kelly
Herr Babelfish der Übersetzer, he wore a whipped-cream-covered tutu for this title.
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This isn't a real review because I'm lazy and I'm going to just give you a raw first draft kind-of braindump post.
For those who don't know, Deep Purple and Scorpions are touring together this summer in the US and are trading out for headlining position (Scorpions one night, DP the next) with the other band playing the second slot and Dio opening the show. I just got back from seeing the Dallas stop (yay me) and just wanted to give my impressions.
First of all, I want to add my experience to the pool of overwhelming evidence that white trash does not age well. This concert seriously brought out the Dallas fugs. Other than the handful of strippers destined for back stage duties, the only cute chick in the entire joint was the one holding my hand. The people who showed up at this excersion, I know, were the same hot chicks I saw 15 years ago but man has gravity and lifestyle been unkind. What a drag it is getting older.
Dio:
Dio took the stage at 6:00 to open the show. The Satanic Joe C of heavy metal was looking on the chipper side today, a bit out of character for someone who tends to desguise child abuse and serious mental illness in nursery rhymes about dragons and rainbows. I got the impression the normally snobbish guy was happy to be on tour and seemed grateful to see his fans. He was in good shape too--proving that avoiding drugs and alcohol in a long tenure of rock & roll is a good plan if you'd rather not look like Keith Richards.
His health and spirit came across in his vocals. Dio has such a big voice to come out of such a small body that it's really unsettling at first. His vocals this time around were dead on.
The rest of what I have to say about Dio's show is less kind so bare this in mind--I've been a fan of the guy through Rainbow, Black Sabbath and his solo stuff and then back with Black Sabbath and solo again--hell I even checked out one of his Elf albums. I probably qualify as a fan and this was my third time to see hime live. Alright, sorry if this offends but--his current supporting band is wholely unqualified for the job. The drummer he's got now isn't even a shadow of the drummer Vinnie Appice was and the guitarist is so bad that I felt genuinely insulted when the "Man on the Silver Mountain"/"Long Live Rock & Roll" medly was disrupted by a guitar solo. This guy is going to guitar solo during a Ritchie Blackmore piece and try to impress me? Come on. The band felt really disjoined and out of synch the entire show.
That said, the audience still responded well. Dio rattled off three tracks from his new album, the Rainbow medley mentioned above and Black Sabbath's "Children of the Sea" and "Heaven and Hell"--the real Texas Crowd pleasers. From his own solo catalog, he pulled out "Gypsy", "Last In Line" and "Holy Diver"--oddly leaving out "Rainbow in the Dark" and entirely skipping recent albums Lock Up the Wolves and Magica as well as "classic" albums Dream Evil and Sacred Heart. Short set, I guess.
Suffice it to say if you're a Dio fan and have no interest at all in Deep Purple or Scorpions, this probably isn't the best tour to catch Dio on. But then again, his career may not have an upswing in store and this may just be as good as it gets. It's sad though, this guy used to headline. Hungry fans used to chant "DI-O" repeatedly until he came out to complete his third encore with "Mob Rules." Now he's just a has been. It's sad.
Scorpions:
For the Dallas show, Scorpions played middle slot. Out went Dio's tiny stage and in came a classic 80s styled drum riser. The last time I saw Scorpions was 14 years ago this summer. Here's the strange thing--the experience was almost identical.
What you guys may or may not know is that Scorpions are still a big band in other countries. It's only in the grunge and alternacrap world of America where bands like this have taken a back seat. Scorpions aren't some old band who broke up whose now trying the reunion thing to pay for another trip down Cocaine lane. Scorpions are the real deal.
However, they haven't had a lot of hits on this side of the pond in a while. The show reflected that as only two new songs made the set list from my previously mentioned 14 year old concert memory. They were: "Tease Me, Please Me" and "Winds of Change." The rest of the set list should be familiar to anyone with a radio on the late 80s... "Coming Home", "Bad Boys Running Wild", "The Zoo", "Blackout", "Animal", "Still Loving You", "Rock You Like a Hurricaine", and "No One Like You." It was really a greatest hits styled playlist. Another sign of the times, I think. Scorpions benefits more in the US by promoting themselves as a brand rather than trying to sell a new or recent record.
