The brightest always burn out the quickest. Audioslave lasted a mere five years but unleashed three albums in the same time most bands can only crank out one or two. It was a collaboration that bore sweet fruit. Ronnie James Dio used to say that when it came to collaborations, the first album was usually the best. That’s true of Audioslave.
Their first, self-titled album checks all the boxes: monster grooves, soaring vocals and wonky solos. Since it’s produced by Rick Rubin you know it’s gonna be loud. You can also count on a clear, big drum sound which Rubin achieves. At 14 tracks, the album is swollen, but despite its long runtime there is nary a dud.
There are some who, at the time at least, felt that Rage Against The Machine’s style of abnormally funky rap-metal could not be adapted to hard rock. They felt the fit between Chris Cornell and the Rage guys was forced and resulted in something that would only appeal to Soundgarden’s fans while alienating those of Rage. While there is a smidgen of truth to that assertion, Rage have proven time and again that they can pretty much do anything. No boundaries.
No tracks to skip, either, but some you may want to focus extra attention on. “Cochise” about the revered Indian warrior, has a groove that can crack concrete. Same with “Show Me How to Live” and “Gasoline”, heavier than the proverbial lead balloon, but infested with melodic vocals. Audioslave could even pull off slower material, though you’d be hesitant to call them “ballads”. “Like A Stone” is essential: precision, smoky rock crooning. The spare arrangement allows Chris’ vocals to make the impact, though the bass is certainly earth-moving. As if that wasn’t enough, Tom Morello’s solo combines his trademark noisy note-work with epic composition.
Despite the quality tracks before and after, the best may be the angry “Set It Off”. It slams. It’s closest to Rage’s anarchist tendencies. It’s just pissed off.
He was standing at the rock, Gathering the flock, And getting there with no directions, And underneath the arch, It turned into a march, And there he found the spark to set this fucker off.
A 14 track album this good could earn a 2000 word analysis, but we’ll save that for an inevitable deluxe edition. There are lots of B-sides and bonus tracks from this album that need to be properly collected into a set, like the download-only “Give”, a rhythmic little extra. Suffice to say, Audioslave is an essential album for anybody who ever liked rock music. There is a purity to it. As the liner notes say, “all sounds made by guitar, bass, drums, and vocals.” Even the weird squonky shit, so be ready for your mind and soul to be blown. Sit back and absorb it a while, because there’s a lot here to assimilate into your blood.
When reports surfaced that Kiss were in the studio working on a song with country star Garth Brooks, some assumed this was to be a bonus track for the forthcoming Kiss Alive III. Little did we realize that Kiss were actually working on their own tribute album.
In the early 1990s, tribute albums were all the rage. Common Thread: the Songs of the Eagles. Stone Free: a Tribute to Jimi Hendrix. Out of the Blue and Borrowed Tunes: tributes to Neil Young. There were many more, and Kiss were not on the trailing edge of this trend. They beat Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin to the market.
Kiss My Ass was the clever title, but it was not the first. 1990’s Hard to Believe: A Kiss Covers Compilation featured soon-to-be-famous bands like Melvins and Nirvana. The ever-enterprising Kiss decided to corner the market with their own official tribute to themselves.
To toot their own horn, Kiss included a list of not only the musicians who appeared on Kiss My Ass, but even the ones that didn’t. Nirvana is on the list. According to the Melvins though, the truth is that they only dropped Kurt’s name as a guest on their track, because Gene didn’t seem too interested otherwise. Nine Inch Nails were going to do “Love Gun”. Both Ugly Kid Joe and Megadeth wanted to tackle “Detroit Rock City”. It’s hard to imagine what songs Run D.M.C. and Bell Biv Devoe were supposed to record, or Tears for Fears for that matter. Take this list with a grain of salt!
Kiss My Ass (or A** if you bought it from Walmart) is a weird album. It’s scattershot and not immediately likeable. It collected 11 (12 if you include the bonus track) covers by a diverse assortment of 90s artists. The cover art sucks and lacks the Kiss logo and Ace’s real makeup (which Kiss did not have the rights to in 1994). The only cool gimmick the cover had was the background flag was unique to the country of release. A Kiss album with a Canadian flag is neat to own.
The album hits the ground running with some 70s cred, as Lenny Kravitz and Stevie Wonder do “Deuce”. Lenny funks it up while Stevie brings the harmonica. This is an example of a simply terrific cover. The artists put their own spin on it, changing its style but not its drive.
