Catacombs of the Black Vatican

Catacombs of the Black Vatican is the ninth studio album by heavy metal band Black Label Society. The album was released in the UK on April 7, 2014, and in the US on April 8.[1] It is the only Black Label Society album to feature former Breaking Benjamin drummer Chad Szeliga after fill-in Mike Froedge departed the band. Froedge himself replaced Will Hunt, who in turn replaced longtime drummer Craig Nunenmacher, all in the span of fewer than two years.

Catacombs of the Black Vatican
Studio album by
ReleasedApril 7, 2014
Genre
Length44:39
LabelMascot (Europe)
eOne Music (US)
ProducerZakk Wylde
Black Label Society chronology
Unblackened
(2013)
Catacombs of the Black Vatican
(2014)
Grimmest Hits
(2018)
Singles from Catacombs of the Black Vatican
  1. "My Dying Time"
    Released: January 21, 2014
  2. "Angel of Mercy"
    Released: June 18, 2014

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
About.com     [2]
AllMusic     [3]
Blabbermouth.net8.5/10[4]
Loudwire     [5]
Rock Hard8.0/10[6]

The album debuted at No. 5 on Billboard 200,[7] and No. 1 on Top Rock Albums.[8] with around 25,000 copies sold in its first week. The album has sold 80,000 copies in the US as of March 2016.[9]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Zakk Wylde

No.TitleLength
1."Fields of Unforgiveness"3:12
2."My Dying Time"3:22
3."Believe"3:44
4."Angel of Mercy"4:14
5."Heart of Darkness"3:39
6."Beyond the Down"2:54
7."Scars"4:13
8."Damn the Flood"3:18
9."I've Gone Away"3:51
10."Empty Promises"5:16
11."Shades of Gray"6:28
Total length:44:39
'Black Edition' bonus tracks - Europe
No.TitleLength
12."Dark Side of the Sun"5:19
13."Blind Man"4:36
'Black Edition' bonus tracks - North America/digital
No.TitleLength
12."Dark Side of the Sun"5:19
13."The Nomad"4:15
Bonus tracks - Japan
No.TitleLength
12."Dark Side of the Sun"5:19
13."Hell and Fire"4:25

Personnel

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Charts

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Chart (2014) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[10] 31
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[11] 45
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] 111
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[13] 59
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[14] 4
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[15] 23
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[16] 12
French Albums (SNEP)[17] 64
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[18] 29
Italian Albums (FIMI)[19] 87
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[20] 52
UK Albums (OCC)[21] 30
US Billboard 200[22] 5
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[23] 1
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[24] 1
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[25] 1
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[26] 3

References

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  1. ^ "Black Label Society: Album Art + Track Listing for New Album". Loudwire. January 21, 2014.
  2. ^ Drago, Dan. "Black Label Society - Catacombs of the Black Vatican". Archived from the original on April 4, 2014. Retrieved April 26, 2014.
  3. ^ Heaney, Gregory. Catacombs of the Black Vatican at AllMusic. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  4. ^ Van Horn, Ray Jr. (June 10, 2014). "Black Label Society "Catacombs Of The Black Vatican"". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  5. ^ Bowar, Chad (April 8, 2014). "Black Label Society, 'Catacombs of the Black Vatican' – Album Review". Loudwire.
  6. ^ Bittner, Ronny. "Review Album: Black Label Society - Catacombs of the Black Vatican". Rock Hard (in German). No. 224.
  7. ^ "The Billboard 200". Billboard. April 26, 2015.
  8. ^ "Top Rock Albums". Billboard. August 8, 2015.
  9. ^ "Upcoming Releases". Hits Daily Double. HITS Digital Ventures. Archived from the original on March 30, 2016. listed under Zakk Wylde
  10. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  11. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  12. ^ "Ultratop.be – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  13. ^ "Ultratop.be – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  14. ^ "Black Label Society Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  15. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  16. ^ "Black Label Society: Catacombs of the Black Vatican" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  17. ^ "Lescharts.com – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  18. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  19. ^ "Italiancharts.com – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  20. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  21. ^ "Black Label Society | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  22. ^ "Black Label Society Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  23. ^ "Black Label Society Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  24. ^ "Black Label Society Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  25. ^ "Black Label Society Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
  26. ^ "Black Label Society Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 30, 2021.