Dinosaurs

Here's an interesting "supergroup" of sorts. Vocalist Carl Sentance (Krokus, Geezer Butler Band, etc…), guitarist Carlos Cavazo (Quiet Riot), bassist Jeff Pilson (Dokken), and drummer Vinnie Appice (Dio, Black Sabbath) have teamed up to deliver a hard hitting slab of old school metal. The album title is very appropriate. None of the band members can exactly be considered youthful, but that doesn't mean they still don't know how to make some good music. Also as the name would indicate, this album is very old school in nature. There is no attempt to sound relevant in today's music scene or any other such nonsense. Dinosaurs is a classic metal album that is very much an excellent trip back in time. Musically and sonically, this album sounds like it came from a vault that has been locked for 2 decades. I don't mean that in a bad way at all. The production is very much up to today's standards, but it sounds like the band used vintage equipment to create this album. I could be wrong on that count, but the guitar tone has a classic feel to it, very similar to the Dio era Black Sabbath albums. In other words, the band has done a magnificent job in capturing that special old school sound without sacrificing sound quality in the process. Continuing what I said above, Dinosaurs certainly carries a strong vibe of Dio era Black Sabbath and even the first few Dio solo albums. I'm sure this is no accident considering that Vinne Appice is pounding the skins on this album. For example, Boats of Despair is strikingly close to Country Girl (from the Mob Rules album) with its slow, but very deliberate and hard hitting rhythm. The rhythm section is just stupendous on this album, with Jeff Pilson dishing out some very effective bass guitar riffs (She Went Away is a prime example). Jeff gives each of the songs a very solid backbone with his bass playing, very much showing a Black Sabbath influence in that regard. If you like the bottom end sound of an album like Heaven and Hell, I think you'll really enjoy the sonics on Dinosaurs. Vinnie Appice hasn't lost a beat through the years. He keeps things interesting and energetic throughout; never becoming predictable or repetitious. As most of the songs on this album are uptempo (the aforementioned doomy Boats of Despair and Indian Path being the only real exceptions), his drumming is extremely reminiscent of Holy Diver and Last in Line, which translates into two thumbs up in my book. Carlos Cavazo also shines on this album. He lights up the album with countless solos and shreds that have the prominence and flamboyance of yesteryear, the kind that are just born to be played live onstage in front of thousands of head banging metal fanatics. I guess the music of Quiet Riot never gave Carlos the platform to dazzle like he does on this album. Of course, the music presented here is a lot more heavy and aggressive than anything Quiet Riot has done, and I have to say that the man has nailed the part here. His performance combined with Pilson's very active bass playing makes for a very impressive guitar attack on this album that never gets old or tired, even after numerous listens. Vocalist Carl Sentance had a one album stint with Krokus; 1999's Round 13. He has a smooth and melodic, mid to high range voice that contains elements of Tony Martin and even Robert Plant at times. It's pretty easy for the well performed music behind him to steal the spotlight, but Carl deserves credit here too. He is able to add another dimension to the songs with his very passionate and energetic delivery; and is plenty capable of enhancing the melodies when needed. Fans of old school metal shouldn't miss this album; particularly fans of Dio's solo and Black Sabbath work of the early to mid 1980's. Although nothing new, Dinosaurs is a outstanding slab of classic 80's metal performed be well respected veterans of the scene that very much live up their capabilities here. There is no attempt whatsoever for these guys to follow any of today's trends or styles. They simply do what they do best, and the end result demonstrates that they very much have something worthwhile to offer the genre. Hopefully this isn't just a one and done project.