David Rock Feinstein - Bitten By the Beast

A cousin of The Great One ventures out on his own with some decent 80s metal. Being the cousin of the late, great Ronnie James Dio has to have some perks, wouldn't ya think?  Well it did for David "Rock" Feinstein, because not only did he once rock in a band (Elf) with The Great One, he also had him sing on his new CD entitled Bitten by the Beast.  Yeah, that's right, Dio sings on the track Metal Will Never Die, making it one of Ronnie's last recorded vocals.  And to top it off, David gathered his bandmates from The Rods to back him up on the track, a mid-tempo rocker that oozes 80's metal.  It's suitably heavy, driven by a cool riff which is followed up by a great, anthemic chorus.  This one will get in your head and not let go.

Feinstein is no stranger to the metal community, having fronted metal band The Rods for a good part of the 80s.  And with the resurgence of band's like Anvil, The Rods are looking to make a big splash in 2011.  Feinstein, as you might of guessed, is old school metal to the core, and his new album will not disappoint if that's what you're looking for.  Bitten by the Beast is an album chock full of 80s meat and potatoes metal (my new phrase of 2011, btw), best served piping hot in a cast iron skillet.  The songs on this CD are of the classic vibe with some hits and some misses.  The majority of the tunes sound like they could have been written back in the day and just unleashed in the new millennium.

Best thing about this CD: the songs with the big riffs, like Metal Will Never Die, and big choruses, like Break Down the Walls.  Feinstein is not reinventing the wheel here because these tunes sound like they were written about 30 years ago; some good, some just mediocre, meaning some will grab you, and others will just leave you with that "meh" feeling.  Not a bad CD, just not a great one either.

Bottom Line: Feinstein going solo, but sticking to his roots.  Good old-fashioned meat and potatoes metaltm with a little blues thrown in.  This is a fun record that will not break any new ground, but will still rock you.

Standout Tracks: Break Down the Walls, Metal Will Never Die, Kill the Demon and Give Me Mercy

- Ragman is thinking about eating some metal...