Customer Reviews

Kings of Damnation: Era 98-04

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

well i bought this cd because the editorial review says there are acoustic versions of spoke in the wheel, bridge to cross, stillborn and the blessed hellride, but there not here! in fact, spoke in the wheel and bridge to cross are not here in any form! and it contains the original versions of stillborn and the blessed hellride. all of the tracks on cd 2 have been released before. if you have all of the cds with the bonus discs, you already have everything on this disc. even the videos arent anything new, if you have the dvd, you have 2 of the three videos. the only one extra would be counterfit god, which is cool. so all you get here that you dont already have are the 2 new tracks. some one needs to fix the editorial.

This is a compilation of material that BLS released on Spitfire Records. Mafia is on Atermis Records. That's why none of the songs off of Mafia appear on this CD. Zakk proabably owed them one more album on his contract and allowed this greatest of package.

The Good
If you haven't heard Zakk Wylde's early material, you may be a little surprised early on in this collection. He wasn't exactly the metal powerhouse he is today. There was a lot of southern rock and country influence on "Losing Your Mind" from the Pride & Glory days. I wasn't a big fan of Book of Shadows, but they picked probably the best two songs from that record that represent the Zakk of today; "Between Heaven and Hell" represents his softer acoustic side (with some great guitar tones), while "Sold My Soul" crossing the bridge from acoustic to electric mayhem. I would say these are the most commercial songs Wylde has ever done.

I was a bit disappointed that only one song from Sonic Brew was chosen, because that was by far the best BLS album in my opinion, but at least the picked the thunderous and devastating "Bored to Tears". "Bleed for Me" showcases a monstrous chugga-chugga riff and a vocally melodic Zakk Wylde. "Stillborn" is where Ozzy Osbourne helped out his faithful guitarist out with vocal; although, both men sound pretty much the same. "Crazy or High" revisits Zakk's early days of acoustic-based rock, but combines it with Zakk's new found vocal style and always consistent solos. There are two unreleased tracks included in the best of collection; "Doomsday Inc." is a balls-to-the wall metal thriller, and "SDMF" is just as powerful with a lot of enhancing electronic effects.

The Bad
"Taz", "Speedball", and "Takillya" are really just filler tracks. They do show off Zakk's guitar skills, but each clock in around a minute or so. Six years and six albums are a little early for a best of, unless you're calling it quits (which I don't think he is).

The Verdict
If you've been living in a cave in recluse from the rock world and started wondering, `who is this Zakk Wylde guy, and why is he held in such high regard as a guitar player?'; then Kings of Damnation is the perfect introduction to a heavy metal guitar master that's only just begun to crank out his best. If you've always been a fan, you'll be more than pleased with the new tracks.

what the hell? this is NOT a fair representation of black label society. sure, it's got 2 new songs, but c'mon. 1 friggin' disc?! 1 pride and glory disc, 1 solo zakk cd (book of shadows), and what 5 spitfire issued albums and 1 live affair, not to mention the "mafia" disc as well. for a band that has put out more quality albums than your average "mega" band,this crappy best of deserves a swift kick in the arse. if your a true society dwellar you'll pick it up like i did because you support the band. but if you are a casual listener, do yourself a favor and go buy the real deals. not this. BLEED BLACK LABEL!

Black Label Society is one of the few bands that plays real metal (as opposed to the likes of Limp Bizkit or Linkin Park), and they've put out so many great songs. But while the songs on here are good, they missed some of BLS's greatest songs like "Stoned and Drunk" and "All for You." Of course, if you are getting into BLS, this is a decent place to start, just know that there are great songs that were left off of here as well (motivation to pick up the individual albums). The two new tracks are pretty good, but people that already own the majority of the songs on here need not pick this up just for those two songs. This is just one of those albums that comes out after a record company loses and band, and release a (usually terribly put together) greatest hits package to take as much money from the band's fans as possible.

