Carrying the Torch: Black Label Society, Zakk Sabbath & Dark Chapel at the Grey Eagle

How do you write a review about someone you consider the best showman in today’s metal scene? Let’s just open this one with 10/10. There is no denying that Zakk Wylde knows how to not only put on a stellar show with minimal production needed, but also how to pull together a tour. They sold out the Calgary show I attended March 19 at the Grey Eagle Resort and Casino, and drummed up enough interest in Edmonton for back-to-back nights at Midway.

Opening the show was the recently launched Sludge Rock project, Dark Chapel. The band is fronted by Dario Lorina of Black Label Society, so who better to go on tour and open for two of Zakk’s bands? If you’re a fan of BLS, you’re going to want to check Dark Chapel out. The music is like Doom but infused with high-octane fuel. This is the kind of music that doesn’t need big video screen backdrops and flashing lights, although there was a solid light show for the set, the music hit in a way that you couldn’t help but headbang. Even in the photo pit, my neck was in tune with each track. While Dario is used to taking a less front of stage role in his history, starting his career as a touring guitarist at the age of 16, his commanding presence as the lead singer for Dark Chapel feels like a role he was made for. Vocals were tight, and his chemistry with the audience and his bandmates made it clear this project runs deeper than a side gig. It won’t be long before Dark Chapel are headlining their own tours. 

Next up Zakk Sabbath. If there is anyone in the metal world more suited to keeping the Black Sabbath music alive for the next generation, I can’t think of them. Zakk’s history with Ozzy through the years. The respect he shows for the music. His voice. His presence. Sure, Ozzy was the true Prince of Darkness and never donned a bright yellow kilt, but Zakk has the flair to play these songs with the respect they deserve. The set covered the best-known songs from Ozzy’s era with the band. They opened with Children of the Grave, a track that demands movement, and the first crowd surfers of the night were already in the air. While only six songs long, this felt like a special set for many in the crowd. With Ozzy’s passing last year, watching Zakk carry that legacy forward is something people will keep paying to see. The closing track, War Pigs, took Zakk off the stage, through the audience, and up onto a platform at the sound booth during a nearly 15-minute rendition before returning him to the stage. Watching from the floor by that point, the full scale of the moment was something else entirely. At one point we even got to see how to solo with your tongue, a feat not many guitarists could pull off.

Closing out the night was Zakk’s main project, Black Label Society. Seeing both Zakk and Dario pulling double duty every night for the tour is impressive. If there were any doubts that the crowd was here for BLS, they were quickly dispelled with one crowd surfer making their way from mid-crowd to the rail before the BLS flag had even dropped. BLS delivered the best of their catalog, including Funeral Bell, an opener that really set the crowd off, and classics like The Blessed Hellride and Suicide Messiah. In This River was offered as a tribute to the Abbott brothers, Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul of Pantera, a band Zakk is now also out on the road with. Pulling the theme of Ozzy into the night even further were the cover of No More Tears and the closing track, Stillborn, during which the Black Label Society backdrop was pulled down to reveal images of Ozzy through the years. You could feel the energy in the room change when those images appeared. I can’t speak for everyone in the room, but I know I was fighting back tears, and I doubt I was the only one.

Whether you were shoulder to shoulder in the pit, riding the rail for the entire night or hanging back at the rear wall, this was a night to remember. If you missed out on this one, I’m sure your friends will fill you in for the next few months on every moment you should have been there for!