Black Label Society: The European Invasion - Doom Troopin' Live

In some of my other music DVD reviews, I take the tact of applying a set of standards to a release and establishing how the DVD in question measures up. Let me say in advance that when I take this tact, it usually means that I was disappointed in the release. Such is the case with Black Label Society: The European Invasion - Doom Troopin' Live.A memo should go out to all bands and music DVD producers that says at minimum: "1) Music DVD's should be produced to the highest standards. 2) The musical performances within should represent the talent that made the studio recorded CDs sell. 3) Theatrics are very cool too, as long as you can pull them off without deterioration in the quality of the music."Let's break it down then for Doom Troopin':1 - "Music DVD's should be produced to the highest standards." - The picture quality in Doom Troopin' is average. Look, I understand that it's more expensive for the band to record in high def, but Doom Troopin' looked like it was recorded in the '80s. The picture just wasn't up to the standards set by some of the better releases of the past few years (click on my name above to see my Listmania List of The Best Rock DVDs With High Quality A/V).Further contributing to a below average experience, the director has chosen to indulge in what he feels is "cool production" versus giving the viewer a front row seat to the performance. There are a lot split screens and funky video effects (you know, like image stretching and goofy '70s-like animated image overlays). This kind of junk really ruins the illusion of having a front row seat to the show.The sound is okay. You get your choice between Dolby Stereo, Dolby 5.1 or DTS. But the mix is way below average. Either the producers of Doom Troopin' were novices or their equipment needs a big-time upgrade. I've viewed some recent rock music DVDs (again see the Listmania list that I referred to earlier) that sound as good as being at the show; a good recording shakes the foundations of my house through my 5.1 system but sounds as clear as if the band was playing live. Doom Troopin' sounds almost like it was recorded with the bass levels way down; it almost sounds like an amplified version of the way a live concert would sound from the lobby just outside the performance auditorium.The one bright side to the video was that the shots actually lasted long enough to take them in before changing angles. Too often you find entire music DVDs where the visual often jumps around similar to the music video format of "4 seconds then cut to another view". Doom Troopin' gives you some good, long lasting looks.2 - "The musical performances within should represent the talent that made the studio recorded CDs sell." - You say, "Eddie Van Halen," and everyone knows who you're talking about. You say, "Zakk Wylde," and everyone goes, "who?" Zakk Wylde is one of the best...no wait...IS the best hard rock guitarist on the circuit today. His riffs are heavy and melodic and his solos are complex and precise. He definitely brings his guitar playing talent to his live shows. And all of the guys in the band prior to hitting the stage must have huddled and committed to each other to go out and play the music true to the studio versions of the songs. All of the tracks on Doom Troopin' are performed very well (albeit with some jamming that gets a bit long in the tooth after a while).And Zakk's voice is as good as it is on the CDs. Zakk's singing voice has the same nasally sound familiar with Layne Staley (Alice in Chains), Ryan McCombs (Drowning Pool formerly of SOiL) and...um...Ozzy!. Zakk's not quite as good as the three aforementioned fellows, but he gets the job done.3 - "Theatrics are very cool too, as long as you can pull them off without deterioration in the quality of the music." - The theatrics were minimal in the show, and that's the way BLS is. They're about the music. Zakk, John DeServio (the bass player that looks just like Zack), Nick Catanese (guitar) and Craig Nunenmacher (drums) just go out and play the music. Pretty much the only attempt at theatrics was Zack stopping into his pub between each song to down a pint of ale. Some dude makes a guest appearance to help pump up the crowd, crowd-surf and sing along with some of the songs, but it's never really clear who the heck it is.One other note is that a live performance includes getting the audience charged up. Man, was this audience charged up! Gotta hand it to BLS for establishing a loyal, rowdy following.All in all...it's a decent performance with a very very distracting choice in video production. If you are a dedicated BLS fan that for whatever reason hasn't made it to an actual performance, Doom Troopin' is no substitute. If you don't care about a quality viewing experience then Doom Troopin' should work just fine.

This is a fun concert. Lots of songs from Blessed Hellride, great audio and video. I could have done wihout the computer effects stuff, but it's not that annoying. Zakks playing is AWESOME man!!! I don't know how the guy can drink that much beer and still practice and not get lazy but he is 100% on it. I have not seen him play better and thats saying something. The backstage stuff is cool and gives an idea as to how much and what the guy practices. There is a killer part where he is shredding in a warm up room and analysing EVH solo's. I noticed Zakk tapped alot more on this DVD, so I'm guessing he's been into VH lately which is cool in my opionion since Van Halen is my favorite band of all time.James Lomenzo is also killer...it's too bad he isn't with them anymore because he fit in appearance and style.Thats it...great concert. Because of this DVD, I'm planning on traveling a long way to go see these guys.PS: by the new BLS album if you haven't already.

This is such an amazing concert, but the video gimmicks are INSUFFERABLE. Fortunately Black Label Society puts on such an top-notch performance I can't remove any stars; it's not their fault their DVD was produced by tasteless egomaniacs. It is really incessant, never ever ever lets up. You can't get through two seconds without some stupid video gimmick getting in the way of what is otherwise a truly stellar concert. I have finally switched off the video and am just letting the music play. I guess you just had to be there to experience BLS in their purity; the rest of us have to suffer through some pissant video editor's personal ego-trip. do they think they're improving on the show? Don't they know the band has already prepared a show? Don't they know their JOB?!?! If I want to see a bunch of animation, I'll get a Disney movie. DOWN WITH ANNOYING CONCERT VIDEO EFFECTS!!! Just let them play!!! Morons.

As a long time fan of Zakk Wylde I looked forward to this Blu Ray release. I was not disappointed. The show is all that you could want with a great audience particpation piece on stage! The guitar playing is up front and diverse. The interaction with the fans was hugely entertaining and shows how this band appreciates thier audience. (You have to see the guitar player from the crowd!) The sound quality is excellent. The special features are extensive as is the beer consumption evident throughout the video! Good music, good visuals and interesting features. What else could you want?

DOOM TROOPIN is an excellent double dvd by the one and only Black Label Society. The sound and setlist are excellent. BLS are in Europe touring for their "Mafia" album during the making of this dvd. "In This River" live is incredible on the dvd. I'm not a big fan of the album version but the dvd version is heavy and Zakk and his crew jam for a while in support of their lost brother Dimebag. Here are some of my other favorites from DOOM TROOPIN: "Funeral Bell", "Destruction Overdrive", "Suicide Messiah", "Suffering Overdue" and "Genocide Junkies". You also get some bonus footage of Zakk and the boys backstage. Its dirt cheap now so just buy it and show your support. See you at the show.

I love everything about this blu ray. I love the camera work, it's edgy and give you a lot of up close shots of Zakk playing guitar. Love the two solos by Zakk in the Paris part, the one including some familiar riffs (don't wanna spoil it). Love that Nick Cantanese is in it. Love seeing Zakk play the guitar in In This River, since the two times I've seen him live, he now plays piano. All in all, just thrilled with this purchase, as I have become a huge BLS fan this last year!

Tous fans de Black label society devraient avoir ce blu ray dans ça collection

Good show,although not as good as the Unblackened DVD, as far as visual and sound quality goes.

Super concert. Quelle maître.

Zack at his Best.....Heavy Metal!

everything i expected and more