Dio: Live In London Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		2.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

Dio: Live In London Blu-ray Movie Review

With the death of Ronnie James Dio in 2010, one of the more curiously (no pun intended) unsung vocalists of rock. Dio is a hero, if not a God (despite the meaning of his surname in Italian), to legions of Black Sabbath fans, but even with the immense success of his own pseudonymous band in the eighties and nineties (with a brief rebirth in the 2000s), Dio is somehow often left off of lists of great rock vocalists. Revisiting a concert like Dio Live in London, Hammersmith Apollo 1993 proves what a shame that is, for Dio, joined here by Vinny Appice Tracy G, Jeff Pilson and Jeff Warren tears through a blistering set of then new Dio tunes, along with a vintage tune or two from previous eras in Dio’s long career. This is a high energy concert that finds both Dio and the band in top shape, aggressively staking their claim to at least some minor Deity status in the world of metal.

• Stand Up and Shout
• Strange Highways
• Don’t Talk to Strangers
• Evilution
• Pain
• The Mob Rules
• Children of the Sea
• Holy Diver
• Heaven and Hell
• Man on the Silver Mountain
• Drum Solo
• Heaven and Hell (Reprise)
• Jesus Mary and The Holy Ghost
• Hollywood Black
• The Last in Line
• Rainbow in the Dark
• We Rock
• Here’s To You

Dio: Live In London Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Eagle Rock can't be faulted for its "honesty in advertising" policy with regard to its line of so-called "SD Blu-rays", but the fact is Dio Live in London, Hammersmith Apollo 1993's AVC encoded upconverted 1080i transfer in 1.31:1 is a pretty sad viewing experience. If anything encouraging can be said, it's that the concert actually looks marginally better in motion than the screenshots accompanying this review might suggest, but even so, this is a fuzzy, blurry and indistinct rendering that is further exacerbated by inconsistent contrast and some readily apparent artifacts like posterizing.

Dio: Live In London Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Most people who opt to buy these SD Blu-rays probably are hoping for good uncompressed audio if nothing else, and in that regard this Blu-ray comes through with flying colors. Both the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 2.0 tracks offered on this Blu-ray provide really clear, vigorous accountings of the often dense and bass heavy music. The 5.1 mix is a much more aggressive accounting of the music, providing much more support from the lower midrange down.

Dio: Live In London Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Hangin' With the Band (1080i; 22:00)

Dio: Live In London Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Dio, both the man and the band, are in fine form on this 1993 concert, alternating between higher octane material and some nice, relatively laid back ballads. It's a shame this concert only exists in this kind of mushy shape video wise, but the 5.1 mix is boisterous and very enjoyable.