There's no doubt about it: Zakk Wylde can play the guitar. Being accepted into Ozzy's band not only showed this, but cemented what his future career would be like. Full of beer, guitars, and lots, and lots of Metal. He's done his fair share of solo work, but he sticks close to two main things: Ozzy, and his own blood,
Black Label Society.
Now,
BLS is like 'Bar Metal'. It's a phrase I coined up that perfectly sums up their sound. For starters, Zakk and the gang look like they live inside a biker bar year round. Big chains, long, shaggy beards, and greasy, dangling hair. Oh yea, lots of leather and ripped jeans too. Now combine that the sound of drunken music, and you've got 'Bar Metal'.
"
Shot to Hell" is the latest release from these ruff-n-tuff guys, and it seems to combine the slower, moodier songs off of "
The Blessed Hellride", with the rockin' tune found on their last release, "
Mafia". But I won't beat around the bush here, sometimes, it isn't exactly the prettiest combination at points. But at others, it works out perfectly. There's no heavy-balls-to-the-well shredding like on "
Stronger Than Death", but what's here is what appears to be a more accessible
BLS. Oh yea, and Zakk Wylde can still rip out his axe and shred till the dawn comes when he solos, just a heads up.
Part One: The 'Heavy' Songs
There's more than a fair share of headbangin tunes on this album, that's for sure. "
Concrete Jungle" rips right off the bat with some grinding guitars and (surprise surprise) some pinch harmonics. Yes, the overuse of pinch harmonics are still used here. And others, like "
Black Mass Reverends", "
New Religion", "
Devil's Dime" and "
Hell Is High" all follow on the trend set by the opener with Zakk spearheading the heaviness with an assault of chugging palm mutes matched with a sharp pinch harmonic to give off that classic
BLS sound that I've grown up with.
It actually quite surprised me to hear some tracks that actually didn't overdo the pinch harmonics, quite frankly because they weren't used on the song, or at the most, once or twice! Yes, I know, cry 'Blasphemy!' at Zakk going outside his norm, but it's true. On "
Faith is Blind" is one hell of a palm muted chugger, and it thrashes all over the place. It even features a slightly imaginative chorus riff from Zakk. "
Give Yourself To Me" is basically the same way, save this time, the riffs are chopped and thick. They sputter out constantly, flicking straight into your mind. But during the chorus, Zakk, being the sly dog that he is, puts his guitar slightly lower than the others and manages do his signature grind-and-pinch harmonics quickly.
Now, if you're sitting there, and you're thinking "
Jeez Grant, you put way to much emphasis on his pinch harmonics!". But you've gotta take into consideration that these pinch harmonics, while they might just be a fancy trick on guitar, lead to one of my complaints on this album. They are overused much more here than he has ever done before, therefore giving almost all of these 'Heavier' songs are huge generic, repetitive feel. If I were to put all of these songs on one disc and let them roll, they would all sound the same. Individually, they're all great, top-notch songs. Put them together, and it sounds like one big pinch harmonic festival.
And how about the drums and the bass? Just like on their past efforts, they still do nothing. Zip. Nadda. The drummer will bore you if you're looking for any insane fills/beats. The bassist never does anything but follow Zakk. But then again, this whole band is about Zakk...
Part Two: The 'Moody' Songs
You all remember "
In This River" off of "
Mafia"? The only ballad on the album, it was well-crafted, mellow, and calming. So I can't blame Zakk for trying to do it again. "
The Last Goodbye" again features Zakk showing off his chops on the piano, as the song floats and drifts upwards. The same thing can be said for "
Nothing's the Same", except the guitar in the background is substantionaly quieter as it rings out notes over Zakk's climbing piano. But you know what, I'll stop describing the rest of the slower songs here, because they literally all follow the same damn pattern. Slow, piano intro + basic drum beat + a ringing guitar = "
Sick of It All" and "
Lead Me To Your Door". They all sound the same, and they all feel like they try and be a rip-off of "
In This River". The biggest achievement here would be the track "
Blood Is Thicker Than Water", which starts off with an almost Western type acoustic guitar, and (Thank you God!) no piano from Zakk. The song is more guitar-oriented, which gives it a much better atmosphere I feel.
Part Three: Zakk Wylde
Zakk is one of the most talented soloing guitarist I've heard in my life. While I might rank other guitarist higher than him, that's only because I'll be including the riffs that they write too. But if it was just solos alone, Zakk would win. The highlight of any
BLS album is to just sit back and wait for Zakk to literally make his fingers bleed from the insanity of his soloing. And on "
Shot to Hell", he proves why again. There's melody infused throughout, so they actually feel like their part of the song. The ones on "
Concrete Jungle", "
Hell is High" and "
Devil's Dime" are just Zakk letting his fingers travel all over, giving off a huge shred feel. On his slower tracks, like "
Sick of It All" and "
Blood Is Thicker Than Water", Zakk mixes in more of an 'atmospheric' approach, but near the end of them he just starts wail away.
But his vocals/lyrics...er...they always need some work. Their not horrible in any sense, but they're usually dull. And "
Shot to Hell" is no exception. He used to have a deeper, darker/gruffer voice on "
Stronger Than Death", but since then, he's tried too hard to sound like Ozzy. And, well, he does. He wails and moans all over this album. And the overuse of the voice-effect that was found on "
Fire It Up" is used in basically every song. On the opener, "
Concrete Jungle", that's all he does for about the first 30 seconds, and it ain't that bad for one song alone, but when he does it for nearly every one of them, it gets annoying. And his lyrics aren't exactly the greatest either. On "
Devil's Dime", Zakk blurts out "
Hellbent, blitzkrieged; Take what you want at will. Hellbend, blitzkrieged; Can't live unless you kill", which seem a bit too childish for my liking. And that's pretty much what their like on every song. When he tries to get more emotional, lines like off of "
The Last Goodbye" have Zakk literally moaning "
Take this love, Take this life, Take this blood. It'll never die. This aint the last goodbye.". Once again, not that great. The best lyrics would probably have to be on "
Concrete Jungle", which does include a few cool lines like "
The freaks in the streets, the nuns with the shot guns", which are cool just because I like the image of a pissed-off nun with a sawn-off in her hands.
Conclusion
"
Shot to Hell" is yet again another good release from Zakk and the boys of
BLS. But I don't see where they can go from here. This stuff sounds too similar to what was on "
Mafia" for me to say they're progressing. But if you're looking for some good ole' Metal fun, "
Shot to Hell" is waiting for you...
Overall (Combined Parts) - 3/5
Recommended Tracks
Concrete Jungle
Black Mass Reverends
Devil's Dime
Blood Is Thicker Than Water
