Black Sabbath
Tyr

THE REVIEW

In 1990, Black Sabbath released the third album with their most underrated singer, the fifth in their history (after Ozzy, R. J. Dio, Gillan, and Hughes): Tony Martin. The band (completed by the indispensable Iommi on guitars, Murray on bass, Powell on drums, and Nicholls on keyboards) is musically light-years away from the original (pioneers of doom) but gets closer to the one with Dio; it is therefore a mix of hard rock and epic with lyrics inspired by Norse mythology.

The album opens with one of its best songs: "Anno Mundi". Opened by a sweet arpeggio and a Latin choir, the song is characterized by a beautiful chorus in which Martin exclaims: As the wind in the night blows cold, your eyes are burning. The second track is the very fast "The Law Maker", where the spotlight is taken by Iommi's guitars (with beautiful riffs and solos) and the drums (with its kicks on the bass). The third song is the wonderful "Jerusalem" with truly evocative keyboards and a chorus that is damn heavy and melodic at the same time. Number 4 is also the longest on the album (6.44 min) "The Sabbath Stones", with a cadenced rhythm in the verses, a chorus for acoustic guitar, and a breathtaking instrumental gallop at the end. It is followed by a mini-suite divided into 3 songs: "The Battle of Tyr", an instrumental for keyboard, "Odin's Court", played with only acoustic guitar and vocals, and "Valhalla", masterfully played by all and with a very inspired Martin. "Feels Good to Me" is a ballad with blues undertones (a video was even made for it) while the earthquaking "Heaven in Black" closes it, fast and direct.

Ultimately, an album unjustly left in the shadows just because it wasn't played by the most representative line-ups of this band with a long and glorious career. Worth rediscovering.