ALL ACCESS: James "JY" Young

CD/DVD Review: Dennis DeYoung – Dennis DeYoung ... and the Music of Styx Live in Los Angeles
Frontiers Music Srl
All Access Rating: B+

Dennis DeYoung - Dennis DeYoung and
the Music of Styx: Live in Los Angeles 2014

As responsible as anybody for the massive success Styx enjoyed in the 1970s on into the '80s, Dennis DeYoung deserves joint custody of the band's catalog. His turn to have the kids, so to speak, came earlier this year.

Faithfully revisiting a laundry list of Styx classics – with a few solo favorites sprinkled in – at Los Angeles' El Rey Theater in March 2014, DeYoung and his six-piece backing band rolled through a nostalgic set captured live for AXS-TV in high-definition sound and video.

Effervescent and celebratory, and buoyed by an enthusiastic audience fervently voicing its appreciation at every turn, this captivating performance is now available as two CD/DVD set titled Dennis DeYoung ... And the Music of Styx Live in Los Angeles, from Frontiers Music Srl.

Still possessing the commanding vocals for which he's known, DeYoung brings heightened drama and theatricality to transcendent versions of "Foolin' Yourself," "Mr. Roboto," "Come Sail Away" – the crowd, in full throat, singing along with every word – and the always-urgent "Too Much Time on My Hands," and if DeYoung's band played with more economy, rockers like "Renegade" and "Blue Collar Man" might pack a harder punch, but that doesn't mean these takes aren't satisfying. Too often here, though, they're guilty of gilding the lilly and overplaying, as they do on a version of "Grand Illusion" that's too ornate, something Tommy Shaw and James "JY" Young would never let happen.

When it comes to ballads like "Don't Let It End" and "Desert Moon," however, DeYoung and company make them glow, tugging at heartstrings while giving them a lush treatment. And spellbinding renditions of "Suite Madame Blue" and "Crystal Ball" retain much of the witch-y magic of the originals in DeYoung's hands, meanwhile, and "Lorelei" has a gleeful bounce in its step.

A target for critics who've always laughed at their pomposity and taken pot shots at their ham-handed social commentary, Styx never paid much attention to its detractors. And if we're all being honest here, they deserve kudos for constructing memorable pop-rock anthems and championing the underdog, for examining in great depth the death of the American Dream and approaching bigger questions with a sincerity and honest concern for humanity that will forever resonate with fans.

On this night, DeYoung, ever the showman, casually interacts with them as if they were old friends, joking and reveling in Styx's unabashed bombast and wearing his romantic heart on his sleeve while singing a swooning break-up song like "Babe" with youthful conviction. Amid a sea of colorful lights and a cosmic backdrop seemingly designed by artsy aliens, DeYoung does more than just make peace with his past, savoring instead the impact, the emotions and the history of a band maligned by some, but still adored by millions more.
– Peter Lindblad

CD Review: Styx – The Grand Illusion / Pieces of Eight Live

Eagle Rock Entertainment

All Access Rating: C

Styx - The Grand Illusion/Pieces
of Eight Live 2013

Styx came into its own in the late 1970s, having stumbled upon the right mix of soaring progressive-rock bombast and the more down-to-earth, guitar-driven AOR anthems – like “Renegade” – that punched a clock, wore a hard hat and paid union dues.

Finding a middle ground proved difficult for Styx, as Tommy Shaw, feeling his oats, pushed for a direction that was tougher and more down-to-earth, while Dennis DeYoung favored power ballads and heady theatrics. That creative tension, when properly harnessed, as it was for 1977’s The Grand Illusion and 1978’s Pieces of Eight, produced magic, even if the critics scoffed. They didn’t understand, but the people did. That’s who Styx was speaking to anyway.

This is not the same band. It’s a shell of its former self, the dramatic flourish of DeYoung’s soaring vocals being missed most of all, as James “JY” Young and Tommy Shaw try to carry on with a newer lineup and the occasional appearance of original bassist Chuck Panozzo. What Styx has become is a Vegas act, living off its past and trading glitz and glamour for true grit. Or at least it would seem that way from the double CD The Grand Illusion/Pieces of Eight Live they have recently released.

A rather limp document of Styx playing both records cover to cover at the fabled Orpheum Theater in Memphis on November 9, 2010, The Grand Illusion/Pieces of Eight Live sucks the sneering venom out of “Miss America,” meanders its way through “Man in the Wilderness” like a clueless tourist, and sleepwalks it way through “Superstars.” Concerned more with being a genial master of ceremonies than singing the material with appropriate panache and vitality, lead vocalist/keyboardist Lawrence Gowan – his delivery pretentious and forced – bears much of the blame, but Young and Shaw are in for the lion’s share of it.

For whatever reason, they don’t feel the need to assert themselves or their instruments here, making for a record that sounds flabby and weak-willed, even if the melodic grandeur of “Come Sail Away” is as wondrous as ever, the winning earnestness of “Angry Young Man” comes shining through, and the pomp and circumstance of title track to The Grand Illusion rises to the level of that which is more often reserved for royalty. A glossy lacquer of synthesizers certainly suffocates their guitars, but more than that, they seem satisfied to remain in the shadows, content to make pretty sonic filament and beautiful harmonies, but nothing of real substance.

The hope is that Styx would rally during the Pieces of Eight portion of the evening, and they do to some extent, the lilting, progressive-folk gold of “Sing for the Day” glowing warmly and “Great White Hope” rocking with more vigor and hunger, thanks to Todd Sucherman’s rolling avalanche of drums. A bigger test remains, however, with “Blue Collar Man” and “Renegade,” and Styx falls flat on the former, playing as if they’re pulling an anchor behind them, before recovering slightly for a more rambunctious, but still somewhat impotent, version of the latter.

“Queen of Spades” is where Styx finally seizes the day, the guitars sharper and more biting, the rhythms more menacing and the synths adding color and texture rather than fighting for supremacy. And they traverse more diverse and sonically interesting territory in “Lords of the Ring” with more purpose, their collective vocals a glorious choir. It’s too little, too late, though, as Styx appears to be satisfied with reheating old leftovers rather than presenting its best material in fresh and invigorating ways. http://www.eagle-rock.com/

– Peter Lindblad