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Since the death of Ronnie James Dio in 2010, a lot of albums related to the legendary singer have been released. Some are official releases, some have been tribute albums by other artists. The latest addition to the Dio canon is The Very Beast Of Dio Vol. 2.

The first Very Beast collection was released in 2000, and included songs from 1983‘s Holy Diver through 1993‘s Strange Highways.The Very Beast Of Dio Vol. 2 picks up with 1996‘s Angry Machines.


Dio’s biggest commercial hits were in the ‘80s, so the songs on this album aren’t as familiar as “Holy Diver,” “Stand Up And Shout” or “Rainbow In The Dark.” Unless you’re a hardcore fan of Dio, you might not know these latter era songs. That makes this collection a good one for those who listened to Dio in the ‘80s, but didn’t keep up with their later material.

Some of the standouts on Vol. 2 are “Killing The Dragon” from the 2002 album of the same name, “The Eyes” from 2004‘s Master Of The Moon, “Fever Dreams” from 2000‘s Magica and “Black” from Angry Machines.

For those Dio aficionados that already own all the albums, there are a few bonus tracks to make it worth your while. ”Electra” was previously available only on the very rare Tournado box set. ”Prisoner Of Paradise” was a Japanese bonus track on Master Of The Moon and “Metal Will Never Die” was one of the last songs Ronnie recorded. It was originally on his cousin David Rock Feinstein’s album Bitten By The Beast.

The collection also includes liner notes written by Dio's close friend Eddie Trunk.

The Very Beast Of Dio Vol 2 isn't essential, but is a very good collection of Dio's later material.

(released October 9, 2012 on Niji Entertainment)



Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.