As for how they sounded... Well... Some of you guys may think Scorpions is a cheesy 80s hairband because their cheesy lyrics were about rock music and love. Put that aside for a second and listen when I tell you that these guys are serious musicians. As far as I know these are the same five guys that have been together from the outset and the band's cohesion is really the benefit of that. Everything was on time, in place, perfect and precise like a good German car. They're the ultimate "band" and they sounded phenomenol. Their twin world class guitarists give Judas Priest a run for their money and their drummer is just godly. If you've ever wanted to see Scorpions at all and haven't, see this one. If the show had ended here I'd have had a great time. They're definitely worthy of their dual headliner status.
Deep Purple:
I feel like I've been trying to see Deep Purple live my whole life. They last hit Dallas in 1984. What someone told me (grain of salt here) was that Ritchie Blockmore got hit upside the head by a rambunctious audience member's beverage bottle and swore never to return to Dallas. I dunno if it's true or not but either way having missed the Texas Jam of '84 has been one of life's great regrets for me.
Once I even had Deep Purple tickets and the bastards cancelled before they made their Dallas appearance. I actually had to drive downtown just to get a refund on my ticket.
Ok so this time, no Ritchie Blackmore.
But... they came and they didn't cancel.
Filling in for the legendary Mr. Blackmore was Steve Morse of Dixie Dreggs "fame". Alright, maybe you guys are big Dixie Dreggs fans but I'd never even heard their stuff before so as far as I was concerned, this guy was a nobody. But that's what I get for being judgmental. The fact is that while his playing style may not be similar to Blackmore's, Steve Morse can play like a demon--certainly of the same calibur as Blackmore. This particular concert, to me, was like a giant spotlight on Steve Morse. If you're thinking of skipping out because Blackmore isn't on the ticket, hit yourself really hard. This guy makes the show.
So the rest of the band sucks? Hardly. Ian Gillan's voices were excellent as expected and the drums and bass were perfect. Enter my second prejudice: keyboardist Jon Lords recently decided to leave the band after the European leg of the tour. A part of me was saying "How the hell do you even call this Deep Purple without Jon Lords?" None the less, Deep Purple just has this knack for attracting incredible musicians and right on queue this new guys (whose name I don't even know yet) was outstanding.
I'm not sure I can name all of Purple's set list but I'll name what I can recall: "Woman From Tokyo", "Ted the Mechanic", "Speed King", "Lazy", "Perfect Strangers", "Black Knight", "Smoke On the Water", "Hush" and "Highway Star." Gillan also introduced a new instrumental that he called "The Well Dressed Guitar" which he said they planned to put on the next album. If you're a real purple fan this instrumental alone is reason enough to catch this tour. Very cool to see a new instrumental that's worthy. I imagine it'll be a tour regular.
Other highlights of the show included a rock anthem tribute type deal where Morse lead the band to cover bits and pieces of various hard rock songs from the last decade or so. The one that got the Dallas crowd going of course was "Iron Man." Deep Purple covering Black Sabbath. It just doesn't get any cooler than that. Of course the anthem tribute landed firmly on "Smoke on the Water" which oddly made me wonder if Morse was paying an homage to Blackmore. Strange, but it worked. Throughout the set were also little bits of Star Wars, little bits of Elvis. They're just that kind of band.
Deep Purple was certainly not disappointing. As both one of my favorite bands and the biggest influencer of one of my other favorite bands, Iron Maiden, it was a real priviledge to finally witness Deep Purple first hand. They are what every rock band should strive to be and they are the ultimate live band. You knew that already, I'm just confirming it for you if you haven't gotten to see them yet.
