BLACK SABBATH

After countless comings and goings, and resignations from the wayward and personally troubled Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath found a replacement in Dave Walker (who played on a couple of songs on Fleetwood Mac's 1973 album 'Penguin' and sang in the blues band Savoy Brown between 1970 and 1972). But things didn't work out so well, and so the Prince of Darkness finally returned to the band for the release of 'Never Say Die!' (1978), the eighth album by the Englishmen.

An approachable hard rock proposal over an instrumental base that sounds hollow and insubstantial (especially Bill Ward's percussion) and which is hard to find common ground with the corrosive and dark glory days of the band.

Beyond some highlights like the energetic 'Never Say Die', the cosmic keyboards of the recently incorporated Don Airey and Tony Iommi's great guitar solo in the galloping 'Johnny Blade', or the hypnotizing riffs and choruses led by Ozzy in the heartbreaking 'Junior's Eyes' (one of the best of the album), the rest of the songs fail to take off, neither the disoriented jazzy airs of 'Air Dance', nor the pounding and joyful 'Hard Road' and 'Shock Wave', despite Iommi's efforts to decorate them with guitar solos.

The last third of the album declines noticeably, with the dull and monotonous 'Over to You', but above all with the incomprehensible instrumental 'Break Out' including some trumpets and saxophones over a sound structure that seems to have no direction, and the lacklustre 'Swinging the Chain' sung with disdain (or at least it seems so...) by Ward in the face of Ozzy's refusal to sing it himself. A pale closing for 'Never Say Die!', and also an undeserved end point between the singer and the band (interrupted by eventual reunion tours and the release of "13", 35 years later...). A pity.

2/2.5 stars

In the midst of a complex panorama of comings and goings, the usual problems of drug and alcohol abuse, unthinkable financial difficulties due to the inadequate management of their managers, and on top of that the love and hatred between its members (basically Ozzy Osbourne and Tony Iommi) for the musical direction they should take, Black Sabbath released the controversial "Technical Ecstasy" (1976), their seventh album.

Except for the galloping and consistent guitars of "Back Street Kids" and the corrosive opening riffs of "You Won't Change Me", which delve into the darker and more oppressive sonorities of the band's early days, the approach of "Technical Ecstasy" is straightforward, energetic and at times festively conventional hard rock. Both the rhythmic "Gypsy", the shy blues rock of "All Moving Parts (Stand Still)" and the therapeutic and urban "Rock 'N' Roll Doctor" do not have that powerful and disturbing aura that Iommi's characteristic riffs used to provide on previous albums, present but relegated to a lesser plane this time in favour of structures that privilege the rhythmic constructions of the Geezer Butler/Bill Ward duo supported by the correct keyboards of guest Gerald Woodroffe. Even "It's Alright", with its unexpectedly accessible beatlenian melody, departs even further from the recognisable standards of the English musicians.

The final section reserves the usual reflective moment with the desolate and orchestrated "She's Gone", and concludes with the excellent heavy prog exercise "Dirty Women", where Ozzy sings on the verge of anguish and Iommi performs an epic and distorted guitar solo, surely the best moment of the album.

"Technical Ecstasy" is a great piece of hard rock for any band in the genre, but Black Sabbath had the bar set so high, that the restrained approach ended up weighing down the overall perception of the album, as well as marking a turning point in the band's future.

3/3.5 stars

Black Sabbath's stay in Los Angeles, despite all the band's excesses, had worked for "Vol 4". But the use and abuse of unholy substances during the recording process of the album, coupled with extensive promotional tours, took much of the energy of the Englishmen, who decided to return to England in search of inspiration and motivation in the dungeons of a medieval castle in Gloucestershire, where they gestated "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" (1973), the band's fifth album.

Once Tonny Iommi uncorked the bottle of creativity with the monumental riff that gave birth to the powerful and iconic song "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath", one of the band's jewels, the rest of the pieces found their way, from the hypnotic half-time of "A Natural Acrobat" with a histrionic and loquacious Ozzy, the metal intensity of "Killing Yourself to Live" with a great solo by Iommi and the fleeting luminosity of the hard rocker "Looking for Today".

To add nuance to their new venture and complement the band's traditional thick structures with a more polished sound, they added string and wind instruments and invited virtuoso Rick Wakeman, who made a significant contribution on the beautiful instrumental "Fluff", incorporating many textures with his keyboards, in the final section of the energetic and optimistic "Sabbra Cadabra" with a very rhythmic piano, and in the psychedelic and misty 'Who Are You?", sharing moogs and synthesizers with Iommi.

