By Craig Haze

It all begins at the end of one man’s life. He hangs on the noose, lit by a single spotlight as a viscous clot of blood gradually oozes from his mouth. Misshapen, deformed and attired in archaic garments he dangles, suspended in death, as dark ambient shamans Ulver are hidden below him on a blacked-out stage.

A piano plays a fragile lament while rumbling effects and growling samples ebb and flow. And a song that is one man’s coda becomes redefined as a sunrise is projected upon the screen behind the band, and Kristoffer Rygg steps up to the microphone to begin “EOS”. Thus begins Ulver: The Norwegian National Opera, the mesmerizing and stunning beautiful live DVD release from Norway’s masters of avant-garde and enigmatic electronica.

Ulver of course know a few things about redefining expectations. At one stage they were a celebrated black metal band, but in the late ’90s they dispensed with the traditional accoutrements of black metal and morphed into an entirely different beast. Traces of their metal past remain fixed in their DNA, especially in their desolate iciness and forever-questioning aesthetic, but for many years now the band has been releasing acclaimed works that blend progressive electronica and glacial neo-classical treatments with shimmering, hypnotic rock.

Aside from one show in 1993, Ulver had always been a studio-based outfit. But in 2009 the band was lured onto the stage for Norway’s Festival of Literature, which in turn led to them play a series of sold-out shows in some of Europe’s most renowned venues throughout 2010. Ulver: The Norwegian National Opera was recorded in Oslo at the end of that touring cycle, not long before the band went into the studio to record 2011′s highly rated Wars of the Roses album. Captured by 6 HD cameras, the show features guest appearances by electronics guru Christian Fennesz and performance artist Ian Johnstone (who plays the aforementioned role of the late Mr. Ark Todd, and look out for his inscrutable resurrection to end the show on an enigmatic note).

The DVD features material from throughout Ulver’s electronic and experimental years, with tracks from the Perdition City, Svidd Neger, Blood Inside and Shadows of the Sun albums, and the Silence Teaches You How to Sing and A Quick Fix of Melancholy EPs. It’s best to think of the DVD in terms of an all-encompassing experience. Breaking the show down into constituent parts defeats its purpose entirely. I could obviously explain to you how the band’s performances of “For the Love of God”, “Funebre” or “Let the Children Go” play out in regard to the overall set, but there’s a clue on the DVD menu to remind you that plucking fragments from the show is inadvisable—there’s no ‘play all’ choice here, just one word: witness. That, more than any of the words I’m about to type, sums the DVD up perfectly.

Spectacular visual accompaniments are projected on a mammoth screen behind the band. Ulver’s set is built atop waves of oscillating and juxtaposing currents, and as the rhythmic pulse shifts the imagery evolves. Varying images of mankind’s atrocities, nature’s majesty and preternatural mystery mimic the cadence of the show perfectly. The vast array of metaphoric, allegorical or representative imagery bolsters or offers a stark counterpoint to the tracks, and as the show progresses it becomes impossible to separate the visual from the musical.

That’s not to suggest that taken in isolation the music is somehow lacking, it’s not, and a CD release of the soundtrack alone would be incredible. The vintage synths, creeping effects, droning guitar, dulcet vocals, piano and percussion that Ulver wield all fuse into a singularly mesmeric force. The set-list has obviously been assembled with a cinematic vision (perhaps operatic is more apt), and the music alone sets you on a path where the idea of stepping off is unfeasible. For 90-plus minutes the band unhurriedly manipulates and tweaks their sound. With many songs bleeding into one another, Ulver constructs a show that takes you on a skillfully paced, sweeping and euphonious voyage—where the pitch and sway, the crescendos and hypnotic undercurrents, guide you through a raft of emotive states.

I had high expectations for Ulver: The Norwegian National Opera and I was not, for one second, anything less than enthralled. Expertly edited by Erlend Gjertsen, and mixed by the band at their own Crystal Canyon Studios in Oslo, the entire package is pristinely rendered, and is a sumptuous feast for the eyes and the ears. Ulver have always been a prime example of the transformative beauty of artists dedicated to producing work that is innovative and imaginative. And galvanized and inspired by celestial, terrestrial and otherworldly endeavors, Ulver: The Norwegian National Opera is a firm reminder of the transfixing (and yes, even transcendental) power of authentically progressive music. I couldn’t recommend it highly enough.

