Zakk Wylde, the hardest working man in metal,
is back. That’s actually a somewhat misleading statement
because it implies he was gone. Shot to Hell, his
first album for Roadrunner
Records, is the eighth Black Label Society release in
as many years (the ninth if you count the career retrospective Kings of Damnation). And, oh yeah, there also has
been a little touring, writing and recording with Ozzy along
the way. How does he ever find the time for a wife and three
kids?
But that’s beside the point. We’re here to talk
about Shot to Hell, yet another worthy addition to
the BLS catalog. If you’re an old school fan looking
for another album as complex as 1999’s Sonic Brew or as brutal as 2000’s Stronger Than Death,
you may be in for a long wait. Those days appear to be long
gone. Wylde’s current approach to writing and recording,
which essentially consists of entering the studio without
any material and jamming until he has a new album, won’t
allow for that. It does, however, allow someone as talented
as Wylde to shine.
There is little I can say about him that hasn’t been
said countless times before. Not only is he one of the few
remaining guitar gods, he’s one of the most complete
musicians working today. Shot to Hell showcases that
better than any of his previous albums, with heavy rockers
like “Concrete Jungle,” “Black Mass Reverends,”
“Blacked Out World,” “Faith Is Blind”
and “Devil’s Dime,” and piano-based ballads
such as “The Last Goodbye,” “Nothing’s
the Same,” “Sick of It All” and “Lead
Me to Your Door.”. The easy highlight of the disc is
“New Religion,” which starts with a beautiful
piano piece previously used in an alternate version of the
Dimebag Darrell tribute “In This River” performed
on the fall 2005 leg of the Mafia tour. After lulling
in the listener for about two minutes, the song slams home
in typical Black Label fashion.
At just 4:35 , “New Religion” is Shot to Hell’s
longest song. And though only one other track tops four minutes,
the lengths are not a hindrance. Each song feels complete
and distinct. Wylde manages to squeeze a solo into each one,
but he’s not here to show off. The goal is always the
song. With that in mind, he packs 13 songs—every one
a keeper—into 44 minutes.
If there is anything Wylde is criticized for, even among his
fans, it’s his vocals. I’m happy to say that on Shot to Hell he gives his best vocal performance
since at least 2002’s 1919 Eternal. He often
employs various effects and layers his vocals while leaning
more toward the deeper tones of the early BLS releases than
the high-pitched, Ozzy style that dominated the last few albums.
Wylde is undoubtedly the star, but BLS always has been about
more than any one man. So I can’t end this review with
complimenting drummer Craig Nunenmacher and bassist John “J.D.”
DeServio, who replaces James Lomenzo, for laying such a solid
foundation. I don’t know if most people realize how
important they are to the BLS sound.
Shot to Hell isn’t groundbreaking, but Wylde
has never set out to reinvent any wheels. When it says “Black
Label Society” on the cover, you know what you’re
going to get. Zakk and friends never disappoint, and this
time they take it a step further. Shot to Hell is
one of the best BLS albums to date. |
