LAST IN LINE will be appearing at the Hard Rock Cafe on the Las Vegas Strip on Saturday, April 1, 2023.
The world lost one of its all-time great vocalists, Ronnie James Dio, in 2010. At the time of his death, many of his former bandmates and fans put together two separate tribute bands of sorts; Dio Disciples and Last in Line. The latter initially featured the complete classic Dio band lineup sans Ronnie himself: Guitarist Vivian Campbell, drummer Vinny Appice, bassist Jimmy Bain, and keyboardist Claude Schnell. Initially playing classic hits from the first three Dio albums, the band eventually changed to play original songs as well. Fronting the band from day one has been Andrew Freeman, known for touring with bands like Offspring and being an original member of the Vegas RAIDING THE ROCK VAULT cast. Most recently, he’s come off a stint fronting Great White.
Jimmy Bain passed away in 2016 prior to the release of the band’s first album of original songs, HEAVY CROWN. Following his death, Phil Soussan (Ozzy, Billy Idol, Vince Neil) filled his place on bass. Claude Schnell parted ways with the band when they moved away from keyboard-driven sounds, although the group did use Erik Norlander as a live keyboardist at times. The group’s third album of original music, JERICHO, will be released on March 31, which promises to be some of their best music yet.
The group will be doing an album release party event, hosted by Eddie Trunk and featuring support act Crash Midnight, will take place at the Hard Rock Cafe on Saturday, April 1. This will be a fantastic gig celebrating the latest music from some of the rock world’s biggest talents. It’s not to be missed!
By Taylor T Carlson
Taylor T Carlson Assistant Editor/Senior Staff Writer Taylor T. Carlson was born August 17, 1984, and has called the Vegas Valley home his entire life. A die-hard fan of classic rock and metal music, Taylor has been writing album and concert reviews since he was 16 years old, and continues to do so, having done well over 1,000 reviews. He is also a fan of video gaming and cinema, and has reviewed a number of games and films as well, old and new alike. His thorough and honest (some would say brutally honest) reviewing style has won him the respect of hundreds of music fans and musicians alike, both local and abroad, and the ire of just as many others. Despite being one of the youngest attendees at classic hard rock/metal shows around Vegas, he is also one of the most knowledgeable, having gained the unofficial nickname of “The Eddie Trunk of Las Vegas.” In addition to reviews, Taylor has written and self-published three books on classic hard rock bands, and is a regular participant in rock and roll trivia contests. Taylor also holds a masters degree in special education from the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), and has appeared on the hit History Channel television series Pawn Stars. His dream is to be able to one day make a living from writing music books and reviews.