“Hard Luck Woman” was already up Garth Brooks’ alley. His version doesn’t stray from the Kiss original, and even features Kiss (uncredited) as his backing band! That makes it an official Kiss recording, just with a guest singer of sorts. Arguably the biggest country singer of all time, and a closet Kiss fan. The Garth Brooks track threw a lot of people for a loop, though it’s an easy song to digest.
Kiss only participated in two songs: the Garth track, and Anthrax’s “She”. Anthrax insisted that Paul and Gene produce it, and they did a great job of it. Anthrax are brilliant at doing covers anyway. John Bush-era Anthrax was truly something special, and “She” slams hard. Heavy Kiss songs made heavier are such a delight.
The Gin Blossoms turned in a very mainstream, very mid-90s version of “Christine Sixteen”. It kicks about as hard as the original, but something about it is very tame. After all, singer Robin Wilson is not Gene Simmons (which is probably a good thing), and guitarist Scotty Johnson is not Ace Frehley. Far worse through is Toad the Wet Sprocket’s soggy “Rock and Roll all Nite”, a buzzkilling country fart. “Calling Dr. Love” by Shandi’s Addiction (a collection of assorted big names) is also a hard pill to swallow. This quartet consists of (are you ready for it?): Maynard James Keenan – lead vocals. Tom Morello & Brad Wilk – guitar and drums. Billy Gould – bass. So, it’s Rage Against the Machine with the singer from Tool and a bass rumble right out of Faith No More. And the track is just as schizophrenic as you’d expect. It’s both brilliant and annoying as fuck.
J. Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. used his unique vision on “Goin’ Blind”, turning Gene’s murky song into something even darker. Then bright shimmers of a string section break through the clouds, shadowing everything dramatically. It’s a brilliant track. Much like Kravitz, J. Mascis took the song and changed the style but not direction. You could say the same for Extreme who do a brilliant spin on “Strutter”. Though by 1994 Extreme were well over in the public eye, they continued to push their own boundaries. “Strutter” became something slower and funkier, with Nuno Bettencourt slipping all over the fretboard and Gary Cherone pouring it all on. This is primo Punchline-era Extreme (Paul Geary still on drums). And listen for a segue into “Shout it Out Loud”!
The Lemonheads chose “Plaster Caster” from Love Gun, a sloppy garage rock version, and score a passing grade. It’s an admirable effort, but they are quickly overshadowed by their fellow Bostonians, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones. The Bosstones had the balls to open their track with a phone message from Gene Simmons advising them to pick another song. “Dicky, about Detroit Rock City…” Ugly Kid Joe had dibs. Any other song would be fine…and then WHAM! The opening chords to “Detroit Rock City”. Gene was gracious enough to appear in the video. Their disciplined ska-punk horn ensemble lays waste to the town. Dicky Barrett’s gravelly throat is like a sniper taking out anyone left standing. The Bosstones win the whole CD, hands down. There is little doubt that Dicky Barrett would have shaken unfortunate Kiss fans unfamiliar with the Bosstones. Today it’s clear that they stole the show with their mighty, mighty cover.
The closest match to the Bosstones in terms of excellence, is a polar opposite. It’s Yoshiki (from X-Japan) and his orchestra version of “Black Diamond”. This is performed instrumentally with piano in the starring role. In this form, “Black Diamond” would make a brilliant movie theme. Yoshiki closes the album in style, unless you choose to go further and get the LP. Proceed with caution.
The vinyl bonus track by Die Ärzte is the only non-makeup Kiss track included: “Unholy”. This is a garbage version (in German no less) that you don’t need to spend your money finding. It’s only interesting when it briefly transitions into “I Was Made For Loving You”. Want a good version of “Unholy”? Check out the 2013 tribute A World With Heroes.
By 1994, Kiss needed a boost. Grunge was omnipresent and Kiss looked silly and outdated, even with their beards and scruffier appearance. Kiss My Ass was clearly a transparent attempt to try and latch onto some fans of the newer breed. Maybe some Lenny Kravitz fans would like it. If a few Garth Brooks followers bought a copy too, then bonus! But Garth Brooks fans didn’t buy the album, turned off by the cover art and tracklist. Likewise, fans of Lenny Kravitz, Tool and Rage Against the Machine didn’t run out en-masse either.