I think this is a great tour, too. The only complaints I could offer are similar to my Scorpions "complaint." It's a greatest hits set. It doesn't cover any of the new material--and skips over entirely the exquisite album Abandon which has gotten at least some moderate attention from musicians and fans. Alas, they also didn't do my favorite Purple song "Child In Time." I want to complain but the truth is that I understand. You just can't expect a band with a near 40 year tenure to squease them all in in one show. This wasn't a bad respresentation though and the performance was first rate.
Alright, enough ramble. If this show comes to your town, go see it. If it doesn't, plan a road trip. Highly recommended.
For those who don't know, Deep Purple and Scorpions are touring together this summer in the US and are trading out for headlining position (Scorpions one night, DP the next) with the other band playing the second slot and Dio opening the show. I just got back from seeing the Dallas stop (yay me) and just wanted to give my impressions.
First of all, I want to add my experience to the pool of overwhelming evidence that white trash does not age well. This concert seriously brought out the Dallas fugs. Other than the handful of strippers destined for back stage duties, the only cute chick in the entire joint was the one holding my hand. The people who showed up at this excersion, I know, were the same hot chicks I saw 15 years ago but man has gravity and lifestyle been unkind. What a drag it is getting older.
Dio:
Dio took the stage at 6:00 to open the show. The Satanic Joe C of heavy metal was looking on the chipper side today, a bit out of character for someone who tends to desguise child abuse and serious mental illness in nursery rhymes about dragons and rainbows. I got the impression the normally snobbish guy was happy to be on tour and seemed grateful to see his fans. He was in good shape too--proving that avoiding drugs and alcohol in a long tenure of rock & roll is a good plan if you'd rather not look like Keith Richards.
His health and spirit came across in his vocals. Dio has such a big voice to come out of such a small body that it's really unsettling at first. His vocals this time around were dead on.
The rest of what I have to say about Dio's show is less kind so bare this in mind--I've been a fan of the guy through Rainbow, Black Sabbath and his solo stuff and then back with Black Sabbath and solo again--hell I even checked out one of his Elf albums. I probably qualify as a fan and this was my third time to see hime live. Alright, sorry if this offends but--his current supporting band is wholely unqualified for the job. The drummer he's got now isn't even a shadow of the drummer Vinnie Appice was and the guitarist is so bad that I felt genuinely insulted when the "Man on the Silver Mountain"/"Long Live Rock & Roll" medly was disrupted by a guitar solo. This guy is going to guitar solo during a Ritchie Blackmore piece and try to impress me? Come on. The band felt really disjoined and out of synch the entire show.
That said, the audience still responded well. Dio rattled off three tracks from his new album, the Rainbow medley mentioned above and Black Sabbath's "Children of the Sea" and "Heaven and Hell"--the real Texas Crowd pleasers. From his own solo catalog, he pulled out "Gypsy", "Last In Line" and "Holy Diver"--oddly leaving out "Rainbow in the Dark" and entirely skipping recent albums Lock Up the Wolves and Magica as well as "classic" albums Dream Evil and Sacred Heart. Short set, I guess.
Suffice it to say if you're a Dio fan and have no interest at all in Deep Purple or Scorpions, this probably isn't the best tour to catch Dio on. But then again, his career may not have an upswing in store and this may just be as good as it gets. It's sad though, this guy used to headline. Hungry fans used to chant "DI-O" repeatedly until he came out to complete his third encore with "Mob Rules." Now he's just a has been. It's sad.
Scorpions:
For the Dallas show, Scorpions played middle slot. Out went Dio's tiny stage and in came a classic 80s styled drum riser. The last time I saw Scorpions was 14 years ago this summer. Here's the strange thing--the experience was almost identical.
What you guys may or may not know is that Scorpions are still a big band in other countries. It's only in the grunge and alternacrap world of America where bands like this have taken a back seat. Scorpions aren't some old band who broke up whose now trying the reunion thing to pay for another trip down Cocaine lane. Scorpions are the real deal.
