The End: Black Sabbath
- sixstrings17
- Mar 8, 2016
- 2 min read
Black Sabbath came out bombastic, gut pounding heavy, loud, dark, raw, and seals their fate as the fathers of metal music. This is a band that has survived change over the decades with many line-up changes and was ahead of its time. Without them, there likely wouldn't be metal music and all its variants. It is music borne out of the youthful working class frustration and anger of northern England and was panned by high-end socialites to the south. The term "heavy metal" was first coined to describe the band's music, and last night was truly diabolically heavy. Black Sabbath appealed to me the the very first time I heard their music. I was mostly into the Beatles until that point, but as the generation did before mine, their slow, dark, heavy sound was totally riveting. Their music is simplistic in arrangement but thunderous in execution. Ozzy's voice held up last night amazingly, while Tony Iommi's playing showed why he is considered the godfather of riffs. No band is as recognizable by opening chords or notes as Black Sabbath is. Until he came along, no one played the bass as powerfully as Geezer Butler in support of Iommi's dark guitar. Bill Ward, the original drummer is no longer with the band so Ozzy's own drummer Tommy Clufetos filled in magnificently. So there we were, part of the generational legion of fans standing for two hours taking in "The End". This, they say, is indeed the last tour the band will ever have. So I fell in line and bought my two t-shirts as memorabilia to a band that continues to appeal and relate to today's generation. How many bands are still around that had put out a number 1 album after 43 years as they did in 2013? The timelessness, longevity, and appeal of their music continues over the decades, and I suspect will do so long after we're all gone. This was a show not to be missed, and will last for a lifetime of listening memories. We stayed the night downtown, and took photos of a cool, quiet, beautiful night of downtown Vancouver on the way back to the hotel from Rogers Arena.
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