Review of Nazareth: Razamanaz Live

Introduction

Ironically, I went to Dunfermline earlier this evening for my tea, not realising that my DVD Reviewer envelope this week contained a Nazareth disc - for the uninitiated, they are a rock group that formed in Dunfermline in 1968...

I`ve reviewed numerous music DVDs recently, most are reunion gigs, and thankfully, this one is the real thing, filmed in 1985 at London`s Camden Palace and featuring a setlist covering the bands most well-known tracks.

Video

It`s a another new Sanctuary disc, which means that it features NTSC video, and it would appear that this doesn`t just affect the review test discs - the retail versions will also have NTSC video (so if your equipment is not multi-standard, you`ll be watching in black and white at best). As I`ve said before, this shows a lack of commitment to the UK market, and Sanctuary should have made the effort to convert the video to PAL.

It`s getting to the stage where once you`ve seen one rock concert DVD you`ve seen them all, and this is another example of the dull stageshow, some lighting, some close-ups of the drummer/guitarist/vocalist variety - pretty dull. There are also some shots of an under whelmed looking crowd thrown in for good measure.

As with the other Sanctuary DVDs I`ve reviewed recently, the picture quality is average, nothing special, and nothing to cause concern (aside from the NTSC of course).

Audio

The soundtrack is supposed to come in a choice of Dolby Digital 2.0 or Dolby Digital 5.1, but my test disc has two identical Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtracks and no sign of the stereo track. Consequently I am unable to give you a comparison of the two.

The soundtrack is primarily centred on the front stereo pair, with low-level use made of the rear channels, (very akin to Dolby Pro-Logic in fact). The sound is a little compressed at the top end, with cymbals sounding very wishy-washy. There is adequate bass and the screeching vocals can be heard over the music.

Features

The disc features no extras.

Conclusion

If you like your rock groups to be fronted by men that look like they`d give you a good kicking if you looked at them the wrong way, and who sing like they`ve just smoked 40 high-tar cigarettes, then Nazareth is for you.

If, on the other hand, you prefer your music to be slightly more melodic, and feature vocals that you can understand, perhaps you should look elsewhere. This DVD features the highlights of the band`s material, which makes me wonder what the rest of the catalogue is like, because frankly this really isn`t very good and the disc is strictly for fans of the band only - anyone else will be cringing behind the settee when the bagpipes come out for a rendition of "I`ll Take The Low Road". At least Angus Young does a proper job of it when AC/DC visit Glasgow.

Video and sound are both average, and there are no extras. Add this to the relatively short running time of 55 minutes, and this disc doesn`t represent much value for money.