And the elaborate "Spiral Architect", an exercise in progressive colouring that combines introductory and delicate acoustic arpeggios, symphonic arrangements and powerful guitar licks over the base built by Geezer Butler's bass and Bill Ward's incisive cymbal-filled percussion, concludes a work that showed the musical maturity that Black Sabbath had already reached at that time.

Excellent.

4/4.5 stars

Beyond the diabolical aesthetics that Black Sabbath used for a premeditated stylistic and gimmicky question rather than for a real conviction in favour of the forces of evil, the real demons faced by its members were drug excesses, and in the midst of this narcotic context (according to the protagonists themselves in every interview they have given), the band recorded "Vol 4" (1972), the fourth of their discography.

And although that nebulous and problematic situation is picked up by the tributary "Snowblind" (a solid stoner rock with acid riffs and a great guitar solo by Tony Iommi), in part by the experimental "FX" (a brief, strange instrumental that captures the sounds of Iommi's inverted cross on guitar strings and some complementary studio effects) and also by the corrosive death/doom metal depths of the very dark critique of consumerism "Cornucopia" (softened slightly by Ozzy's vocals), the album features more musically textured and lyrically more thoughtful tracks than their previous work. Powerful structures such as the bluesy opener "Wheels of Confusion" and its instrumental appendix "The Straightener", the resilient "Tomorrow's Dream" and "Supernaut", both with their themes of personal growth, and the hard-rocking and festive "St. Vitus Dance", are supported by more rhythmic and fresh riffs and the solid instrumental base proposed by Geezer Butler and Bill Ward.

As has become the band's custom, delicacy also has its place, with some surprising Genesian melotrons in the aching and at times monotonous "Changes" (one of the band's most popular tracks), and in the baroque and symphonized string interlude "Laguna Sunrise", before the defiant critique of the established order of "Under the Sun / Every Day Comes and Goes", another incredible doom metal sound, featuring the band's energetic and consistent instrumental progressions leading into one of Iommi's best guitar moments on the album, brings the work to a close.

"Vol 4" didn't have the best production, often blamed on the cognitive instability of the musicians and even some of their staff, but it is undoubtedly a great contribution to the musical legacy of the British and to the metal trends that had them considered as their ancestral sources.

4 stars

The accident that severed part of his fingers while working in a factory challenged Tony Iommi's musical future. But the persistent young man solved the problem with a prosthesis that restored, with no little pain, the extension of his injured fingers. And so he played guitar on Black Sabbath's immeasurable early albums: the eponymous debut and "Paranoid", both in 1970.

However, Iommi decided to loosen the tuning three half-tones and use thinner strings to alleviate the discomfort the guitar strumming still caused him. And that, paradoxically, ended up having an impact on the creation of a unique dimension of deep, dark, and absolutely disturbing riffs reflected in the third Black Sabbath album: the fundamental "Master of Reality" (1971).

And the ideal ally to sustain and complement Iommi's forceful guitar barrages on "Master of Reality", was Geezer Butler's bass, working as a perfectly assembled duo on songs ranging from the stoner rock of "Sweet Leaf" (a tribute to marijuana), the atmospheric "After Forever" (a reflection on respect for religious beliefs), the oily and heavy "Lord of this World", to the anti-war, galloping "Children of the Grave" (one of the best tracks in the band's entire discography).

On the other hand, the overloaded and corrosive atmosphere is momentarily oxygenated with the very short "Embryo", the delicate and baroque acoustic progression "Orchid", and with the introspective and narcotic "Solitude" (hello "Planet Caravan"), where Iommi leaves aside the electric guitar to take charge of piano and flute. Finally, the piercing "Into the Void" resumes hostilities with an incisive critique of the destruction of the planet by human beings themselves, where Ozzy sings with aplomb and without fuss, and a stupendous guitar solo by Iommi crowns the excellent and final track of the album.

The importance of "Master of Reality" is such that, beyond Heavy Metal, other genres such as Doom, Stoner and Space Rock claim its paternity, and many of the alternative bands of the nineties mention it as one of their fundamental references.

