Ronnie James Dio - Vocals 
Simon Wright - Drums 

Jeff Pilson: Bass
Craig Goldy: Guitar

review  by Dimitris "Heartcollector83" Theodoropoulos____   

New album by the most legendary heavy metal singer of all time. At the age of 63, Ronnie James Dio has struck once again with a new album only 2 years after the 2002's very successful Killing The Dragon album. 

Master Of The Moon though follows a different path, more diverse than its predecessor. The songs of the new album need much more listens to get in the mood and be enjoyed. The album hides many great moments that were revealed to me after a bit more listens than usual. The lyrics are in the great Dio standards and this time they deal with the surveillance thing that's going on all around the world and cameras lurking at our lives. In the song The Eyes he describes very well this whole situation. The Man Who Would Be King is about George Bush and all that he's trying to do, just read the lyrics. Although there are few fast moments on the album, the whole slow and heavy tempo reminds a lot of the years he spent with Black Sabbath especially from the year 1992 with the album Dehumanizer. 

The album kicks in with the only fast song of the album One More For The Road, a great opener and a classic Dio song. Catchy chorus, great riff and this track will definitely sound great live. Next song is the title song of the new album, Master Of The Moon, a mystical tune with great melodies and vocal lines. The End Of The World is a track that talks about the situation that exists in our world and Ronnie believes that this must be the end of the world in the song. Shivers is one the more catchy songs of the album that don't need many listens to get into it. Beautiful chorus and main riff. The Man Who Would be King starts with a piano intro and Ronnie singing on the melody, it just gives me shivers. Brilliant moment and it lasts too little to give a turn to the guitar to kick in with a killer guitar solo and start the song. The Eyes is the song that Dio played on his recent summer European tour prior to the release of the album. In this tour we got a chance to hear the first song of the new album and it worked really well live. It has a killer riff through out the song and an excellent chorus. Probably the best song of the album. The ending of the song features a great sing a long melody where it rules when its played live with interaction with the crowd. 

Living The Lie is a nice song but I think it just doesn't stand up to the same high standards as the other songs. It still is a nice tune though with an interesting middle part. I Am sounded boring at the first listens but now I really dig the cool chorus and the song overall.. Death By Love is probably my personal favorite of the album. Nice riff and the chorus somehow sounds so cool and powerful. Final track of the album In Dreams with a very good riff and a good overall song.

All in all it's another great album by Dio. It's different from the previous album music wise but if I had to compare them I'd have to say that it's not as good as Killing The Dragon which I really liked for its speed but this one has the well written melodies and songs that grow on you every time you listen to them. All you Dio fans out there don't hesitate to buy it if you liked Magica or Dehumanizer. For the rest of you that just love Dio's voice this album will be a good companion for you too. For those who heard it and didn't like it give it a chance, this album asks some listens from you but really pays back in the end.

rating:   9.4/10

[ Presentation ]  [ News ]  [ Reviews ] [ Interviews ]  [ Live Reports ]   [ Specials ]  

  [ F**king Bollox ]  [ Tours ]  [ Dates ]  

  [ In Store ]   [ Upcoming Releases ]  [ Underground]   [ Artwork ]  [ Videoclips ]  [ MP3's ] 

   [ Venues ]  [ CD's Archive ]    [ Links ] 

  [ Contacts ]    [ Gryphonbook ]

[ I Despair ]

© GryphonMetal.ch   2001-2004Niederrohrdorf - Switzerland               contacts