City Kidd.
A three month residency at a U.S Army base would give them the opportunity to write songs and then play them live. Most of the songs written for the debut and some of the songs for “The Great Radio Controversy” were written during this period.
Jack Russell from “Great White” became a fan and he got Tom Zutaut to check em out, who then promised em a recording contract, but they had to wait until the end of 85, as he was moving from Elektra to Geffen.
They got a Q Prime deal but couldn’t get a producer to work with them. Rick Rubin, Max Norman and Bruce Fairbairn rejected them. Zutaut brought in Steve Thompson and Michael Barbiero but their background was dance music and they did some time mixing rock albums. Hardly an ideal choice and they also tried to get out of the gig.
Mid 86, City Kidd changed their name to Tesla and “Mechanical Resonance” was released on November 24, 1986, by Geffen Records.
It’s on Spotify, but they took off “The Great Radio Controversy”. Why they removed it, I guess we’ll never know.
“EZ Come EZ Go”
The funky groove to kick it off hides the rocker the song really is.
The verses are very Def Leppard like (first two albums Lep), in the sense of dynamics (soft and loud), the pulse like bass/bass drum and vocal melodies. But the Chorus rocks hard, like AC/DC and Aerosmith hard.
Then the lead breaks show a guitar hero aspect to the band.
In essence, if this was the first song you heard and it didn’t move ya, then you need to check yourself for a pulse.
There comes a time when you’ve got to let things go as fast as they come Wait and see what tomorrow may bring you, get it all while you can
I know it sounds clichéd today, but to a kid growing up, it was eye opening.
Like a new creed, a new truth.
“Cumin’ Atcha Live”
Written by Hannon, Keith and Wheat. If feels like a band jamming in the style of Van Halen. Even one of the riffs you hear in the first 30 seconds comes from a Van Halen song. The whole solo section feels like an improv jam.
My favourite part is between the 3.18 to 3.53 mark in the leads.
“Gettin’ Better”
Written by Hannon and Keith. One of my favourites.
As soon as I heard the arpeggio intro I was racking my brain as to what song it reminds me of. The D to A to Bm chord progression reminds me of “Goodbye To Romance”. Tesla would use this chord progression again in the “Love Song” intro. Mark Tremonti was a fan, so it was no surprise to hear it in “One Last Breath”.
And when the distorted chords kick in, again I am reminded about something familiar. Maybe “Highway To Hell”.
I’m a hard workin’ man, doin’ all that I can, tryin’ to make ends meet Just a-makin’ my way through the jungle today, it’s gettin’ the best of me
But it’s only gettin’ better, and a change is gonna come my way
My Dad worked two jobs to survive in Australia. My mum never worked as she was tasked with raising the family and keeping the house running. And I’m thinking did it get better for him. He believes so, but my Mum doesn’t. And for me, both my wife and I are working jobs so we can survive in this country and go on some holidays. We don’t know anything different.
“2 Late 4 Love”
Written by the band again, the embryo to “Hang Tough” is right here in the Intro.
I can’t believe this fucked up world in which we’re livin’ in Still I do the best that I can Always got me on the lookout for a getaway Runnin’ hard, I’m a rock ‘n’ roll man
Work to live and don’t live to work. The world will always disappoint you, so just do your best to get bye.
“Rock Me to the Top”
It’s a Keith and Skeoch composition. One of my favourites. It just rocks and rolls its way through my brain. A totally different style.
Rock me, rock me (rock), rock me to the top, to the top, baby
How can you not sing-along to it?
“We’re No Good Together”
Written by Hannon, Keith and Luccketta and I’m a fan of its slow bluesy feel. Very Bad Company’sih and Led Zeppelin’ish. Aerosmith wrote a similar track on “Pump” called “What It Takes”.
And it picks up for the lead break and outro, like “Free Bird”, only shorter.
“Modern Day Cowboy”
It kicks off side 2. A Hannon, Keith and Skeoch composition.
When the verse arpeggios kick in, it’s like the “Kashmir” riff, as each note moves up chromatically.
Also check out the lead breaks on this.
Foreign lands With their terrorist demands Only cause the good to hurt
Like so many others we have grown up with terror in our lives. Some experience it closely and it’s on the news when it happens and the innocent are always the ones to suffer.
The U.S.A., the U.S.S.R. with their six-guns to the side I see the message written on the wall. Too much anger deep inside
This was a thing once upon a time. Communism versus democracy. It looks like the scars never really went away because it’s still a thing. And people thought that once the Berlin Wall fell down, democracy would rule. But the older ones from Eastern Europe like my grandfather, they knew that a new dictatorship, probably worse than the one before, was just a few years away from resurfacing.
Bang bang, I shoot ’em up Bang bang, blow you away It’s a showdown in the no man’s land for the cowboy of the modern day
It’s a showdown!
