Last in Line - Nottingham Review

Sadly, I never got to see the band Dio live. I saw Ronnie James Dio live once, as part of Heaven & Hell when the band came to Plymouth in 2007 - which was excellent - but I always wanted to see the great man live playing songs from throughout his solo career. I had a ticket to see Dio live in Bristol in 2010 - but the tour was cancelled when he was diagnosed with cancer, from which he never recovered. I am very happy that I got to see him live in some capacity, but I will always be a little sad that I never saw his solo band. These things cannot be helped however, and Dio join the, admittedly small, list of acts I will now never have the chance to see. The band Last in Line are, therefore, something of a godsend. While neither Vivian Campbell (guitar) or Vinny Appice (drums) had been a part of Dio for a good number of years - both were key members of the band's most successful years. Appice was a member of Dio for longer than Campbell ever was, but the pair of them ensured their place in metal history by appearing on 1983's Holy Diver, 1984's The Last in Line, and 1985's Sacred Heart - arguably Dio's most-defining albums. Unfortunately, Dio and Campbell fell out during the Sacred Heart tour resulting in the latter leaving the band. The two never made up, and occasionally traded insults via the media - which was always a bit sad to see. Campbell of course went on to join Def Leppard, and has been an integral member of that band since the early 1990s, and largely ignored his time with Dio for a good number of years. I am not really sure what the catalyst for Last in Line was after all those years, but I think Campbell and Appice might have been brought back together by the late Jimmy Bain - bassist in those early Dio line-ups. I think there was a mutual wish to revisit some of those tracks that the three wrote together as part of Dio, and started playing a few low-key shows with frontman Andrew Freeman - a relative unknown. The shows were a success, and one thing led to another and soon the band were ready to write together again and released Heavy Crown in 2016. Sadly Bain died just before the album's release, with journeyman bassist Phil Soussan taking his place - a position the English musician still holds. Last in Line have become a semi-regular touring act over the past few years, fitting shows in around the members' other commitments, and released their second album earlier this year. A short UK tour was announced a few months ago, and since the Nottingham show fitted in nicely around some other plans that I already had (it ended up being the fourth gig of a four-gig weekend!) it seemed rude not to get a ticket. It would be the closest thing I could ever see to those early Dio shows - and seeing big names like Campbell and Appice in the relatively intimate confines of the Rescue Rooms would certainly be a novelty!

There were a couple of support acts to warm the crowd up before Last in Line's set however, with the first being a rather limp showing from the Midlands' Gin Annie. I was familiar with the band's name, but had never heard any of their songs prior to the show. It was my understanding that the band are gaining some traction in the rock world, so I was interested to check them out. If they are indeed gaining traction then I am really not sure why, as I thought their set was one of the blandest displays of old-school hard rock I had seen for a while. I have been fairly blessed by strong support acts of late, but Gin Annie just did nothing for me to stand out from the crowd. They had a few decent riffs and the odd memorable chorus, but on the whole they were just boring and extremely generic. Unfortunately I often find that the new rock bands that people start to hype up a little are the blandest of the bunch, while the great ones struggle to get a look in. Obviously this is all my opinion, and if people genuinely enjoy Gin Annie then that is great, but there are so many better new rock acts out there. To me, the band can best be summed up by their closing number Born to Rock and Roll, with lyrics like 'I was born to rock and roll; its in my heart and in my soul'. This is the level of rote that we are talking about here, and I think it is safe to say that they are not a band for me.

Luckily the second support act was much better, with the modern AOR act Vega owning the stage throughout their seven-song set. This was my third time seeing the band as a support act this year and, while the setlist was basically identical to those other shows, it was great to see them again. The band were brimming with confidence as soon as they hit the stage with the rocking Let's Have Fun Tonight from their latest album; and six more great tracks followed. Vega are one of those bands that pretty much always manage to craft a strong chorus. I am not saying that every one of their songs is a hit, because that is not the case, but the chorus is usually always strong. Frontman Nick Workman clearly has a knack for crafting strong vocal melodies, and the Martin brothers have really established themselves as a strong songwriting duo by this point. Whether the band is rocking hard such as during Explode or showcasing more of a 1980s AOR vibe such as during Kiss of Life - Vega really shine. They have a bit of everything, with Marcus Thurston (guitar/vocals) able to whip up a shredding solo at the drop of a hat and James Martin (keyboards) always being on hand to lay down a sparkly synth riff. Vega are not a band that I listen to at home too often, but I always enjoy seeing them live. They always manage to create a strong atmosphere during their shows, and I imagine that each show that they do creates new fans for them. That being said, I think that they had quite a few fans already in attendance - as Workman did not need to break too much of a sweat when getting people to sing along. This was great to see, and helped to elevate the evening. By the time set-closer Savin' Grace rolled around, everyone was into what Vega were doing - and helped Workman to sing many of the song's wordless vocal sections. It was a powerful few songs from a band that ought to be bigger than they are, and I am looking forward to hearing their sixth album that is due out next year. The setlist was:

