411 Music Interview: Zakk Wylde of Black Label Society

Posted by Lenny Vowels on 08.19.2010

The famed guitarist sits down with 411 and a number of other publications to talk about the new Order of the Black album, the upcoming Berzerkus tour, The Bunker, and much more!



After recently parting fulltime company with his former band leader and mentor, Ozzy Osbourne, Zakk Wylde set about resurrecting the Black Label Society. The band's first album in four years, Order of the Black, is a return to form and fashion for Zakk and his crew, as described in my recent review.

In addition, the band is currently playing Ozzfest throughout the month of August. Following that, Zakk and the pack will depart on the Black Label Berzerkus tour starting on September 20 with the likes of Clutch and Children of Bodom.

Zakk recently had time to chat with yours truly from 411mania.com, in addition to writers from several other online publications, on a conference call. In addition to the new album, tour, and future of the band, there was a lot more to be discovered, including Zakk's plans to work on a movie! Let's see how it goes down...


Carise Yatter, Hired Gun Media (moderator): We're gonna start with Stephen Rosen from This Is Rock. Stephen, have at it with Zakk.

Stephen Rosen, This Is Rock: Hey, Zakk. Tell me a little bit about The Bunker. How was it different for you as opposed to going to work in a regular studio? I mean, you must've had all the time you wanted to come up with all these new, very cool guitar songs, so talk about what that was like to have your own studio now.

Zakk Wylde: Well, I mean it's definitely... I think nowadays, any band, anyways... I mean, I'll put it this way: You have your own studio... I mean, I told Ozzy, you know "Ozzy, can you imagine how much money you must've spent in studio time since the first Black Sabbath record to now? I mean, you basically could've bought a small country, dude, with the amount of money you probably spent." I'm just saying, because if it's $1,000 a day, and you're in there for 80 days, then that's $80,000 right there. It's just like buying a house. It's not so much the mortgage payment, but the down payment. I think any band starting, especially with these big record advances or whatever, the best thing to do is buy your own recording studio and then you always have it forever.

SR: Mmm hmm.

ZW: Any band, when they get a record deal, you sign the record deal, then you have to pay the studio, you have to pay the guy who's gonna engineer the record, or whoever the producer is, then there's $250,000 gone that you could've used to buy a studio. That's always what the case is. Obviously, having a studio is saving me a ton of money down the line. If I keep making records for the next 15-20 years, then this thing is gonna pay itself off.

SR: What has it been like for you, Zakk? You've gotten to spend all the time that you want on working out guitar tones and incorporating piano?

ZW: Well, I mean, I never had any time restrictions. I never recorded like that back in the day. I've done enough records now that I know what kind of mics to use, what settings... you know, things like that. But you know, when I want to get clean guitar tones, that was never an issue in the past. I remember speaking with Ozzy when they were doing The Ultimate Sin, and it would take them four days just to get a guitar tone. I mean, that's insane. What, were those guys smoking crack? Do you take ten minutes to get the guitar sound, then the rest of the whole day to get loaded? I don't understand that. I mean, four days. Give me a break, man. That's ridiculous. I'd end up breaking somebody's legs if it took me four days to get a guitar tone.

SR: (laughs)

ZW: I just never look at it that way. But no, having The Bunker's definitely great. I even mix everything there. It's like a one-stop shop.


CY: Greg Maki from Live Metal, you're up.

Greg Maki, Live Metal: Hey Zakk, how's it going? What's it been like working with Will Hunt on drums?

ZW: I'm at this point in my career where we don't have to set up 50,000 drum auditions or go through tapes. Will was out on the road on the Pedal to the Metal tour, and he was jamming with Static-X. We all hung out with each other. When Craig (Nunemacher) told me, "Zakk, I'm not gonna be rolling on this thing anymore," first thing we did was talk to Nick and then I said, "Dude, what's Will doing? See if he's doing anything with Evanescence or he's doing the Static-X thing. See what his status is." We talked to Will, and he said, "No, Zakk, I'm just chilling out right now. I've got nothing going on." I said, "Just come on out, make the record and we'll take it from there. We'd love to have you. If you want to do the record and do the tour, you're more than welcome to do that." So Will just came out, knocked the record out and now he's doing the tour. So it's game on, man. Will's awesome. The requisites to be in the band: can't be an asshole and you have to know how to play your instrument, and Will fits the job description fine. Everything's killer, man.