“Changes”
Another band composition. One of my favorite Tesla songs ever, as it moves from an emotive piano intro into a vibrato style riff.
Changes, time’s makin’ changes in my life Rearrangin’, can’t seem to stop the hands of time I remember, I was so young, I was much too young to see Now I’m older, growing older, and I see things differently
A commitment to self-development and self-learning makes me question a lot of things that I once held as truth. But it all takes time. As time moves forwards, so do the changes. We don’t have three channels anymore. We don’t have dial up internet.
“Little Suzi”
A Ph.D. cover, written by Jim Diamond and Tony Hymas.
The “Albatross” intro was written by Hannon. The original version of the song had synths and was electronic, but Tesla made it an acoustic country rock style cut. In other words they made it awesome.
“Love Me”
It’s day and I’m feelin’ high, what’s the chances for you and I
What kind of high was Jeff Keith on?
Written by Hannon, Keith and Wheat, I can hear UFO and Bad Company in this. I reckon CC DeVille was also listening closely as I can hear “Nothing But A Good Time” in this.
Also check out the lead break, just for the soul and blues rock licks.
“Cover Queen”
A Hannon and Keith composition.
The “Blackout” from Scorpions inspired intro gets me interested. The verses swagger like Aerosmith. And in the last minute of the song it’s pure EVH style jamming.
“Before My Eyes”
It’s a darker cut, almost Dio like, written by Hannon, Keith, Luccketta and Skeoch composition.
If you like Van Halen and Aerosmith, there is enough here to keep you interested. If you like 70’s British acts like Bad Company, Led Zeppelin, Free, UFO, Thin Lizzy and Deep Purple, there is enough here to keep you interested.
If you like the Sunset Strip sounds of Motley Crue, RATT, WASP, Quiet Riot and Ratt, there is enough to keep you interested. If you like acts like Y&T, Triumph, Sammy Hagar and Montrose, those sounds are also here. And if you like the sounds of European acts like Def Leppard, Iron Maiden, Scorpions and Judas Priest, then they are also present.
I know, I know. I mentioned that “Lightning Strikes Again” is the last Dokken album I purchased and that would bring to an end my Record Vault posts on Dokken. But as I was filing away the CD’s I realised there is one more album that I have which I forgot about.
Released in 1990.
“Up from the Ashes” is an excellent record. No one talks about it, but I love it. It’s better than some of the records that outsold it. And it’s been missing from Spotify for a long time but it made an appearance sometime last year.
Released under the name of Don Dokken due to a legal challenge by Pilson, Lynch and Brown to stop him from using the Dokken name. That’s another story on its own. That shouldn’t detract from the album not going platinum. But Don believes it did.
Joining Don on the project are John Norum and Billy White on guitar, Peter Baltes on bass and Mikkey Dee on drums.
“Crash ‘N Burn”
It’s written by Don Dokken and Billy White, who played guitar in Watchtower, a progressive math metal band that released two albums in the late 80’s.
How good is the melodic flamenco and calm acoustic guitar intro?
It then gives way to some blistering and melodic hard rock.
And its personal. “Crash and burn to live again, up from the ashes, I rise” sings Don.
Check out the lead breaks, they are excellent.
“1000 Miles Away”
Written by Dokken and John Norum, it’s one of my favourite tracks on the album.
Those chants/ahhs in the Chorus when Don sings, “there’s nothing left to say as I send these words a thousand miles away” are excellent.
“When Some Nights”
Written by Dokken, Norum and White.
The intro brings back memories of “Still Of The Night” from Whitesnake or “Crying In The Rain”. Don sings, “take me back” and a staccato chord is played, then he sings “to a place I remember well” and another staccato chord is played.
“Forever”
Written by Dokken and engineer Wyn Davis. The feel is basically “Heaven Sent” reincarnated. I’m all in with the clean tone to distortion dynamic.
“Living a Lie”
Written by Dokken and Norum, who delivers a machine gun killer riff to kick off the song. And I’m swept up with the music thinking of the Chorus to “Don’t Lie To Me”.
And the lead break is shred-a-licious.
“When Love Finds a Fool”
Written by Dokken and Glenn Hughes.
For a power ballad it’s a favourite. It starts off with arpeggios and a bluesy like lead. The way the song percolates is haunting and then the Chorus with Glenn Hughes on backing vocals crashes in. You can hear the pain.
No one likes break ups. It’s painful. You think of the time wasted and opportunities missed to grow your life. And your starting fresh. It’s scary and the people you knew, you don’t know anymore.
Make sure you check out the lead break and how it builds itself up so the Chorus can crash in again.
“Give It Up”
Written by Dokken and White, a rolling bass line and simple 4/4 drum beat kicks off this AC/DC style rocker in feel. Otherwise it’s a melodic rocker.
