Diamond Head, To the Devil His Due DVD Review On Rock N Roll Universe

Arguably one of the best bands to come up during the late 70's-early 80's NWOBHM movement in England, for some reason Stourbridge hard rockers Diamond Head never achieved the level of success bands such as Iron Maiden, Def Leppard or even Saxon did. It wasn't for lack of talent, for their initial singles and debut album 'Lightning To The Nations' showed a band which for all intents and purposes had the goods to maybe even be the next Zeppelin. Songs filled with guitarist Brian Tatler's razor sharp Sabbath like riffs, a Plant like vocalist in Sean Harris who had the potential to be one of the greats, and some of the best anthems in metal at the time should've added up to them becoming not only legends but filthy rich as well.

However, as alluded to above, unfortunately that wasn't to be. Succumbing to the dreaded "sophomore jinx", due to overproduction and tinkering by the record company their second album, 'Borrowed Time,' containing inferior remakes of some of the classics from their debut with a few strong contenders, didn't live up to expectations. The band fractured during recording their third LP 'Canturbury',Tatler called it quits after an appearance at the '83 Monsters Of Rock Festival at Castle Donington and for all intents and purposes it seemed that was the end of the road. A classic case of unfulfilled potential if there ever was one.

However, when the young Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich began championing and citing the band as a huge influence, covering "Am I Evil?" and "Helpless" on the 'Garage Days Revisited' album, their stature began to rise once again. While it didn't bring them wealth and fame, Diamond Head took on such a mythical quality that a reunion was inevitable. First getting back together on the heels of the Ulrich compiled collection 'Behold The Beginning' in '87, it wasn't until '93 when another album would surface, 'Death & Progress', which although boasting guest appearances by Sabbath's Tony Iommi and Megadeth's Dave Mustaine, didn't do much for the band's commercial fortunes. Breaking up again after the 'Evil Live' release, it wasn't until 2001 before there would be any further reunions.

Come 2005, and lo and behold there came another studio effort, 'All Will Be Revealed' and a new vocalist with Sean Harris leaving, being replaced by ex Robin George frontman Nick Tart. Further live dates ensued, including one at London's famed Astoria in November of that year, which is where this DVD was filmed, the same show which is documented on the 'It's Electric' live album. Although only Tatler remains from the original lineup, this is a surprisingly strong performance. Tearing through the classics such as "Am I Evil?", "Helpless," "Lightning To The Nations," "The Prince," "Sucking My Love" and 10 more, this is much better than it probably deserves to be after over 25 years. While it doesn't quite reach the heights of the original band, at the same time there's certainly nothing to be ashamed of. An energetic show from start to finish, still after all the lineup changes it shows the possibility that there actually could be a classic album or two left in these veterans' sleeves yet. Featuring a widescreen presentation, with bonus features of an extensive interview with the band along with a featurette 'The Making Of 'All Will Be Revealed',' this is a fine representation of where Diamond Head is today. Don't expect the brilliance of the first album, but this far into the game one really couldn't expect any more. Time will tell if there is indeed another classic forthcoming, but if you're a NWOBHM fan you can pick this one up with confidence. 8/10