Tony. Iommi. New. Album.
That's all I need to say about this record and you should be rushing to your local emporium to pick up a copy. The godfather of heavy metal returns a year after the emotional triumph that was Back To The Beginning, with a new solo record.
His last solo record, Fused in 2006 featured Iommi alongside Kenny Arnoff on drums and Glenn Hughes on bass/vocals, it also stands out of one of my favourite records of this century.
I go back to it often and every time I play it front to back and just let those riffs wash over me, more modern in production, the style and skill of the Riff Master General still so obvious, like I said for me it's a modern masterpiece.
From The Dark has been a long time coming, between the two albums Sabbath has reformed and disbanded twice, released their own new music and of course played their final show last year in Birmingham at Back To The Beginning, reuniting the original line up one final time alongside a star studded list of musicians for one glorious day of heavy metal.
With the added finality of Ozzy's passing, it has become one final, loud, bittersweet note in the legacy of Black Sabbath, however Tony (and Geezer) have, like Ozzy, been creative outside of Sabbath and with a cast of top tier musicians Iommi brings From The Dark to life.
From The Dark has been a long time coming, between the two albums Sabbath has reformed and disbanded twice, released their own new music and of course played their final show last year in Birmingham at Back To The Beginning, reuniting the original line up one final time alongside a star studded list of musicians for one glorious day of heavy metal.
With the added finality of Ozzy's passing, it has become one final, loud, bittersweet note in the legacy of Black Sabbath, however Tony (and Geezer) have, like Ozzy, been creative outside of Sabbath and with a cast of top tier musicians Iommi brings From The Dark to life.
Co-written alongside vocalist Jorn Lande (one of my favourite singers in rock/metal), these songs maintain that dark atmosphere invented by Sabbath all those years ago.
As Iommi peels off the riffs from his Gibson SG, the production of himself alongside longtime creative partner Mike Exeter, gives this record a similar audio quality to Fused, modern, metallic and cavenous, you may argue that it should sound more like the old days but Iommi has always been a sonic scientist, just remember how many things Sabbath innovated yeah?
With Jorn he has the perfect vocals foil, a man who many consider to be the heir to Dio, his gutsy, soulful performance balances perfectly with the heavy rock riffs from Iommi, more Heaven And Hell than Paranoid, the songs on this album feel bigger and a bit more cinematic, keys/synths linger in the background for atmosphere but mainly it's the four musicians here flexing their muscles.
Behind the Iommi and Jorn dream team, Karl Brazil takes up the drum stool, the West Midlands based session man pounds the skins in Feeder and for James Blunt and Robbie Williams (don't tell Jimmy Page!) but here he's hitting harder than on any project before, he's a heavy metal drummer on From The Dark and brings veteran instinct and power to his performance.
On bass is probably one of the UK music scenes best examples of hard work paying off as Becky Baldwin has been playing in bands since she was young, be it IDestroy, Triaxis or Control The Storm, recently she's been laying down the foundation for my beloved Fury and Delilah Bon and as if splitting time between those two bands isn't enough she's officially the bassist for Mercyful Fate and now Iommi as well.
As Iommi peels off the riffs from his Gibson SG, the production of himself alongside longtime creative partner Mike Exeter, gives this record a similar audio quality to Fused, modern, metallic and cavenous, you may argue that it should sound more like the old days but Iommi has always been a sonic scientist, just remember how many things Sabbath innovated yeah?
With Jorn he has the perfect vocals foil, a man who many consider to be the heir to Dio, his gutsy, soulful performance balances perfectly with the heavy rock riffs from Iommi, more Heaven And Hell than Paranoid, the songs on this album feel bigger and a bit more cinematic, keys/synths linger in the background for atmosphere but mainly it's the four musicians here flexing their muscles.
Behind the Iommi and Jorn dream team, Karl Brazil takes up the drum stool, the West Midlands based session man pounds the skins in Feeder and for James Blunt and Robbie Williams (don't tell Jimmy Page!) but here he's hitting harder than on any project before, he's a heavy metal drummer on From The Dark and brings veteran instinct and power to his performance.
On bass is probably one of the UK music scenes best examples of hard work paying off as Becky Baldwin has been playing in bands since she was young, be it IDestroy, Triaxis or Control The Storm, recently she's been laying down the foundation for my beloved Fury and Delilah Bon and as if splitting time between those two bands isn't enough she's officially the bassist for Mercyful Fate and now Iommi as well.
I actually jumped in the air with pride when I saw Becky announced as the bassist as it always great to see someone you know living out their dream. On From The Dark she offers the low end thump in conjunction with the legend himself, bringing the thunder to all of these tracks, from the orchestral Beyond The Dead to the marching chug of Stormwatcher and beyond.
So a band made of three musicians with strong links to The West Midlands and one Norwegian, sounds like a party right? Let's get into the record properly and find out whether my initial assumption that this would be one of my AOTY was apt.
Kicking off with Over The Violent Sun and it's exactly what I wanted, that guitar, playing those riffs, it's an epic heavy rock beginning which has familiarity but don't sound stale or rehashed. It's just the way Iommi plays, he invented that down tuned style, and when he starts to peel them off you can't help but grin as a metal fan.
