Black Sabbath
Master of Reality (1971)
I decided to kick off The LOAD Project with an album that is seemingly forgotten about when people discuss the Black Sabbath canon. Living in the shadow of its older brother (the excellent Paranoid), it does not get the kudos it deserves. Partly, this is because it lacks the star power of its predecessor, which contains at least four tracks that are now considered essential parts of Sabbath's work (Iron Man, War Pigs, Paranoid and Fairies Wear Boots).
For mine, though, Master of Reality is every bit its equal, and in some ways better than any other Sabbath album. It contains some of Tony Iommi's darkest riffs (helped by his decision to tune his guitar down for several tracks) and, for mine, is consistently heavier than Sabbath's other albums. It also showcases Ozzy Osbourne's vocal abilities and proves that he was more than just a front man for a proto-metal heavy blues-rock band.
The Album
The opening riff is not actually a riff - it's a cough. Tony Iommi's cough, to be precise, recorded after he took a drag on a joint. Quite why somebody recorded this is unknown, but it is a fitting way to start Sabbath's love song to marijuana, Sweet Leaf. This track sets the tone for the album, with a crunchy, heavy riff underpinning Ozzy's ode to a perfectly natural substance with various effects on the human body. Ozzy basically thanks the 'sweet leaf' for his wonderful life and curses those pesky 'straights' WOT JUST DON'T GET IT. Top work Ozzman, you're not helping those of us who try and defend the Mary Jane as 'not necessarily a gateway drug'.
From there, the album winds its way through a myriad of musical styles and expressions. After Forever is a Geezer Butler-penned tune about Catholicism, though as Geezer is a Catholic it doesn't take the DIE CATHOLICS DIE road; rather, it discusses eternal life and various other religious-type things sympathetically. It's probably the most "commercial" sounding track on the album and contains a very Deep Purple sounding opening riff. Embryo is a crappy instrumental break that serves no purpose other than to inadequately prepare you for the face-melting, ball-stomping crunchy blackness that is Children of the Grave. If you thought the main riff was dark, the slow breakdown in the middle of the song sounds fucking Satanic...and it's bloody glorious.
Orchid is the other instrumental on the album, and unlike Embryo, it's quite nice, a steady, possibly fingerpicked acoustic break. Again, though, Sabbath don't want you comfortable, so after this nice instrumental you get more evil riffage in the form of Lords of this World. This is one of the tracks on Master of Reality that showcases just how bloody good Bill Ward is/was, as the track is played not with a straight 4/4 beat but with a 4/4 swing feel which changes the dynamic of the song entirely.
The closing two tracks could not be more different in style. Solitude feels like the sort of song that would have been written by a medieval troubadour, winding his way from one village to the next by himself. It also contains our first ROCK FLUTE ALERT of the LOAD Project, with the flute on this track played by Tony Iommi (he also plays the piano along with the guitar, confirming that he is a musical genius). As far as the vocals go...Ozzy's voice is poignant and beautiful (yes, you read that correctly). Gone is the tuneful shrieking, replaced by an almost sweet, songbirdy timbre. Clearly, people don't believe that it is Ozzy, given that several Sabbath fansites clearly point out that YES, OZZY IS SINGING SOLITUDE in their discography sections.
The closing track is one of the most underrated Sabbath songs. Into the Void tells the story of people fleeing the Earth to live somewhere else, leaving most of the population to destroy themselves and the planet. It contains more of those trademark tempo/riff changes that inhabit most Sabbath tracks, although the main riff is the clear highlight. It relentlessly chugs along while Ozzy sings about rockets and burning metal and Satan. Hilarious fun for the whole family.
The Verdict
In case you couldn't tell, I bloody love this album. Prior to this project though, I had not heard the instrumentals, nor had I heard Solitude. I'm glad I did, because Solitude is such a pleasant surprise and acts as a great counterpoint to the sludgy riffage that surrounds it. Master of Reality comes highly recommended by me, especially if you are already familiar with, and enjoy, the better known Sabbath material.
My rating : ****
Standout Tracks
Children of the Grave
Into the Void
Sweet Leaf
Tomorrow, I'm going to keep the metal train a-rolling, but I'm going to bring us into the late 1980s, and review an album by a band that (according to themselves at least) defines metal....
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