{"id":13057,"date":"1976-09-25T00:00:23","date_gmt":"1976-09-25T00:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=13057"},"modified":"2013-07-20T11:33:07","modified_gmt":"2013-07-20T11:33:07","slug":"album-review-black-sabbath-technical-ecstasy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/album-review-black-sabbath-technical-ecstasy\/","title":{"rendered":"BLACK SABBATH – Technical Ecstasy (1976) | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

BLACK SABBATH
Technical Ecstasy<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nVertigo (1976)<\/span>
Rating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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For some, Black Sabbath<\/a>\u2019s seventh opus, Technical Ecstasy<\/em>, was the beginning of the end. Others see the platter in a different light, appreciating it for what it is; a fantastic album that merely couldn\u2019t match the six that had gone before it. It wasn\u2019t that Sabbath was running out of ideas but merely that they had written so much amazing material before that there was always going to be a writer\u2019s block of sorts.<\/p>\n

Even so, this eight-track opus, recorded in Miami, is still consistent enough to suggest that the mighty Sabs were in no hurry to vacate their lofty perch. Of course, nobody realised that within a few years Ozzy Osbourne would have flown the nest, leaving Sabbath in dire straits \u2013 albeit for a short while.<\/p>\n

And so, Technical Ecstasy<\/em> doesn\u2019t quite live up to its name, and the album cover leaves me cold, Sabbath never truly consistent in their imagery but proving that the music mattered. The opus opens with \u2018Back Street Kids\u2019, a dense sounding rocker that suggests this album is going to be travelling on a more direct route to the ears instead of spending much of its time frolicking in those strange voids. \u2018Back Street Kids\u2019 is a rather basic tune \u2013 if one compares it to so much that has gone before \u2013 and it seems to have more in common with The Who than anything remotely metal; Bill Ward\u2019s drums cartwheel throughout and Tony Iommi\u2019s guitar sound has a more classic, progressive feel.<\/p>\n

\u2018You Won\u2019t Change Me\u2019 begins life as a sorrowful dirge, harking back to the days of Black Sabbath\u2019s inception. The riff has quicksand qualities as the keyboards moan and groan behind it \u2013 again I\u2019m reminded of The Who at their most pensive. It\u2019s still a solid rock track, but lacks the spark to truly ignite the album, and the fact it weighs in at almost seven minutes makes it a rather unpleasant journey as it lumbers.<\/p>\n

The injection of the piano during \u2018You Won\u2019t Change Me\u2019 is interesting, but if you\u2019re looking for full on tinkering then Bill Ward\u2019s Ringo Starr moment comes in the form of \u2018It\u2019s Alright\u2019. Yep, it\u2019s a Beatles-esque ditty that drifts by without any real effect, leaving me to question as to why such a track was even included. Here, Sabbath seem out of their depth, carving out a rather cringeworthy few minutes that sound more suited to a television programme. Thankfully, \u2018Gypsy\u2019 ends side one of the record in a blaze of glory, building on a platform of robust rolling drums and churning riff.<\/p>\n

Geezer Butler comes to the fore on the bluesy \u2018All Moving Parts (Stand Still)\u2019 \u2013 his dominant bass eases through this number like a snake in the woods \u2013 while \u2018Rock \u2018N\u2019 Roll Doctor\u2019 comes crashing through the speakers on a swirling guitar and pounding drum. This is Black Sabbath opting for a piece of honky tonk rock \u2019n\u2019 roll, although many years later this has all the buffoonery of a Status Quo track, so simple is its structure.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the sweeping \u2018She\u2019s Gone\u2019 is another reflective ballad \u2013 proof that Sabbath can write ballads just as good as anyone else. The strings and acoustics seem to caress Ozzy Osbourne\u2019s voice, as once again he muses over another lost love. But just when we thought all hope had diminished, the epic \u2018Dirty Women\u2019 comes creeping from under a boulder. It\u2019s the sort of track that evokes images of Sabotage<\/em><\/a> (1975) as Ozzy yearns for a streetwalking femme fatale. Without a doubt it\u2019s the album\u2019s most atmospheric rocker, and my favourite track on the album.<\/p>\n

And there we have it. Not quite the ecstasy we had hoped for, but still another masterful record by heavy metal\u2019s greatest ever band.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BLACK SABBATHTechnical Ecstasy Vertigo (1976)Rating: 8\/10 For some, Black Sabbath\u2019s seventh opus, Technical Ecstasy, was the beginning of the end. Others see the platter in a different light, appreciating it for what it is; a fantastic album that merely couldn\u2019t match the six that had gone before it. It wasn\u2019t that Sabbath was running out […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13057","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-black-sabbath"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13057","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13057"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13057\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13078,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13057\/revisions\/13078"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13057"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13057"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13057"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}