(Kscope)

By Sean Palmerston

One of the most surprising comebacks of 2011 was the unbelievable return to form of legendary Maryland doom unit Pentagram. After having an up-and-down twelve months the year previous, which included having members of the band quit mid-tour in the early part of that year, they really figured things out starting in the late spring of 2010 and, by the end of that year, had recorded Last Rites, their best studio album ever and one of this writer’s top ten albums of the year. The pairing (again) of Bobby Liebling and guitarist Victor Griffin made it their best since the eighties and really solidified the faith of many in the Pentagram name once more.

The real turning point in this writer’s feelings about the current version of Pentagram happened on May 30th when the band played their set at Maryland Deathfest VIII. Although I had been a fan since the early nineties, this was my first time seeing the sometimes questionable band in concert. To say I had trepidation about what could happen was an understatement. Having been well aware of the band’s problems earlier on in the year, I had no idea what to expect. It ended up being one of the best sets of that day, if not the entire four day festival. Jeez, even the often-skeptical Mr. Kevin Stewart-Panko leaned over to me midway through the set and muttered “this is pretty fucking good”. And that it was.

Now our viewpoint at the time was actually sitting on the trunk of a car in the parking lot. We found that it had an awesome view towards the festival’s second outdoor stage straight ahead of us, with an almost perfect audible mix of the band’s live sound. But now that the band’s entire MDF set has been officially released by Metal Blade under the name of When The Screams Come, the ability to relive said show in a completely different fashion from the comfort of one’s own home makes for an even more intriguing experience.

The Pentagram set at MDF was one of the ones captured in its entirety by the Handshake Inc. film company. David Hall and his crew are the ones responsible for the making of the Maryland Deathfest movies, so they had unlimited access to filming the bands from both in front of, besides and behind the stage. Using a series of high quality handheld digital cameras, the crew did their best to film the performances on the fly and, in the case of the Pentagram set, did an exceptional job in doing just that.

Having a real character up front like Bobby Liebling makes for great viewing. Dressed in gold lamé pants and an absolutely obscene psychedelic blouse that he apparently knicked off his mother, Liebling owns the front of the stage in this show. His facial gestures are classic. He totally has down the most wicked, half-dead looks you have ever seen and knows how to play them up. You’d think he has probably spent hours upon hours practicing some of those grimaces into a mirror pretending he was a rock star. He has them down to a science.

As mentioned before, this was not a choreographed set, and the Handshake Inc peeps didn’t know what exactly was going to happen, so kudos to them for having a camera in just the perfect place during “Petrified” when old Uncle Bobby falls to the ground in shambolic shame. It’s probably the most dramatic thing that happened all weekend at the festival performance-wise and it was captured exactly in all of its chilling glory.

Oh yeah, what about the music you ask? Well, during this twelve song set the quartet is on fire and rips through a number of Pentagram classics. The set is like a greatest hits that never was, with the band firing off classic after classic including “Forever My Queen”, ‘20 Buck Spin”, “All Your Choices” and the song for which this live DVD was named for. Both Victor Griffin and his nephew bassist Greg Turley do a great job here, as does then-drummer Gary Isom. The former Spirit Caravan timekeeper ended up leaving the band shortly after this, but it wasn’t because he couldn’t pull his weight. His drumming is spot on and heavy during this 45 minute set, with the only problems coming from the mix on the DVD (some of the tom hits are reverberating way too much in the stage’s PA).

When The Screams Come is a great visual document of the band that will be as entertaining to longtime fans of the band as it will be to newcomers. It’s not the flashiest, it’s certainly a warts-and-all type performance, but it captures a historically important band in their background getting the kind of adulation they deserve. Make sure to also watch the interview with Liebling that’s included as bonus material. It is both hilarious and harrowing at the same time. Let’s hope he can keep his shit together like the for the rest of his time on earth.