However, they haven't had a lot of hits on this side of the pond in a while. The show reflected that as only two new songs made the set list from my previously mentioned 14 year old concert memory. They were: "Tease Me, Please Me" and "Winds of Change." The rest of the set list should be familiar to anyone with a radio on the late 80s... "Coming Home", "Bad Boys Running Wild", "The Zoo", "Blackout", "Animal", "Still Loving You", "Rock You Like a Hurricaine", and "No One Like You." It was really a greatest hits styled playlist. Another sign of the times, I think. Scorpions benefits more in the US by promoting themselves as a brand rather than trying to sell a new or recent record.
As for how they sounded... Well... Some of you guys may think Scorpions is a cheesy 80s hairband because their cheesy lyrics were about rock music and love. Put that aside for a second and listen when I tell you that these guys are serious musicians. As far as I know these are the same five guys that have been together from the outset and the band's cohesion is really the benefit of that. Everything was on time, in place, perfect and precise like a good German car. They're the ultimate "band" and they sounded phenomenol. Their twin world class guitarists give Judas Priest a run for their money and their drummer is just godly. If you've ever wanted to see Scorpions at all and haven't, see this one. If the show had ended here I'd have had a great time. They're definitely worthy of their dual headliner status.
Deep Purple:
I feel like I've been trying to see Deep Purple live my whole life. They last hit Dallas in 1984. What someone told me (grain of salt here) was that Ritchie Blockmore got hit upside the head by a rambunctious audience member's beverage bottle and swore never to return to Dallas. I dunno if it's true or not but either way having missed the Texas Jam of '84 has been one of life's great regrets for me.
Once I even had Deep Purple tickets and the bastards cancelled before they made their Dallas appearance. I actually had to drive downtown just to get a refund on my ticket.
Ok so this time, no Ritchie Blackmore.
So the rest of the band sucks? Hardly. Ian Gillan's voices were excellent as expected and the drums and bass were perfect. Enter my second prejudice: keyboardist Jon Lords recently decided to leave the band after the European leg of the tour. A part of me was saying "How the hell do you even call this Deep Purple without Jon Lords?" None the less, Deep Purple just has this knack for attracting incredible musicians and right on queue this new guys (whose name I don't even know yet) was outstanding.
I'm not sure I can name all of Purple's set list but I'll name what I can recall: "Woman From Tokyo", "Ted the Mechanic", "Speed King", "Lazy", "Perfect Strangers", "Black Knight", "Smoke On the Water", "Hush" and "Highway Star." Gillan also introduced a new instrumental that he called "The Well Dressed Guitar" which he said they planned to put on the next album. If you're a real purple fan this instrumental alone is reason enough to catch this tour. Very cool to see a new instrumental that's worthy. I imagine it'll be a tour regular.
Other highlights of the show included a rock anthem tribute type deal where Morse lead the band to cover bits and pieces of various hard rock songs from the last decade or so. The one that got the Dallas crowd going of course was "Iron Man." Deep Purple covering Black Sabbath. It just doesn't get any cooler than that. Of course the anthem tribute landed firmly on "Smoke on the Water" which oddly made me wonder if Morse was paying an homage to Blackmore. Strange, but it worked. Throughout the set were also little bits of Star Wars, little bits of Elvis. They're just that kind of band.
Deep Purple was certainly not disappointing. As both one of my favorite bands and the biggest influencer of one of my other favorite bands, Iron Maiden, it was a real priviledge to finally witness Deep Purple first hand. They are what every rock band should strive to be and they are the ultimate live band. You knew that already, I'm just confirming it for you if you haven't gotten to see them yet.
I think this is a great tour, too. The only complaints I could offer are similar to my Scorpions "complaint." It's a greatest hits set. It doesn't cover any of the new material--and skips over entirely the exquisite album Abandon which has gotten at least some moderate attention from musicians and fans. Alas, they also didn't do my favorite Purple song "Child In Time." I want to complain but the truth is that I understand. You just can't expect a band with a near 40 year tenure to squease them all in in one show. This wasn't a bad respresentation though and the performance was first rate.
Alright, enough ramble. If this show comes to your town, go see it. If it doesn't, plan a road trip. Highly recommended.
