Feinstein - Third wish 3/5
Reviewed: 3-31-06
Tracklist:
1. Regeneration
2. Rebelution
3. Streaming star
4. Third wish
5. Rule the world
6. Masquerade
7. Far beyond
8. Poison ivy
9. Live to ride, ride to live
10. Firefighter
11. Inferno
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Last summer as I was rifling through all the marked down used CDs at my local metal store I came across this release. I remember previously having read a review by Craig and how this character David "Rock" Feinstein was none other than the cousin of Ronnie James Dio himself. He had played in Elf with Dio in the 70s. As I flipped through the booklet and gazed at the band photo, I was surprised by the uncanny resemblance to his cousin, the master of the rainbow. Based on this image alone and the metal anthemic song titles, I took a chance on this.... novel band which is surprisingly produced by Joey Demaio (Manowar).
Essentially, this is classic 80s metal with some very impressive guitar work. If you love the 80s as much as I do, then this is a no brainer. Besides, Mr. Feinstein played with Dio and even Carl Cannedy of the Rods, so you know he is the embodiment of black leather and metal. The vocalist is John West from Artension & Royal Hunt. He is just the right choice for this style of music. He easily emulates Joe Lynn Turner and Dio himself with that familiar Rainbow sound. The rest of the musicians Jeff Howell on bass, Bob Twining on keys, and Nate Horton on drums all present themselves as accomplished artists who echo their classic influences.
Lyrically, the songs resound all things metal. There are no lame tracks on this CD, but the running length of just under an hour may be a bit too much for one to digest. This allows for a few fillers which don't stand out as being too memorable. Some songs sound too similar to Dio's work with Sabbath. "Far beyond" actually borrows the riffs from "Heaven & hell". Too many bands do this, and this just annoys me! Where is the originality? If I want to listen to Sabbath, I listen to Sabbath! The title track is an excellent song, but at 9 minutes, again it becomes slightly dull. Bands of this caliber need to focus on more laconic anthems and infectious songs which echo in our head and remain in our hearts. It's always a blast to recall a Dio song from the 80s, just as it is to sing along with the chorus for any Priest or Accept classic; however, some of the mid-80s Rainbow music borders on being to progressive for my taste. So many bands have blatantly stolen from Rainbow and Ritchie Blackmore slightly altering the lyrics or a few guitar parts, and claiming it as their own. Feinstein only borrow the atmospheric and mystical elements of the progressive 70s bands while remaining true metal. At times they remind me of the earlier works by Axel Rudi Pell and of course Artension. The keyboards are not too prominent and the guitars kick ass, so Feinstein are essentially classic 80s metal.
This being said, should one seek out this release? If you are a die-hard fan of Dio, Sabbath, & Rainbow, then I recommend this. If you are a collector of all things Dio, then by all means add this to your collection. However, if you are trying to watch your spending, anxiously awaiting some of the promising new releases this year, save your money and hope to find this used like I did, thankfully.
MICHAEL
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