(Metal Blade)

By Bill Adams

Over the years, lots of jokes have been made at Ozzy Osbourne’s expense, but it’s sort of understandable because so many things the singer has done are unbelievable. This is a man who has gone no fewer than forty–two rounds with professional rock n’ roll – often bare–knuckled – and while he’s been knocked down and has the scars to prove it, he just keeps getting up; nothing – not booze, not drugs, not excess, not success, not shifting of popular tastes – keeps him down for long. That kind of stature and resilience commands respect. It’s also a story which begs telling and that’s where God Bless Ozzy Osbourne comes in; for 135 minutes, this film tells the story of the beginning, the rise, the success, the excess, the triumph and the establishment of the institution that has become Ozzy Osbourne.

Of course, because Ozzy’s story has been told so often over the years, parts of the film (like the first half hour, which deals with the evolution of Black Sabbath and how Ozzy came to be the singer of the band, him eventually leaving the band, breaking down, signing with CBS Records and biting the head off a dove in a conference room) become a bit static due to repetitive recounting – one can only hear the same story before it’s possible to recite it by rote – but at around the twenty–five minute mark (when Ozzy’s children from his first marriage are introduced) when things begin to get interesting; at the twenty–five minute mark, drugs and alcohol and their presence in Ozzy’s life begin to come into better focus too.

It does seem important to concede that, in the Sixties, drugs and rock n’ roll were the twin taboos. This is addressed a bit prior to this point in the run-time, but the impression they leave starts to change at this point. Black Sabbath fell prey to cocaine and alcohol – nothing was more responsible for the demise of the band than that pair of influences. Certainly at least some fans have been aware of this for decades, but the way it’s presented in this documentary feels like a revelation; suddenly, everything becomes clear after that.

That sort of revelatory feeling quickly becomes the reoccurring form in God Bless Ozzy Osbourne, and it never gets old at any point in this run-time. Here, viewers are regularly offered bits of information that they could recite by rote because they’ve heard them so often, but then there are fantastic little things appended which seem phenomenal; like how quickly Ozzy actually bounced back after the demise of Sabbath and how prolific he became with Randy Rhodes. With Rhodes at his side, Osbourne released two classic albums in less than a year after the end Black Sabbath; people looking at any timeline could know that, but spelled out as it is here feels incredible. Seeing that is unbelievable, as is the brief discussion Ozzy enters into regarding the death of Randy Rhodes – but the depths to which the rough times descended were nothing short of superhuman – as were his substance intake levels.

Eventually (after superhuman tales of excess), Sharon Osbourne is the one who puts forth the theory that the excesses which Ozzy Osbourne has indulged through the lion’s share of his career may have much to do with both the singer’s sense of loss. Through the late Seventies and early Eighties, Ozzy Osbourne lost Black Sabbath, lost his first wife, lost his first kids and lost Randy Rhoads; Sharon’s theory is that he’d already seen that everything had an end, so he wanted to be feeling good when his came.

That’s a heavy statement to make but it is understandable. What isn’t understandable (and this always seems to happen with “The Story Of Ozzy Osbourne”) is the sudden jump in time of about six years which sees viewers arrive at the beginning of the Zakk Wilde era of Ozzy’s band in 1988. That would be a great place to pick up the chronology, but the story doesn’t exactly resume; in fact, it gets even more disjointed on God Bless…. It’s at this point that viewers are treated to footage of Ozzy returning to the scheme where he grew up in Birmingham with no particular explanation or direction other than to seemingly bring the proceedings full circle and begin trying to sew up a few loose ends, eventually arriving at some semblance of a conclusion. It’s a rocky conclusion which sort of stumbles its way through Osbourne finally choosing to sober up after his son Jack, and ending at present day with the singer sober now for five years. In that end comes the obligatory feelgood sentiment from Kelly Osbourne, saying that her father walks a different, prouder line these days and it’s evident in everything he does.

