MusicRadar

Zakk Wylde officially unveiled his new Epiphone Graveyard Disciple guitar in New York City this past weekend, and he gave MusicRadar an exclusive look and listen to his latest - and craziest - creation.

If you thought Wylde's line of Gibson and Epiphone Les Pauls (not to mention that ZV - part Flying V, part SG) were distinctive, they've got nothing on the Graveyard Disciple. Looks-wise, this thing is in a class all its own.

As you can see in the video above, the new guitar, designed by Wylde in conjunction with Epiphone, is indeed shaped like a coffin. The body is solid mahogany the and glued-on neck is hard maple with an ebony fingerboard.

Wylde, founder and leader of Black Label Society and, until recently, guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne, stressed that easy access to the guitar's 22 frets was of one of his main concerns with the Graveyard Disciple.

And he wasn't kidding: when we picked up the axe to give Zakk a proper schooling, we were amazed at how we could hit every mark - no ridiculous reaching or stretching necessary. And the Steinberger LegRest made playing in a seated position no biggie. Extreme comfort is the name of the game here.

But stunning appearances (which Wylde obviously knows a thing or two about) don't mean a thing if a guitar doesn't deliver sonically, and this baby has all the bases covered. Want to blow the crowd away with mind-blitzing solos that pack warmth and sustain? This might be the guitar you're looking for.

So sit back and revel in all that is Zakk Wylde as he shreds like a mofo (not once but twice) on the Graveyard Disciple and talks about how he cooked up its scarifying design.

By the way, keep it locked on MusicRadar, as tomorrow we'll present part 2 of our interview with Zakk (Part 1 is right here) in which he talks candidly about his split with Ozzy, his health and what's next for Black Label Society.

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Thanks to iZotope, whose RX software helped to enhance the audio in this video.