Review of Black Label Society - Kings of Damnation: 98-04

I feel like it’s a bit too early to be looking back on the career of Zakk Wylde and Black Label Society, but apparently Spitfire thinks otherwise, as they have released this retrospective in the wake of the band’s departure from the label. Let the cries of “cash grab” begin. The marketing of BLS has always centered around Wylde (hence why the band is often billed as “Zakk Wylde’s Black Label Society”), so it comes as little surprise that the tracks here are culled not just from BLS, but also his prior solo work. The result is a well-rounded set but hardly one worthy of the BLS name, one that Zakk himself was reluctant to involve himself in.

Now, had this been called Zakk Wylde: King of Damnation, things would be different. As things are, though, this is more about him than BLS. Hence, we get two tracks from his first post-Ozzy outfit, the Southern rock-tinged Pride & Glory and two tracks from his mostly acoustic Book of Shadows disc. Furthermore, we get tracks released under the BLS banner that are just Zakk doing some instrumentals. Taking all that into account, we’re left with a disc that is only about 2/3 genuine BLS tracks. On the plus side, two of those are brand new for this collection. What is here is at least a decent representation of the band, although perhaps not their best or even most popular material. We get the raw heaviness of “Bored to Tears” and “Counterfeit God”, more straightforward tracks like “Stillborn” and “Bleed for Me”, and a showing of the band’s soft side with “The Blessed Hellride” and a couple Hangover Music Vol. 6 tracks. The two new cuts unfortunately sound like what they probably are – outtakes from their most recent studio albums. They aren’t necessarily bad, but it’s obvious why they didn’t make it to a proper album and add little to the album as a whole.

If your BLS knowledge and catalog only includes Mafia and/or The Blessed Hellride, or even if you’ve only heard them at Ozzfest, Kings of Damnation will serve as an adequate Cliff Notes-version history lesson of the band and its mainman, Zakk Wylde. Everybody else already has these tracks and there’s no real need to get them again, even for the two new ones. Here’s hoping that the next BLS collection is a 2 CD set that will properly portray them as the rock/metal powerhouse that they have become.

Release Details

Black Label Society

Kings of Damnation: 98-04

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