Black Label Society had come about as a side project from Zakk Wylde’s number one priority of being the guitarist in Ozzy Osbourne’s band. However, rather than being a solo project, he wanted it to become a long term band, with the solidity of that being a name and a group. Some may then have felt it strange that for both of the band’s first two albums – and indeed “1919 Eternal”, it was Zakk who wrote all of the songs, and recorded all of the vocals, guitars and bass guitar on those albums. However, there was a change in drummer, with Phil Ondietch being replaced by Craig Nunumacher.
Now, so the story goes, Zakk had written a number of songs that were for the Ozzy Osbourne album “Down to Earth” that was released the previous year, and the episode for which you can find here on this podcast. Zakk had been off touring with Black Label Society and had the songs written to go for the new album. However, when he brought them in for the recording of that album, they were reportedly rejected by Osbourne for ‘being too Black Label Society’ and not fitting with the material that had been written already in Zakk’s absence. As a result, Zakk played as a hired gun on that album, for the first time not having contributed anything to the writing of the songs he was playing. A strange situation, but then Osbourne and his management have been known for this over their career. So these songs were now waiting to be used, and they turned up as the basis of the next Black Label Society album. This one. And it is noticeable that they also influence the writing of the remainder of the album. “1919 Eternal” is a different styled album from the first two Black Label Society albums. It really is geared closer to what an Ozzy Osbourne album would sound like, which is ironic given the tale about Ozzy’s album that I have just told.
The groove of this album is set up from the very first riff of “Bleed for Me”. And, even though there has always been a similarity in the vocals of Zakk with Ozzy, and that on some songs you can actually hear how Ozzy would sound singing the song, it should not surprise you that this is one of the songs that Zakk supposedly wrote for the Ozzy album. It’s a beauty. Then you move into “Lords of Destruction which just has so much going on, with the bass riff holding the song together, the rhythm playing another riff on top of that, and then the lead riff where Zakk just unloads. When it comes to Black Label Society songs, this for me is one of those signature songs. There is so much guitar, and different riffing guitar, in it, that you can only wonder how he fits it all in to one song, and then makes it all work. But it does. And this is followed by the tempo lifting “Demise of Sanity” which kicks right in and has a more structured verse and chorus style with heavy guitar, again no doubt as it was one of the rumoured songs Ozzy rejected. The third of those songs comes next with “Life, Birth, Blood, Doom”, slower in tempo but still hugely enjoyable, especially with the harmony duel tracking of Zakk’s vocals throughout. The opening four songs are just terrific.
“Bridge to Cross” comes at you with a much slower tempo, and is the first of many future songs in this style that Zakk was to write and record for Black Label Society albums. And here, don’t get me wrong, he does it really well. It isn’t a ballad as such, just a much softer and quieter acoustic song that he performs brilliantly. My problem is that does it fit around the other songs on the album? On future albums that problem was solved by having a majority of songs like this. Here, appearing after such a loud and electric start, it seems out of place. This is solved by “Battering Ram” which comes crashing out next with a fast paced drum-driven tempo with a brilliant guitar solo that restores the balance of the album. Zakk continues to show his versatility with the classical acoustic guitar instrumental “Speedball”, before we have some terrific Black Label Society staples in “Graveyard Disciples” and “Genocide Junkies”.
"Lost Heaven" is the second slow tempo song of the album, which again is almost like intermission at the movies - time to take a leak and grab a drink. "Refuse to Bow Down", “Mass Murder Machine” and "Berserkers" showcase that great Zakk Wylde riffing, all at a mid-tempo range and perhaps without as much excitement or interesting changes as the songs in the first half of the album, but are still enjoyable. And the album concludes with Zakk's guitar instrumental rendition of "America the Beautiful", an obvious tribute and reference to the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US, which had occurred during the recording of this album.
This was the first Black Label Society album I had heard, and I got it after reading the rave reviews that it had received from the Metal Edge website. Some how before this I had actually come across Zakk’s acoustically driven solo album from years before, “Book of Shadows” and had been impressed with his vocals. When I got this album though and started listening to it, I was impressed even more. Not just with his voice, and the way he used different vocals in different songs, but in the way he used his vocals melodically and harmonically. That was what first hit me about the songs on this album, and given that was not his number one instrument on this album, it probably always augured well.
Beyond that of course is Zakk’s guitar playing, and as always it is second to none. Some of the riffs he produces on this album are some of his best, and that’s quite a statement in itself. In having not only written all the songs himself, but having played all of the guitars as well, it has enabled him to overlap and interlay those guitars in an extremely pleasing way that only Zakk could do.
It is quite possible that “1919 Eternal” remains my favourite album of Black Label Society because it was my introduction to the band, and that I have been looking for a repeat performance since. I also rate the first two album highly. Beyond this?... well, in general there is a little too much slow tempo, acoustic and other genre-hopping to allow me to rank any album after this to be its equal. That’s not to say there aren’t some great songs beyond this, there definitely are. But as a collection, as an album, this has been my favourite. And twenty years on, I don’t think it has lost anything in comparison. It still has that fresh quality that allows it to be listened to in today’s music environment and still be enjoyed by the current generation.
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