NEVER SAY DIE!

Compared to earlier masterpieces like "Master of Reality" or the splendid and not so far away "Sabotage", 1978's "Never Say Die!" shows a band struggling to find its identity. The album opens with its title track, where Ozzy's unusually high-pitched vocals and the upbeat tempo hint at a more radio-friendly (even proto "Heaven and Hell") direction. It's decent, punchy, and far from the worst thing here.

But things go off quickly. Johnny Blade leans too hard into keyboards again (like in so many tracks from "Technical Ecstasy"), though it does feature a halfway decent riff midway through. Junior's Eyes isn't bad either, one of the few moments where the band sounds semi-focused. Then comes A Hard Road, which is frankly quite poor. The whole album feels unusually bright, completely abandoning the dark, heavy atmosphere that made Sabbath iconic. Shock Wave throws in some stoner-like Iommi riffs, but it's inessential and forgettable.

Air Dance is where things get truly weird. Its jazzy-prog vibe might seem bold at first, but it ends up as a disjointed mess that doesn't fit this band or this album at all. Over to You could've worked, thanks to a promising riff, but unnecessary piano softens the track and kills any impact it might have had. And just when you think they can't get more directionless, Breakout brings in a brass section of sax and trumpets that screams desperation more than innovation.

The closer Swinging the Chain (sung by drummer Bill Ward) is actually not bad, a gritty harmonica-led tune that feels at least somewhat grounded compared to the chaos that precedes it.

Conclusion: despite a few okay tracks, "Never Say Die!" is a confused, patchy, and mostly uninspired effort. Sabbath were still trying to experiment, but without the vision or coherence that made their earlier detours interesting. It's maybe slightly better than "Technical Ecstasy", but it's still far from good.

The classic Sabbath darkness is gone, replaced with something brighter, scattered, and far less compelling.

Best tracks: Never Say Die, Johnny Blade, Junior's Eyes, Swinging the Chain.

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