That sounds contrived and like a soft option ending after the story having gone through the way it did, but it’s not the easiest story to end because it isn’t over. Conventional endings can’t work because Ozzy Osbourne isn’t dead. Because it can’t end mortally, God Bless Ozzy Osbourne ends the only way it can: openly, with no real end at all – other than Ozzy Osbourne making the token gesture of finally getting his driver’s license. It seems like a small, inconsequential thing but, after seeing the craziness encapsulated in this footage, seeing something simple and universal like that is gratifying, somehow. That doesn’t mean God Bless Ozzy Osbourne is the single greatest film and it doesn’t mean that there aren’t obvious flaws in it, but it is certainly entertaining, and imminently watchable.

(Eagle Rock/Eagle Vision)

Bill Adams is editor in chief of groundcontrolmag.com

By Bill Adams

No one ever realizes how much music Saul “Slash” Hudson has made until a set like Made In Stoke comes out. The image of Slash as the top hat-wearing guitar god of Guns N’ Roses is the one permanently emblazoned on the mind’s eye of most, but there’s actually a whole lot more in the guitarist’s songbook than that; there is Slash’s Snakepit – which has been an on-again-off-again endeavor since 1994, Velvet Revolver from the early new millennium and the guitarist’s solo work which first came to light in 2010. All told, there are ten albums on which Slash has appeared as a core member of of the band and nine for which he has contributed songwriting. It’s actually a surprising body of work; and that fact comes to light on Made In Stoke because care has been taken to make sure that a bit of music from every turn throughout the guitarist’s career has been included. For some fans, that breadth of material will be enlightening, but anyone who hears Made In Stoke will be floored when they find that the band which accompanies the guitarist (Alter Bridge singer/bassist Myles Kennedy, former Age Of Electric singer/guitarist Todd Kerns, former Theory Of A Deadman drummer Brent Fitz and Bobby Schneck – once the touring guitarist for Weezer) is solid and really tries to help illustrate the figurative “connective tissue” which is present in each of these songs and can only be called Slash’s unique songwriting sensibility.

As much as Made In Stoke is a set to respect for the way it assembles a near quarter-century of songwriting into a coherent and consistently written presentation, there’s no way to deny the tingles that some listeners will feel as the band faithfully reproduces songs like “Nightrain,” “Rocket Queen,” “Civil War,” “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” “Mr. Brownstone,” “Paradise City” and “Slither,” because each proves to be a classic as potent in 2011 as they were the day they were first performed. It cannot be said that any of these takes would be mistaken for the originals (neither Kennedy nor Kerns has a voice comparable to that of Axl Rose or Scott Weiland in their prime), but the unbridled passion of these performances is genuine and infectious, and will strike all the right chords with ears who remember them from back in the day. The power is there in the performance but, if that isn’t enough, the thing that will win listeners over best is the signature tone of Slash’s Gibson Les Paul; that irreplaceable sound is omnipresent on Made In Stoke, and each lick of it dwarfs the presence of every other guitarist Axl Rose has recruited to re-enact them since without even trying – it’s beautiful and ageless here.

In between the songs that everyone knows (and, conspicuously, everyone is singing along with on this album), the songs from Slash’s Snakepit and solo album cannot go overlooked. Particular standouts like “Back From Cali,” “Beggars & Hangers On” and “Watch This” all seek to highlight that while Slash doesn’t sing, there is most definitely the unique stamp of an accomplished songwriter present. That stamp may have been obscured in those bands to which Slash has contributed before, but it really shines here; these songs may be virtually unknown by everyone other than the most dogged fans, but they stand up as solid as the classics do in this set, which says something of the guitarist’s understated ability, but also to his modesty that he has allowed others to take the limelight on his work so often before.

All of those elements – the songs, the performances of them on Made In Stoke, the realization that they are the work of one of the most soft-spoken but excellent songwriters in rock n’ roll – make for an excellent offering in Made In Stoke and will amount to a great surprise for long-time fans. Who knew that Slash was so good at anything other than knocking out great, classic licks for almost thirty years? Some fans might have, but Made In Stoke shows makes the point unavoidable; these are great, classic songs all around.

