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Staff
Reviews 85
Soundoffs 78
News Articles 19
Band Edits + Tags 178
Album Edits 247
Album Ratings 2396
Objectivity 65%
Last Active 01-03-23 11:21 pm
Joined 06-03-16
Review Comments 26,165
| Black Sabbath: An Honest Ranking
After almost a year of sifting through their massive back catalogue, and then a further couple months procrastinating this list, here is my ranking of the classic metal band through and through. | | 19 |  | Black Sabbath
Born Again
If “Trashed” doesn’t immediately convince you to stop listening, I don’t know what will. I won’t act like there’s nothing redeemable about the album, as there a couple songs that come close to being good, like “Disturbing the Priest” and “Zero the Hero,” but atrocious production and unlistenable vocals make everything decent about this just not worth bothering with. 3.5/10 | | 18 |  | Black Sabbath
Forbidden
While the hate for this is a bit overblown, it’s easy to see why someone would utterly despise this album. The majority of the songs are just plain boring, and even when it takes risks they never pay off. Even with a couple of really solid ballads like “I Won’t Cry for You” and “Can’t Get Close Enough,” the album is so forgettable I honestly thought the name was “Forgotten” for the longest time. 4/10 | | 17 |  | Black Sabbath
Seventh Star
While it’s not a bad album by any stretch of the imagination, it certain doesn’t do the discography any favors. At its worst its simply uninteresting and at its best its a fine culmination of the most recognizable glam cliches of the 80s. There are a couple songs off of here worth an ear, but not much more can be recommended. 6/10 | | 16 |  | Black Sabbath
Never Say Die!
The end of the original Ozzy era was easily foreseeable by the end of this album. Everything good about Technical Ecstasy was squandered in this outing, and while there are a surprising number of good tracks to be found, such as “Airdance” and the Bill Ward voiced “Swinging the Chain,” the lows are achingly low, and change needed to happen before progress could be made. 6/10 | | 15 |  | Black Sabbath
The Eternal Idol
While the rest of the album might not live up to its surprisingly great opener, this album was the sound of a band finally on the right track. Tony Martin lended stability to the band once again, and the quality of his albums would grow steadily from now on. 6.5/10 | | 14 |  | Black Sabbath
Headless Cross
We’re getting there, folks. There’s honestly not a song on here that isn’t good, even if there’s only one I would call great in “When Death Calls.” It’s a surprisingly consistent record, and only proved Tony Martin to be a respectable and reliable frontman. 7/10 | | 13 |  | Black Sabbath
Tyr
The Martin albums just keep getting better and better, there’s three in a row right there, chronologically improving bit by bit. This one is arguably the most singular Sabbath had released in a very very long time, and the great opener is definitely worth checking out even if you’re planning on ignoring the majority of their back catalogue. 7/10 | | 12 |  | Black Sabbath
Dehumanizer
The band unexpectedly got back together with Dio after years with Martin in hopes for coming back to the greatness of past. While they didn’t quite achieve it, there’s a handful of great songs off of here, and one incredible ballad, “Too Late,” which is likely their best song since the previous Dio album they put out. 7.5/10 | | 11 |  | Black Sabbath
Mob Rules
Speaking of, running up the next position is their previous Dio album. Not as successful as Heaven and Hell in quality, there are still many winner to be heard from this record, including “The Sign of the Southern Cross” and “Over and Over.” If there’s one thing that the Dio albums benefit from, its a singular vision and tone, something that for all its faults can be felt very clearly on this album. 7.5/10 | | 10 |  | Black Sabbath
Vol. 4
Argued by many to be one of the best Black Sabbath albums out there, I can’t help but wonder why. It’s definitely a good album, and there are some standouts that arise when they try new sounds, but even the best of it sounds complacent. They’re treading water here, and its as if they know it. 7.5/10 | | 9 |  | Black Sabbath
Cross Purposes
After being callously tossed to the side by the band after the hand the opportunity to work with Dio again, Martin ended up fronting his best Sabbath album before the fall that was “Forbidden.” That aside, Cross Purposes is a really good metal album across the board, and one that needs to be heard by any Sabbath fan around. It’s got a great mix of the heavy riffs of old and the engaging vocals and deep mood that have always been a staple of Martin’s era. A hugely underrated record. 7.5/10 | | 8 |  | Black Sabbath
Technical Ecstasy
