|
THE BAND
- Ozzy Osbourne - Vocals
- Tony Iommi - Guitar
- Geezer Butler - Bass
- Bill Ward - Drums
- Adam Wakeman - Keyboards
CONCERT PHOTOS
None available - if you have any, let me know.
TOUR REVIEWS & REMARKS
From: Dan Gilles
Subject: Cleveland Ozzfest Review
Date sent: Sat, 21 Aug 2004 02:34:57 -0400
It was a rainy day at the beginning, but
the real storm didn't occur until around 6 p.m.
We got to Blossom Music Center around 1 p.m. We walked in as Throwdown was
playing on the second stage. They were decent, a hardcore band. We really
didn't pay attention to them, walking around, etc. Lamb of God was next,
and I was very impressed. As a fan of death metal/hardcore, they combined
the death elements with some Metallica and Slayer-esque riffs. You can
tell who they grew up listening to. I would definitely check out their CD.
Up next was Hatebreed, one of my favorite "new" bands on the metal scene.
In a word, they were outstanding. They got the crowd into it, forming a
huge circle pit in the parking lot where the second stage was located.
Jamey Jasta (who is also the host of the new Headbangers Ball) kept the
crowd going. Anyone who wasn't into Hatebreed prior had to be won over by
their stage presence and their sound. Some of their messages in their
songs are cliche (most of their songs have a positive message, which goes
against the genre), but they are very good at what they do. My fiance met
the band afterward in the Jagermeister signing tent, and they took the
time to thank everyone for coming to the show and supporting them, always
engaging in a conversation with everyone as they walked through. Wow, rock
stars who care about the fans. What a novel concept! (Oh, Jamey Jasta
himself mentioned that, by logging on to his website, you can request any
video for the Ball, and he will get them on.
www.jameyjasta.com).
Up next was Slipknot. I really don't care for Slipknot. They sound good,
but I don't like the gimmick. Plus, there's a Cleveland bias against
Slipknot for stealing the gimmick of a band called Mushroomhead, which is
a locally-based band. There were some boos. I spent this portion of the
show meeting one of my idols, Kerry King, getting his autograph and
shaking his hand. Slayer is the greatest!!!
I got down to the pavilion in time for Black Label Society. Zakk Wylde is
the best metal guitarist around. The man is one man concert. All his stuff
has a Sabbath-like sound to it, and Zakk's singing is like Ozzy Osbourne
with more balls. The fans that watched went nuts. His sound guy could have
been better, but Black Label held their own and then some. I'd love to see
Black Label headline, or get a better placement on the bill with more
time. The "Ohio Chapter," as he called us, definitely delivered for Zakk.
Superjoint Ritual ? Note to Phil Anselmo, heroin is bad, you shouldn't
shoot up heroin, mmm kay. Combine heroin with bitterness, and you have
Phil "Mother fucking, god-damn" Anselmo, the lead guy for "Super Fucking
Joint Fucking Ritual," mother fuckers. The man ranted for 5 minutes in
between songs, sometimes forgetting what he talking about, saying
"God-damn" and "Mother fucking" every other word. As in, "This next
fucking song goes out to all the god-damn mother fuckers out there who
don't give a fuck about god-damn anything. I want to see all you mother
fuckers out there making some fucking noise. God-damn right, mother
fuckers." I guess Phil wasn't happy with Cleveland. He tried to start an
Ozzy chant that didn't get picked up on, and then he said, "If I were
Ozzy, I'd be pretty pissed off at you fuckers." After his last song, he
said that "this Ozzfest crowd was the worst Ozzfest crowd he's seen. Suck
my dick!" and threw down his mic. Despite all this, I liked their stuff.
Very loud and fast, and Phil can still do that patented yell.
OK, Dimmu Borgir is fucking terrible. I saw Cradle of Filth last year.
Same gimmick, yet better stage show and music. And, I like death
metal/black metal, but these guys stunk up the place. Musically, they were
good. But, they went over like a fart in church. The only good thing about
them was I could rest up and get some beers before the mighty Slayer came
aboard.
Slayer is my favorite band of all time. I've seen them 8 times in my life.
Once again, they were phenomenal, but I could tell something lacked. They
didn't play Angel of Death (minus points for that), and after their last
song, Tom Araya simply said "Thanks," and walked off the stage. No encore
or nothing. Slayer needs to headline to truly appreciate them live. Even
friends of mine who didn't really like Slayer thought their performance
was cool. Everyone's favorite Satanists delivered once again.
I've never seen a band outdo Slayer in concert, and that includes Pantera.
However, Judas Priest blew EVERYONE off the stage. They were super. Rob
Halford can still bring it vocally, continueally hitting the high notes.
He strutted around the stage like he owned the joint, and for 75 minutes,
he did. Some people in my group weren't into Judas Priest before, but
after their set, were on their feet and yelling and cheering them on. I
definitely liked the older stuff, like Victim of Changes, The Green
Manalishi and Beyond the Realm of Death. Halford came out on the Harley
for Hell Bent for Leather, and finished up with Living After Midnight and
You've Got Another Thing Comin. I've never seen Judas Priest before, so it
was definitely a life-altering moment. I will definitely see them again if
they come back around.
