Mafia

Zakk Wylde, Black Label Society

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 8, 2005)
• Original Release Date: March 8, 2005
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Artemis Records
• ASIN: B0007IA58C
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (120 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #10,862 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Ozzy Osbourne's lead guitarist for nearly two decades, Zakk Wylde slips the off the leash again to release his seventh album with his band, the Black Label Society, creating a weighty masterwork that stands muscled shoulder to muscled shoulder with anything his liege lord is putting out. But then, the slinger is responsible for co-writing some of Osbournes's most memorable tunes from No Rest For The Wicked, No More Tears and Ozzmosis. Mafia does sometimes feel like Wylde is still in search of the heavy metal grail, especially on the Sabbath-esque "Mr. Octavia," but the slinger shows a surprisingly vulnerable side on "The River." The gritty-yet-sensitive song, dedicated to (but not written for) Pantera guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott who was shot by a fan in December of 2004, has a noble gravity and depth, and would fit comfortably on a Springsteen album. Wylde has hidden depths and reserves of talents he hasn't even scratched yet. --Jaan Uhelszki

Product Description
The Ozzy guitarist is back with a very heavy metal release sure to blow the top off all his past solo releases. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Solid Offering from BLS, March 9, 2005

By	Christopher Fama (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Another great CD from BLS. Zakk Wylde pushes his voice further than he has to date on this offering. When he jumps up an octave from his southern rock growl, he sounds like a mix between Ozzy and Axl Rose (Don't let that scare you away though.) Zakk sure is prolific, a great CD a year is a heck of an average!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good Album, but the Band is Commercially Doomed, April 22, 2005

By	Vox Satanicus "The Warlock" (Earth) - See all my reviews

The CD os OK. Not great by any means, but better than a lot of contemporary metal/hard rock releases. The CD mix is too muddy, and it may have been recorded before the band fully developed all of the songs. In concert, the material sounds a lot stronger than it does on the album. That's probably because they have had several months of road touring to improve the music because they get full audience feedback every night.

At a recent concert in Austin, Texas, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY the crowd thought they were excellent. But something seemed really amiss. I think that they are going to have to remain 'independent' artists, since they will not fit with the major labels. I was appalled to learn that they all profess to be deeply religious. There are compelling business reasons to keep religion out of popular music. So they will not be given access to major media, and will have to be content with the independent rock journals and other marginal media for attention.

35 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Zakk cooks up something tasty on "Mafia", May 26, 2005

By	A. Stutheit "Teyad" (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Think of Zakk Wylde as a great pastry chef. An extremely gifted and experienced artist who doesn't take his craft lightly (and, after trying just one sampling of his cooking, you realize that you shouldn't take it lightly, either.)

Zakk does what all greats do: draws inspiration from past greats. After just one sampling of his work, the customer should be able to tell that Zakk draws influence (especially vocally) from Ozzy Osbourne and the late Layne Staley of Alice in Chains fame. In fact, one of the things that may be holding Black Label Society back is that Zakk might draw too heavily from his pot of influences. His riffs have always been reminiscent of Black Sabbath (since, in case you didn't know, he also does the shredding for Ozzy Osbourne's band), but when he starts sounding like Ozzy behind the mic, things start to sound eerily similar.

Zakk may not be famous for mastering every genre of his art form, but he is world-renowned for one recipe: Southern-tinged, alcohol laden metal that's as heavy as a seven-layer torte. What does such a recipe call for? For starters, you need the best guitarist in the business who can lay down some monstrous solos and churn out many doom-y, sludgy riffs. Once you have that, you'll need some lyrics like: "Crawl through the things that eat your flesh." Put these lyrics down, then lather them, thickly, with a deep, gruff, alchohol soaked voice. To make sure you did this right, check to see that there are only one or two rays of visible light shining through to the bottom of your product. Finally, garnish it with some catchy, store-bought drumming and enjoy.

The final product should be a heavy, semi-sweet dessert that not everyone will enjoy equally. Aside from a few moments that are super sweet (i.e. the guitar solos), there should be no surprises while enjoying your dessert. It should go down easy and not leave much of an aftertaste.

Zakk has formed a following of fans, and all of his past creations have been popular amongst them. So when it came time for Zakk to write up the recipe/menu of his new album, it was only natural that he go back to where he started and sculpt the kind of he music he knows best. Thus, "Mafia" offers more of the same. To prove his guitar chops are as big as his biceps, he uses his Gynsu knife guitar to carve out thick, buzzsaw riffs that are as crunchy as croutons, and precise, juicy solos that sizzle like the finest sirloin.

Highlights include:

"Fire It Up" does just that. It begins sounding sort of like a Kid Rock song, with slow wah-wah guitars and a simple but catchy drum beat. The song eventually becomes crunchy, and includes a nice and long acrobatic guitar solo, which might be my favorite on the album. I'd swear part of it was written by Zakk's best friend, the equally as talented Dimebag Darrell, if he were still alive.
"Suicide Messiah" ties a high(er) pitched voice with fast chugging riffs.
"Forever Down" has a piano intro (!), but all is forgiven when the fiery guitar punch makes an entrance. This song is topped of a by a wild up and down solo.
"In this River" is a Dimebag Darrell tribute. I wondered if there was going to be a song like this on "Mafia," and sure enough. It doesn't rock in typical Dimebag fashion, however. Rather, "In this River" is a power ballad with piano and clean singing. Zakk doesn't have the best voice, but this song sounds good otherwise. Plus, you've got to give him props for making a lovely little tribute.
Zakk returns to form for the very next track, "You Must be Blind," which has dizzying heavy riffs.
"Death March" is catchy enough to be the next single. It has a stop-start beat and another good (albeit short) ascending solo.

Since Dimebag Darrell has passed away, Van Halen hasn't made a new album in 10 years, and Tom Morello is playing softer, almost alternative rock, Zakk Wylde stands as the clear choice for cream of the crop in modern metal. The bottom line is Zakk Wylde has the talent and potential to be making some of the world's most exquisite and complicated music. But his vocal ability (which, as previously mentioned, he borrows heavily from his influences), lyrics, and all around songwriting skills hold him back.

In short, Zakk Wylde is Wolfgang Puck working at a McDonald's. "Mafia" is a Big Mac. But there's nothing wrong with a Big Mac. You go to McDonald's if you're hungry, and if you want a solid, no surprises, easy-to-down meal that leaves little to no aftertaste. If that's what you're expecting when you go there, you don't walk away disappointed. And sometimes that's all you could ask for in a meal.

I've got to go now, I'm making myself hungry...