It's was not the sabbath nor was it black, but there was plenty of black clothing in attendance for Heaven And Hell (Black Sabbath). Along for the ride were thrash metal powerhouse Megadeth and New Orleans' doom metal super group Down. The later was the band I went to see. Ronnie James Dio aside, Sabbath would be good. Megadeth should have been good. Down would have been amazing. I had seen each band, aside from Down, before and they were good. I guess when you put them together it is not such a good combination.

Phillip Anselmo, former singer for Pantera, caught strep throat in Edmonton the night before and was not able to sing. All the rumor's of Down not performing were true and it bummed me out for the rest of the evening. To those who posted on the Down message board for Phil to "die and stay the fuck out of Canada", please give it up. Phil was sick, we all have sick days. They said Down would be back to play a make up show. What is better; 30 minutes for Down to play or a full set from Down? Exactly. Their own set would be much better. I can't wait. Also, if you are shit talking him because of the last Pantera tour through Canada, be greatfull that you were able to see Pantera. You are complaining because he was shitting all over Saskatchewan and Winnipeg. Seriously, you got to see Pantera. You need to forgive Phil for his actions because he was fucked up on Heroin at the time. He probably felt bad for canceling their performance and for his actions when he was fucked up on heroin.

The band I went to see, and really wanted to see, did not play. Can you see where this is going?

Megadeth were next. Boring is the word to sum it up. Very little energy and Dave Mustaine sang his vocals. Yeah, not his normal growl, snarl singing style. King Crimson singing style. It was bad. Matt was falling asleep during their predictable set. The predictable set I was referring to was to include Peace Sells...But Who's Buying, Symphony Of Destruction, Kick The Chair, Hangar 18 and Killing Is My Business...And Business Is Good!. The last song proved to be the best of the bunch. At the mid point of the song Dave Mustaine and company launched into The Four Horsemen by Metallica, Mr.Mustaine's old band. That really was the highlight. They used the same lighting show as when I saw them at Gigantour in 2005. They were not very loud and did not really seem to care. When the lead guitarist went for a solo, the majority of the time, they did not take the spotlight off of Dave Mustaine. The rhythm guitar, on occasion seemed to cut out at the wrong point. The songs seemed off with Dave Mustaine's new vocal style and the few error's throughout their performance did not help.

As Sabbath prepared to take the stage I laughed as I saw the "stone" stairs that led to the drum riser. That's right, Ronnie James Dio had a castle as his backdrop on the stage. How amazing is that?

Relying primarily on the new material from their album as Heaven And Hell, Sabbath played a hell of a show. Ronnie James Dio is really what made the show for me. Yeah, Tony Iommi was good. As were Geezer Butler and Vinnie Apice, but Dio was Dio. He was very energetic and very into the show. Tony's guitar squealed with feedback when he was not near his amps and at some points the bass was inaudible.

With such wonderful song titles like The Shadow Of The Wind they rocked the arena to it's core. They did play some Sabbath songs from the Dio era such as The Mob Rules, Sign Of The Southern Cross, Voodoo and Heaven And Hell. They were fun. Vinny Apice and his drum solo were good as was Tony Iommi's short guitar solo.

The question remains could metal's hermit make up for the loss of Down and their performance? The answer is a firm no. Were they good? Yes, Dio made the show worth while. Did Megadeth suck? Outside Peace Sells...But Who's Buying and Killing Is My Business...And Business Is Good!/The Four Horsemen, yeah they did. They were quite a disappointment.

It would have taken a performance of epic proportions to make up for the loss of Down. Unfortunately, not even Ronnie James Dio, who is the last to know when it rains, could save this ship from sinking.

I cannot believe that Machine Head, who opened for Lamb Of God, will be opening for Sabbath on the U.S. leg of the tour. That should be interesting.

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