Sean McLennan

Within a few minutes of asking legendary axeman Zakk Wylde about Black Label Society’s twelfth record, Engines of Demolition, it quickly becomes clear just how close to his heart he keeps his influences and the players who came before him. That, along with his joyfully unhinged sense of humor. 

Having built up his  music career playing alongside perhaps his most cherished inspiration—the Prince of Darkness and greatest rock ‘n’ roll hero of all time, Ozzy Osbourne—since ‘87, Wylde has contributed to some of the most pivotal hits in Ozzy’s catalog. There’s a deep sense of appreciation and admiration for Oz and other  musical influences that Wylde continues to carry with him and pour into his work with Black Label Society nearly 30 years after forming the band. 

“You’re a reflection of all the things that you love,” expresses Wylde. “If I listen to The Black Crowes—and I’m friends with Rich Robinson—I’m sure if I went through Chris and Rich’s record collection as kids growing up, there’d be a bunch of Rolling Stones in there, Humble Pie, early Rod Stewart, and they’re a reflection of all that. Skynyrd— one of their favorite bands was Free. You know, you just start connecting the dots more…When you listen to the Allman Brothers, it’s a lot of jazz and blues artists, gospel and all that stuff, that’s where they’re coming from. You taste it all in the soup and then it makes sense where these guys’ music and their identities are coming from. Your music just becomes a reflection of all the things you love.” 

He continues, “My favorite singers are pretty much Gregg Allman, Ozzy, Michael McDonald is amazing, too, and Ray Charles is insane. You know, I’m just trying to emulate that stuff. I’m just trying to copy Gregg Allman and Michael McDonald,” laughs Wylde as he discusses more about how he approaches his vocals in Black Label Society. 

Engines of Demolition started being recorded back around 2022/2023, with Wylde recalling every time he’d come back from the Pantera celebration shows, he’d work on writing new material. 

“I’d just go out in the gym every day, have a cup of Odinforce and then just start writing a riff,” he shares. “Usually when I write, I’ll write from beginning to end. Whether it’s ‘Spoke in the Wheel,’ ‘…River,’ ‘Stillborn,’ ‘Suicide Messiah,’ anything, it’s in one sitting. Very rarely do I ever have something sitting around and revisit it. Once I get inspired, I just go with it and write it down in one shot.” 

Wylde further explains that “for the heavy stuff, you have to have a cool riff, like Sabbath, Zeppelin, or Deep Purple —it always starts with the riff, that inspires a melody, then lyrics always come last.” 

Wylde’s lyrics are inspired by really anything he might see that catches his interest, whether that be a film he loves, an article clipping, or some cool title he sees. Pointing out one of the singles off of Engines of Demolition, Wylde mentions that “Lord Humungus” is just about the film Mad Max. 

“I’m not even saying Lord Humungus in the song, but the  movie inspired me. I also remember we were talking about The Planet of the Apes franchise…talking about how they greenlit the concept of the movie, but no one was gonna put money into it until they landed Charlton Heston. He was coming off Ben-Hur and all that stuff and they landed him as the lead role, so we were just talking about how amazing that movie is. ‘The Stranger’ is just about Planet of the Apes, you know? There’s always ideas you can come up with. I get just as much enjoyment out of writing metaphors for lyrics as I do writing the solos or the music…I love the whole process.” 

Some of the most striking aspects of Wylde’s playing are his speedball shred, signature pinch harmonics, and electrifying riffs—loud and clear on “The Stranger”—but beneath all that sonic power lies raw emotion and an unparalleled ability to express himself completely through his guitar. Across the new record, songs like “Name in Blood,” “Above & Below,” “Back to Me,” and “Broken Pieces” uncover a soulful depth and melodic pull in BLS’ songwriting that hits with just as much impact as Wylde’s solos and tricks. 

“It’s the song that really matters,” states Wylde. “Having technical abilities just gives you more flavor options, like if you were a chef. Just because you have all these ingredients, doesn’t mean you have to always use ‘em, you know? If you look at Eddie Van Halen or Randy Rhodes, they have amazing technical abilities, but they’re playing what fits the songs and their writing…Whether it’s the Eagles, Eric Clapton, Elton John, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Keith Richards, or, again, Eddie Van Halen and Randy Rhodes, what we remember is their writing and their songs.” 

Elaborating on his love for songwriting, Wylde continues, “It starts as a germ of an idea, and then we watch it come to life and then it turns into an oak tree. I love that. It’s like Tom Petty said, to him, writing songs and  music is the biggest form of magic that there is. Which is really the truth.” 

And Wylde loves to absorb the magic from the heavy end of the music spectrum to the mellow, and everything in between. He points out that as much as “Into the Void” by Black Sabbath or Cream doing “Sunshine of Your Love” moves him, he also loves when Neil Young does “Heart of Gold.” 

“I love the pedal steel in it,” he explains. “Whenever I’m writing the more mellow stuff, it’s me being inspired by the Stones doing ‘Wild Horses’ or ‘Angie’ or ‘Memory Motel,’ and Neil Young doing ‘Helpless’ and ‘Heart of Gold.’ I get moved by all of it. That’s why it’s always on a Black Label album. It’s all in there, because I love mellow stuff. I love yacht rock, I love listening to that just as much as I love listening to the heavy stuff.” 

Engines of Demolition closes with “Ozzy’s Song,” a mellow and beautiful tribute to Ozzy and the massive impact he left on Wylde, as well as the world. For Wylde, the lyrics for the song came together during a moment of reflection after returning home from the road. 

“I was really happy with the way the music came out when we tracked it…After we laid Ozzy to rest, then started the Pantera celebration again at Jones Beach, I remember when we finally got home off the run, I just sat in the library at our house at one o’clock in the morning. I put the headphones on and I was just looking at a book of Ozzy that we have at the house and I wrote the lyrics then came up with the melody in one sitting. That was it. Every time we’d be listening to it in the truck, I’d be playing it for my girlfriend of 83 years (laughs), Barbaranne, and she’d always be like ‘Babe, put on Ozzy’s song again.’ Just Ozzy’s song—It only felt fitting. I don’t say Ozzy anywhere in the song, so if the song connects with anybody, that, you know, lost their mom or dad or a buddy of theirs, or their dog or their cat, if a song resonates with anybody, that’s what it’s all about, then it’s now their song.” 

Engines of Demolition is out now and you can order it from MNRK Heavy. Follow Black Label Society on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for future updates.