Black Sabbath worship is almost a genre in itself, as evidenced by bands like Sleep, Electric Wizard and Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats. With the passing of Ozzy Osbourne, we wanted to showcase his legacy with 10 bands he undoubtedly influenced.
From singers who mimick Ozzy‘s iconic wails or riff masters who kneel to Tony Iommi, here’s 10 underrated Black Sabbath worship albums.
With big riffs a’plenty, the 2008 debut from Freedom Hawk is Black Sabbath worship with a little extra desert rock heat. Those Ozzy-like vocals come compliments of T.R. Morton, who delivers a somewhat less tortured version of the Prince of Darkness.
Like Sleep or Electric Wizard, Sumerlands is Sabbath worship while being fiercely unique. Vocalist Phil Swanson sounds like a celestial Ozzy Osbourne-meets-Rob Halford, while the guitar work on Sumerlands switches between big, mid-tempo Sabbath riffs and faster psychedelic licks.
Why did this band have to break up? Hailing from Spain, this one-and-done band sounds like Sabbath worship recorded in Count Orlok’s castle. The March of the Undead is a fantastic four-track full-length with funeral doom riffs and vocals that sound like a softer, more mystical Ozzy Osbourne.
Bring on the Orchid! The band’s 2011 debut, Capricorn, is pure occult rock in bell bottom jeans. With a band name taken from a Black Sabbath track, Orchid might as well have been Tony Iommi‘s neighbors in 1960s Aston.
It’s crazy that an album like this was made in 1993. Completely ignoring all cultural touchstones of the era, Sweden’s Count Raven refused all things flannel for complete and total Sabbath worship. You’d swear Ozzy himself was singing on this album if you didn’t check the liner notes.
Another piece of Sabbath that got transported to the ‘90s, Canada’s sHEAVY dropped some sick worship on their debut, Blue Sky Mind. It’s essentially lo-fi Black Sabbath with plenty of psych wah pedal action to give you that classic late ‘60s / early ‘70s fix.
It’s noodley Sabbath! If you’re into big Sabbath riffs and killer Priest licks, Pagan Altar‘s Mythical & Magical may be your new jam. Pagan Altar even transition into faster, groovin’ sections at the halfway point of their songs. Now that’s what I call Sabbath worship!
What a godlike guitar tone! All the way from Japan, Church of Misery make deranged Sabbathian music about serial killers. Guitarist Tomohiro Nishimura essentially took the Matt Pike path of Tony Iommi worship, taking classic Sabbath doom and infusing it with criminal amounts of THC.
Alfred Morris III was one of the few African-American pioneers of the doom metal sound, forming the band Force in 1976. He’d later create the Sabbath worship act Iron Man, which closely resembled the Ronnie James Dio era of the iconic band. Just listen to Morris crush that Iommi style guitar.
Hails to Norway’s Purple Hill Witch! When it comes to modern-day Black Sabbath worship, the band’s 2017 album Celestial Cemetery gets the job done like few others. These dudes stole a copy of the original 1970 blueprint for sure.
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