4/4.5 stars

Considered one of the seminal albums of Heavy Metal, "Black Sabbath" (1970), the eponymous band's debut, opened up a new dimension in the world of rock. There were already bands that showed hardened and raspy sonorities like Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin or the Jimmi Hendrix Experience, but the young men from Birmingham had gone further, from the gloomy aesthetics of one of the creepiest covers that had accompanied any musical proposal until then: the ghostly and terrifying female character in a desolate and cold autumnal landscape of ochre and reddish (more sinister, almost impossible...).

And to confirm the darkest of omens, the disturbing "Black Sabbath" begins with the sounds of storms and chimes from the depths of the underworld itself, paving the way for the hypnotic development of one of Tony Iommi's most iconic guitar riffs based on the tri-tone (known as the devil's chords...) and accompanied by Ozzy's gravely vocals. And it is, from that point on, where the combination of jazz and blues influences, with the band's own dense and rocky atmospheres begin to flow, in songs like the bluesy and hopeful 'The Wizard', the mid-tempo "Behind The Wall Of Sleep" and its slight air to the opening chords of Zeppelin's "Heartbreaker", and the extraordinary "N.I.B." (Lucifer's love song...) with Geezer Butler's introductory distorted bass generating the space for Iommi's double- channel guitar improvisations.

On the other hand, the cover "Evil Woman" (by the little-known Americans 'The Crow') and its repetitive chorus, is a brief respite before giving way to both the psychedelic acoustic intro of the hard-rocking and rough "Slepping Village" and the aching "Warning" (extended cover of the British Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation), a huge new guitar improvisation by Iommi, very much in the style of the immortal Jimmi Hendrix, and with the complicity of Butler on bass and Bill Ward on percussion, closing the sombre work masterfully.

Part of the charm of 'Black Sabbath' is that, given the haste with which its tracks were recorded (in barely a day and a couple more for arrangements!), it sounds rudimentarily pure and authentic, a further factor that contributed to its consideration as a cornerstone in the creation of Heavy Metal and later offshoots such as Doom Metal. A straightforward and non-stop journey into the eerie unknown dimension.

Excellent

4/4.5 stars

This DVD is basically a quick and easy, one hour run through of some of Sabbath's biggest hits. Short and sweet. Originally filmed in 1978, and you can tell, the picture is rough around the edges, and the sound is audible, but certainly not great. Overall though, I find the band pretty boring live. Maybe it's just that I didn't grow up with Sabbath, but they literally play their hits and that's the end of it. You don't really see the audience, and the visuals are very dated. It's cool to see them perform some classics though, such as 'Snowblind', 'Paranoid, 'War Pigs' and 'Black Sabbath', but seeing as this is such a short performance and there's no extras on the DVD, I'd say this is best left to the die-hard fans and collectors.

Coming off the heels of Vol. 4 (1972), Sabbath Bloody Sabbath is the band's fifth studio album. Recording in the beautiful Clearwell Castle where the likes of Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and Mott The Hoople had recorded prior, it's purported that this change in locale reinvigorated the band, and therein we now have considered by many (and me) to be one of their finest works. Notable here, and not easily forgotten by me, Junior Prog Dork, Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman features on "Sabbra Cadabra"; interestingly, of all albums in that group's catalog, recording next door at Morgan Studios (later on) was for the much-maligned-for-Prog-excesses Tales From Topographic Oceans (the sessions that ultimately led to Wakeman's parting ways with the band shortly thereafter). 'Nuff 'bout that. Onto the album!

Sabbath Bloody Sabbath begins with "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath"! And honestly, before the minute mark, this is markedly progressive to my ears, the beeves receding to a frankly beautiful passage of acoustic guitar and a crisp, purposeful mix for the chorus. The main riff is classic Metal, plain and simple. I think this is, generally, a great Ozzy vocal performance as well (the album is chock-full of excellent Ozzy performances). The bridge in the third minute is something else; discordant and chromatic, it kicks major ass. "A National Acrobat" features another classic riff; hypnotic and slow, it swirls around your dome, wonderfully matched with Ozzy's piercing delivery (with excellent close harmony vocals in the middle). Tony delivers a brutal, strong-felt solo approaching minute 4, weirdly reminiscent at first to some of Alex Lifeson's (Rush) style to come. Approaching the final minute, the tune completely changes to brightness, and, in its final moments, a powerful rhythmic display from the whole band. Spectacular, really. In "Fluff" we are introduced to more acoustic guitar, simplistic at first in a simple arpeggio, then doubled up with greater complexity. Seriously a beautiful piece of music, then with light electric guitar and even piano joining in. Very tasteful; methinks revealed to be a sort of Baroque Folk. In a most unexpected turn, this will likely appeal to fans of Anthony Phillips.

