Album Review — The Dead Daisies

The Dead Daisies — Holy Ground

The revolving door of The Dead Daisies continues with their latest release “Holy Ground”. Out are vocalist John Corabi and bassist Marco Mendoza and in is Glenn Hughes (vocals and bass). Just this week, drummer Deen Castronovo has also left the band with no replacement named that I know of.

Glenn Hughes is a rock legend. He’s played with Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Black Country Communion and many more. So normally this would be an exciting turn of events. But John Corabi is one of my favorite vocalists of all time, so the change put a damper on the new release.

As to be expected, the record is a little more bluesy and a little less melodic than the records with Corabi.

The opening track, “Holy Ground”, is a good start. It’s a solid rocker and features some great guitar work from Doug Aldrich.

The first single, “Bustle and Flow”, is a good representation of the album. It’s fairly heavy with lots of guitar and a bluesy feel that fits Hughes’ vocal style.

The high points on the record include “Chosen And Justified”, “Unspoken” and “Righteous Days”. They all have a nice combination of more melodic chorus with bluesy riffs.

The band does stick with their tradition of including at least one cover song. This time it’s Humble Pie’s “30 Days In The Hole”, although I’m more familiar with the Mr. Big version than the original. It’s a surprising choice as the song seems to fit better with the Corabi version of the band. Hughes makes it his own by adding his bluesy touch.

Personally, I miss Corabi. I like the band better with his voice and his style. To me, it’s a completely different band with Glenn Hughes out front. Obviously, these musicians are top notch and “Holy Ground” is a good record, but it’s more Black Country Communion than it is Dead Daisies.

“Holy Ground” is a solid record, I’m just having a hard time getting over the change from Corabi to Hughes. If you are a Hughes fan and have enjoyed his more recent work, I think you’ll really enjoy this record. Maybe in time I’ll warm up to this version of the band, but for now, I miss John.

85 out of 100

Track Listing

1. Holy Ground (Shake The Memory) *
2. Like No Other (Bassline)
3. Come Alive
4. Bustle And Flow
5. My Fate
6. Chosen And Justified *
7. Saving Grace
8. Unspoken *
9. 30 Days In The Hole
10. Righteous Days
11. Far Away

*Best Songs