Some concerts are worth the wait—and St. Louis had already done its waiting. Originally scheduled for March, the Dark Chapel, Zakk Sabbath and Black Label Society takeover at The Factory in Chesterfield was pushed to September due to scheduling conflicts. Six extra months of anticipation later, the date finally arrived, and judging by the energy packed inside The Factory, nobody had forgotten what they were waiting for. If anything, we were just a little more ready to get loud.
Dark Chapel opened the night with an interesting connection to what was still to come. The Las Vegas-based band is fronted by Dario Lorina, who pulls double duty on this tour. After commanding the stage as Dark Chapel’s vocalist and guitarist, Lorina would later return to his more familiar position alongside Zakk Wylde as guitarist for Black Label Society. It made Dark Chapel feel less like a disconnected opener and more like the first chapter of the night.
Then came Zakk Sabbath.
There are tribute bands, and then there is watching Zakk Wylde take the music of Black Sabbath—the music that helped build the foundation for virtually everything heavy that followed—and absolutely tear into it.
During “War Pigs,” Zakk left the stage and made his way all the way to the back of the pit, planting himself in the middle of the crowd for a seemingly endless, no-notes-needed guitar solo. Standing on the rail and turning around to watch him surrounded by people while that guitar screamed through The Factory was an entirely visceral experience.
There was something almost surreal about it. These were songs that became part of one of music’s greatest legacies and one of its most significant contributions to heavy music, being recreated decades later by a guitarist whose own career became intertwined with the man who first gave them a voice. Being on the rail to witness it wasn’t just another cool concert moment. I deeply appreciated the significance of what I was watching.
And somehow, Zakk still had another gear.
Black Label Society isn’t polished in the sense of sanding away the rough edges—and thank God for that. This is a group of phenomenal musicians who are raw, emotional and very aware of where they came from. There is history embedded in this band, and they don’t shy away from carrying it with them.
The moments honoring Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul were especially powerful. They weren’t presented as obligatory memorials or names from rock history. They felt like fallen-brother moments—reminders that behind the mythology, the records and the stages were friendships between people who genuinely loved one another.
But the tribute to Ozzy hit differently.
After spending part of the evening celebrating the music Ozzy helped bring into the world, hearing Black Label Society honor the man himself brought everything full circle. The room that had spent the night throwing horns, screaming lyrics and losing its collective mind suddenly carried an entirely different weight.
It nearly brought everyone to tears.
For all the volume, distortion and larger-than-life imagery surrounding Zakk Wylde and Black Label Society, some of the night’s most powerful moments came from something much simpler: gratitude. Gratitude for the musicians who came before them, for the brothers they’ve lost, and for the music that remains after they’re gone.
That’s ultimately what this night at The Factory felt like.
Not nostalgia. Not imitation.
Legacy.
And for a few hours, we got to stand inside of it.
Melissa O’Rourke aka WickedWitchofSTL is a jack of all trades. By day she’s an established tattooist and piercer, by night a mother to her amazing son (who is a hell of a guitarist). Melissa has a musical background and can often be found at a local karaoke joint, or a concert when she’s not driving across the country for an adventure. This social butterfly always welcomes conversation so come say hi! See y’all at the next gig!