Fortunately Kiss had plenty of cards left in their deck. There was a Kiss My Ass spinoff video, a tour, and a coffee table book all in the works. This seemed to distract from the oft-rumoured next Kiss studio album. More next time.
As a Black Sabbath fan since I was old enough to be a Black Sabbath fan, I have amassed a huge collection of official and unofficial Sabbath recordings. With the exception of one Japanese bonus track (“What’s the Use” from Cross Purposes), I can happily say I have everything the band has ever officially put their name on. The End has proven to be one of their most difficult albums to acquire, because Sabbath insisted on selling it at their concerts exclusively. (At least until the inevitable reissue with bonus tracks.) With only one CD, eight songs, and no booklet, it’s hard to justify a $30 selling price. Additionally, many concerts were sold out of the CD, because of people buying multiple copies for re-sale. The proof is on eBay and Discogs.
Thankfully, a fine gentleman known to his friends as James went to see Black Sabbath on a whim on their Calgary date. He exited the arena with three copies of The End, but none were for re-sale: One for him, one for our buddy Aaron, and one for me!
Ever since the release of the terrific album 13, the band teased that they had plenty of extra material to perhaps do another LP. It turns out, they had recorded at least 16 songs that we know of for 13. There were eight songs on the album proper, and an additional four on various special editions. The End contains four more from the sessions! Four songs isn’t enough for a whole new album, so for added value, rare live songs are included. None of these have ever been on a live Sabbath album before.
Sounding something like an outtake from the not-Sabbath album The Devil You Know, “Season of the Dead” has the slow crawl that has become a Sabbath trademark. A chugging, biting riff and a slightly psychedelic melody are the pillars, but like Sabbath of old, it twists and turns into different parts. “Season of the Dead” is a grower, but it certainly does sound like Black Sabbath and nobody but. Doom, gloom and slinky bass. “Cry All Night” starts as a slow Sabbath crawl but then immediately transforms into a mid-tempo stomp. These Iommi riffs are by no means leftovers. Can you imagine what he still has in the vault? (Note: Tony Iommi really does have a vault where he keeps all his riff tapes.)
Studio drummer Brad Wilk really stands out on “Take Me Home”, as a precise and hard-hitting player. The monolithic riff he compliments is simple but effective. Meanwhile, parts of Ozzy’s vocal melody are reminiscent of his song “Fire in the Sky” from 1988’s No Rest for the Wicked. Tony’s Spanish guitar solo is a delicate icing on a very heavy cake. The final studio track is “Isolated Man”, a different and interesting experiment. At its core it is still a heavy-riffed Black Sabbath refrain, but Ozzy’s vocals are purposely mixed back and heavily layered for effect. The result is something very much like the oddball shit that they used to do in the 70’s.
Each one of these “new” songs is going to take time to fully absorb. They are not immediate, but neither was all of 13. Even without Bill Ward, they managed to rebuild the sound they had 40 years ago, and that’s just grand. 13 easily could have been a full double album, consistent and heavier than fuck, had all 16 songs been included. It also would have been an overly long ride of doom!
The live stuff is well recorded. Ozzy doesn’t sound too lively on “God Is Dead?”, but that tends to happen when you read the words off a teleprompter. He was in good voice that night in Sydney, maybe even great! It’s great to have “God Is Dead?” in live form, but it only really cooks from time to time. Oldie “Under the Sun” (from Vol. 4) has long been one of my favourite Iommi riffs. It’s great to finally have this in live form; it’s just too bad it lacks the swing of Bill Ward. That is not a swipe at Tommy Clufetos, a great drummer who has done very well under difficult circumstances. Of the many drummers that Sabbath have employed over the years in the absence of Ward, Tommy has been one of the best fits for an “original” sounding Black Sabbath.
Jetting off to Hamilton Ontario Canada, “End of the Beginning” serves as a main course of doomy metal. The crowd is clearly into it, as Ozzy gets them riled up. This track works better live than “God Is Dead?”, being much more peppy and headbang-worthy. Here is my only beef: I noticed during one of Tony’s solos that there was rhythm guitar. Looking at the back cover, keyboardist Adam Wakeman is also credited with additional guitar. Black Sabbath has always been a single-guitar band, and I definitely noticed this unfamiliar sound. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Sure, it sounds more like the album, but it sounds less like the live Black Sabbath that I loved.
