Review Summary: Fantastic album. Don't know how I only heard of Dio six years after he joined his brother, Satan at home. Rock on RJD! π€π»π€π»
Classic album so I'll just get straight to it.
Stand Up and Shout, the opener and the fastest most upbeat song on the album. With amazing guitar work by Vivian Campbell, now of Def Leppard, pounding, great bass playing by Jimmy Bain and fantastic drumming by Vinny Appice. I can't not mention the guitar solo, which just wakes me up. And of course, I can't not mention Ronnie's vocals. Amazing, pounding, soaring!
Onto Holy Diver, the title track. Unbelievable. There's not a bad thing to say about this song. With clear references to Black Sabbath, a great lengthy guitar solo, which gives the song that extra vibe.
Gypsy is good, but it doesn't meet the standards of the other classics on this album. It has a good main riff, and great vocals. That's all I have to say about Gypsy.
Caught in the middle is an underrated gem. It's actually about the album producer who always came to Ronnie caught in the middle of a situation. With a simple, but powerful guitar solo, and amazing vocals by RJD, I could listen to this song on repeat for a day.
Don't Talk to Strangers. "Don't dance in darkness, you may stumble there and you're sure to fall". Conveys a great message. The bass line is pounding, it is so incredibly loud. The backing instrumental section during the solo is very touching as well, it gets to me. I can't mention the solo and not say great things about it. A great solo. Most people say these solos are just shreds, and not talent, but I always tell them to have a go at playing it and then they say "No, I'm not talented enough!"
Straight through the heart is a great song. But it doesn't meet the standards of say Holy Diver or Rainbow in the Dark. It has a great drum intro, a great guitar riff with that harmonic and bend note, that I can't seem to be able to play. There's not really much more to say about this song.
Invisible is a song about a gay man, a woman in Roman times and Ronnie James Dio himself, who get treated differently because they are not normal in a discriminative person's eyes, so they can wish to become invisible every time they are mistreated.
Rainbow in the Dark, is without a doubt Dio's best song, followed by Holy Diver, just listen to this to know what I mean. The guitar solo is the best one I have ever heard. The catchy keyboard riff makes you tap your toe along with it.
Shame on the Night is another underrated gem on this album. I know that it isn't really heavy metal like the other songs on this album, but it's still very underrated, it has such a simple, but powerful riff, and the bass is the loudest instrument in the mix.
All in all, this album is belter, a five star masterpiece, that will never be forgotten as far as metal is concerned. Rock on RJD π€π»π€π»