Speaking of hugely underrated, this album here gets a ridiculous amount of hatred. Some of Sabbath’s best ballads are on this album, including the surprisingly proggy “You Won’t Change Me,” and another Ward great in “It’s Alright.” I’ll admit that this record has its faults and is a bit scattershot, but they’re trying new things and genuinely sound like they’re enjoying themselves. And that’s what it’s all about isn’t it? 7.5/10 | | 7 |  | Black Sabbath
Sabotage
One of the craziest and most schizophrenic Black Sabbath albums out there, Sabotage takes the metal Sabbath and crashes it with the experimental Sabbath to make what’s generally accepted by all fans to be one damn fine album. Also, Megalomania is awesome. | | 6 |  | Black Sabbath
13
A genuine surprise comeback after a terrible album and years and years of no releases, Black Sabbath regains (most of) the original lineup and miraculously recaptures what made them great in the first place. You’ve got some great blues jams (“Damaged Soul”), some surprising sequels (“Zeitgeist”), and otherwise just some solid and surprisingly modern metal jams from the legends of all that is heavy. 7.5/10 | | 5 |  | Black Sabbath
Heaven and Hell
I will admit that I don’t consider this to be the absolute classic that many do here, but it certainly is a great Sabbath album and serves as a much needed comeback from the mess that was Never Say Die. What we’ve got is a new, full sound that sounds fresh just as it does sound eternally Sabbath, and I have a feeling it’ll grow on me more as time goes on. 8/10 | | 4 |  | Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
With the thunderous hell of the breathtaking opener, heavy metal was born. While it may not be as refined some of their later material, its pure ingenuity and enjoyable nature (i.e. “The Wizard”) make it more than simply a curiousity in the history of music, and a genuinely great staple of heavy metal even today. 8/10 | | 3 |  | Black Sabbath
Master of Reality
What can I say? It may be slightly overrated in the grand scheme of things, but I’ll be damned if “Sweet Leaf” isn’t a fucking jam. The riff is absolutely brutal and crunchy, and Ozzy’s vocals are among the best he’s ever done here. “Children of the Grave” is a ridiculously good slice of atmosphere and heaviness, and marks up as one of their greatest works ever. And “Solitude” is just absolutely lovely. The rest on here is pretty great too I guess. 8.5/10 | | 2 |  | Black Sabbath
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
After a rut of faltering direction with “Vol. 4,” Sabbath surprisingly hit a home run with a mix of the heaviness they’ve always called home and surprising artist merit in boundless energy and experimentation throughout this truly great album. “A National Acrobat,” “Fluff,” and “Sabbra Cadabra” form a weird and delicious 1-2-3 punch that’s probably the best Sabbath have ever achieved. 8.5/10 | | 1 |  | Black Sabbath
Paranoid
An elaboration of the potential that their debut promised, Black Sabbath release one of the first and best metal albums of all time, infusing depth and variety to a genre that was barely born yet. Music, and probably, would be forever changed, and with cuts like “Iron Man” and “War Pigs,” its definitely for the best. 9.5/10 | |
neekafat
05.21.17 | Here we go | butcherboy
05.21.17 | Good ranking.. agreed that vol 4 is them squeezing the very last out of their initial formula.. 13 was such a throwback moment, I loved it.. old madmen still being mad | Papa Universe
05.21.17 | First 4 are probably in this order on every single Black Sabbath list. Can't really say 8 deserves to be that high, though. Still, it ain't as bad as people say; it's just not that outstanding either. | neekafat
05.21.17 | @Unique really? I also thought SBS was a bit underrated usually. Yeah Idk I really enjoyed it for some reason
@butcher glad you agree! It never really did much for me | NeroCorleone80
05.21.17 | 3 > 1 > 7 > 4 >2 >10 | JamieTwort
05.21.17 | Horrendous ranking. | wham49
05.21.17 | absolute blasphemy having vol 4 behind anything other than other Ozzy releases | neekafat
05.21.17 | Glad you guys are enjoying this lol | wham49
05.21.17 | I would of even accepted 4 after H&H but a martin album, BOOOOO HISSSS | guitarded_chuck
05.21.17 | i agree 13 was surprisingly good but ye vol 4 is actually dope | Divaman
05.21.17 | 1 is right on. | ShadowRemains
05.21.17 | "The rest on here is pretty great too I guess."
describing into the void as "the rest" yeah no | neekafat
05.22.17 | @wham, I knew I was gonna get shit for Cross Purposes lol
@guitarded, yeah definitely surprised by that one.
@Shadow, just didn't jump out at me man, idk | neekafat
05.22.17 | @Diva, perfect metal album | neekafat
05.22.17 | Damn this took forever to write | thefloydios
05.29.17 | Agree with alot of points here, wery well written. Vol 4 is definitely the weakest album from Black Sabbath up to Sabotage but I'd still rank it higher.My personal favourite is Black Sabbath, love the jams on it. | thefloydios
05.29.17 | Im gonna make my own list in the future. I still have to hear the tony martin era | neekafat
07.04.17 | Can't wait to see it man! Thanks! |
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