Post Description

Sure, you could argue that Dio's style has remained fairly constant and he does not have a tendency to "grow" stylistically. But I know one thing for sure: this is one guy who knows how to make metal. On Sacred Heart, he cranks out 9 great metal tunes, and he makes it seem easy. The truth is, while these songs do not shock you with stunning originality, they still rock you to the core. This music is not emotionally moving, but that's not the point!! The point is that it is hard rock, and it does just that: it rocks hard.
The best song on the album is definitely the title track, "Sacred Heart." It is in the vein of the title tracks of his last two albums, "Holy Diver" and "Last in Line." It is a slower, more epic composition, and it dominates!!! Other highlights are "King of Rock and Roll" and "Another Lie." However, there is not one bad track on here.
The band is in top form, as usual. The new keyboardist, Claude Schnell, is pretty cool; his sounds add a whole new element to the band's music. Sometimes they sound downright evil: check out the main riff to "Like the Beat of a Heart." And of course, Vivian Campbell tears it up on guitar.
Dio is one of the great voices of metal. His music, his lyrics, and his voice are almost definitive of the entire genre. Although he has better albums (Holy Diver, Killing the Dragon), it still seems that he can do no wrong.