With guitarist extraordinaire Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society departing with Spitfire Records, let the cash in begin. "Kings of Damnation" is nothing more than a shameless cash in attempt, with two new songs ("Doomsday Inc." and "SDMF", both of which are killer) thrown on to attract longtime fans. The BLS songs you would expect to be here are here: "Bored to Tears", "Bleed For Me", "Counterfeit God", "We Live No More", "Stillborn", and "House of Doom", but there are other amazing songs that are not here, such as "Hey You (Batch of Lies)", "Just Killing Time", "Damage is Done", "Layne", and even Zakk's take on "No More Tears". This compilation is completely worthless for BLS fans who already own every album, and while it may be a nice intoduction for new fans to the band, this is still better left on the shelf for everyone else.

yes this is a "hits" package. is it Zakk's(BLS)best? not really. is there a little in it for the novice s.d.m.f.'ers? definitely. as one of my fellow reviewers writes, "it's impossible to put the best on 1 cd", or something to that effect. from a fan's perspective, owning the entire catalog, including Book of Shadows and Pride & Glory, is the only real way to get the full effect of this musical genius' best, and the BLS package as well. but barring that, this will have to do. i purchased this simply to have the 2 new tunes and to say "i have every BLS cd". if what you crave is a "taste of Zakk" then get this offering. if you want the full course, then buy 'em all. peace.

I had been a big fan of Zakk's work with Ozzy Osbourne for awhile when I came across this CD. I knew it was Zakk's band but I had never really heard anything by them before. I had enough money for it and figured what the hell. I was VERY pleased with my purchase. I was very suprised by Zakks voice, it was actually... good. I understand how many pople who already own the BLS CDs and Book of Shaddows (tracks 3-4) and Pride and Glory (tracks 1-2) might be dissapointed, but holy cow. If you already own all of the albums then why are you buying this? I mean... there are the two new tracks but don't complain because you think it is better to buy all the albums instead. I think Zakk did a good job choosing songs, you can't put EVERY good song they did on one compilation (If Led Zeppelin did that then every song off of their first 4 albums would be part of the 7-disc Best Of that they would have). If you are interested in hearing Zakk's work then I highly recommend buying this to hear all the kind of music he has done throughout the years. If you are only interested in heavy stuff he has done though then I would highly recommend picking up Sonic Brew, it is a great album. This album made me see how hard and not hard Zakk can rock. His acoustic work is AMAZING! I bought Books of Shadows after I bought this CD and it is also a great piece of work. Zakk's distortion on the hard songs is crazy, he really keeps his guitar overdriven, and I love it. This is a great first look into BLS. BLS is almost like southern metal to me. Also: Zakk's guitar solos are extremely shreddy (fast as hell). Anyway, I was very happy with this CD and it was a good introduction to a great band. If you own all the albums then just let the CD go (unless you REALLY want the 2 new tracks, which are very good i must say). If you like this then i highly recommend buying some of their other albums.

Hey, "Losing your mind" and "Horse called war" are not BLS songs! They are Pride & Glory songs, the first band Zakk put together. And the Pride & Glory album remains as his best effort so far. And "Sold my soul" is not a BLS song either! It's from a Zakk's solo album called Book of Shadows, which is also great. Well, now looking at the real BLS songs, every fan can notice that the best songs are not there! What compilation is this one? Where are songs like "The beginning at last", "Graveyard Disciples", "Just killing time", "Destruction overdrive", "Suffering overdue", "Damage is done" etc. etc.????
If you don't know BLS and wants to get started with this compilation, don't do it! You better start with one single album, "1919 Eternal", which is much better than this compilation here!

If this one's supposed to be a Zakk's (without the madman,of course) compilation,why don't include a few Mafia or Steel Dragon's tracks? And what this album has to do with the other one with the same title,2 discs and acoustic takes of Zakk's songs?I don't understand...Any help on this will be welcome!
Why 5 stars then? Because doesn't matter whatever Zakk does,because like the king Midas he turns it into gold in at least a 90% of the times!And this is no exception,although i haven't listened to the new 2 tracks yet.I bet they are fine too.

thank you very much!

Thanks the guy above,the one from Memphis(can't remember his name...),for the information about this CD that i was asking for.Greetings from Spain!