EP review: LAST IN LINE – A Day In The Life

Edel/earMusic [Release date 11.11.22]

Last In Line, a name taken after the second Dio album (1984), features former Dio members, and were formed after the passing of renowned vocalist Ronnie James Dio. Playing all original material given the line-up, the music is about as classic metal as it gets.

The band have an incredible pedigree and each member individually has full time commitments, so if Last In Line appear to be part time, they could well be, but the wait has always been worth it.

Formed in 2012, the band released two albums, in 2016 and 2019, and here we get a 12” release of 4 new tracks.

The line-up is vocalist Andrew Freeman (ex-Lynch Mob), guitarist Vivian Campbell (Dio, Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy, currently Def Leppard), drummer Vinny Appice (Dio, Black Sabbath, many others) and bassist Phil Soussan (Ozzy Osbourne), who replaced founder bassist Jimmy Bain on his passing.

Although available digitally, this 12” vinyl is a limited release, numbered to 3000 worldwide, and comes on silver vinyl and in a wonderful gatefold sleeve. Sounds as good as it looks as good as it feels.

Side one features two new studio tracks; opening track ‘A Day In The Life’, a cover of the Beatles track opens in downbeat fashion, a hint of downtuned alt-country metal, that builds to some solid power metal, before taking on a life of its own. A mix of feels, some decent lead guitar and the vocals have a good range. Quite emotive.

Next up is ‘Hurricane Orlagh’, a hint of grunge amongst some classic metal, and some classic Campbell shred.

Side two features two live tracks; ‘Devil In Me’ (from the debut Heavy Crown) and ‘Give Up The Ghost’ (from II). Both showcase the excellence of the earlier material and just how solid, heavy and tight the band are live.

This release serves both as a reminder of how good the band are, and also a collector’s item. Well worth the money and let’s hope this is a precursor to a third album. ****

Review by Joe Geesin

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