(Armoury Records)

Bill Adams is the editor-in-chief of groundcontrolmag.com

By Jason Wellwood

It’s always exciting when a Twisted Sister product arrives at the Wellwood household, but even more so when I had no idea it was coming out! Eagle Rock is definitely doing its damndest to make sure that no one forgets Twisted Sister this year! Between the reissues of all of their out of print albums (everything except Stay Hungry was reissued this year…Universal isn’t letting go of the rights to that one!) and the flood of DVD’s coming out, Twisted Sister hasn’t seen this much activity in probably 20 years! I’ve already reviewed two of the DVD’s found in this 5 DVD box set, namely Live At Wacken: The Reunion and Double Live (which is actually 2 shows, and 2 DVDs so it counts as 2 in this set…I don’t want you to be confused!). So, I’m going to stick to reviewing the two that I haven’t had a chance to talk about yet: Live At Reading 1982 and A Twisted Xmas Live In Las Vegas. The latter being the only previously unreleased DVD in the set, and the former having been released as part of the Under the Blade reissue this year.

Live At Reading 1982: If ever there was a band destined to be huge, it was Twisted Sister. This DVD starts off the way all live DVD’s should: great sound, great camera work, and a face tearing performance by the band. As the DVD progresses though, they move into the awesome 80′s production effects moving from camera to camera. And by awesome, I mean awful. It is indicative of the time though and good for a smirk or two as well. It’s a little stunning to see the band playing during the day to an audience who aren’t exactly fans. The bottles and poop fly, Dee calls on the entire audience and in the end…Pete Way, Fast Eddie Clarke and Lemmy all come out to jam on ‘It’s Only Rock & Roll But I Like It’…and the crowd goes wild. This is Twisted Sister at their hungriest, and their most powerful. Yes, the stage shows got better, more classic songs arrived but this is the first giant leap for the band and it’s an awesome watch. The interviews afterwards are hilarious as well. I particularly like the part where Dee Snider relates how worried the Reading folks were about him cursing and then says that in the end, he didn’t curse. Of course, this is after hearing him use a few (though fewer than normal) choice curses throughout the set. Memory is a funny thing sometimes!

A Twisted Xmas Live In Las Vegas: There are parts of this DVD that made me cringe but some of those are what made it such an great watch. Having Twisted Sister play a Christmas ‘review’ type show in Las Vegas is a hilarious idea, and of course the band played it up quite well. The only one who doesn’t seem too happy about it is bassist Mark Mendoza, but I honestly don’t think he’s happy about much. Musically, the band is 100% solid. You’d never know these guys didn’t play and tour together non-stop. As far as that goes, these guys are complete professionals and the song selection is a good mix of hits, well known tracks and the Xmas album classics. As always, the band is very self deprecating and both Dee Snider and guitarist/founder/manager Jay Jay French are very funny which helps them to connect with this Las Vegas crowd. It’s pretty obvious that some of the audience have NO idea what is happening or where they are, and at one point French remarks, ‘You thought you were getting the Trans Siberian Orchestra, sorry, you got the Trans-Sexual Siberian Orchestra’. Some parts don’t go over quite as well, particularly the ‘Satan Claus’ bit that stretches on to over 5 minutes and it should have been about 30 seconds. All in all though, this is a really fun show and puts a bit of a different light on the band, seeing them play in a seated, theatre environment.

Also included in this box set are some S.M.F. goodie: a TS Christmas tree ornament, replica backstage pass from 2001’s New York Steel benefit, a replica of the original S.M.F. fan club letter and an old school TS button for your denim jacket. Even if you already own one or two of the DVD’s in the set, this is a worthwhile trade up. If you’ve fallen behind this year and haven’t picked up any of the DVD’s then get out and grab this set! (And, of course, ‘tis the season so it makes a swell gift idea too!)

(Eagle Rock Entertainment)

For reviews of the other DVDs in the set, you can go here: http://www.hellbound.ca/2011/08/twisted-sister-double-live-dvd/ for the Double Live and here: http://www.hellbound.ca/2011/01/twisted-sister-live-at-wacken-dvd/ for the Live At Wacken: The Reunion review.

