It's been 15 years since Lion's Share unleashed an album of their brand of Dio worship on us, but now, in 2026, we have their seventh full-length, Inferno. If you are going to emulate a traditional metal band from the '80s, you can do a lot worse than Dio and singer Nils Patrik Johansson and guitarist Lars Chriss have gone all in. It is Ronnie James Dio's early output Lion's Share have zeroed in on, from the vaguely Middle Eastern melodies of "The Lion's Trial" ("Egypt (the Chains are On)") to the speedy "Chain Child" ("I Speed at Night"), they are touching all the high points. The track "We Will Rock" is so close to "We Rock", with its quick-wristed Vivian Campbell-esque riffing and doppelganger chorus, it is basically an homage to one of Dio's most well-loved songs. Other tracks aren't nearly as derivative, so I think Lion's Share are just wearing their influences on their sleeves and, honestly, it's done so earnestly, it doesn't really bother me all that much. The Last in Line is a great album so stuff that in that vein, if done properly, can't be all that bad. If you've been missing Dio's presence in the metal scene, grab a copy of Inferno and throw up the horns with Lion's Share.
