Guitarist Zakk Wylde lays claim to stage, post-Ozzy

For most of his career, guitarist Zakk Wylde has been best known for his close association with Ozzy Osbourne, having played with the heavy metal megastar on several tours and albums since the late ’80s. Wylde had tried to break out on his own several times – he started a blues-metal side project called Pride and Glory and put out a solo record in 1996 – but it wasn’t until he formed Black Label Society in 1999 that he became popular on his own terms.

Black Label Society has since released nine studio albums, several live recordings and a collection of covers titled “The Song Remains Not the Same,” but Wylde’s renowned guitar dexterity is best experienced live. Taking obvious cues from Black Sabbath and Osbourne’s solo output, Black Label Society specializes in big, thudding riffs and shredding solos, blending modern metal sounds with the bombast of classic hard rock.

With his band’s most recent album, “Catacombs of the Black Vatican,” cracking the Billboard Top 10, it’s obvious that Wylde is no longer residing in Osbourne’s shadow: He’s casting a prominent one all on his own.

Nathan Weinbender