Masking Pain Through Humor

I want to defame those who defame,
to trust those who mistrust, defy
those who defy, to unlock doors that
are locked.

Getting high was just a constant in
youth

I just want to rock those who are not; deny
those who deny, to pull it all from the
ether and deny their wall.

Get . Just . Out . Me . Hed

Place comments on an unfinished
project and just leave them there in a
finished product. To see everyone
else as a lifeless husk.

Seeing the future just before it
happens.

A future I can see, a power I can
wield, a fjord I can brave.

A house not to live in, but a house to die
in.
Afraid to know myself.
War is coming
Again and again.
Predicting by merely suggesting.

Black Sabbath - "God Is Dead?" Track Review, or Why Old Dudes Shouldn't Be Allowed to Leave Their Practice Space

Let's just jump right into it. I'm angry. I'm pissed. I had a lot ridding on this album emotionally and if “God is Dead?” is any indicator I'm in for one hell of a disappointment.

First off, what is up with that stupid question mark? Have you ever seen a question mark in a song title before? Is a question mark metal now or something? In fact, the whole premise of this song is quite arbitrary; Is there a God, isn't there a God, etc. These are questions we all ask, and they matter, but I don't like indecisiveness in my metal. I like it hard and pure. Fucking A. Slayer's been dealing with these themes since the 80s and I'm supposed to feel sorry for these old dudes who can't figure their shit out? No thanks. (For the record I don't like Slayer, they just felt like a great example in this moment.)

Second, where the fuck are all those great god damn riffs I've been hearing so much about? The first five minutes of this song are nothing but a cheap knock off of “Black Sabbath” the song with alternating loud-soft verses and choruses and some cheesy power chord-chord progressions thrown in so Ozzy can do his solo-era vocal melodyzing over the top. I mean gimme' a break, I heard this on their last album with Dio and the last two Ozzy solo records, is it somehow better now that they are together? Not really.

Next: The production, oh God the production. Just because Rick Rubin has a Gandalf like beard and scraggly “I haven't showered in a year” hair-do doesn't mean he knows shit about mixing Doom Metal. And let's face it, at nine minutes long and with an average BPM of probably like 80-95, that's exactly what this is. The Doom genre that was formed out of admiration of this great band is now more relevant than the band itself. Good God, they should have called this “The World is Dead.”

The one saving grace here is Ozzy's voice. Yes, I said it, I love the sound of Ozzy's drawling, ominous monotone. He's as musical as ever here in spite of his limitations and in fact is sounding better than ever in his old age what with the lower register and all. Additionally, Geezer's bass in parts is pretty cool. The man knows how to cut a bassline.

Now onto Bill Ward. For the record, I wasn't one who was moaning and groaning when the band and Bill announced they'd be parting ways for this record. I mean Tony and Geezer both put out a decent album in “The Devil You Know” without Bill on drums. But this new dude, Brad something-or-another, sounds so afraid to show any emotion in his playing that it literally sucks the life out of every measure. His playing is so stiff I could've programmed a better drum track. In fact, I might just to show how awful he is. But what do you expect? I mean the guy is probably like half Ozzy, Tony and Geezer's age and he's supposed to somehow relate to what they are doing? Furthermore, he was the drummer for Rage Against The Machine, I wouldn't be surprised if had a Raging (haha, get it?) hard-on every time he stepped into the studio with these dudes, I know I would’ve. He was probably afraid to take risks for fear of angering the "Godfathers of Heavy Metal." But Bill is the same as them in more than just age. He's been through the same trials and tribulations. He doesn't fear or revere the name Black Sabbath in the same way most metal musicians do, he was a part of it before it was anything. With time and wisdom and his indescribable style behind the kit, Bill could've done so much with this. Alas.

Last, those of you who followed Sabbath during their original reunion in the late-90s and early-2000s might remember a little song called "Scary Dreams" that was only played live a handful of times and was never released as a studio recording. Well, “God Is Dead” (I'm purposefully leaving out the question mark this time) is essentially that song. The length is about the same, the key is probably the same, the tempo is the same and the arrangement is absolutely the same. I can't tell you how tired I am of hearing “verse-chorus-verse-chorus-transition-bridge(double time, of course)-guitar solo-outro chorus refrain.” It may have worked on “Snowblind” and “Into The Void” and a handful of other songs, but it doesn't work here in the 21st century where we've heard it a thousand times since. Little known fact; supposedly the band narrowed down from 16 songs to only seven for this album. Yes, “God is Dead?” is one of those songs. Needless to say, I shant be buying the deluxe edition with “an extra disc of unreleased material.”

Well that's about it. I'm not a journalist. I'm just a dude who is very passionate about music and art. Maybe it doesn't get across due to my lack of “reporting” and proper journalistic technique. But I really don't give a fuck anymore. The world has jilted me when I deserved to be heard so here's to a big middle finger at the world. We can do better. We can all do better than this. Sure, maybe God IS dead, but it's starting to sound like good music died with him/her/it (probably a robot AI or genderless alien race, after all).