Of course Ozzy has to remind the audience that he loves them all! “God bless you all, thank you!” he says, showing gratitude for a #1 album in Canada. “Age of Reason” sounds like a crusher live, and certainly epic enough to act as a closing track on the final Black Sabbath album. Even if it wasn’t epic, it was a new Black Sabbath song recorded for posterity and now in the collection forever. That’s enough for this guy.
I am not sure how a $30 price tag is justified, but I have paid more for less. The score for this review is completely independent of the price. You’ll have to judge for yourself how much you’re willing to pay. $30 is high for four new songs and four live songs. Be that as it may, eBay prices are stupid. My advice: Grab it for $40 or less, or sit tight and wait and see if it’s ever reissued. Final Black Sabbath album? Perhaps, but expect plenty of Sabbath material to buy in the future. Up next: deluxe editions of Headless Cross and Tyr!
BLACK SABBATH – 13(2013 Universal deluxe, Best Buy, and Spotify editions)
Last year, Uncle Meat gave us his detailed review of Black Sabbath’s 13. (His rating: 3.25/5 stars. Check out his full review for the scoop on the first CD of this metal monolith.) Having had almost a year to live with it myself, I think it’s time I got around to reviewing the songs he didn’t: the bonus tracks!
The deluxe and Best Buy editions have “Methademic,” “Peace of Mind,” and “Pariah.” “Methademic” is cool for being a fast-paced heavy rocker, something I associate more with a Dio kind of sound. It’s a good track, good enough that Sabbath play it live. Geezer’s got a serious groove going on with the bass part, and Brad Wilk is playing with furious drive. You wouldn’t consider this song to be as good as any on the first CD of 13, but it’s a great bonus track.
“Peace of Mind” is of equal quality to “Methademic.” This time Sabbath have gone back to doomy, but Ozzy’s vocal melody takes it to a special place. All it’s missing is that looseness that only Bill Ward could provide. It sounds so authentically Black Sabbath, but if you concentrate on the beat, you can hear that the loose swing of old is not there. Having said that I enjoy “Peace of Mind” very much, especially when it picks up after the 2:15 mark.
My favourite of this trio of songs is “Pariah.” It occupies a mid-paced groove which chugs along nicely. Tony has a couple cool riffs in it, but once again Ozzy’s vocal seals the deal. Tony’s guitar solo is icing on the cake. I love when he has a chance to slow down and play bluesy, as he does here.
Japanese fans, and Best Buy shoppers have their own exclusive bonus track, and it’s the one with the best title: “Naïveté in Black.” You have to love that. This smoker is similar to “Time Machine,” from Dehumanizer. I don’t know why a song this good was left to Best Buy, because it’s better than the other three. It’s definitely unique among the 13 songs for sounding more like Dio-Sabbath than Ozzy-Sabbath; perhaps that’s the primary reason. Count me as a big fan of “Naïveté in Black.”
Finally even Spotify have a bonus track, which is “Dirty Women,” live. This is with Tommy Clueftos on drums, from the same show as the recent Gathered In Their Masses live DVD (but not the CD). I am fortunate enough to have an excellent quality copy of the song burned to a CD, the perfect final bonus track to 13.
But that’s not all folks. With the deluxe box set edition, there’s a DVD as well. There is a brief documentary about the reunion and recording of the new album. There are quite a few humorous moments, but I do not consider this to be much of a bonus. All this stuff is available for free on youtube. I don’t value a physical copy of something like this as much as I value a physical copy of a song.
Best moment:
Fan – “I came all the way from Croatia!”
Ozzy – “Where the fuck is that?”
The deluxe set is large and very nice to look at, but I considered it sparse in terms of worthwhile goodies. There are lots of large glossy photos, but they’re not up to handling repeatedly. There’s a print of the “God Is Dead?” single art, a 2 CD set (minus “Naïveté in Black”), and 13 on double 180 gram vinyl LPs. Everything is lovely and fragile. There’s also far too much room in the box itself for everything, so things move around inside. That’s a bit of a design flaw just to save on some extra cardboard packaging.
The Best Buy set came with a T-shirt, which I have kept in-package. You can find pictures of both versions below.
BLACK SABBATH – Live…Gathered In Their Masses (2013 CD/DVD/Blu-ray box set)
Any time a classic rock band releases new music and goes back on tour, there has to be a live album to go with it these days. Actually, to be more accurate in the current age it’s more likely to be some kind of CD/DVD combo pack. This deluxe of Live…Gathered In Their Masses contains 1 CD, 1 Blu-ray, and 2 DVDs.