CY: Rustin, from Metalholic.

Rustin, Metalholic: Hey Zakk, how's it going? In the past, you've always had this creative split between Black Label Society. Was it different working on Order of the Black when you didn't have to hold anything back for, maybe an Ozzy album?

ZW: No, no. The only thing that I ever said I'm not gonna bring this to the boss was when I was doing the Pride and Glory stuff. You're not gonna have banjos and mandolins flying around on an Ozzy record.

Rustin: (laughs)

ZW: Whenever I would go in and write an Ozzy record, I'd write the riffs just like I was gonna write a Black Label album. It's gonna be a metal or hard rock riff. I never approached it that way, like I'm gonna save this for Black Label. If Jimmy Page would've written "Stairway to Heaven" on the first album, they would've put it on the first album. It's not like, "Oh, we'll save this one for down the line." It's like "Dude, we might die in a bizarre gardening accident later on in the day. Just freakin' record the thing."

Rustin: Is it harder in the age of digital downloads to craft a cohesive album?

ZW: I don't think you're ever gonna stop it. Me personally, Robin Trower's album is coming out the same day as ours. I'm going to buy the Robin Trower record, and I'm gonna illegally download the Black Label album. Screw those guys!

Rustin: (laughs)

ZW: But I will legally purchase the Robin Trower record. Even back in the day, put it this way, if my Led Zeppelin record broke, I went and bought another one. I want to own the thing. I remember going through this with my nephew, because he's all into the rap stuff and everything. I remember he had just a stack of blank CDs with Sharpie marker on it, DMX, this one, that one, Run DMC. He had a Run DMC shirt on. I said, "Where'd you get that shirt?" He goes, "I went down to the gig. I saw ‘em when they were in New York ." I asked "Did you buy the shirt?" He goes, "Yeah, of course. I bought it at the concert." I said "So did you reach over the counter and just grab the shirt and just take off?" And he goes "No. This shirt cost 20 bucks." I say "Exactly. Do you know what you're doing is basically stealing a T-shirt every time you download one of these CDs, dude? It's your favorite band. Do you realize you're stealing from ‘em, dude?" Yeah, I get it. Jimmy Page has enough money already. But you know what, though? He did the work and not only that, all the guys that worked on the record, down to the engineer and all the guys that busted their balls so you could have that great Led Zeppelin IV record, that's what you're paying for when you buy it. I ask "Do you understand that? Are you just that damn cheap that you can't spend 10 bucks on a record, bro?" You're never gonna stop it either. Me and Rob Zombie were talking about it a couple days ago. Rob was even saying, "Zakk, these young kids, I don't even know where to start. Unless you're an established live act now, you can go out and sell your T-shirts and tour, but it's gonna be like the old days. You just gotta get in a van, and you've just gotta bust your balls touring."



CY: Thank you. We'll move onto Kristyn from Pop Culture Madness.

Kristyn, Pop Culture Madness: Hi, Zakk. I'm curious, with so many solid tracks that I've heard from Order of the Black already, is there a song on the album that may hold a special place in your heart, and why?

ZW: "January." The lyrics are about my father because he passed away in January. So I wrote that about my dad. Like every record I've always done, each song, I love ‘em all. It depends on what mood you're in. I listen to all my Led Zeppelin records and it's like, "What's you're favorite one?" It's like "Dude, I love ‘em all." It depends on which one I haven't worn out yet or just what one I'm in the mood for. They've each got their own thing.


CY: Great. Lenny, from 411 Music.

