Check Out This Beautiful Rendition of Dio’s “Rainbow in the Dark” by Gabbie Rae and Patrick Kennison

In my book, there's nothing wrong with cover songs, as long as you do the original justice. Now, when you tackle a legend's song, then you owe the original even more justice. Well, after listening to Gabbie Rae and Patrick Kennison's rendition of Dio's "Rainbow in the Dark, I'd be willing to bet Dio has horns high anytime someone pushes play.

The original was heavy and menacing and Rae and Kennison delivered a beautifully dark version of this epic classic. It gives me goose bumps everytime I listen to it.

You know Patrick from the Union Underground and Heaven Below. Heck, I've known Patrick for a very long time and he is, indeed, an accomplished artist. But, who is Gabbie Rae? Well, Patrick took some time to chat with me about his protege, as well as what's going on in his life.

Can you give us a little background on Gabbie Rae?

Gabbie has been singing onstage since she was 7. By age 12 she was featured on VH1's Best Week Ever & in Rolling Stone Magazine. Now that she's 15 she's sang onstage with Stryper and moved to Los Angeles. It was Strypers agent that suggested her pairing with me.

How long have you been working/playing with her?

We've been working together for about a month playing impromptu gigs & having her join Heaven Below for a couple tunes onstage.

What inspired you guys to cover Dio?

Gabbie loves classic rock & metal and thought the lyrics were inspiring to her. She's only 15 years old!

Any plans on recording together?

Yep, we've already recorded a couple songs and plan to do several more.

What’s the latest on Heaven Below?

Heaven Below is playing many west coast shows including a special NAMM show & appearance, as well as a show with the legendary William Shatner on the Sunset Strip to be announced soon.

You guys recently released the Sleeping Giants EP which features William Shatner on Rush’s “Subdivisions”…how did you guys hook up with the Captain?

I had the honor of playing on Williams "Seeking Major Tom" release awhile back. He said if I ever needed anything to let him know, so that's exactly what I did when we recorded Subdivisions.

Any plans on involving him in anymore songs or other celebs?

Besides the upcoming Hollywood show w/ Mr. Shatner we have no other plans. But we may need to cook up some more collaborative ideas if we do another cover EP.

What’s on the agenda for Heaven Below in 2014?

2014 will see Heaven Below release a concept album. While we realize this is an ambitious project, we can't help but look back to killer albums like Operation Mindcrime or The Wall as monumental releases from classic bands we love. We plan on capturing our audience by engaging them in songs that tell a powerful story. We realize that hard rock audiences are not always sheep, and that they can appreciate depth & substance if they like the music first.