Album review: DIMINO – Old Habits Die Hard

Frontiers Records [Release Date 03.07.15]

Frank Dimino was lead singer in Angel, one of those cult seventies US bands talked of in hushed circles, but I was unaware he was still active in the business. However in one of Frontiers’ more left field releases, he is back with an eponymous band drawn from his contacts on the Las Vegas music scene.

The music on offer has a pure unabashed seventies/early eighties hard rock feel, albeit heavier than Angel, with some Hammond organ textures that call to mind the great Legs Diamond.

Frank himself is sounding surprisingly fresh with a good vocal range whether on hard hitting numbers like the opener ‘Never Again’ and ‘The Rains About to Fall’ or moodier, more progressive arrangements like ‘ I Can’t Stop Loving You’ and ‘Even Now’ while on the anthemic ‘Rocking In The City’ he even sounded a bit like Biff Byford, not for the only time.

The album has a natural vibe and a cohesive feel to it. On the heavier ‘Mad As Hell’ Frank even reminded me of Y and T’s Dave Meniketti, while my favourite and perhaps the most commercial track on offer, ‘Sweet Sensation’, has hints both of Journey and the Bernie Shaw-fronted Uriah Heep.

The gentle arrangement and positive lyrics of ‘Stones By The River’ even end the album on something of a hippy vibe.

I came to this album with low expectations but it has proved to be one of the revelations of the year and is recommended for lovers of classic hard rock. ****

Review by Andy Nathan

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RED GIANT Free Me (indie)

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