BLIZZARD OF OZZ
at The House Of Blues

By Crimson Gypsie

It's always a little harder for cover bands to make a good impression. Not only do they have to sound like a band that a lot of people are familiar with, they have to prove their own musical skills beyond the edges of the band they're covering. BLIZZARD OF OZZ happens to do this very nicely, combining songs and stage performance in true "Ozzy" fashion yet holding a bit of their own originality and style. One of the ways they accomplish this is by of course, playing all the Ozzy favorites like "Iron Man" and "Crazy Train." While on the other hand, guitarist Mark Hagen plays a solo so incredible, the likes of it have never been heard. Then we're back to Oz land again as lead singer Dan Starr bits the head off a (fake) bat with entrails and all. The show doesn't stop there either, as the crowd went crazy for the awesome drumming done by Chris Salva, Dan encouraged the audience to be a part of the show and have fun. It's a non-stop fest of music, fun, and excitement only enhanced by the fact that everybody brings something special to the band. Dan would do Ozzy proud with his very "Oz-like" voice and stage presence, Jeff English does an incredibly excellent job on the keyboards, and Chris Salva not only got rave reviews from the audience, but he has a great stage personality also. Mark Hagen plays guitar like the best of them, (Slash, Randy Rhodes, Eddie Van Halen, etc.) and another thing that intrigued me about his playing is the fact that he had five guitars lined up on the side of the stage but whenever he changed his axe, he seemed to have a separate "relationship" with each guitar, you can tell playing his music is really a part of his soul and he takes it very seriously. To round the band out is Eric Chaz who is one of the best bass players I have ever heard. All in all, this is an incredible band with lots of energy and talent. The guys really deserve a "thumbs up" for providing a show that is put together well, shows ability in musical talent, and doesn't stray from what they are, a hard rockin', ass kickin', bat eatin' Ozzy cover band.