Lenny Vowels, 411mania (cheap pop): Hey Zakk, how you doin' today? Got a question: As far as Black Label Society's history, from 1999 until around 2006, you guys were releasing albums every single year, from Sonic Brew up through Shot to Hell. Since you were releasing an album every year, but Order of the Black is the first Black Label album in four years, do you expect to have a more rigorous release schedule with no more commitment to Ozzy and having The Bunker?

ZW: Nah, I mean we were just laughing about it a few days ago. We were like "Dude, it's been four years since we put the last record out. I can't believe it's been that long." We were touring and doing stuff in between it. I don't know. I can't say it'll never happen again. Obviously, this tour's gonna probably be almost two years, we plan on being out on the road. While I'm out there, I'm writing a script. I want to do a movie. I'm writing it, I'm gonna direct the thing. I'm gonna do a movie when we get off the road. If we're out touring for two years, maybe take a month or two off... probably won't even take a month off. I mean, to do what? To sit around and do nothing? I like working. If we're touring for two years, then obviously we're not gonna put an album out for two years. We might figure out something in between there, maybe put out an acoustic EP or something. ‘Cause now that I've got the Bunker, if we take a month off, it's not even a month off. It would just be a month of recording. Then we go back out on the road.

LV: Right, of course.


CY: Chris Harris, you are up, sir

Chris Harris, unknown source: Well, it's been almost a year since your health issues. How are you feeling now, and how much do you miss booze?

ZW: Well, the longest I had ever gone without drinking was three months as part of a contest, when I was doing vocals for The Blessed Hellride. After those three months, we all went out and got tanked anyway. With the blood clots, it was just like the back of my leg was freakin' killing me. I was putting ice on it, the whole nine yards. I was just like "What the hell am I doing to my leg?" Just trying to troubleshoot it, maybe we went out drinking, hit an Irish pub and maybe I was doing David Lee Roth splits off the bar or something. Just trying to figure out what ridiculous thing we were doing.

CH: (laughs)

ZW: Onstage, when we're doing the Black Label gigs, I'm strapped up at the microphone. It's not like an Ozzy gig where I'm jumping off of things or whatever. When I got the ultrasound, the doctor was just like, "Zakk, you've got three blood clots." I said "How the hell did I get these things?" He goes, ‘Zakk, usually truck drivers will get it or airplane pilots. If you're just stationary in one position, that's the reason why these things happen. Basically, your body has to break ‘em down. It's not like having a toothache where you get a root canal and then you're good to go. It's not like that. Your body physically has to break it down." As far as the alcohol went, he goes, "Zakk, you're gonna be on blood-thinners. Let me put it this way: you don't drink like one or two beers if you're watching Monday Night Football with the guys or you're watching the Super Bowl?" I said "No, probably not one or two beers." He goes, "You could be out watching the fight at Hooters with the guys, and Zakk, if you guys are beserking and hammered, between the blood-thinners and the alcohol, which is a blood-thinner, Zakk, you'll just start spilling over and bleeding out inside. Literally, you'll be bleeding out of your eyes, your mouth. You're done." I go, "So it's safe to say, the pub is closed for Zakk Wylde?" He goes, "Pretty much, jackass."

CH: (laughs)

ZW: Some of these guys are asking me "Well, good for you, brother. So are you with the 12-step program?" I go, "No, the Black Label one-step. That's it, I'm done, OK?" I don't need to spend $40,000 on some guy telling me that I shouldn't be drinking. The doctor told me "That's it, you're done." I don't know what to tell you. How did you learn how to play ‘Stairway to Heaven'? You practice. I'll show you how to play the chords, you gotta put in the time. It's that easy. That's the reason why in Black Label the colors are black and white. The gray issue? Yeah, there's a lot of gray issue, but the only thing that anyone cares about is what happens from Point A to the final result. So there you go. But as far as do I miss drinking with the guys, I still go to pubs and I still hang out because I like the whole social thing and just chilling and getting away from the whole music thing and the biz part of the thing, just to hang out with my buddies and talk about anything that's going on in the news, sports, anything.



CY: Stephen, This Is Rock, over to you.

SR: Hey Zakk. I know that you were a big fan of Les Paul, and obviously Les passed away last year. Any memories about meeting him?