By Adrien Begrand

Trust Eyehategod to put out a live DVD that looks like a fifth-generation VHS bootleg from 25 years ago. And bless ‘em for it. After all, the pure grit and amateurishness of the way the two live sets on Eyehategod Live are shot are far more appropriate for the New Orleans sludge legends than, say, a lavish light show, crane shots galore, and a five-channel surround mix. Nah, instead we’re privy to poorly lit, hand-held shots from various angles, most of which are right smack in the middle of the chaos the band is creating, and sound quality that’s muddy and distorted. It looks and sounds absolutely filthy, and it’s perfect.

Shot in Cleveland in June 2010, the first live set on the DVD, for all its dicey quality, is incendiary, the quintet hammering out such blues-drenched classics as “Take As Needed For Pain”, “Sister Fucker”, and “Dixie Whiskey”. Inimitable vocalist Mike IX Williams is as intense and confrontational as you’d expect (the guy has to repeatedly deal with a big skinhead idiot who keeps taking up residence onstage), while the chain-smoking Jimmy Bower lets loose riff after riff, sounding half Tony Iommi, half Robert Johnson, his tone thick as kudzu. Bower might make a decent living as the drummer for Down, but just as we wish Dave Grohl wouldn’t waste his time fronting the Foo Fighters and go back to what he does best behind the kit, Bower should be at the front of the stage with his SG more often, because his riffs alongside bandmate Brian Patton are positively godly.

The second full live set was shot in Baltimore in October 2009, and is the superior show, not only in the quality of the recording, which actually approaches competent, but in the band’s performance as well. Williams is absolutely ferocious during the songs, and in between, savagely witty (“We’re looking for heroin and black girls”), the set list including “$30 Bag”, “Kill Your Boss”, and Children of God”. Meanwhile, the improved sound quality allows us to really tune into the rhythm section of bassist Gary Mader and drummer Joey LaCaze, who provide a swing that few heavy bands can pull off.

Some interesting bonus footage has been tossed in as well, including three songs from a 2010 show in Vienna, Austria, as well as videos for “Sister Fucker”, “Anxiety Hangover”, and “Age of Bootcamp”, which only makes the DVD all the more enjoyable. Eyehategod Live is ugly, abrasive, and a bit of a mess, but fans of the band wouldn’t have it any other way. And seeing how Eyehategod will likely never play a show north of the border, this is a live set for Canadian fans to savour, not to mention seethe with envy of their neighbours to the South.

(MVD)

By Rob Kachluba

Finally, Iced Earth has released a dvd worthy of watching. After that huge debacle of the Alive in Athens video that was put out with John Shaefer showing his digust about it in public, we have this two-dvd set consisting of three festival shows, featuring vocalist Matt Barlow on two of them and Ripper Owens on the third. Before those there is a decent documentary about the current band and the early beginnings of Iced Earth as well as their huge popularity in Greece etc. Now after watching this thing twice I’ll bet anyone who would argue that Matt Barlow is not the one and only true vocalist for this band. His performance on the Metal Camp festival show is flawless. Such emotion and passion in his delivery, it will have you punching your fist in the air. Highlights are “Declaration Day” and “Dracula”. He hits the highs effortlessly and really knows how to command the stage. The band sounds as tight as hell and really proves that they are the premier power metal band in North America bar none. The timelessness and quality of the songs are undeniable.

Now comes the sad part. The Ripper footage from Wacken does not hold up to the Barlow stuff at all. He has a lot of trouble hitting the highs and almost looks like he’s struggling on some of them which I find strange as he’s a sceamer and should be hitting these notes with ease. The Barlow material he just does no justice to and his own songs like “10 Thousand Strong” and “Declaration Day” sound flat and emotionless. I don’t know if he was sick or something but it was not a good outing. Other then that the dvd is a great watch with a great song selection from all the albums minus Burnt Offerings and both sets with Barlow and Ripper are the same other than Ripper’s set having “Charge to Keep”, “The Hunter” and the whole Birth of the Wicked trilogy too.

