DREAM CHILD – Until Death Do We Meet Again [Japan Edition +1] (2018)

DREAM CHILD, the new super-group made up of former members of Ozzy Osbourne’s band, AC/DC and Dio, got ready their debut album “Until Death Do We Meet Again”, to be released on Sept. 14 via Frontiers Music. The Japanese Edition of the CD is out tomorrow, including as bonus a non-album track.

Indeed a ‘Dream’ Team, DREAM CHILD features guitarists Craig Goldy (DIO, GIUFFRIA), Wayne Findlay (MSG), legendary bassist Rudy Sarzo (QUIET RIOT, OZZY, WHITESNAKE, DIO), and drummer Simon Wright (AC/DC, DIO), plus singer Diego Valdez.
Valdez’s hero is Ronnie James Dio, and having most ex-DIO members here, you easily guess what DREAM CHILD is all about.

The core of the music in “Until Death Do We Meet Again” is ’80s inspired classic hard rock and traditional metal, melodic, sometimes anthemic, epic.
While DIO – the band – spirit is present on many tracks such as ‘Under The Wire’, the groovy ‘It Is What It Is’, the riff-driven ‘Playing With Fire’, the mysterious title track ‘Until Death Do We Meet Again’, and the dark ‘Weird World’, there’s other influences here.

On ‘Games Of Shadows’, and specially the very good ‘You Can’t Take Me Down’ I hear a clear RAINBOW Dio-era classic rock sound, on ‘Midnight Song’ there’s hints of DEEP PURPLE, while the interesting ‘One Step Beyond The Grave’ is reminiscent of ’80s BLACK SABBATH.
Not all works flawlessly though. While it’s welcomed that the band experiments a little on ‘Washed Upon The Shore’, the progressive elements feel a bit disjointed to me.
Japanese bonus track is the instrumental ‘Insufficient Therapy On Mars’, a showcase for Goldy’s guitar playing, a song that sounds like a pre-production demo, fine, but not essential.

There’s a lot to love in DREAM CHILD’s debut album.
They don’t make records like this anymore: classic hard rock / traditional metal with strong guitar riffs, groovy bass lines, pounding drums and that kind of vocals in the Ronnie James Dio vein. Add a solid songwriting and a ‘vintage’ production sound that makes you want this album on vinyl LP.
It’s all classy stuff and greatly done for the most part, 74 minutes of pure ’80s styled hard / metal.
Highly Recommended

01. Under The Wire
02. You Can’t Take Me Down
03. Games Of Shadows
04. It Is What It Is
05. Playing With Fire
06. Light Of The Dark
07. Midnight Song
08. Until Death Do We Meet Again
09. Washed Upon The Shore
10. In A World So Cold
11. Weird World
12. One Step Beyond The Grave
13. Insufficient Therapy On Mars (Japan Bonus Track)

Craig Goldy – Guitars (ex-Dio, Giuffria)
Wayne Findlay – Guitars, Keyboards (ex-MSG)
Simon Wright – Drums (ex-AC/DC, Dio, Operation: Mindcrime)
Rudy Sarzo – Bass (ex-Quiet Riot, Ozzy, Whitesnake, Dio)
Diego Valdez – Vocals (Helker)

PRE ORDER:
www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/KICP-1940
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