 Black Label Society
 Hangover Music, Vol. 6
 Review by Gary Hill

I have to say, when I got this one for MSJ's coverage of Ozzfest, I never expected to hear what I did. Most of the Ozzfest crew's discs usually tend to be fairly monolithic hard and heavy releases. Of all the people to break that mold is Ozzy's own former axe-man Zakk Wylde with his Black Label Society project. Wylde shows himself on this one to be not only an exceptionally talented musician (he plays virtually everything on the album), but also a great songwriter.
The music here is more in the tradition of great old-school hard rock than it is heavy metal. Certainly Guns and Roses influences abound, but you might find yourself thinking that you hear such other artists as Nazareth and Poison here, too. Wylde shows that he can run the flashy guitar solo that is expected of him, but more importantly he can NOT run that solo, instead focusing on a song structure. This album has very few weak points, and I have to say that picking out one or two high points is not easy. I really do enjoy his cover of Procol Harum's "Whiter Shade of Pale", and the closing number even comes across as almost progressive rock. This is a great disc, and I am sure it will be a frequent visitor to my CD changer.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2004 Year Book Volume 2 at https://garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2003-and-2004/.
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