Metal Riot

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Celebrate 50 Years of Black Sabbath with new merch celebrating the debut album’s release https://blacksabbathapparelshop.com/ #linkinbio #linkinstories #linkinstory

A post shared by Black Sabbath (@blacksabbath) on Feb 13, 2020 at 9:40am PST

I was lying in bed reading a Grand Admiral Thrawn book and annoyed that my hot water is out, listening to Sabbath and Alice Cooper on Spotify and being kind of a lazy piece of shit when the guilt set in. Morgan, it is 50 years since Sabbath’s debut and you haven’t posted anything, you worthless poseur. The dark well from which all metal of value doth flow, the haunting grounds of “The Wizard”, the nativity in black. A warning to every sleeping village that music had forever changed. Zep never got so evil. Mentioning Mordor doesn’t come close to Sabbath’s shadows. What the hell was I doing running a metal site if I can’t get my ass up to praise the lords on this sacred day? So what if I smell bad and am wearing my girlfriend’s PINK sweatpants, even better.

Now I sit in front of the computer trembling in awe thinking of the power of that record and how amazing the fifty years since have been as not just pond ripples but tidal waves of influence have rolled out from those doomy notes. Someone on Twitter said Priest invented metal and I am sorry,  but…while they both had an early start Sabbath had five evil as fuck albums out before Priest even got Rocka Rolla (a good but comparatively wimpy album). Even if you were so insane as to discount the first 4 Sabbath albums as just heavy blues- which ignores “Children of the (fucking) Grave” on Master Of Reality, can anyone seriously look at the tormented person on the grim ass cover art of Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and hear the title track and say THAT isn’t metal??? Seriously?

Often imitated, never quite matched…the Sabbath legacy. Pick up some new merch today. You can’t just copy greatness and expect the same heights. On that note, why the hell does that band the Used with that dude Bert who used to date Kelly have a new album called fucking Heartwork?! Are you serious, dudes? Have you really never heard of god damned CARCASS!!?? Ooof. But I digress.

Anyway, God and the Devil bless Ozzy for still being here and still making rock n roll. Thank you Tony and all the boys and the long list of others attached to the band over the years. You all changed my life forever and the lives of countless others. Thank you.

SO today is the birthday of Black Sabbath’s self-titled masterpiece, remarkable for too many reasons to count. Many have spent much of their lives trying. I was going to say “a lifetime” but the average lifespan now is longer than the 49 years since Earth (see what I did there?) first heard the rumble of these titans. Actually, that’s only a semi-clever/accurate pun because while Sabbath was called Earth prior to re-naming themselves , before that they were called Polka Tulk Blues Band even earlier in ’68 in a rough form. I think we can agree it’s fucking great that they achieved iconic status in no small part to settling on their final moniker (which is more PTBB “shade” and not a dis to a certain awesome modern band called Earth we also know and love). Anyway, in 1970 Black Sabbath’s debut was born and the deal with the devil that birthed the End Times music of Heavy Metal was struck.

Human longevity is not guaranteed so much these days for us as a species, but it is pretty awe-inspiring that Sabbath have had such an impact on so many levels in culture that film, festivals and society as a whole have all been graced by the long shadow cast by “The Wizard” and friends. The fact that Ozzy is still as recognizable as any flavor of the month newfound celebrity who is zombie-cannibalized by the scrutiny of fame’s hungry eyes in our culture of inhospitable impermanence is a sheer miracle (and in no small part also thanks to Sharon, as well as his own talent). BUT I am not here today to talk about individual members of the band over the years and their place in pop culture – though Sabbath is Iommi’s more than anyone’s for sticking it out the entire time as the sole constant – as much as discuss how the first Sabbath album creeping up on 50 years old is something to marvel at.

We’ve come so far together, heavy metal. For better and for worse. You looked so cool and casual and I tried to look the same, but now I’ve got to know ya…tell me who am I to blame?

We have a choice now to take serious stock and make metal more inclusive, as potent a force as ever but even more capable of traversing barriers and resonating beyond the narrow CisHet white male bandwidth than it ever has before (which is nothing against the lads who started the band at all). I was dismayed as heck by the morons in the comments section of a recent article about the power of current female vocalists in metal. Heck, the best cover of the definitive metal title track and first doom metal song has Beth Gibbons singing instead of Ozzy (hear below) and King Woman’s Kristina Esfandiari is arguably the best singer in the melodic yet drony/sludgy side of the genre we know and love currently, IMO. People of all types, genders, races, religions, etc. love rock n roll. Let’s continue to expand that. Remember practically every concert ever Ozzy says ,”I love you all.” It is fitting the band’s final album was called 13 since the album that started it all was born on Feb. 13th, 1970. I mean, could it have been on any other day of the month?

I clean a bar every morning and was playing “The Warning” on the bar speakers today. A different guy than usual delivered the lemons and limes for the cocktails and he was an older dude. The guy’s face lit right up at the music and he said he had seen them years ago for ten bucks and proceeded to tell me all about the gig. We went from being strangers with generational divides to having something we both loved to talk about in common, and while small talk is wack I would gladly talk about Sabbath with anyone any day. That’s a life giving bridge just as much as Sabbath’s music itself has helped so many of us who have ever danced through shadows or struggled with depression.

Anyway, fucking crank this shit today, give thanks to the metal ancestors and remind them that we basically never regretted following them and will be forever metal til the end of time.

'Black Sabbath'
Released: Feb 13, 1970 https://t.co/ucCzW9QsE0

— BlackSabbath (@BlackSabbath) February 13, 2019

Party rocking optimism enthusiast Andrew W.K. picks us up during the best and worst of times. Dude is just always on his own frequency and it is usually infectious and inspiring. If you need proof he still has it, check out the recent material from latest party rock record “You’re Not Alone’.

“They made me think I was crazy/that the pain was here to say, but now that I’ve found the answers/I’m never ever gonna lose my way…ever again!”

Andrew W.K. embraces overcoming struggles with the kind of insistence that we can still have good outcomes we could surely use these days. It is refreshing again to hear his new stuff in a time when it is so fucking easy to get discouraged, and the new songs rock! “Music Is Worth Living For” was anthem as fuck! And the new song “Ever Again” also rages with the utmost joy of being alive. It can be heard below. Crack one open (or not) and hug your homies.

Ozzy Osbourne, the first of numerous great vocalists who contributed to the legendary band Black Sabbath whose name I have as a tat on my wrist, announced yesterday that the band will do one more album and tour. While I hope Bill Ward can complete the full circle and be on it, things haven’t been boding well lately. I hope Sabbath can really give the fans what they want. I love Ozzy but there have been numerous people important to the band over the years who don’t seem to get as much due as they should.

Personally, I liked the 13 album. Ozzy killed it and the songs were really good, but let’s all  hope the mix can be a bit less clean for the final record.

Check out the press conference BELOW.

Rolling Stone are reporting that grunge kings Soundgarden have unveiled a three-disc rarities collection of B-sides, cover songs and seven unreleased tracks: http://rol.st/1tBDX2s 

Robbie from Godsmack today – “Hey guys! #1000hp is now available for pre-order at iTunes”.

Get your orders in HERE. This is gonna be a good album from the Boston hard rock vets. Shannon Larkin is one of the best drummers out there and if you’re still on the ‘Smack (sorry, that was awful…), you know they are a real fan friendly band. Check out a video message from Robbie HERE.

Crank the new single HERE. Sullt kind of recounts the band’s story in the song. A good motivator.