Black Sabbath
Master Of Reality

THE REVIEW

In the first phase of their career, Black Sabbath was an indisputable example of continuity (from 1970 to 1978, eight studio albums), and so after the double release in 1970, the following year sees the release of the third chapter of the saga. Essential cover: purple writing on a black background. Another great album, only slightly inferior to the first two, if only for the first two tracks, which are not particularly brilliant and don't wholly convince.

"Sweet Leaf" is an ode to marijuana, which Ozzy sings accompanied by a raw instrumental (in the best sense of the word), with an almost grunge taste, although Nirvana will always deny being inspired by it.

"After Forever" doesn't leave much to say for itself, except that it strikes for two reasons. First: the Christian optimism of the lyrics; second: the appearance of the keyboard, a novelty for Sabbath. Instead, in the following tracks, we find a masterpiece after another.

"Embryo" is a twenty-second acoustic guitar fugue in medieval style, launching one of Black Sabbath's most famous tracks, perhaps the most impactful live: "Children Of The Grave", an immense, incredibly powerful ride, terribly freak as it talks about children demanding world peace from adults, with a typically groovy vibe, attacking the listener for its entire five-minute duration.

"Orchid", harmonious and delicate (just like an orchid blooming), is, along with "Embryo", the second of two acoustic interludes that Black Sabbath thoughtfully places at key points to let a heavy and dark album "breathe".

"Lord of this World" slows down the pace, creating a darker and more majestic weave, with riffs carved in stone, yet never static and boring.

"Solitude" continues the path started by "Planet Caravan" on "Paranoid," that of the slow tracks: a poignant ode to spleen, with Geezer's beloved twilight and decadent tones.

The album closes with the very dark and heavy "Into The Void", one of the most stoner tracks ever, with its circular, slow-burning riff, like a rocket launched into the void. The theme is once again a vision of the world's end merging with reflections on the consequences of the misuse of technology.