Black Label Society 11.10.21 Wellmont Theater

Words & Photos by Marco Denzer

Zakk Wylde, currently on the road with Black Label Society for their Fall 2021 Doom Trooping Over North America Tour, brought his bone rattling Doom Crew to The Wellmont Theater and put on a show that can only be described as one hell of a strike from the metal hammer of the Gods.

After two solid opening sets from Prong and Obituary, the supporting bands that primed up the crowd and got the mosh pit going. BLS hit the stage and kicked things off while veiled behind a huge banner with their iconic skull logotype printed on it. As the banner dropped to the ground, Zakk and his crew immediately shifted into high gear with “Bleed for Me” and “Demise of Sanity” from the album “1919 Eternal” and “Overlord” from the 2010 release “Order of The Black”. The band brought it on hard, loud and heavy right from the start and they didn’t let up at all.

The night’s fourteen-song setlist included a variety of tunes selected from the band’s extensive discography that now spans two decades, including albums like “Catacombs of the Black Vatican”, “Grimmest Hits”, “The Blessed Hellride” and “Mafia” to name a few. The latest single “Set You Free” from the soon to be released album “Doom Crew Inc.”, expected out on November 26th, was also included in the setlist.

It’s worth pointing out that not all the night’s repertoire was guitar centric. The band also played a couple of ballads, “Spoke in the Wheel” and “In This River”, featuring Zakk Wylde on his baby grand piano and band member Dario Lorina on rhythm and lead guitar. The latter of the two ballads was a moving homage to his late friends Dimebag Darrell (guitarist) and his brother Vinnie Paul (drummer) of the legendary band Pantera.

Zakk Wylde is an incredibly gifted guitarist who’s recognized and admired for his fast riffs on the “fiddle”, as he sometimes calls the instrument, but let there be no doubt that he’s an exceedingly prolific musician who writes meaningful, heartfelt, well arranged and intricately melodic songs. Sure, he can melt your face with some masterful and heavy guitar shredding, but that’s beside the point. At its core, Black Label Society music is loud, powerful, soul-stirring heavy metal with just the right amount of feedback, but above all that… it’s honest and unpretentious.

Black Label Society will continue to tour through the end of November, and they’ll return to the
road in June of 2022 for the European leg of their tour.

TheWaster.com | Montclair
11.22.21