And then we are onto a well-juxtaposed "Sabbra Cadabra", the aforementioned track featuring Rick Wakeman. Feels perhaps like a looking-forward to groups like Judas Priest. Ultimately, "Sabbra" is a heavy Blues Rock. In Iommi fashion, the track takes a darker turn, and this feeling is deepened even further with the inclusion of Wakeman's buzzing MiniMoog. He also plays acoustic piano to wonderful effect. This feels like a looking back to some of the winningest tracks off of their debut. Phenomenal composition and the mix is absolutely aflame with power and emotion. In classic Hard Rock fashion, we then have "Killing Yourself to Live". The warble of the guitar arpeggio feels like "Come as You Are"! Very interesting. Here they balance big beeves with melodic tact. Real interest is added by the change in riffs in the bridge. Sort of Emerson-esque synthing going on on "Who Are You?" And Who was it, but Ozzy and Tony (I don't think the first time, but still)! Very fun. This track features a dark lilt and we get more close harmonies from Mr. Osbourne. His golden era? I love this one.

Not utterly to itself, with trills of Progressive Folk for one thing (thanks to Tony's fluting!), but "Looking For Today" has a fairly unique vibe when compared to the whole. The rhythm from drummer Bill Ward had me wondering: it's almost like a dancey Mod thing! Heavy Metal meets British R'n'B? I find this combination of sonics alone highly progressive. And it's just a great track. Awesome melody, awesome performances all 'round. Finally, tying together the diverse sonic array, we have "Spiral Architect"! Proto-Opeth, anyone? haha. With the entrance of the verse, I am once again thinking of what Rush would do in the mid- to late-70s! Very interesting, too, is the added orchestration, reminding us of their love for the maximal and the psychedelic (perhaps reminiscent of the Moody Blues specifically?...)! Phenomenal. Again, killer melodies, killer performances. That fade-out with the applause was perfect. I wish I could have been there (so to speak).

Not a song on this album that I even nearly dislike. And again, with the sonic diversity throughout, your attention is pulled in almost constantly. Probably my favorite album by Sabbath. Given strong feelings and serious cohesion, my True Rate is a round-up from 4.5/5.0.

Probably the greatest part of Black Sabbath´ s group of fans prefers this second album when compared to the first one. This was exactly my position until I started to be interested in progressive music and heard some of its main bands.

Great hits are here, and last time I went to an Ozzy Osborne show there were some songs from this album were heavily expected and heard in an euphoric way. No songs from the first album was present; but even with this condition, why did I change my mind ?

The problem here is that the new musical approach was already performed, and so was the surprise and seeds of strong musical influence as well. This album is not so tasteful to my ears if I consider progressive music, not hard rock, as the preferred of mine. We have here great guitar riffs from Tony Iommi, maybe the greater guitar riff creator of all times, but the musical lack of complexity and the only average quality vocals gives us a feeling that it did not fulfill a great musical achievement.

Although I love this album, it miss so much progressive musical contends that I will give it only two and a half stars to be rounded to two. After paying attention to Black Sabbath first album, a prog minded listener should might loose interest in their music although to albums like Sabotage still presents better progressive elements. Sorry, my brothers who love heavy music, but I am rating Paranoid with a kind of symphonic progressive mind?

Ok, many people may consider Black Sabbath a band with no strong relations with progressive music, but their importance and musical influence is undeniable. And, of course, I am a fan of this band !

Considering what was said above, I will make this review more as a hard rock than a prog fan. By means of musical contends, I think listeners must look to what is this album about, not to its heaviness or lack of progressive intense and structured moments.

The greatest attention must be set in the opener, a song that turns heavy only after a long, slow but intense overture. The story of rock was never to be the same anymore after that. Many people may propose Led Zeppelin or Deep Purple as heavy metal creators, or even go back to Cream or Hendrix; but the real roots of a whole way of creating and playing music which was to be called heavy metal meets its real beginning with this band and this album. The other songs ? At least very catchy, with Tony Iommy beginning to present his enormous creation of riffs and Terry Geezer Butler showing HOW to perform thundering bass lines.

Black Sabbath does not have the musicianship of Purple or Zep, but they are strongly important. A symphonic prog fan may pass all his life without knowing Black Sabbath whole discography, but this album is to be known at least by means of understanding rock and roll critical moments on its history.

Three and a half stars, rounded to four