(Century Media)

By Sean Palmerston

I’ve always loved Black Sabbath. Through all the different incarnations of the band, almost every line up of the Sabs that Tony Iommi has put together has at least been decent. Sure there have been a few really bad clunker albums over the years (Forbidden, I am looking right at you), but for the most part Sabbath at its most disappointing wipes the floor with a lot of other so-called metal bands. Sorry if you don’t agree.

One of the high water marks of the band’s storied career was the early eighties when Ronnie James Dio fronted them for two awesome studio albums and one passable live album. The Heaven & Hell album in particular still remains one of the band’s all time greatest studio sides, right up their with the first four Ozzy-fronted records. It was a brief, somewhat tumultuous three years that ended way too soon, with internal problem with the mixing of the Live Evil album ending the band. But, of course, you all know that anyway. Blah blah blah…

Fast forward to 2007 and the Dio era version of the band reformed to tour in support of a compilation entitled The Dio Years that came out through Rhino. The band, now renamed Heaven & Hell supposedly to avoid legal ramifications, started with a warm up tour across Canada that many Hellbound writers had the chance to see, myself included. The group played a number of shows from Vancouver westwards across the country supported by Megadeth and Down and culminated the tour with a show at New York’s prestigious Radio City Music Hall with an intention to film the show for a potential DVD release in the future.

At the end of the summer of 2007 Radio City Music Hall was released to positive reviews, which it whole heartedly deserves. By the time the band had hit NYC, they were indeed firing on all cylinders, with any rust clearly done away with. I had seen the band less than two weeks before at London ON’s John Labatt Centre and was really disappointed with their set. Honestly, they were the worst band that night, blown away by both Down and Megadeth. I remember being seriously bummed on the ninety-minute drive home after the show thinking that maybe they had lost their magical edge, but really just hoping I had seen a good band on a bad night. After all, even the most professional bands in the world have off nights, right?

Radio City Music Hall proves that the show I saw in London was just a bad show by a good band. On this fifteen song show Heaven & Hell played their hearts out for the cameras at hand, made good use of one of the most legendary concert halls in North America and left a great visual document of the band. Not an amazing one, mind you, but a great one. I had the opportunity to see the band two more times after the release of this live DVD, once with Alice Cooper in 2007 and again the following summer in on a great bill that also featured Judas Priest, Motorhead and Testament and I can honestly say that as good as Heaven & Hell is on this DVD, they were even better for those performances.

if there is one criticism that I could lay on Radio City Music Hall it is that it was filmed far too early on after their reformation. The difference between this band’s performance here and the way they were playing that October when they did a second North American tour was like night and day. They went from being a great band to an outstanding live act. As good as this live set is – and it is very good – I think that had they waited another six months to film it we would have had an absolutely incredible artifact.

Originally only released on DVD, Radio City Music Hall has finally seen issue on blu ray disc thanks to the folks at Eagle Vision. The transfer is very well done, the sound mix doesn’t have a lot of difference from the 2007 version but the picture (at least on my TV) is a little sharper than the original DVD. I’m not sure that it is an absolute must upgrade if you already own that version, but if you don’t and are trying to choose I think I would give this one the nod. It’s also recommended over the Neon Nights DVD from Wacken, as this performance just stands up better from start to finish.

(Eagle Vision)

By Jason Wellwood

Twisted Sister is one band that I regret not having seen in their heyday. I did have the chance to see Dee Snider’s SMF’s play The Generator in Toronto with AJ Pero on drums (the venue was so small that Dee was literally punching holes in the ceiling every time he pumped his fist in the air!) but it wasn’t the same. Last year’s reissue of the Live At Wacken DVD was a good step towards feeling like I had seen the band but the intercut interview segments actually left me wanting a full, unadulterated live show more than anything. Enter Eagle Vision and the Double Live DVD, showing two very different periods in the bands history: 1982 on the way up, and 2001 when they’d already been gone for thirteen years.

