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July 20, 2008 |
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w/ SOMA CITY WARD
May 1, 2005
Commodore Ballroom - Vancouver, BC
By Luke Holzken
Photography by Tony Antunovich
All photos Copyright © 2005 METALEATER - Do not use without permission.
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Zakk Wylde is an undisputed guitar icon. Clearly, most people know him as OZZY OSBOURNE's axe-slinger, but on May 1, he came to our humble city of Vancouver to showcase his ballistic brew of heavy metal known as BLACK LABEL SOCIETY. Hot off the release of their brand new album, "Mafia", BLACK LABEL SOCIETY have embarked on an extensive world tour starting off here in North America, followed by Europe in late May/June, and then back to the U.S. for the Ozzfest Tour in July/August/early September. Fueled by the highest octane possible, the band's music can best be described as super heavy, down tuned riffage, complimented by Wylde's awe-inspiring lightning-fast leads and sheer six-string mastery. If you get the chance to see this band live, don't miss it!
The night started with opening act SOMA CITY WARD kicking things off. Unfortunately for the band, the crowd was virtually non-responsive, and after a mediocre performance and a mix of jeers and cheers, SOMA CITY WARD had come and gone. This ultimately set the stage for things to come, as the impatience of the fans could be felt throughout the entire venue. Now I've seen a lot of metal shows at the Commodore over the years, but I haven't seen fans this ecstatic over one specific band. Fans were cheering "Zakk! Zakk! Zakk!" and "BLS! BLS! BLS!" for a good 30 minutes even before the lights went out. Finally, at 10:45 PM, Zakk Wylde's BLACK LABEL SOCIETY took the stage.
Zakk kicked things off with an amazing (and lengthy) opening solo, his guitar screeching to higher decibels as fans watched in awe as the guitar master put on a show like none other. Once completed, Zakk stood at center stage with his arms stretched out in his all too familiar pose. At this point, the crowd was going insane. One look at the pit, and you could get a feel for how intense this night was going to be.
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The first song of the night was "Stoned & Drunk" from "The Blessed Hellride", and several fans were singing along to each and every word. From there on in, the intensity did not stop! BLS crushed through songs like "Destruction Overdrive", "Been A Long Time" and "Funeral Bell", and as the band's energy became more intense, so did the crowd's. It was as though both were feeding off of each other. The band and a few fans even played what looked to be like a drinking game right on stage.
The most memorable moment of the show was when Wylde dedicated a song to the late "Dimebag" Darrell. Anyone who follows Zakk Wylde and PANTERA/DAMAGEPLAN knows that these two guitar masters were close friends. Zakk took the time to talk to the audience about a recent memory he had with Dimebag, where as an act of friendship Dime had given Zakk his very own custom Dean DBD guitar. Zakk pulled this guitar out, dedicated the next song to Dimebag, and played a most memorable rendition of "In This River".
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Another highlight was the performance of "Suicide Messiah". This is an intense song, and the energy of the crowd made it even more so. Fan participation was in full swing, and during the chorus Zakk would even stop singing, allowing the crowd take over. After about an hour of pure metal, BLS slowed things down as Zakk played some acoustic chill-out, and pulled off a whopping 17-plus minute solo. Things didn't stop there, as the heavy metal continued...for another hour! This show didn't end until nearly 1 AM! BLS put on a set of over two hours in length. I had never seen BLS play live before so it was great to see them perform a variety of songs from all their albums, including "Mafia".
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SETLIST
Stoned & Drunk
Destruction Overdrive
Been A Long Time
Funeral Bell
Suffering Overdue
In This River
Suicide Messiah
Demise Of Sanity
- Acoustic Jam -
Spread Your Wings
Spoke In The Wheel
Fire It Up
Stillborn
Genocide Junkies
To summarize, Zakk's voice was perfect to the pitch, and his guitar work was exemplary as usual. A master of his trade, Zakk shredded his guitar like none other, often extending his solos to unimaginable lengths. Guitarist Nick Catanese chugged out testosterone-fueled riffs, which perfectly complimented Zakk's insane solos. Relatively new bassist James Lomenzo fit in perfectly - pounding out the low end and helping drummer Craig Nunenmacher maintain a tight and powerful rhythm section. All in all, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY performed a phenomenal set of southern-fried metal, and the fans (or as Zakk refers to them as the Vancouver Chapter of BLACK LABEL SOCIETY) provided the band with an equal performance of constant cheering and moshing throughout the entire evening. [FIN]
As always, we would like to express our gratitude to Jamie Teske from House Of Blues Concerts Canada for providing us with the media pass to cover this live show.
» Official BLACK LABEL SOCIETY Website
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