Zakk Wylde’s follow-up to Stronger Than Death is another energetic slab of metal mayhem, and one that is seemingly influenced by both Black Sabbath and some of the newer metal bands on the scene today like Disturbed and Static X. That being said you can be sure to find plenty of heavy, beer-soaked riffs and sledgehammer rhythms that will be sure to please both old and new metal fans alike.
The madcap opener “Bleed for Me” is a rousing number littered with heavy guitar licks and insane screams straight from the Static X camp. The fact that Zakk has chosen to add some nu-metal touches in spots on this CD should help the band gain some new fans, especially at the annual Ozzfest tour. “Lords of Destruction” is a slower, doomy number that recalls vintage Black Sabbath, and features some grindingly slow, evil riffs from Wylde. The guitarist takes a similar formula mixed with some Southern boogie on “Life, Birth, Blood, Doom”, and even goes one step further with the brutally heavy yet funky “Genocide Junkies”, complete with a dynamite, shuffling guitar riff. There are also a couple of mellower, more acoustic based songs, like “Bridge to Cross” and “Lost Heaven”, that are decent but sound too much alike and are very similar to the acoustic songs from Stronger Than Death. These are minor setbacks, as the acoustic guitar workouts “Speedball” and “America the Beautiful”, plus the rampaging thunder of “Mass Murder Machine” more than add to the strength of this CD. In addition, there are plenty of wild wah-wah drenched solos and screaming harmonics, which are a Zakk Wylde trademark.
Black Label Society is sure to add new listeners with 1919*Eternal. Most of the lyrical content deals with war, which is extremely relevant these days, plus Zakk has lightened up a bit on his vocals, which makes him easier to understand. Combined with brutal guitar riffs and driving arrangements, the guitarist has once again shown that BLS is a force in the metal community.
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