The Classic Metal Album Grudge Match:

Artist: Black Sabbath

Title: Mob Rules
Label: Warner Bros.
Release Date: 1981

Rating: 4 Skulls

 VS.
Title: Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
Label: Warner Bros.
Release Date: 1973

Rating: 5 Skulls
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    • Solomon's Review:
    When the infamous Black Sabbath is mentioned, the band's early career with Ozzy Osbourne is given the lion's share of attention. This is obvious: Black Sabbath, arguably, is the first true heavy metal band, the "ground of all being," the great "I Am" from which all that is loud and evil have sprung. One could say Ronnie James Dio's stint with the group is less important on the scale of influence, but there's no denying RJD is one of metal's greatest vocalists, and his pairing with metal's founding forefathers is a marrage that cannot be overlooked. Is it worthwhile or even fair to compare the two eras, Dio and Ozzy? Well, Ozzy is a legend by himself, and his part in band in its formative years is an institution, plain and simple. In the talent catagory, I think Dio wins the prize, hands down, but I really don't want to cause a rift here. Instead of thinking along the lines of Paranoid vs. Heaven and Hell, I like to just think about Black Sabbath as a mission in progress, a group that went through its ups and downs and kept on trucking, with different people contributing their own two bits along the way. I was never a huge Black Sabbath fan, and I can't say I would put one part of the band's history over the other. "Sabbath, Bloody, Sabbath" and "Into The Void" both rock, but so does "Heaven and Hell" and some of the stuff off the Dehumanizer record. Other people are probably more religious about this than I am, but Mob Rules is a worthy contribution to the Sabbath catalogue.

    First, you gotta admit Greg Hildebrandt created a striking cover for this one. Once you look closely and see the Luciferian image on the canvas, you have to wonder what religious/philosophical statement is implied here. Mob Rules certainly has the signature Sabbath stomp, seen in the heavy lilt of "Country Girl" and the endless trudge of "The Sign of the Southern Cross," but there's an updated sound here (well, for '81, anyway), continuing on from Heaven and Hell. "Turn Up The Night" and "The Mob Rules" are more upbeat and rocking than anything you'll find on Black Sabbath. "Voodoo" is a great track. This one reminds me of Motley Crue's "Looks That Kill" in that it revolves around a single riff that's played throughout the song but never really gets tired. "Falling Off The Edge of the World" is one of my favorites and it stands out from the rest of the pack with its blatant NWOBHM leanings in the driving verse section. Maybe Iommi had picked something up from Maiden? The combined effect of the clean, flanged guitar sound with the string-mimicking keys/synth in the intro is haunting. I never really recognized Iommi as a lead player, but his fiery solo at the end of "Over and Over" has a few choice vibrato/bends in it that stand out.

    In all, Mob Rules combines the heavier elements of the band's past with a looser, 80's rock feel that is only complemented by Dio's great voice, and it still sounds like a Sabbath record should. This is not one of the first albums I'd pull out as an 80's metal commerative piece, but this is weighty stuff when you think about the hair spray accident that happened a few years later.
    Mob Rules: 4 out of 5

    Death's Review:
    Just about everyone who likes hard rock or heavy metal can agree: Sabbath fucking rules. But look a little deeper, and there's not as much of a consensus. Which Sabbath do you like the best? Of course, the first cut is the Ozzy/Dio/others split. I like Dio, and love Mob Rules and Heaven and Hell as stand alone records, but I'm definitely in the Ozzy camp on this one.

    Then there is a further refinement: do you like the early, doomier, bluesier and more well- known, hits laden-records like Black Sabbath, Paranoid and Masters of Reality? Of course, we all do. But I personally prefer the more adventurous Sabbath. Volume 4 bridges the gap between eras, but I don't think Sabbath hit their full stride and fullest artistic potential until Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabbotage. It's like the Beatles: their early records were chock- full of pop hits, but later they became trippy and experimental. I like Never Say Die and Technical Ecstacy a lot, but perhaps by then things got a little too far away from the core. Admittedly the early albums are incredible, but perhaps they got too played out for me somewhere along the way. So to me, the pinnacle of the Sabbath career is a close battle between Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabbotage. I've arbitrarily chosen to honor the former record here.

    What a great fucking album. Opener "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" has two of the best riffs in metal, with the middle "Where can you run to?" part probably being a contender for all-time heaviest. Listen sometime to Anthrax's Among the Living -era cover to hear the power inherent in these chords. Ozzy's voice is at its most intense here as well, going so high-pitched (for him) that in the modern era it is clearly next to impossible for him to sing it. The next track, "A National Acrobat" gets really interesting, with different parts, an unconvential song structure, killer lyrics ("I am the world that hides the universal secret of all time. Destruction of the empty spaces is my one and only crime.") around a doomy-core the secret to its brilliance. Next up is "Fluff" a pretty little instrumental that remains worthwhile.

    Next up is "Sabbra Caddabra," one of my all-time favorite tracks. Ever. I have to admit I thought it was cool that Metallica covered this on Garage, Inc. I love the pain and emotion in Ozzy's voice on the "Lovely lady, make love all night long. Ooh Lovely lady, never do me wrong Ahh, I don't wanna leave you, I never wanna leave you, anymore, no more," part. Awesome. Some of his best work. "Killing yourself to Live" surely rivals it, however. Great lyrics ("Never give your trust away,You'll end up paying 'till your dying day."), and riffs that are heavier than sin. What more does a Sabbath fan want? "Who Are You" is slow, plodding, weird-sounding, lyrically existential with strong religious overtones, and definitely cool.

    "Looking for Today" has more great Ozzy vocals, and is the catchiest track on the record. Check out these insightful lyrics:

    Glamour trip so soon to slip
    Easy come but oh how quick it goes
    Ten foot tall but what a fall
    Hard to open yet so easy to close, yeah
    Front page news but so abused
    You just want to hide yourself away
    Over-paid, but soon you fade
    Because you're only looking for today, yeah

    I love it. And you should too.

    The album closes with the beautifully trippy and haunting "Spiral Architect," again one of my favorite songs ever and a perfect closer for this wild trip of an album. Existential lyrics, more peak-performance Ozzy vocals, and thoughtful, inspired music. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath brings it all together and is one of the greatest albums ever recorded. Sure, Mob Rules is a good record, but listen to the records side-by-side: there really is no comparison.
    Sabbath Bloody Sabbath: 5 out of 5
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