The pace driven by Karl and Becky, it's a proper Dio-era rocker to open Jorn already going all in vocally like a crazed preacher, that'll definitely do, a hangover from Fused in the best way.
So a band made of three musicians with strong links to The West Midlands and one Norwegian, sounds like a party right? Let's get into the record properly and find out whether my initial assumption that this would be one of my AOTY was apt.
Kicking off with Over The Violent Sun and it's exactly what I wanted, that guitar, playing those riffs, it's an epic heavy rock beginning which has familiarity but don't sound stale or rehashed. It's just the way Iommi plays, he invented that down tuned style, and when he starts to peel them off you can't help but grin as a metal fan.
The pace driven by Karl and Becky, it's a proper Dio-era rocker to open Jorn already going all in vocally like a crazed preacher, that'll definitely do, a hangover from Fused in the best way.
As things get better from there as Black Times is the first one to bring the shadow of Sabbath, still in the Dio era, all dressed in a evil, theatrical, pomp and one of those creeping riffs that Iommi pioneered that shifts into a sprawling solo section.
This sets the table for propulsive single World Alone. I deliberately didn't listen to anything from this album before it was released as I wanted to hear it all for the first time, but I can see why this was chosen as the first single, it's the perfect distillation of what Iommi is about.
The classic guitar tone, the constant forward motion, a top tier band backing him, all in that modern sound perfected on Fused, it's the best way to announce this project.
With the hard rock blast of World Alone displaying the fun the band had recording this album, Beyond The Dead as I said is metal in as more dramatic fashion. Featuring orchestration, and a sinister feel that comes from the self titled Black Sabbath album but has been shaped by years in the business, if they formed now, this is what they're sound like, those evil riffs emboldened by strings and those vocals.
As Beyond The Dead is Sabbath worship, Stormwatcher reminds me more of Deep Purple, MKIII, (you know the one with Glenn Hughes), all it needs is some Hammond Organ, and it's there, standing as a testament to the longevity of the heavy metal sound as at some point all these musicians have played with each other, so it obvious why Iommi would wanna play a track that Gillian and Hughes would be proud of.
From The Dark then is not just a celebration of Tony Iommi and if course Black Sabbath but British heavy metal, from it's dinosaur beginnings of monolithic riffs, just wrapped in a modern sheen howeverit's not long before the spectre of Sabbath retuns on Death Wake, another sinister, funeral march, hooked on the drums and bass, slow burning and building into a supernatural spectacle all about quiet and loud dynamics.
With just two songs remaining (on the standard edition), From The Dark offers a little suprise on Return Of The Arbalist with what I'd consider a heavy rocker, screaming guitars throughout, underpinned by Baldwin and Brazil's rhythms, this one's got more more of a bluesy Motorhead-meets-Magnum vibe to it as vocally Jorn gives us full Coverdale and there's even some great use of wah.
The finale is Legacy and it's of course one that could have been a Sabbath track, playing with light and shade throughout the 6+ minutes, there's tolling bells, filthy bass grooves, histrionic vocal shouts, massive drums and of course as always THOSE riffs played by the man who invented it all.
Heavy metal is his Legacy, their Legacy and there's something to be extremely proud about if you're from the UK as we were the epicenter of it all! Emerging From The Dark and into the light, this is record that celebrates the past and embraces the future. Worship at the altar of Iommi. All Hail The Riff Lord. 10/10
With the hard rock blast of World Alone displaying the fun the band had recording this album, Beyond The Dead as I said is metal in as more dramatic fashion. Featuring orchestration, and a sinister feel that comes from the self titled Black Sabbath album but has been shaped by years in the business, if they formed now, this is what they're sound like, those evil riffs emboldened by strings and those vocals.
As Beyond The Dead is Sabbath worship, Stormwatcher reminds me more of Deep Purple, MKIII, (you know the one with Glenn Hughes), all it needs is some Hammond Organ, and it's there, standing as a testament to the longevity of the heavy metal sound as at some point all these musicians have played with each other, so it obvious why Iommi would wanna play a track that Gillian and Hughes would be proud of.
From The Dark then is not just a celebration of Tony Iommi and if course Black Sabbath but British heavy metal, from it's dinosaur beginnings of monolithic riffs, just wrapped in a modern sheen howeverit's not long before the spectre of Sabbath retuns on Death Wake, another sinister, funeral march, hooked on the drums and bass, slow burning and building into a supernatural spectacle all about quiet and loud dynamics.
With just two songs remaining (on the standard edition), From The Dark offers a little suprise on Return Of The Arbalist with what I'd consider a heavy rocker, screaming guitars throughout, underpinned by Baldwin and Brazil's rhythms, this one's got more more of a bluesy Motorhead-meets-Magnum vibe to it as vocally Jorn gives us full Coverdale and there's even some great use of wah.
The finale is Legacy and it's of course one that could have been a Sabbath track, playing with light and shade throughout the 6+ minutes, there's tolling bells, filthy bass grooves, histrionic vocal shouts, massive drums and of course as always THOSE riffs played by the man who invented it all.
Heavy metal is his Legacy, their Legacy and there's something to be extremely proud about if you're from the UK as we were the epicenter of it all! Emerging From The Dark and into the light, this is record that celebrates the past and embraces the future. Worship at the altar of Iommi. All Hail The Riff Lord. 10/10
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