Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Black Sabbath
Label: Republic Records
Release: 2013
Length: 8:54
Rating: 4/5
»God Is Dead?« is the first single from »13«, the upcoming nineteenth studio album by English heavy metal forefathers Black Sabbath, who, against all expectations, have risen once again from their black grave, completely overgrown with weeds. It’s also their first track with original singer Ozzy Osbourne (who really needs no introduction) in the lineup since the live album »Reunion« (1998), on which Ozzy, guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward recorded the songs »Psycho Man« and »Selling My Soul«. The single has been available as a digital MP3 download on Amazon since April 19, 2013.
The reunion of the classic Black Sabbath and the announcement of the first studio album with Ozzy since »Never Say Die!« (1978) delighted countless longtime fans, many of whom had more or less written the legendary band off over the last decade. The big disappointment came when it was revealed that original drummer Bill Ward, due to contract complications, would not take part in »13« or the upcoming tour. His replacement as guest musician is American Brad Wilk (Rage Against the Machine, Audioslave), who does the job on »God Is Dead?« very convincingly, brutally thundering around the drum kit, so Ward isn’t missed all that much, even though it’s already clear this is a reunion ‘with a flaw’.
The biggest question after the release of »God Is Dead?«, the first sign of new life from the pioneers of doom metal, is this: can the ‘metal grandfathers’ still create new music at anything close to their former artistic level, back when they were the leading innovators in their field, which is why they’re rightly considered the most important pioneers of heavy metal? The answer, which will seriously surprise all the skeptics, especially those Ozzy has royally annoyed and put off with his corporate excesses over the past decade, is ‘yes’. Thanks to retro production by Rick Rubin, and above all to the sly songwriting and instrumental tricks of old cats Iommi and Butler, Black Sabbath in the 21st century sound like they’ve landed right back in the mid-seventies.
Even the prophetic title and the witty cover, with a nuclear explosion and the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, who famously declared ‘God is dead’ back before his mental state, supposedly because of syphilis, went downhill, hint that the masters of ‘doom’ and ‘gloom’ have gone back to their sonic roots. The gloomy, post-apocalyptic, almost morbid atmosphere, heralded by Iommi’s brutal and utterly distinctive guitar phrase, lasts from the beginning to the end of the song, which means the whole thing is wrapped in pure blackness. Ozzy’s vocals, as they should, sound paranoid and wicked, especially in the »God Is Dead« chorus. After a fairly repetitive but atmospherically powerful central motif, the song moves on into a sarcastically tinged section, where you can also hear some guitar and bass improvisation.
On the remarkably solid »God Is Dead?«, Black Sabbath sound like they just climbed out of the crypt, invented a time machine and zipped back to the seventies, when their final resting place was still freshly dug. If the rest of the tracks on »13« come even close to »God Is Dead?« in quality, 2013 will be spent celebrating one of the most unbelievable, unexpectedly successful and entertaining comebacks on the music scene.
Lineup
Ozzy Osbourne – vocals
Tony Iommi – guitar
Geezer Butler – bass
GUEST MUSICIAN:
Brad Wilk – drums
Production
Rick Rubin
Track list
1. God Is Dead?
