Dio - Evil Of Divine:  Live In New York City
2005 Spitfire Records

Track Listing:
1. Killing The Dragon
2. Egypt/Children Of The Sea
3. Push
4. Stand Up And Shout
5. Rock And Roll
6. Don't Talk To Strangers
7. Man On The Silver Mountain
8. Guitar Solo
9. Long Live Rock And Roll
10. Fever Dreams
11. Holy Diver
12. Heaven And Hell
13. The Last In Line
14. Rainbow In The Dark
15. We Rock

Line-Up:
Vocals:  Ronnie James Dio
Guitars:  Doug Aldrich
Bass:  Jimmy Bain
Drums:  Simon Wright
Keyboards:  Scott Warren

Website:  www.ronniejamesdio.com

Horatio's Rating:  F
Average Album Rating:  F

Horatio's Review:
I have no problem with Dio, but try showing me one person in the entire world at large who could be remotely excited about this CD, and I'll believe that Dio was born in 1954.  I understand this CD was taken from a live DVD of the same concert in 2003.  Why couldn't it have been left at that?  Wasn't it 1998 that Dio released a double live CD?  And most of the tracks from that are repeated on this throwaway (and 'Intermission' as well).  I'm sure everyone's salivating at the prospect of hearing 'Don't Talk To Strangers', 'We Rock', 'Rainbow In The Dark', 'Last In Line', 'Stand Up And Shout', 'Holy Diver', 'Heaven And Hell', 'Man On The Silver Mountain' and 'Long Live Rock And Roll' again.  Classics yes.  Overplayed and stale?  Certainly.  Especially live.  I'm sure Dio loyalists will be thrilled by the inclusion of tracks from 'Killing The Dragon', a nine minute guitar solo and 'Fever Dreams'.  That makes the price worth it!

This isn't a live album.  'Decade Of Aggression' is a live album.  This is Dio in the studio live.  I'm trying to envision someone listening to 'We Rock' and describing it as the best live version he's ever heard of the song.  Wow, it's really a step up from the 'Last In Live' attempt.  If this is a complete representation of Dio live then I'm glad I've never seen him.  No passion or spontaneity, just straight run throughs of his hits.  No mind bending tangents or moments of improvisational power, just the album tracks played down the line and worse.  The crowd is only audible during the intro's to the songs and then fade from hearing soon after.  Perhaps they were as bored shitless as I am.  Wouldn't you be thrilled to hear 'Push' live?  A nine minute guitar solo from Aldrich?  What is this?  Manowar?  What sick freak is digging that?

Listen to Dio going through the paces on 'Stand Up And Shout'.  It's sad and funny at once.  Trying to force his enthusiasm for a song once hard hitting but relegated to karaoke metal.  The crowd's chants are pure studio effects.  I can picture audience members dying at this show.  So bored and listless they just die on the spot.  It really sounds like the band is playing in an empty room.  This has no redeeming value.  It's a sham, a rip off.  A successful live album would cause me to react in some fashion.  Instead I'm sitting here in a trance, the disgust all I feel.  Not just one of the worst live metal albums ever, one of THE WORST albums ever full stop.  Sort of like every Iron Maiden live album.
Horatio's Rating:  F

Also be sure to read:
Dio - Killing The Dragon by Uncle Meat