In 1979 Ozzy Osbourne was fired as the lead singer of Black Sabbath. Many semi-successful line-ups without Ozzy followed, so the 1997 reunion tour came as no surprise. An album in the original line-up turned out to be more difficult than expected. Thanks to the persistent producer Rick Rubin there is now a comeback record, although drummer Bill Ward is not participating. The bad luck was not over
… with that. The recordings were postponed because guitarist Tony Iommi had to be treated for cancer. Sick or not, Iommi's dragging riffs set the pace on 13. Unfortunately a real blast like Iron Man or Sabbath Bloody Sabbath is missing on this album. A pity, but somewhat understandable. Rubin hoped the group would return to their original sound. To this end, he showed the group their 1970 debut album and gave them the unorthodox commission: 'Forget your entire career and make a sequel to your debut'. Still, this album really does sound like a 2013 product, courtesy of Rubin's modern metal production. The result is decent, although 13 is in the shadow of the legendary first four Sab albums. Still, that is an excellent result, especially considering the band's recent setbacks. (PdK)more
