Legendary pioneers of heavy metal Black Sabbath announced that they will be hitting the road for a full North American tour. The reunited original line-up of Ozzy Osbourne (vocals), Tony Iommi (guitar), and Geezer Butler (bass) are set to launch a full tour this summer in response to the overwhelming ticket sales for their four recently announced North American shows in Los Angeles, Seattle, Toronto, and Holmdel (NJ). The tour is in support of their upcoming album, 13, which comes out on June 13. It is the original line-up’s first new studio album in 35 years. Unfortunately for fans, original drummer Bill Ward did not record drums on the album, and as of right now, will not be joining the band for the tour. Black Sabbath were joined by Rage Against The Machine/Audioslave drummer Brad Wilk for the recording sessions. There is no word yet as to whether or not Wilk will be the band’s touring drummer as well, but speculations say he will not due to a rumored Rage Against The Machine reunion tour.
Black Sabbath are one of the most legendary artists of all time. True pioneers in music, they are largely responsible for creating the ‘metal’ genre, and have influenced countless bands like Metallica, Slayer, Rob Zombie, Korn, Slipknot, Iron Maiden, Mastodon, and countless others. The band formed in 1968 in Birmingham, England. In 1970, they unleashed their new brand of rock with their self-titled debut album. They put the ‘heavy’ in heavy metal, combining slow, heavy riffs with apocalyptic themes of horror, doom, and the occult.
Sabbath’s sophomore effort, released not even a year after their debut, stands today as one of the greatest albums of all time. Released
in September 1970, Paranoid became a blueprint for heavy music, spawning such hits as “Paranoid”, “Iron Man”, and “War Pigs”. A true masterpiece, every song on the album (except for the instrumental “Rat Salad”) is widely considered a signature song for the band. In 2003, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked Paranoid #130 on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time and Guitar World Magazine ranked it at #6 on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Albums of All-Time.
Black Sabbath released six more studio albums, before vocalist Ozzy Osbourne was dismissed from the band in 1978. After many more albums with numerous line-up changes, the original Sabbath reunited in 1997 and released a live album, Reunion, in 1997. The album also featured two new studio tracks. In 2012, they reunited once again, this time without drummer Bill Ward. Sabbath headlined Lollapalooza 2012, and Download Festival 2012 along with Metallica, Soundgarden, and The Prodigy. Over the last few months, Ozzy, Iommi, and Butler have been recording their first album together in 35 years. Black Sabbath are back, and the world is more than ready for the heavy. – by Matt Bishop
Black Sabbath – North American ’13’ Tour 2013
07/25 – Houston, Texas @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion+
07/27 – Austin, Texas @ Frank Erwin Center+
07/29 – Tampa, Fla. @ Live Nation Amphitheatre**
07/31 – West Palm Beach, Fla @ Cruzan Amphitheatre+
08/02 – Bristow, Va. @ Jiffy Lube Live~
08/04 – Holmdel, N.J. @ PNC Bank Arts Center*
08/06 – Detroit, Mich. @ DTE Energy Music Theatre+
08/08 – Uncasville, Conn. @ Mohegan Sun Arena+
08/10 – Philadelphia, Pa. @ Wells Fargo Center+
08/12 – Boston, Mass. @ Comcast Center^
08/14 – Toronto, Ontario @ Air Canada Centre*
08/16 – Tinley Park, Ill. @ First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre+
08/18 – Indianapolis, Ind. @ Klipsch Music Center+
08/22 – Vancouver, British Columbia @ Rogers Arena+
08/24 – Seattle, Wash. @ Gorge Amphitheatre*
08/26 – San Francisco, Calif. @ Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View+
08/28 – Irvine, Calif. @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre+
08/30 – Phoenix, Ariz. @ US Airways Center+
09/01 – Las Vegas, Nev. @ MGM Grand Garden Arena+
09/03 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ Los Angeles Sports Arena*
*Previously announced date
^On sale Friday, May 3
+On sale Saturday, May 4
~On sale Friday May 10
**On sale Saturday May 11