Nut Suite. Mini reviews of albums old and new. Minimum words. No fuss. No spoilers [?]. Occasional smugs.

Monday, June 17, 2013

BLACK SABBATH / 13 [2013]

13 is Black Sabbath's first studio album to feature vocalist Ozzy Osbourne since 1978's Never Say Die! and bassist Geezer Butler since 1994's Cross Purposes.
With Rick Rubin on board as producer, the heavy metal legends have A LOT to live up to.  So do they meet those expectations?  Well, yes and no.  A band like this could easily fall into cartoon caricatures of their former selves but Sabbath somehow manage to recapture the strengths and sound of their golden days.  Not to say it sits side by side with Paranoid or Master Of Reality but it certainly stands up on it's own two feet.  Now it's Rubin's tight and dry production that's the problem here.  It's almost as if he's trying to suffocate us with too much compression and distortion to fully enjoy the groove of the bluesy songs.  There's a few moments that try a bit too hard but it's mostly standard Sabbath material and sits just fine with me.

3½ tombs of doom & gloom out of 5

Songs Of Note: LonerZeitgeist

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