Let's Have Fun Tonight
Explode
Every Little Monster
Kiss of Life
White Flag
Worth Dying For
Savin' Grace

Despite Vega's efforts, it was of course Last in Line that people were here to see. At around 9:30pm the lights went down and a subtle keyboard-heavy intro played as the band took to the stage - before they crashed into a mid-paced grind of Landslide from their new album. While it was the old Dio material that dominated the set, and unsurprisingly received the best reactions from the crowd, the band's original songs just about managed to hold their own. I was quite rude about their second album II earlier in the year, but live the songs sounded much better - which confirms my view that Jeff Pilson's production is holding the band back - with Landslide kicking things off nicely. However, when Campbell moved into the riff from Stand Up and Shout the place went wild and the atmosphere from then on was electric. Freeman might not be Dio, but then again few are and he made the songs his own while still staying faithful to the original melodies. He was great throughout, but particularly shone on the set's heavier numbers in my opinion. Straight Through the Heart really showcased his power, with Appice's very distinctive drumming keeping everything moving. As the band do not have a keyboard player, and did not appear to have any prominent keyboards on a backing track apart from during the intros to a couple of songs, the songs sounded much weightier than on those old Dio albums. This was no bad thing however, and helped the overall energy of the night. Holy Diver sounded heavier than ever, and while The Last in Line sounded less grandiose it still had a certain primal power. Elsewhere, the riffy original Blackout the Sun was an unexpected highlight, with Freeman clearly relishing the chance to sing one of his contributions to the setlist - and the fact that there was not a mass exodus to the bar showcased that the new songs fitted in nicely alongside the classics. It was another original in Starmaker, which Soussan dedicated to Bain, that kicked off the final portion of the main set. The song has a great smouldering power to it, and it one of the band's best creations yet in my opinion. Freeman again shone, while Appice's lumbering beat only contributed to the power. The epic feel was retained in Egypt (The Chains are On), which is one of my favourite Dio songs. Without the keyboards, with the exception of the taped intro, the song sounded a bit different - but still great. It was nice and heavy, with Freeman showcasing some vocal diversity throughout, and Campbell took over at the end for a lengthy closing guitar solo. His role in Def Leppard is quite regimented, as the band are not ones to often cut loose, so it was great seeing him let off the leash here. This led in the main set closer Rainbow in the Dark, which again sounded different without the keyboards but erupted into a bit of a sing along which the band clearly enjoyed. That was it for the main set, but a three-song encore followed. Two Dio classics and one last original were included, with the slow-burning Don't Talk to Strangers and the riffy Devil in Me impressing, before We Rock whipped up one last burst of energy - and made sure everyone went home happy and singing the song in their head! The setlist was:

Landslide
Stand Up and Shout [Dio cover]
Straight Through the Heart [Dio cover]
Year of the Gun
Holy Diver [Dio cover]
Blackout the Sun
The Last in Line [Dio cover]
Starmaker
Electrified
Egypt (The Chains are On) [Dio cover]
Rainbow in the Dark [Dio cover]
-
Don't Talk to Strangers [Dio cover]
Devil in Me
We Rock [Dio cover]

Sometimes long weekends of gigging can produce gig fatigue, and by the time you get to the last one you just want a quiet evening in. Luckily Last in Line's show did not suffer from this at all, and the performance from the band was top notch. It was great hearing so many of those old classic Dio tunes live, and the band's original material hit surprisingly hard too. Throw in an excellent support slot from Vega, and a great evening was had by all.