Black Sabbath
Paranoid

To highlight the greatness of this band among many successes and masterpieces, there is an album, certainly the greatest of Black Sabbath: "Paranoid", the same "Paranoid" that was the first metal album in history, the album that sparked Doom. But above all, I can't fathom how four kids, just a few months after their debut (Black Sabbath itself), managed to produce such a masterpiece.

The Kiss, before reaching an album like "Destroyer," had a long way to go, and AC/DC, before arriving at works like "Back In Black" or "Highway To Hell," had to mature a lot. But here they are, carefree, in 1970, presenting themselves to England with an unparalleled work. With an album far from the esotericism of the previous one but with politically engaged lyrics. If the technical and instrumental work of the first album was really good, here it has improved a lot. Even though the blues influences are still felt, here Iommi manages to definitively stamp what will be the definitive style of Black Sabbath (even if in the future they will try musical experiments like in the case of "Never Say Die"). If subsequent masterpieces like "Heaven And Hell" or "Sabbat Bloody Sabbath" are recognized as such, in my opinion, there can't be a comparison with "Paranoid" also because the aforementioned works were done by a mature band with years of work behind them and not by four kids just starting out.

Listening to this album is like embarking on a psychedelic journey through the cold English lands, the impressions it gives are always those sad, sinister, and melancholic feelings that Sabbath has accustomed us to over the years. Here comes the first track: "War Pigs" which, as the title shows, wants to be a denunciation of war, "Generals gathered in their masses, just like witches at black masses, Evil minds that plot destruction, Sorcerer of death's construction, In the fields, the bodies burning as the war machine keeps turning, Death and hatred to mankind are poisoning their brainwashed minds". The track initially is a continuous back and forth between voice and guitar while the drums provide an excellent background. Needless to say, the solo, in my opinion, is among the best achieved by Sabbath. Right after, the sound waves of a new song (and what a song) capture us to transport our concentration to the first real big hit single of Black Sabbath, namely the title track "Paranoid", the track is very short for Black Sabbath's standards (only 2:52 min), but this means nothing as the track is beautiful and I am sure many put it at the top of their personal charts. If the Sab have been heavy so far (in the good sense of the word, meaning loaded and dark, not boring as it might be understood) and melancholic, this song is less sad and more pleasant compared to previously gloomy pieces, very beautiful and with really fast guitar and bass riffs, it can contend alongside "Iron Man" and "War Pigs" for the "title" of the best track on the album.

After this track, we are faced with a song that, at first glance, may leave you open-mouthed because it is not in the Sabbathian style we are used to: "Planet Caravan", the track is very, very relaxing, Ozzy's voice transforms to become dreamlike while the bass and drums lead us into a most pleasant state of relaxation. The song tells of a caravan traveling through the universe, and it is precisely an impression of universal ecstasy that this track conveys (excuse the big words, but I think they really express the concept well). "Iron Man", the first metal song in history, with an opening riff as famous at least as "Smoke On The Water", the song is particularly hard and powerful, the virtuosity performed by the drums are really technical and well-accomplished, the solo is a masterpiece and Butler's bass becomes faster and more fundamental than ever in a song that exploits its potential to the fullest. The lyrics are also nice, talking about an iron man despised for his difference who seeks revenge. "Electric Funeral" is a track where, from the beginning, you can hear distorted guitars and a thundering bass that perfectly marks the rhythm of this beautiful track, which like track 1 is politically engaged and denounces the atomic bomb that will turn us, according to Ozzy, into a great electric funeral pyre. The track is also beautiful from a drumming point of view where Ward does not fail and keeps rhythm excellently, merging with an increasingly powerful bass.

Here comes "Hand Of Doom" where, in my opinion, Ward's groove is truly cutting-edge, in full Sabbath style after a calm beginning comes the instrumental explosion that calms down again to make room for the voice, then explodes into a series of virtuoso performances by the mustachioed Iommi and Butler. The harder part of the song comes abruptly with much-accelerated rhythm, allowing a brief guitar solo to start, which quickly disappears to let bass and drums "duet". A truly excellent piece where the Sab give yet another demonstration of their competence with instruments and especially with tempo changes, and believe me, there are plenty in this song. Coming next is the instrumental piece "Rat Salad" dedicated to the drums (except for the initial intro), ladies and gentlemen, here we touch the science fiction, the track is something inhuman, Ward overwhelms every neuron with a drum solo worthy of a Grammy. I sincerely do not feel like comparing this track to another far superior masterpiece like "Moby Dick" by LedZep, but the fact remains that "Rat Salad" is breathtaking. And now that with "Fairies Wear Boots" our journey within the universe of Mr. Iommi & Co. concludes, this song has nothing to envy compared to the others. The majority of the song is instrumental (it is useless to repeatedly emphasize the technical prowess of Iommi, Ward, and Butler), the track excellently closes this masterpiece album which, in my opinion, will remain unsurpassed in the history of Sabbath.

Giving 5 stars to this album seemed like an insult because the actual score it deserves is 10 with honors, masterpieces like this will be very few produced in the history of music, and even now few albums hold a comparison with "Paranoid". I hope I have written a nice review because I put a lot of effort into it.