Heart Album: “Alive in Seattle [Video/DVD]”

To the previous reviewer who gave this DVD 1 star. Who are you trying to appeal to? People who want to buy this DVD are Heart fans. Not people who feel betrayed by individual "sell-outs" from the grunge scene. Look at the audience, middle age yuppies who are trying to recall the days when they still rocked out. Back in the early 80's The Clash was unmercilously flogged for "selling out" by appearing on the cover of Rolling Stone and having the gall to have two hit singles. Seattle grunge bands were lining up in droves to "sell out". And I blame grunge (along with record labels and fans) for destroying the diversity of "alternative" music that once was. Why trash a mainstream 70's rock group?

Anyways, I saw this video on PBS like so many others and was impressed with the Wilson sisters' live performance. Sure, they don't deviate much from their studio recordings (except for a few) but its nice to see professional musicians with good expressive voices and harmony. I'm not a huge Heart fan except for their signature songs like Barracuda, Magic Man, and Crazy on You. But their acoustic reworking of Alone and These Dreams were good. Their covers of Elton John's Mona Lisa and Mad Hatters and Led Zeppelin's Black Dog and Battle of Evermore show they're fans as well by showing the respect those songs deserve. And songs that weren't as familiar to me were made accessible by their performance.

So if you didn't buy this DVD just to see the "bass player" (so you can see how much he's betrayed you) Heart fans should be very satisfied. All in all one of the better live concert DVD's out there. Very enjoyable.

The widescreen video is nice and needless to say much cleaner than broadcast TV. I'd knock off 1/2 star for sound because the DTS/DD is 5.0 not 5.1 The Digital surround sounds excellent but why not make it 5.1 while they were at it? That discrete punch from the subwoofer would have been nice.

Wow...What a concert! I was a casual fan of Heart knowing only a couple of songs. After watching this blu-ray, I became a crazy fan of theirs. The band is really talented and every song was performed flawlessly. Of course, the two ladies did phenominal job with such passion and musicianship. For about 5 songs (out of 19), they sing only to acoustic guitars and mandolin. "Alone" sounds great in acoustic version. I also really enjoyed the two popular songs "Barracuda" and "These Dreams". Camera work is precise and outstanding. I know this concert will be one of my all time favorites. I think this should be in your collection too. You won't be sorry.

Technically, I would rate 4/5 for both PQ (1080i with AVC coding) and AQ. (DTS-MA 5.0 & PCM 2.0). There's no extras except photo gallery.

I attended this concert just after returning to the US (the tickets were a gift) and it was one of the best I ever saw. This DVD captures the brilliance of the Wilson sisters. They haven't lost a thing! A must see for Heart fans.

Heart has always been a unique band in the world of rock, with a light/dark, soft/hard dynamic that defies easy categorization. One thing they do have is longevity thru solid music & talent of the Wilson sisters. This is a great CD for Heart fans and also for fans of rock or popular music who enjoy excellent female rock singing. Ann and Nancy are accompanied by top-notch musicians (Mike Inez from Alice in Chains on bass, for one); the song list is varied from early Heart (Magic Man) to later (Alone) and even new stuff (7 songs not previously recorded by the band); Ann & Nancy are in good form after 30 years of performing professionally- both still sing beautifully & the arrangements are good (IE, its not a nostalgia trip, or depressing as some long-time rock acts can be!). I would have liked to see some more staple-Heart hits ("Even it Up", "All I WannaDo", "Never", "Bebe le Strange", "Tell it LIke It Is" come to mind) rather than a cover of LedZep's "Black Dog" and also wonder why include a fairly uninteresting concert-tune like "Wild Child" over a quality rocker like "Even it Up" or any other beefier Heart song worthy of an encore. That is the flip sides of following a band that has been around for a long time- they aren't predictable in song selection on tours. One criticism, the energy that one usually experiences at a Heart concert is not truly captured on the recording, but I am not sure why. SOng highlights for me are: The Witch; Mistral Wind; Alone; Dog & Butterfly; Mona Lisa & Mad Hatters; Love Alive.

Buy this disc & even better, see the band on this summer's tour. You will not be disappointed!

Like Robert A. Rhode says below, this HD-DVD does indeed work on the Xbox 360 add-on. I received my copy from Netflix originally, and when I tried it, I couldn't get it to work on my 360. I sent it back, saying the disc was broken. I purchased a new one from Amazon, thinking it was really a physical error, and had the same result initially. I did some research and ran across these ratings. I did what Robert said to try and it worked. You simply:

- Put the DVD in and let it get to the main menu screen. This may take a few minutes, so be patient

- Once the main menu appears, simply hit "OK" on your HD-DVD add-on remote

- Sit back and enjoy a wonderful concert

Two ridiculously talented women with a brilliant supporting cast, Ann and Nancy put on one heck of a show. Two songs really moved me - "Alone" and "Battle of Evermore". Ann's vocals are as powerful now as they were 20 years ago as evidenced on "Alone". Their cover of Zeppelin's "Evermore" was a fitting tribute to the rock legends. Nancy's guitar skills are as sharp as ever. I had a hard time taking my eyes away from her fingers when they showed her playing on-screen, but I'm a little biased.

The sisters have a bond and a chemistry that's easy to see and hear. It would have been a fun show to see live...too bad I missed it! This HD-DVD truly is the next-best thing, though. Once you get it working, of course.