The visual program opens with a collage of pre-gig ritiual. The band arrive, and get ready in their own dressing rooms, the cameras offering a brief intimate glimpse. Before too long, the air raid sirens of “War Pigs” brings us to the stage. The Blu-ray looks absolutely gorgeous. Every line on every face is visible, every grain on Tony’s Gibson SG, and the stage is gorgeously lit. It’s a beautiful disc to watch in 1080p. I couldn’t help myself; I sat there playing air drums, and putting my hands in the air when Ozzy commanded. It was fun!
Ozzy hops about, but most exciting visually is unofficial member Tommy Clufetos. I wonder if it’s intentional, but he definitely resembles a young Bill Ward circa 1976 (as long as he keeps his shirt on). And Tony? He smiles, a lot. You would too if you’ve been through what he has I imagine! Ozzy’s already dumped a bucket of water over his head before they get to the second song, a sludgy “Into the Void”. I think the temptation is often to play this song a little faster live, but this version is very much in pace with the deliberately slow original.
My cell phone ring tone these days is that riff from “Loner”, one of the best songs from 13. Unfortunately, the fact that this is a new song means Ozzy’s rivited to one place on stage, concentrating on the words, glancing at the floor. Even so, Ozzy remains a mesmerizing presence. Another bucket of water, and Ozzy’s the cheeleading frontman again. The bonus interview on the disc, by the way, reveals why Ozzy really douses himself in water! (You probably don’t want to know.) “Snowblind” then erupts, Ozzy hitting the high notes with cracking but real voice! (That’s the part that counts.) Tony’s extended guitar solo is a stunner in itself.
The rain and tolling bells of “Black Sabbath” sound great on blu-ray, though I was hoping to hear more stuff going on behind me in the 5.1 mix. “Black Sabbath” is the standard workout, no surprises here. Likewise, “N.I.B.” is very much the traditional Sabbath version, even down to each note of Tony’s solo. Ozzy somehow manages to still be menacing behind the mic. “Methademic” is one of the new songs again, but oddly it’s a only bonus track on the deluxe versions of 13. This is a song that resembles Dio-era Sabbath and would have sounded at home on Dehumanizer or The Devil You Know. With Ozzy behind the mic, it’s still classic Sabbath. I think it’s a great number, only weakened live by Ozzy struggling through the wordy lyrics.
Oz doesn’t seem to have trouble with the old favourite “Fairies Wear Boots”. His wail of “Allllllright now!” looms, and out comes the water again! “Symptom Of the Universe” then stomps on the stage. This is the song that Clufetos can really sink his chops in. He’s obviously not Bill Ward, but I like his interpretation of Bill’s parts. They’re as close to the mark as any other Sabbath drummer’s parts, if not more. Tommy gets an extended drum solo too, during “Symptom”, not bad for an unofficial member! Mrs. LeBrain called the solo “Sweet!”
A drum solo naturally suits “Iron Man” to segue into. “Iron Man” is wooden, Clufetos unable to cop Bill Ward’s loose feel. It’s still “Iron Man”, a song Black Sabbath have probably played live at every show since ’72, but it’s not definitive. Only when the song gets up to speed does it become the beast it should be. Another new song, the deliberately vintage sounding “End of the Beginning” takes over, but it’s not the song I would have chosen to play at this point of the set. Not only is it too similar to “Black Sabbath” but it slows the set down too much so close to the end. It does pick up, but I feel it would have worked better closer to the start of the show.
Ozzy then teases out that they will only play one more song, unless the crowd goes “extra crazy”. This “final” song is the storming “Children of the Grave.” The audience bounces like a wave in sync with the classic tune, led by an energized Ozzy. I detected some clever editing here to make it appear that Ozzy is jumping around more than he actually is, but that’s video. One pretty thing about this song is the appearance of Tony’s old cream Gibson SG, paint cracked and chipping. Blu-ray allows you to see every scratch in the paint.
The crowd goes “extra crazy” and then Ozzy says they’ll play one more song. It’s “God Is Dead?”, the excellent first single from 13. Clufetos nails the stuttering drum roll, but Ozzy’s back to reading lyrics off the floor, which is distracting. But does anyone actually believe it is the last song; that they won’t play “Paranoid”? Of course they play it, and the riff from “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath” too. It’s the quintessential closer, ending the concert as a party, not a session of pure doom! Clufetos and Ozzy are quite animated on “Paranoid”, and of course Ozzy reminds the crowd that they are “number one”! I just wish Tommy would pull up his pants. Fuck, I wish I could fit into that size!