ZW: I mean, we just went and saw Jeff Beck play, and that was awesome. Kirk Hammett was there, Jimmy Page, Brian Seitzer, Ace Frehley... all the guys were there. Les was awesome. It was so funny, because one time I remember he looked down on a napkin that said "Zakk Wylde," and said "We're gonna bring a guy up right now, his name's... Zeeky Wildee, or something, I don't know."

SR: (laughs)

ZW: When I got up there, he went to shake my hand, and I grabbed his hand and shook it like a Don. You know, I knelt down and kissed his hand. He asks "Zakk, where do I know you from?" I'm thinking to myself, the only way he'd know my name is because of the line of artist's Les Pauls, you know for Slash, Zakk Wylde, Ace Frehley, and maybe my name came up in that regard. So I say "Well, I've got a Les Paul named after me." He goes "That's funny, you know, because I have a Les Paul named after me, too."

SR: (laughs)


CY: Greg, from Live Metal, you're next.

GM: Zakk, tell me, how does it feel to play the same guitar as the guitarist for Justin Bieber?

ZW: It's an honor. (laughs) The day that Black Label is playing Gilette Stadium and Wembley Stadium, I'll definitely get you tickets for that one. Yeah, without a doubt. Dan Kanter's cool as hell, man. Put it this way: All the Justin Bieber fans, when they see me, they'll go, "Yeah, that guy with the beard over there, yeah, that dude in the Bleak Label whatever the hell it is, plays the Dan Kanter guitar, man."

GM: Tell us how your relationship is with Ozzy these days.

ZW: Everything's great, man. Ozz is singing great on the record, and Gus is playing his ass off. And I'm happy for Blasko. He's a Black Label brother. I'm looking forward to seeing the guys in August. I talked to Ozz on Father's Day. Me and the warden went out to dinner with Ozz and Mom. Everything's great, man. It's just like, you don't live at home with your parents anymore. It's not that you love your parents any less. Let's be real: without the boss there'd be no Zakk Wylde, there'd be no Black Label, I wouldn't have The Bunker, I wouldn't be doing my own record label, I wouldn't be getting ready to be putting out books and all this other stuff. I'm getting ready to write a script for a movie and then starting Black Label pubs and all this other stuff. The beef jerky, the coffee, the hot sauces, beer... all this stuff wouldn't be possible, if it wasn't for the boss.


CY: OK, Lenny from 411Music. (cheap pop)

LV: With the upcoming Berzerkus tour, and the bands you've recruited like Clutch, Children of Bodom, and 2Cents... were those three always your first choice?

ZW: Well, it really comes down to who's not working, and who's out and who's available. Originally, before anything went down, before even the Bezerkus, I was talking to Slash and Jerry (Cantrell) about doing Alice, Black Label and Slash, the three of us idiots, the three amigos going out on the road together.

LV: Yeah, that would've been epic.

ZW: But Jerry, they had already committed to putting this tour together that they're doing now, with Deftones and the guys, and Slash was already committed to doing his thing, so that was out the window. Then when I was putting Berzerkus together, and I said "Well, let's see who's not touring and who's making records, and who's doing what." So when Clutch was out with Corrosion of Conformity, one of my buddies mentioned "Dude, Clutch is an ass-kicking band. Why not see about doing something with them?" I said, "Yeah, that's a great idea." I got in touch with them and said it would be cool if we ever got together. Then I got in touch with Alexi (Laiho, of Children of Bodom) after doing the Steve Vai cover for Guitar World, and the rest is history, man.

LV: So you didn't speak with the guys who were formerly in Pantera or anything, like Damageplan or Hellyeah?

ZW: Vinnie already made commitments. We were talking to Vinnie about going out. And then the Drowning Pool guys, I'll see those guys on the Ozzfest. I'm friends with all the guys, so it's a matter of just calling each other up and going, "Vin, what are you doing?" He's like "Zakk, we already committed to this." And I go "All right, maybe we'll do it later on when you get done doing what you're doing."