REVIEW BY DAVID TAYLOR AND PHOTOS BY ROBERT A CHADWICK | Go Venue Magazine
On Monday, December 9, guitarist Zakk Wylde brought his Black Sabbath-covers act, Zakk Sabbath, back to Omaha at the Admiral Theater. The loyal fan base of the Omaha Chapter of the Black Label Society showed up for Father Zakk as he played tribute to the Godfathers of Heavy Metal, Black Sabbath. Also, in tow, were two tribute acts, The Iron Maidens and Zoso – The Ultimate Led Zeppelin Experience. Hearing these acts pay homage to their heroes made for a great night of live music.
The Iron Maidens, an all-female Iron Maiden tribute band from Los Angeles, were first on the bill. I initially thought they were a cover band, but they paid tribute to Iron Maiden as better than I could imagine. There were costume changes for the lead vocalist for “Bruce Chickinson” aka Kirsten Rosenberg when they performed “The Trooper”, waving around the Union Jack and American flags. They had their version of Eddie, Iron Maiden’s mascot, running around causing mischief. They also nailed the guitar attack with the necks out while playing. They were all exceptional players. The Iron Maidens are the quintessential Iron Maiden tribute act out there, and you should check them out at least once if you are a fan of Iron Maiden.
Zoso – The Ultimate Led Zeppelin Experience, also from Los Angeles, was the direct support. These guys embodied who Led Zeppelin were in the 1970s. They got their whole sound and vibe down. I can’t believe they have been doing this for about thirty years. I recently learned that to fill in the Jimmy Page role for this tour, they called upon Scott Hathaway, who performed phenomenally and technically. Matt Jernigan is a pretty good Robert Plant, as well. I bet they perform with a full production for their headline shows, probably with a little more organ/keyboard and guitar bow playing. But, never the less, what they brought with them tonight was a tight-knit band that sounded close to the real Led Zeppelin.
Finally, the crowd was ready for Zakk Sabbath. If you don’t know Zakk Wylde, he was Ozzy Osbourne’s guitar player for many years. Black Sabbath finished touring in 2017, meaning no more live Black Sabbath songs being played live by the band. Zakk Wylde’s mission and passion is to keep the Ozzy-era of Black Sabbath alive and well by going out and touring and spreading the word of Black Sabbath. And that’s what he’s been doing since 2014, in between Black Label Society and now, recently, Pantera gigs. It’s quite incredible to see him so busy, but the man loves to perform for the masses. Backed by his Black Label Society bandmates bassist John DeServio and drummer Jeff Fabb, together they made this unbreakable power trio that nailed that Sabbath groove. Zakk Wylde knows the art of ripping an extended guitar solo and making it entertaining. They kicked off with “Supernaut” and ended with “War Pigs”. They played a couple of songs from each of the first four Sabbath albums and snuck in “Symptom of the Universe” from Sabotage, Sabbath’s sixth album. Wherever the core original four members of Black Sabbath are, I hope they are proud of Zakk and his renditions of their classic songs.
Zakk Sabbath
Zoso
Iron Maidens
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