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BLACK
LABEL SOCIETY Photos by Steve Goudie
Support Godsized might be considered BLS-lite but on balance their brand of riff-driven metal was impressive, at times evoking a much heavier Alter Bridge. Playing tracks from their excellent EP released last year along with some new material, it is easy to see how well they would go down at festivals, and they played Download last year with no doubt more to come.
If there's one nag about this band, the music is a little formulaic and a whole album will be interesting when hopefully they'll introduce some light and shade amongst the ridiculously hard riffing. A band to watch out for, though.
I've never been a big Black Label Society fan although acknowledging Zakk Wylde's guitar talent and his major contribution to Ozzy. But, as with any band, you can always warm to the less familiar. But there were a few irritating things about this gig. Firstly, and most of all, the sound was poor. Always a bugbear of mine, there is absolutely no reason why Wylde's distinctive vocals could not have been more distinctive in the overall mix and, similarly - and shamefully - his guitar lacked any detail. (Before you ask, it's not just my addled ears either, hardened Beserkers muttered the same thing at the exits).
Secondly,
there was no encore just an abrupt ending for a gig lasting barely 90
minutes. Given that BLS are a rarity touring these shores - their
previous spring
2007 tour was cancelled - hardly acceptable.
And thirdly,
bizarrely, they only played four tracks off the excellent current album 'Order of
the Black' including the single 'Overlord', preferring to plunder back
catalogue, notably 2003's 'The Blessed Hellride” and 2005's 'Mafia'
which included 'In This River' now regularly included in the setlist and
dedicated to the late Dimebag.
But gripes
aside what about the music? In spite of sterling support from long-time
henchmen John DeServio, Will Hunt and Nick Catanese, I realised tonight why I have only had
a passing interest in the band. It is very formulaic. I like a meaty
riff or two and Wylde serves these with garnish but for me the riffs
start to merge, a fact perhaps emphasised by that poor sound mix which
failed to reveal any subtleties.
It was only
towards the end of this too-short set that things lifted with the excellent
Concrete Jungle and Stillborn.
Away from
Ozzy, Wylde could gain new life and energy but the overall impression
left by this gig is an artist that, whether as a direct result of a
shoddy sound person or by design, has become a tad complacent.
Set-list:
1.The Beginning... At Last 2. Crazy Horse 3.What's in You 4.The Rose
Petalled Garden 5.Funeral Bell
Photos by
Steve Goudie
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