Who:	Black Label Society Brand New Sin
What:	Good Ol' Metal
Where:	The Sonar Baltimore, Maryland

I saw Black Label Society at Baltimore's venue, the Sonar, a day after my birthday. Only in retrospect to I see how great a b-day present that concert was. To see Zakk Wylde perform is to look upon one of the greatest metal guitar players of all time.

The opening band, Brand New Sin, is as they define themselves "AC/DC meets Metallica meets Lynyrd Sknyrd". They're heavy and well put together. On stage, they're a killer show and off the stage, they're some nice guys to hang around with.
It was my first "rough" concert, but I had a great time. I met a great guy: Matt "Ballz" -- a bassist for a Black Label Society inspired band "Stonewall", and an all around fun guy to talk with. He kept me updated on the key moments to watch Zakk Wylde in the act of an awesome guitar stunt and also made sure I didn't get sucked up by the shifting crowd. Being who I am, I made a sign saying "Zakk Wylde, will you sing me Happy Birthday?" and held it up during the show. While he never sang me that Happy Birthday song, he and his rhythm guitarist, Nick Cantonese, gave me the biggest "Happy Birthday" smile a girl could ask for.

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