The best part is, Priest is done, everyone's pumped, and you still have
Black Sabbath coming up. It's was like the cake was done and icing was on
it, now all you needed was the decorations. Sabbath was the decorations,
and Ozzy and Co. delivered. I had heard bad reviews about Sabbath's prior
performances, but they seemed motivated to put on a good show this time.
Ozzy was running all over the place (he always seems to play well in
Cleveland) and his singing was right on. Iommi was great, Geezer was
great, hell, even Bill Ward was great (he looked like he was about to keel
over when they came in 2001). Their set was exactly how it was described
in every other review I've read on this website, but it was still awesome.
The show ended just after 10:30 with Sabbath taking a much-deserved bow to
cap a truely amazing concert.
It was by far the best concert I've ever seen and well worth the $80 we
spent on pavilion seats. It's not every day you can see Slayer, Judas
Priest and Black Sabbath back-to-back-to-back. Throw in Phil Anselmo, Zakk
Wylde, Slipknot and Hatebreed, and some body painting, and you've got
yourself a show that will go down in history. Hopefully, next year's
Ozzfest will be just as good, but it will be hard to top.
From: BLKSAB10
Subject: Comments on Aug 19th Ozzfest
Date sent: Sat, 21 Aug 2004 08:52:09 -0400
I am not going to bother with a detailed
review, been done many times,at this point. I do have some comments on the
show, and some of the things I have read on this list. First off, if
Ozzfest comes to your town, and you don't go for whatever reason, you are
really cheating yourself out of one hell of a show. The night I went, it
was raining on and off the whole time, but it ever seemed to put a damper
on the crowds enthusiasm. I was in the pavillion, so the rain didn't
bother me. :) I went into this show with fairly high expectaions, due to
the reviews I read. Let me tell you, it went above and beyond what I could
have expected. Like a lot of people, I went mostly to see three bands;
Slayer, Priest, and Black Sabbath. Not only did I think they all put on
top performances, but it just seemed to get better, and better as the
night went on. Slayer I have seen many times, and they gave me exactly
what I expected. I have always had a hard time explaining a slayer show,
because unless you have seen them, words can't put it into perspective. I
always just say "It was Slayer, man!" Much like Mtorhead or AC/DC, you
pretty much know what to expect, but I enjoy it every time. I thought
Slayer did well, with the ammount of time they had. Next up, we would have
the original JP. I have seen Priest with Ripper, and I have seen Halford
with his own bands(Fight and Halford), but never together. So, I kind of
knew what to expect. Still, I was not prepared for just how amazing of a
show they put on. I read the reviews, but seeing it, and hearing
it....wow! Once the Hellion was over, and you could see halford standing
in the "Eye", The venue just knew we were in for something great. I could
almost feel the energy. Then, once Rob starts doing his thing, he just
commands your attention. Not just his screams(which I love), but his
presence as well. The band was as tight as could be, and the whole band's
energy, and passion for what they do, really came out in the performance.
It was almost took my breath away. Again, the crowd was really drawn in. I
don't think I saw one person sitting. Priest's set was an hour of metal
greatness. If that was the end of the show, few would have felt cheated.
But, there was aband to go. Could Black Sabbath top it? Could they keep
the crowd energy high? Two words......Hell Yeah!
To me, there is no greater band then the original Black Sabbath. They are
the first band I ever remember being my favorite, and they have been ever
since. I like all Sabbath, but to me, the original four is just the best.
Now, I had seen Sabbath several times already, 3 with the original
line-up. Two out of the three times I had have seen them, Ozzy was so out
of it, I always felt it took something away from the rest of the band. He
looked lost, and he could barely get through a song without losing his
voice. So, I was looking forward to seeing Sabbath, but I was cautious,
because I have seen the worst in Ozzy a few times. I also would have liked
a few different songs this time around. But let me tell you, when those
air raid sirens kicked in, and the curtain came up, I was caught up in it.
The crowd just went crazy. Then, once they got into the song, it was
nothing short of magic. Ozzy sounded and looked better than I have ever
seen him. Actually, I don't think the band as a whole, ever sounded
better. Again, I have seen them many times, I have heard all the live
albums...this might have been the best. The mix was great, the band was
tight, and again, Ozzy really had it that night. I thought Priest had the
crowd into it, but Ozzy and Sabbath had the crowd as loud and energetic,
as I have ever seen that venue. Once they were a few songs into it, I
think I felt a little drop of liquid running down from the corner of my
eye. I was in heaven. Here I was, up close, watching my favorite band, who
were in top form, and it was better than almost anything I can remember
ever seeing. Sure they played the typical "We Sold Our Souls" set, but it
matterd a lot less once the masters showed the place why they still play
together. Because there is still a huge demand to see them. All the guys
were grinning and having a great time, and so was the crowd. So, for those
people that think that Ozzfest is a waste of time, and did not go....you
really missed out on something special. It was a great night, and
honestly, one of the best concerts I have ever seen. Sorry this is so
long, Joe!
--Mike
From: Catanese571
Subject: Ozzfest 2004 Tour Stuff
Date sent: Sun, 22 Aug 2004 00:25:51 EDT
Dear Joe,
I just went to the August 19 Ozzfest in Cleveland at the Blossom Music
Center, and it rocked!!!! I had a backstage pass and saw everything and
personally met Bill Ward and had dinner with a few of the band members
from Judas Priest. I truly loved the event, was the best one I have ever
been to, cant wait till next year!! Ozzman Forever!!!!!!
|