Cause when it’s all said and done Who’s gonna put away the gun
Most of us die from our own doing. Either our own vices and addictions or by our own hand. The gun is the least of our worries.
“Mirror Mirror”
Written by Dokken, White and Mark Spiro. It feels like the Intro/Chorus riff is played by the fingers and not a pick.
Mirror, mirror on the wall I’m still here, I survived it all
Whatever drags you down, don’t let it. Relationships will always disappoint you and so would that dream job.
Be a survivor.
And the lead break is guitar hero worthy. If you like great guitar playing, check it out.
“Stay”
From my understanding it’s an unfinished Dokken cut which finally gets some love and attention here.
Written by Dokken and Mick Brown with a bass intro played by Tony Franklin. And it sounds like a Blue Murder cut, just before the distortion kicks in.
How catchy is the Chorus?
Although clichéd, you will be singing along with it and playing air guitar to the very Scorpions sounding lead break.
“Down in Flames”
“Trust me everything is fine” repeats a robotic sounding voice. It feels like its counting down with each repeat and then the music crashes in, to kick off one of the heavier songs on the album.
Written by Dokken and White, the intro riff gets me banging my head.
Lyrically it’s about a relationship, but it could have been about so much more.
After the main lead break there is a little harmony lead break which mimics the Chorus vocal melody. Check it out.
“The Hunger”
Written by Dokken and White. Ken Mary also plays drums on this song instead of Mickey Dee and I remember reading a Metal Edge article about this album which said that Ken Mary actually played on the first three tracks as well, before he was replaced.
And of course the first minute is very drum heavy and aggressive. It settles down in the verses, before picking up again for the pre-chorus and then the Chorus.
Norum gets a lot of accolades as a guitarist and he should, he is excellent, however Billy White deserves a special mention. He co-wrote the majority of the songs on this album and shared the leads with Norum. Other sources state that White did 90% of the leads. I’m not sure which leads White did, but all the leads on the album reminded me of Vito Bratta.
After this album and tour, Don lost his Geffen deal and went with John Kalodner to Columbia to reform Dokken. Norum continued with his solo career and bands, eventually re-uniting with Joey Tempest and Europe. Baltes went back to Accept. Mickey Dee would join Motorhead up until Lemmy’s death and then Scorpions from 2016. White on the other hand, just went missing after this album.
Don Dokken was at the peak of his powers between this period. “Back For The Attack”, “Up From The Ashes” and “Dysfunctional” are evidence of that power.
I watched the documentary/movie on Netflix last night.
How did a self-managed band from Australia come to headline the largest metal event ever, in Wacken?
To play to 90,000 screaming metal heads.
Watch it.
The realities of touring are laid bare.
Even all the months of planning in Berlin couldn’t prepare the band for the gastro bug that got em on “opening night”.
There is a part in the movie towards the end of the first leg of their tour.
The band is coming back out for their encore. The way its meant to go, is that vocalist Winston McCall would step out, light up a Molotov cocktail and throw it at the band logo behind the drums. And that is meant to trigger flames to rise up from the bottom and burn the logo. It looks cool if it works. But on this occasion someone in the road crew dropped the ball and it didn’t work out. No flames came from the bottom. It was almost Spinal Tap’ish.
Afterwards McCall is not happy. It’s towards the end of the first leg and they haven’t had a show go smooth. He’s questioning why the crew can’t get it right this far in. There’s always a problem. If it wasn’t with the pyro or the flames or lights, it was the sound board blowing up at a gig in L.A. Also an outdoor gig in Spain was almost canned due to lightning and strong winds.
When they returned back to Australia, bass player Jie O’Connor would destroy his knee playing football, so he played “Wacken” in a wheelchair.
And for a band that is self-managed, the buck stops with them. They fund the tour, they pay the road crew and they are putting every cent they make into the tour, so they can establish themselves as an “arena” act.
Most of the management is handled by Rhythm Guitarist Luke Kilpatrick and there are days when he’s tired or fried but he’s still going.
Regardless if you like the music or not there are a lot of lessons learned here.
That if you don’t risk, you don’t gain. But you could also lose as well. The band could have been comfortable playing smaller venues but they wanted to take the next step.
They had the perfect album for it, as “Reverence” was really accessible compared to earlier albums. Tracks like “Prey” are at 45.5 million streams on Spotify and “The Void” is at 35.8 million streams are selling it but “Chronos” is my favourite.
And as the band grew so did their road crew.
Of course the best thing is seeing the guys back in Byron Bay. Guitarist Jeff Ling is walking his dog on the beach and the dog is shitting everywhere so he needs to pick it up in a doggie bag. That’s big world problems right there. Drummer Ben Gordon is catching waves and is so underrated.
And they jammed but we didn’t hear any sound that the cameras could pick up. It was all in their headphones as they all plugged in to some device.
The biggest thing the documentary shows is that the band is huge both here and overseas.
