I love Shepherd’s Bush Empire, a superb and legendary venue. I am not quite sure they had anticipated the onslaught of the sold-out Zakk Sabbath gig, which absolutely annihilated the place on Friday night. I would say only a few rock fans are unfamiliar with the iconic Zakk Wylde. However, for anyone not in the know, Zakk Sabbath is essentially a Black Sabbath cover band with a little bit of original spin.
Zakk Sabbath
O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire – 7 March 2025
Photography: Robert Sutton
Words: Karen Hetherington
Despite having a sound following with Black Label Society and worthy of the greatest respect in his own right, Zakk Wylde is probably still most widely recognised as the lead guitarist for Ozzy Osborne. Tonight, I would hazard an educated guess that the auditorium was heaving with a large number of disgruntled Black Sabbath fans who tried and failed to get a ticket for the upcoming Villa Stadium show.
Unfortunately, I missed the support act and arrived just a few minutes before Zakk thundered onto the stage. It has been many, many years since I saw Zakk Wylde live, and clad in boots, a kilt and a leather biker cut featuring a Black Label Society back print, he could easily have been mistaken for one of the Devil’s Rejects were it not for his distinctive, blistering guitar riffs, transporting me back to my youth with a welcome wave of nostalgia. 
The venue was utterly rammed, the energy intoxicating, but from my position in the standing area, the view was extremely restricted. Quickly moving up to the balcony gave me an excellent vantage point to observe both the band and the raucous crowd.
It is quite difficult to say what enamoured me most – the brilliance and vigour of the performance or the vehemence of the audience. But I had a feeling I was about to experience something quite extraordinary. 
A trio of master musicians, including John JD DeServio and Jeff Fabb, the band were exceptionally tight, performing a classic set featuring tracks such as Tomorrow’s Dream, Fairies Wear Boots and Children Of The Grave.
With the music came mayhem, and a mosh pit of sorts formed a little way back from the front of the stage, the throng ebbing and flowing, vying to get closer before the crowd surfing commenced.
Security had their work cut out, intercepting everyone who got quickly swept to the front in an expert, professional manner whilst totally unperturbed, Zakk played on with a guitar behind his head to a spirited, predominantly middle-aged audience who were clearly reliving their youth and riding the same wave of nostalgia that I was. 
Apparently not a man of many words, he provided crowd interaction mostly through gesturing and guitar wizardry. His talk was limited, which, in fairness, did enable him to pack in an impressive 14 tracks, some quite prolonged.
Nearing the end of the set, white beach balls were released from the stage into the auditorium, which provided a different form of entertainment for a while anyway.
By the time the opening chords of penultimate track NIB sounded out, I was on a total musical high and I expected that to be the pinnacle of the evening for me. However, the best was definitely saved for the final track, War Pigs, during which Zakk played an extended solo from the balcony, whipping up a mind-blowing frenzy to remember. 
No one wanted this gig to end. I did not need to hear the whispers in the aftermath to know what an enduring effect it would have.
It was hot, it was heavy. It was electric, it was frenzied. It was a Metal gig done properly, an indelible blast from the past.
In memory of Richard Tyley.
