Review: Dio – The Studio Albums: 1996-2004

BMG (September 22nd 2023)

Reviewer: Jason Hopper

BMG and Wendy Dio have partnered to re-release Ronnie James Dio’s final four studio albums in both LP and CD collections.  What else can possibly be said about the vocal prowess of Dio that hasn’t already been said. Admittedly, I only own and heard two of these four studio albums, so this was an opportunity for me to see what I had been missing.

Right from the start, I found the exclusion of 1993’s ‘Strange Highways’ to be quite odd. I believe many would regard Dio’s first five albums as the classic era of the band before grunge caused a fission and changed the landscape. This collection includes the post-grunge albums, but not that one. Perhaps it’s a former label issue that resulted in its rejection. That could be the only reasonable answer.

I have a bias when it comes to Dio’s music that I should get out of the way first. Dio’s extensive history contains a lot of brooding, slow paced, yet heavy tracks. I find most of them to be my least favorite in his catalog. I always preferred his songs that throttle the engines and explode out of the gate. I will point out individual songs that grabbed my attention and determine which albums have appeal to me based on that ratio between brooding and fast-paced tracks.

I’ll start with a quick review of the albums that have been a part of my collection for years.  1996’s ‘Angry Machines’ has about a half album’s worth of great tracks to offer. ‘Don’t Tell the Kids’ has one of the fastest rhythms of any of Dio’s songs. I really dug ‘Black’ and the approach he takes to the vocal melody. The album as a whole has a dark, sinister vibe and that song defines the album.

While I cannot be too sure, I’m going to go out on a limb and declare that many fans would regard ‘Killing the Dragon’ as an album that can stand toe to toe with the Dio albums of the 80s. It’s certainly my favorite of this collection. Doug Aldrich does a masterful job handling guitar duties on this release. The other three albums in this collection have a split vibe going, with brooding tracks being the majority. Here’s there’s only two tracks that are in that fashion.  Everything else is prime Dio. A special shoutout to ‘Guilty’, a song that I feel does not get the recognition it deserves when people reference the album. A vibe straight off ‘Dream Evil’.

Having never heard the other two albums in this collection, I started with ‘Magica’, a concept album. Once it ended, I looked up the story behind the album, as I had no idea what Dio was singing about. According to Wikipedia, it’s “The saga of Blessing, a netherworld invaded by dark forces that vaporize people into pure, evil energy. I guess it helps to know that story beforehand because I never once guessed that was the tale.

This album is just a little too out there for me. The talking robotic alien voices in various tracks were distracting and unnecessary. Some potentially great songs like ‘Feed My Head’ are undermined by drastic changes in tempo that throw off the listener. If you are into progressive metal, then this is right up your alley. Personally, I am not a fan of progressive anything. There are a couple of shining lights. ‘Fever Dreams’ has a great feel to it. ‘Chalis’ is a highlight with a chorus that soars. The surprise for me is ‘As Long as it’s Not About Love’. Dio always made it a point to not sing love songs. While the words show he’s stuck to his convictions, the beautiful first two minutes make me wish he would have given that a shot at some point in his career.  The closest we will ever get to a power ballad from Dio. While the whole song is good, his vocals in the opening minutes are perfection.

‘Master of the Moon’ is a very easy one for me to review. My least favorite in this collection, the only track I will return to is opener ‘One More for the Road’. Way too many slow and plodding tracks. Guitarist Craig Goldy sounds uninspired throughout. Tracks like ‘Shivers’, ‘Death by Love’ and ‘Living the Lie’ have real potential, but basic strumming and chord progression that do little to elevate the tracks.

It should be noted that the vinyl release contains an additional 7” of studio track ‘Electra’, which I believe was the last song written and sung by Ronnie before he passed, with an intention to make a sequel to ‘Magica’. There’s nothing special about the CD reissue, so this package is for those who don’t have most (or none) of these albums, completionists, and those who want the vinyl reissue.

Tracklist:

Disk 1: Angry Machines

1. Institutional Man
2. Don’t Tell the Kids
3. Black
4. Hunter of the Heart
5. Stay Out of My Mind
6. Big Sister
7. Double Monday
8. Golden Rules
9. Dying in America
10. This is Your Life

Disk 2: Magica

1. Discovery
2. Magica Theme
3. Lord of the Last Day
4. Fever Dreams
5. Turn to Stone
6. Feed My Head
7. Eriel
8. Chalis
9. As Long as It’s Not About Love
10. Losing My Insanity
11. Otherworld
12. Magica (Reprise)
13. Lord of the Last Day (Reprise)

Disk 3: Killing the Dragon

1. Killing the Dragon
2. Along Comes a Spider
3. Scream
4. Better in the Dark
5. Rock and Roll
6. Push
7. Guilty
8. Throw Away Children
9. Before the Fall
10. Cold Feet

Disk 4: Master of the Moon

1. One More for the Road
2. Master of the Moon
3. The End of the World
4. Shivers
5. The Man Who Would Be King
6. The Eyes
7. Living the Lie
8. I Am
9. Death by Love
10. In Dreams