Topic: Black Sabbath Album Discussion Thread

[metaldams]

Cross Purposes will be next week sometime.

[metaldams]

Listen to CROSS PURPOSES here.


      CROSS PURPOSES is an example of how age and timeframe are important.  Not generally considered to be one of the better Black Sabbath albums, I like it more than the average fan because 1994 was the year I got into Sabbath and I got into this album as a new release.  12/31/93 a friend came over and bought a VHS of THE BLACK SABBATH STORY VOL. 1 which had footage from the Ozzy years.  That, combined with the Iron Maiden videos we watched that night, was a cool night.  I just turned 15 the week before and I wish I was still capable of being that impressionable with new music.  All this being said, I needed a refresher because I haven’t listened to this much in recent years.  My CD is in a closet with hundreds of others and this is not on Spotify, hence another IRS label release we need YouTube for.

      So Dio is gone and Tony Martin is back.  Geezer Butler stayed on for this album and tour and the new drummer is Bobby Rondinelli. Another ex-Rainbow member, though he was in the band when Joe Lynn Turner was the singer, not Dio.  I really think Tony Iommi and Ritchie Blackmore have some kind of exchange program going, it’s insane the amount of musicians who played for both.  So yeah, commercially, Sabbath were just playing for the hardcore fans still and grunge was the big thing at this time.  Black Sabbath really were considered a big influence at this time, but only the Ozzy era.  The Dio era and beyond would get more respect with future generations.  Onto the track by track.

“I Witness”  One of the few speed rockers on the album and a great way to open the album.  Nice riff and man, do I love the way Geezer’s bass goes all over the place during the verses.  Just a great, well written and energetic song overall.

“Cross of Thorns”  A classic.  Beautiful acoustic lick from Iommi with those atmospheric keyboards from Geoff Nicholls really adding flavor to the song.  I love the way the rhythm section kicks in on the second verse, Martin’s vocals and again, just a great song, this time a ballad.

“Psychophobia” A pretty moody number.  Fast opening riff that goes into the chorus, a melodic, mellower chorus and a faster bridge again highlights a piece of nice songwriting.

“Virtual Death”  I thought it when this song was contemporary and I think it now.  This song has some Alice In Chains vibes with the way Tony Martin harmonizes his vocals during the verse.  Hey, it’s fair.  I’m pretty sure Sabbath influenced Alice In Chains as well.  Cool song, doomy riff and I love the way the bass starts the song.

“Immaculate Deception”  An opening riff that knocks down concrete buildings, a moody verse sung by Tony Martin and a chorus where the rhythm section again really speeds things up.  Cool song.

“Dying For Love” Another ballad, this time a bit on the busier side with Iommi’s guitar playing.  Not much else to say other then I like it, but not as much as “Cross of Thorns.”

“Back to Eden”  That opening riff belongs on MASTER OF REALITY, if not the rest of the song.  Love the chorus on this one and the rhythm section gives this one quite a bounce.

“The Hand That Rocks the Cradle”  Another moody song followed by some fast parts.  Love the riff when the song gets heavy, again, it has this certain bounce to it, it swings.  Catchy chorus, cool mellow opening, I can totally see why this was chosen as the video for this album.

“Cardinal Sin”  Absolutely love the intro, again an example of moody guitar riff and keyboard backgrounds.  The verse has a gothic feel to it and the chorus is more upbeat. Another cool track.

“Evil Eye”. Trivia:  Yes, the band named themselves Black Sabbath after the Mario Bava film.  When the film was released by AIP in the U.S., what was is released on a double bill with?  Bava’s THE EVIL EYE, naturally (AKA THE GIRL WHO KNEW TOO MUCH).

More trivia:  The only Black Sabbath song co-written by Eddie Van Halen.  Yes, the guy you best know for being Valerie Bertenelli’s ex-husband.  Eddie wasn’t credited, however, due to contractual reasons with Warner Brothers.  The main riff sounds very old school Sabbath and I wonder if that’s what Eddie wrote?  He certainly was a fan.  But yeah, another in a fine line of Sabbath closers.