The DVD and Blu-ray versions contain three bonus tracks. “Under the Sun” is a nice one to pull out of the hat. Ozzy handles the difficult vocals without issue. How does he do it? You can hear his voice cracking from time to time; it sounds live. “Dirty Women” is a personal favourite of mine. This is an interesting version. It’s the one that Spotify have as their own exclusive bonus track to 13. I already had an audio copy of this bonus track, but Blu-ray is cool, too. It’s a damn great rendition of a lost classic from Technical Ecstasy. “Electric Funeral” is the big surprise, a song I don’t think I’ve ever heard played live. Ozzy really struggles with the words on “Electric Funeral” but it’s a treat.
Elsewhere on the disc, there are more bonus features. I have to say the Blu-ray menu is an annoying, repeating tolling bell. Leaving the menu running unattended for more than 60 seconds is an excersize in testing your patience. In the bonus features, the Sabbath interview is typically low key. You know what to expect: a difficult to understand Ozzy, and a soft spoken Tony, with occasional comments from Geezer. There’s not too much here in the way of revelations. Vegetable juice and food have replaced vodka and a line before the show, although Geezer still drinks wine. How scandalous! I don’t know who the interviewer is, but he’s very good at getting the band involved and in good humour.
Lastly there’s a feature called “Show Day”. This is a behind the scenes look at the goings-on in the 24 hours before the show in Melbourne. I love it!
Ozzy: “You know what I was looking at, the old re-runs of the Twilight Zone.”
Geezer:“You told me that about 40 times.”
Ozzy: “Sorry. Trying to make conversation.”
Tony: (Laughs.)
Even Joe Perry and Steven Tyler show up backstage. I enjoy watching Joe and Tony chatting…what a meeting of guitar greats in one room.
The packaging for this box set is loaded with goodies. I always enjoy some complimentary guitar picks. There’s one here from Tony, and one from Geezer. There’s also a replica concert ticket, setlist, and a small poster. Nothing to get too excited about, but when you buy an expensive box set it’s nice to get these added touches as a bonus. There’s also two DVDs included with the same content as Blu-ray. That’s extraneous to me, I may never play them, so they’re sealed. I don’t have a problem with that, but I do wish they didn’t edit the CD version of the concert down to fit on one CD. I’m pleased that the CD version contains all the new songs, but for the price of this set relative to the cheap cost of a CD, I don’t know why they couldn’t just make it a 2 CD set. That part is disappointing. When I buy a deluxe edition, I want the whole thing on CD.
That niggle aside, Black Sabbath Live…Gathered In Their Masses is worth:
Uncle Meat is back to tell us about the new Sabbath — the standard 8 track retail version. When I get the deluxe and Best Buy editions, I’ll do my own. Until then, please welcome Uncle Meat for his insightful take on one of the most anticipated albums of the last 33 years.
BLACK SABBATH – 13 (2013 Universal)
What is your favorite Black Sabbath album? How many times do you think that question has been asked over the last 30 years or so? Before today, I would have said my personal favorite would be a tie between Volume 4 and Heaven and Hell(cop-out answer I know). Expectedly, that has not changed after listening to the long-anticipated “reunion” album simply titled 13. There is a case to be made that this is one of the most anticipated albums of all time. So does this album live up to that hype?
The true answer to that question lies within you as the listener of course. Personally, I always find that something truly great will build momentum with every listen. With that in mind, my first listen to 13 was one of pleasant surprise. It has been a long time since Black Sabbath (or Heaven & Hell for that matter) has released something that I have connected with. Even Dehumanizer, which I believe to be the last relevant Sabbath album, went in a direction that was not really what I wanted to hear from Black Sabbath. My theory is that with Dehumanizer, they were trying to “reclaim the throne” so to speak. Being overly heavy just for the sake of being heavy, and losing the diversity and groove that made them true rock royalty. It appears Rick Rubin has brought back at least some of that old Black Sabbath magic.
