RONNIE ROMERO (Live)

at Trillians, Newcastle, U.K., March 9, 2025

When Ritchie Blackmore plucked Chilean singer Ronnie Romero from relative obscurity back in 2015 to front a revived version of Rainbow, he couldn’t have known just how much his life would change.

Following a four year stretch across a series of live shows and a couple of live albums with Rainbow, Romero has been very much in demand fronting the Michael Schenker Group and Vandenberg along with Sunstorm and The Ferrymen as well as forming metal super group Elegant Weapons with Judas Priest’s Richie Faulkner and Dave Rimmer from Uriah Heep.

It’s been quite a ride, but now it’s time for him to strike out on his own and with his latest solo album of self penned material Too Many Lies, Too Many Masters, Romero looks set to make it in his own right.

With a set built around his excellent solo album mixed with songs that he’s performed over the years this was an entertaining blend of originals and covers.

Kicking off with Dio’s “Stand Up And Shout” was a bold move before heading into a trio of songs from his solo album including a bruising “Castaway On The Moon” and the heartfelt “Losing You” both of which showed the real depth and range of Romero’s stunning vocals.

It’s always going to be a tough one to tackle but Romero’s take on Rainbow’s “Stargazer” was nothing short of breathtaking and with a stirring solo from guitarist Jose Rubio, this was a towering performance of a diamond encrusted classic that did the Rainbow legacy proud.

It was always going to be tricky following that, but Romero’s smoking bluesy “Crossroads” oozed class before “Not Just A Nightmare” and a breakneck “Kill The King” came crashing in.

An impressive “Rainbow In The Dark” preceded set closer “Vengeance” but all was not done.

A three song encore opened with a surprise take on “The Battle Rages On” with the epic “Child In Time” and a fiery “Burn” wrapping things up.

With a new solo album due soon and new releases by Elegant Weapons and The Ferrymen it looks to be busy times ahead for Ronnie Romero as he forges ahead in his own name and after this display there’s few vocalists around today who can match his power and sheer passion. An exceptional performance.

Author

Mick Burgess
Mick is a reviewer and photographer here at Metal Express Radio, based in the North-East of England. He first fell in love with music after hearing Jeff Wayne's spectacular The War of the Worlds in the cold winter of 1978. Then in the summer of '79 he discovered a copy of Kiss Alive II amongst his sister’s record collection, which literally blew him away! He then quickly found Van Halen I and Rainbow's Down To Earth, and he was well on the way to being rescued from Top 40 radio hell! Over the ensuing years, he's enjoyed the Classic Rock music of Rush, Blue Oyster Cult, and Deep Purple; the AOR of Journey and Foreigner; the Pomp of Styx and Kansas; the Progressive Metal of Dream Theater, Queensrÿche, and Symphony X; the Goth Metal of Nightwish, Within Temptation, and Epica, and a whole host of other great bands that are too numerous to mention. When he's not listening to music, he watches Sunderland lose more football (soccer) matches than they win, and occasionally, if he has to, he goes to work as a property lawyer.
View all posts