It’s not on Spotify but YouTube has various videos of the album and it is the last Dokken album I purchased.
By the time “Broken Bones” came out, I was a streamer. But I’ve always had that album, along with “Return To The East” and “The Lost Tapes” in my “saved for later” shopping cart, waiting until the price is right.
This album is also the last to feature bassist Barry Sparks and drummer Mick Brown.
Like previous records, Don Dokken had to organize various labels for a worldwide release. Rhino for the North America market, Frontiers for Europe and King for Japan.
Production is handled by Don Dokken and Tim David-Kelly.
Standing On The Outside
A riff from “It’s Not Love” kicks off the album and I’m tapping my foot along with it.
The verses are better than the Chorus.
And the lead break from Levin is excellent.
Give Me A Reason
It starts off with clean tone arpeggios that remind me of “Walk Away”. But that was hiding the rocker to come.
Musically the song is excellent, while the melodies are stuck in the lower bass/baritone range and sound a bit monotonous.
Heart To Stone
A feel from “Into The Fire” kicks it off before it moves into a “Stop Fighting Love” vibe. It’s basically Dokken sounding like Dokken.
Jon Levin doesn’t get the respect he deserves He’s the longest serving guitarist in the band and he’s become a great co-writer with Don. Plus he respects the past.
How I Miss Your Smile
A simple repeating two chord arpeggio Intro kicks off the song and Don’s heartbreak lyrics take over.
It’s a run of the mill power ballad, but the lead break from Levin makes it worthy. He’s emotive and bluesy.
Oasis
A classic metal riff kicks off the song, straight from the grooves of the “Tooth And Nail” album.
The guitar solo reminds me of “Alone Again” and I like it.
But it suffers from a lack of dynamics vocally.
Point Of No Return
My favorite track.
The Intro reminds me of “Seven Nation Army” but once the song picks up it’s got a “Paris Is Burning” vibe.
Mick Brown and Barry Sparks lay down an energetic tempo.
Jon Levin has done a great job continuing the Dokken guitar brand in the 2000’s and he continues to shine on this track, showing his Lynch and Schenker/Jab influences.
Don Dokken is gravelly in his vocals and I like it as it works for this song.
The Chorus is anthemic and check out the lead break. It’s guitar hero worthy.
I Remember
Another ballad which could have come from Klaus Meine.
Judgement Day
Another favourite.
Levin is inspired by old Dokken.
It feels like “Cry Of The Gypsy” merged with “Lost Behind A Wall” and I like it.
And Don’s lower range singing works perfectly on this while Levin shines all over this track.
It Means
This is good and I like it when artists merge their old way with new influences from modern rock artists.
Release Me
Musically it’s modern rock, like a bit of Tool and a bit of Chevelle.
But it’s the lead break from Levin that captures my attention.
This Fire
An energetic rocker and the riffs are excellent.
Sunset Superstar
The bonus track on the Japanese edition. A speed metal cut like “Tooth And Nail”. It should have been on the album and Don’s gravelly vocals work.
If you like the 80s version of Dokken, you will like this. It’s the best album of the Jon Levin era.
I like Stryper. I never understood the crap they got because of their views on Christianity. Most interviews focused on that aspect and very rarely on the music.
“To Hell With The Devil” was released in 1986. It went platinum in the U.S, and it remained the best-selling Christian metal album until P.O.D.’s “Satellite” in 2001, which I also have.
To Hell With The Devil
The drum beat from Robert Sweet is simple but powerful. The chord structure is standard Am to F to G, but the guitar leads and harmonies make it unique.
How good are just the vocals and drums in the first verse?
And make sure you check out the leads from Oz Fox and Michael Sweet.
Calling On You
The lead break reminds me of “Sweet Child O Mine” but this was released before.
I’m always a sucker for melodic rock songs like this.
Free
It’s the same message as “We’re Not Gonna Take It”, “Stand Up And Shout” and the like.
The Intro lead break gets me playing air guitar and they end the song with it, just in a different key.
They even borrowed from “Reason For The Season” for the vocal melody.
Honestly
It just wasn’t my thing. The sound of the piano reminded me of the music in TV shows I didn’t like.
But it sold the album.
The Way
The Judas Priest and Iron Maiden influences of Oz Fox are shining through on the riffs here. A metal tour de force.
Sing-Along Song
It’s got that “Turbo Lover” feel in the Intro/verse.
Holding On
It’s “Hungry For Heaven” in the Intro and the Chorus harmonies are straight from the grooves on the Boston record.
Rockin’ The World
The Intro/Verse is familiar, but I can’t remember from where.
All Of Me
My least favorite track leads into my favorite track.
More Than A Man
If you like “Lights Out” from UFO, you will like this. The F#m groove is at the heart of both songs.
The lead break at the start also borrows from “Soldiers Under Command”.
destroyerofharmony 