Disc one of Double Live was filmed weeks before the band left for the U.K. to record Under The Blade. This was really the first headlining ‘theatre’ type show for the band, as they were really ready to explode out of the club scene in New York. Dee and company are in fine form, the set not only has some of the songs you’d expect to hear at the time (‘Under The Blade’, ‘What You Don’t Know Sure Can Hurt You’, etc.) it also includes a few songs that would show up on later albums (‘Leader of the Pack’, ‘You Can’t Stop Rock N’ Roll’) some tracks that only die-hard fans would know (‘Lady’s Boy’, ‘Rock N’ Roll Saviours’) and even one that never made it on record (‘You Know I Cry’). Obviously fans who only know Stay Hungry are not going to enjoy this set, but it’s not for them anyway. This is not a slick, over produced and remixed MTV Live production, the sound is raw, there are lighting issues, slight miscues…it’s a warts and all production and it’s fantastic. The band is solid, engaging and ahem, hungry! Interesting to note that AJ Pero had literally been in the band two months at the time and had three wisdom teeth removed the morning before the show! These guys were pros!!

Disc two flashes forward almost nineteen years in the future to a point when the band had been broken up and not played together for over thirteen years. In the wake of 9/11, metal lover Eddie Trunk put out a call to friends and managed to convince Twisted Sister to reform completely and have them play a headlining set for his NY Steel benefit show. Another testament to how incredible these guys were: they had only about five rehearsals before playing this set and absolutely killing it. No major mistakes, no one forgetting lyrics, riffs, etc. Again, the sound is raw, microphones cut out, the lighting is pretty dark in places, but it all gives you the feeling that you were/are actually there seeing the band live. Here are five guys getting together after thirteen years and proving why they were so legendary in the New York club scene and why they became so huge.

Again, warts and all, Twisted Sister absolutely destroy any doubts that these guys couldn’t hold it together.

On both discs, the set lists offer surprises, the band is just as amazing in 1982 as they are in 2001 and this, as far as I’m concerned, is the ‘must see’ live DVD of the year.

(Eagle Vision)

By Jason Wellwood

I’m not a big fan of live albums because they are usually poorly done or the band just doesn’t live up to the hype when you see them documented this way. So, when I heard Avantasia, a project I really enjoy, was releasing a live album, I was a little hesitant. I knew the tour had happened but in the three years since most of the details had slipped my mind. Without checking out any of the liner notes, I popped in the first DVD of the two DVD/two CD set and about two seconds in I realized that this part of the show had been shot at Wacken Open Air and I immediately relaxed. Every Wacken live show I have seen has been beautifully captured and this was no exception. The show does jump back and forth between Wacken and the Masters of Rock festival in the Czech Republic, but neither the quality of the recording nor the quality of the performances suffer at all.

The first surprise was Jorn Lande and his ridiculous moustache stepping up to sing right alongside Tobias Sammet for ‘The Scarecrow’. Jorn’s smooth voice is a definite compliment to Tobias’ who, live, seems to be pushing the limits of his vocals giving him a much rougher sound. The next surprise was Andre Matos of Symfonia (ex-Angra) coming out, and at this point I grabbed the liner notes. The cast here is incredible, a definite ‘who’s who’ of European power metal and a feat of scheduling to get them all together for the tour, I’m sure! Overall, the live show is just amazing, musically, vocally, visually, the ensemble really pull it off. Hearing 80,000 fans singing along with Avantasia is a little awe inspiring.

Heading to disc two, the requisite video clips are included (Lost in Space, Carry Me Over and Dying for an Angel which was weird as the newer albums were released AFTER this live show) as well as a documentary. The film contains plenty of insight from Tobias himself not only about the tour, but about Avantasia from beginning to current status and the goofy footage of Amanda Somerville and Jorn Lande make the film well worth watching in itself!

I have only one real complaint about the set and that is when Tobias is introducing the band at the end of the show it just takes too long and starts to drag. It’s minor enough not to spoil the show, but long enough to be memorably annoying. However, the set is highly entertaining all around and a great way to spend a few hours in front of the TV and in the car!

(Nuclear Blast)