Rick Rubin’s legacy is almost as iconic as Black Sabbath themselves. He has been responsible for the re-birth of several artists such as Slayer, Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Johnny Cash et al. The first thing that struck me about 13 was the bass sound. Geezer has never sounded better and is hot in the mix, complimenting and adding to every track. I also really like Tony Iommi’s guitar sound on this album. More than a few times I found myself reminded of that classic Iommi riff sound. Brad Wilk’s drums are great, and this could be nit-picking, but there is no doubt that Ward’s drum style is missed here on a few tracks. Even Ozzy gets a passing grade here but I suspect that has a lot more to do with Rubin rather than a resurgence of Ozzy’s voice. I was pleasantly surprised as well by the vocal melody lines on the album as a whole.
TRACK 1 – “END OF THE BEGINNING”
The guitar parts in the verses paint an almost too-reminiscent picture of Black Sabbath‘s “Black Sabbath”. But overall this track is strong throughout its 8:07 running time. Definitely a great start to the album. Ozzy hits some notes at the end of this song that I find hard to believe even came out of the man. Steroids?
TRACK 2 – “GOD IS DEAD?”
I was not thrilled about this song when it was released prior. Not that I dislike this song, just nothing special here to me. Next.
TRACK 3 – “LONER”
Good track. They are somewhat ripping themselves off here to be honest, and that’s OK ’cause every band with longevity does it to an extent. Main riff is VERY reminiscent of “N.I.B.”, and also Ozzy’s “Alright now” and “Come on, Yeah!” made me genuinely smile. Anyone remember Barry Horowitz? Patting himself on the back?
TRACK 4 – “ZEITGEIST”
More self-pilfering, this is the the “Planet Caravan” of the album. Don’t particularly like that song to begin with. There are more strong vocals from The Madman here though. But, still glad it’s the shortest song on the album (4:37).
TRACK 5 –”AGE OF REASON”
This track is in a tie right now with upcoming Track 7 (oh the drama!) as my favorite tune on the album. Not only are the best riffs of the album on this song, I found myself loving the progressions here. They remind me of the diverse song-writing on Sabotage, for example. “Age of Reason” also contains a CLASSIC Tony Iommi solo. This cannot be under-stated. One kick-ass monster Tony Iommi solo!
TRACK 6 – “LIVE FOREVER”
The second shortest track on the album at 4:49, this is a good little song; and a great main riff on this track. Very reminiscent of one of my favorite Sabbath songs, “Cornucopia” and even Brad Wilk seems to channel some Bill Ward in the open crash cymbal playing on this song.
TRACK 7 – “DAMAGED SOUL”
This is what we have been waiting for. This is Sabbath being Sabbath better than all the bands that try, intentionally or un-intentionally, to be Sabbath. [Wait until you see tomorrow’s story — LeBrain] This is what I want from my Black Sabbath. Doom meets gloom meets the blues. There is something wonderfully sloppy about the guitar on this song. Like a cross between Iommi and Keith Richards. We even get some Ozzy harmonica in there. Love the bridge in this song and the harmony vocals that come with it. The last third of this song is just lovely. Yes… I said lovely. Check it out. I must take back a proclamation made earlier in this review. This is my favorite track on the album. It’s that simple.
TRACK 8 – “DEAR FATHER”
The last track on the album is solid. Once again there are some great drums on this song. It builds momentum as well, getting more majestic as it goes along. The last track on the album has a very fitting ending. The track ends with the thunder, rain and tolling of the bell that started off their very first album 43 years ago.
The bottom line is this: Black Sabbath have released a very relevant album in 2013. I had my doubts if that was possible, and I am sure the presence of Rick Rubin was a big part of this being a very good if not great album. Even without Bill Ward, there is life and inspiration within 13. I find the ending of this album (hopefully) very fitting. They have made an album which will be rightly recognized as something special, and this should be the end for Black Sabbath. A glorious end indeed.
A solid 3 ¼ / 5 stars
Look for Mike Ladano’s upcoming review of the super duper extra-special royale deluxe version … containing several more tracks … coming soon.
AUDIOSLAVE – Audioslave (2002 Sony)
A drum solo naturally suits “Iron Man” to segue into. “Iron Man” is wooden, Clufetos unable to cop Bill Ward’s loose feel. It’s still “Iron Man”, a song Black Sabbath have probably played live at every show since ’72, but it’s not definitive. Only when the song gets up to speed does it become the beast it should be. Another new song, the deliberately vintage sounding “End of the Beginning” takes over, but it’s not the song I would have chosen to play at this point of the set. Not only is it too similar to “Black Sabbath” but it slows the set down too much so close to the end. It does pick up, but I feel it would have worked better closer to the start of the show.
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