So overall, I really dig this album, but I can’t help but wonder how much of this has to do with the fact I was a new and young fan when this was released.  Maybe not though, the next album I’m not anywhere close to liking like CROSS PURPOSES, but we’ll get to that next time. 

The next release, though, is the long out of print CROSS PURPOSES LIVE.  I own the VHS/CD combo pack which I bought as a new release, a collector’s item that a friend of mine is jealous I have.  Ha!  But alas, I have no VCR anymore and it was never released on DVD in the U.S.  But that’s what YouTube is for.  One of my favorite Sabbath concerts.  Filmed very professionally, the band sound great and the set list is much more varied than the usual conservative set lists Sabbath have.  A great mixture of Ozzy, Dio and Martin era tracks.  Check it out.

[Umbrella Sam]

Turning out to be a pretty busy weekend and I most likely won’t have time for reviews outside of maybe this week’s Langdon review. I am aiming for early this upcoming week to get to CROSS PURPOSES. I will say, though, that I have listened to a little bit of it so far and one thing I noted is that there are quite a few moments where Tony Martin almost sounds like a completely different person, such as the opening to “I Witness”; I’d be interested in knowing if he had intentionally changed his style of singing in between his Sabbath stints, or if this was done specifically for the purposes of reinventing the Sabbath lineup.

[Umbrella Sam]

On the one hand, I could see fans really appreciating CROSS PURPOSES, as it seems to really be trying to capture all eras of Sabbath. There are some tracks that sound like they could have been from the Ozzy era, some that sound like Dio era, and even some that sound like they could have made TYR. At the same time, though, it does feel like this attempt to capture everything doesn’t give the album as a whole much of an identity. I think a major reason why I like TYR so much is that it feels contained; most of the songs feel like they should have been on that album specifically, and the album has a bit more of an identity due to its focus on power metal specifically. Still, CROSS PURPOSES does have its moments, mostly in the first half.

My favorite track here is “Immaculate Deception”; that riff is super catchy, the keyboards feel properly placed, and Martin’s slightly calmer vocal tones during the lighter moments really fit. I also really like “Psychophobia”, which also has a good riff and some really good drumming; a very well paced track. “Cross of Thorns” feels very much like a track that wouldn’t have felt out of place on TYR. The acoustic guitar work reminds me a lot of “Odin’s Court”. A very natural balance between the lighter and dark moments on this one; if I did have one minor complaint, I do think it fades at kind of an odd spot, but it’s not too distracting. “Cardinal Sin” was also good, supported by some nice string-influenced keyboard parts.

As far as weaker moments go, I wasn’t a fan of “The Hand that Rocks the Cradle”. Productionwise, it very much feels like a product of its time and I felt the chorus was kind of weak. I also wasn’t fond of “Dying for Love”, which is weird because the main guitar riff is actually kind of similar to “Nightwing”, just in a different key. However, “Nightwing” feels so much more atmospheric. Part of that is the fact that the key feels much gloomier and eerie which makes it much more fitting as a result. Additionally, “Nightwing” does so much more in terms of varying the styles of drumming and different types of guitars throughout. It’s a constantly moving song, whereas “Dying for Love” feels more by-the-book; the drumming feels very average and the keyboards feel a bit more randomized than usual. I also felt the guitar intro dragged a bit. “Evil Eye” occasionally drags at times too, but the bass work is good and there is definitely an old school Sabbath vibe to it that I like.

So yeah, a few weak moments, but the good songs are still memorable and Martin’s slightly more calm vocal style does make for an interesting change of pace as well. Not nearly as memorable as TYR, but that’s mostly because I think TYR is much better than people give it credit for. Again, though, CROSS PURPOSES does have its moments and the weaker songs aren’t terrible or anything. Now, the next album I’m curious about, as I have heard much more negative opinions on that one compared to most Sabbath albums...