DVD Review: Rainbow – Black Masquerade
Eagle Rock Entertainment
All Access Review: B+
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| Rainbow - Black Masquerade 2013 |
Ritchie Blackmore was done with Deep Purple. That old
bugaboo “creative differences” had reared its ugly head again, as the legendary
guitarist had it out once more with singer Ian Gillan, who was brought back
for the band’s 25th anniversary. In 1993, Blackmore walked out,
leaving abruptly during a show in Helsinki, Finland.
The parting was not such sweet sorrow for either side, and
Blackmore spent little time mourning the divorce. In 1993, he revived
Rainbow, a project that had been dormant since 1984. To bring Rainbow back to
life, he turned to a rag-tag band of spunky young upstarts, including singer
Doogie White, his new collaborator. Hardly a blip on the radar, they stuck around barely long enough to record 1995’s under-appreciated Stranger in All of Us LP – a dark, moody record of traditional
melodic heavy metal with flourishes of classical music bombast – and do some
touring before Blackmore threw himself into medieval and Renaissance music full-time
and turned his back on hard rock.
Largely forgotten by history, this incarnation of Rainbow
deserves a reassessment, and it starts with “Black Masquerade,” a rousing live
effort unearthed by Eagle Rock Entertainment now available now as a two-CD set, DVD or in digital video and audio
formats. Documenting a lively performance in Dusseldorf, Germany, for that
country’s “Rockpalast” TV series, “Black Masquerade” is a colorfully shot and
thunderously loud powder keg of impressive musicianship and youthful hunger.
Seeing Blackmore – more restrained physically as he shuns
the wild histrionics of his gloriously unhinged past – reel off a dazzling
array of ruthlessly efficient, full-throttle riffs, searing leads and fleet-fingered
arpeggios that he expertly untangles with ease is one thing, but keyboardist
Paul Morris is a revelation, combining the vivid coloring and propulsive thrust
of Jon Lord with Keith Emerson’s classically influenced gymnastics. The long solo
Morris takes during the show is an awakening, creatively playful and athletic
but never veering off the intricate course he has set.
More than the sum of its disparate, if well-arranged, parts,
the collective Rainbow rides roughshod through a combustible mix of tracks from
Stranger in All of Us and classics
from Blackmore’s Deep Purple days and earlier Rainbow treasures, charging into
pulse-pounding versions of “Spotlight Kid,” “Man on a Silver Mountain,” “Since
You’ve Been Gone,” “Burn” and a raucous “Long Live Rock ‘N’ Roll/Black Night”
medley with reckless abandon and fierce energy. It’s as if they know their time
together is going to be brief, so they let it all hang out.
And while the material off Stranger in Us All has less character and meat on the bone than
past Rainbow efforts, it does shine on “Black Masquerade,” as Rainbow speeds
into the night of the song “Black Masquerade” without brakes and takes a magic
carpet ride through the exotic Middle Eastern terrain of the sweeping epic
known as “Ariel.” Even more mysterious and ominous, “Hunting Humans
(Insatiable)” also comes off here as a cinematic affair, the flowing drama of
it heightened by White’s powerful, evocative vocals as it segues into
Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” – one of the many classical music ambushes found
throughout “Black Masquerade.” White’s personality is infectious, and he is a
fine master of ceremonies, displaying charm and a masculine stage presence that
almost matches the testosterone levels of Chuck Burgi’s barn-burning drum
solo.
Where “Black Masquerade” the DVD falls short is in its
extras – simply put, there are none, aside from the enthusiastic, if overly
hyperbolic, tribute written by Jeff Katz. A little visual history lesson on the
life and quick death of this particular unit in the form of interviews with key
players or a narrated featurette would be a welcome addition. Otherwise, even
though this Rainbow lived its own life apart from other more celebrated lineups featuring Ronnie James Dio, Graham Bonnet or Joe Lynn Turner that waged rock ‘n’ roll warfare under the same banner, they come off as
something of a cover band – albeit it a great one with Blackmore on guitar. It’s as if
they were an imitation that had its run and could not create its own identity. Therefore, it must never be spoken of again.
That’s a shame, because as this explosive, forceful and
engaging outing illustrates so effectively, Blackmore might have been
well-served to keep forging ahead with this group, even if it’s not the most beloved version of the band.
– Peter Lindblad
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