To date, I have never seen Black Sabbath live–Heaven and Hell notwithstanding. Hey, I grew up in the barren plains of Calgary back when that description was at least somewhat accurate, and considering that they haven’t really done anything since the late 90’s, well, there ya go. Of course, I know that their bassist isn’t the only geezer in the band anymore, and they’ve got some nobody on drums for this tour, but hey, I can’t help but be at least a little excited for the gig at the ACC on Wednesday.
Put it this way: I stayed home from work to buy my tix the minute the presale started. Somehow, I still only ended up in Row 33 of the floors. Don’t ask me how many seats they put aside for VIPs–either that, or there’s a whole shitload of speedy computers out there! Still, I was only about a handful of rows closer for Judas Priest’s “farewell” tour, so I’m sure it’s still a decent vantage point, but man, you know a band is getting old when they have assigned seating on the floor. Gone are the days of lining up early and rushing to the front, eh?
As for the new album, well, if Priest’s Angel of Retribution taught me anything, it’s not to buy into the hype of a “glory lineup” comeback record. (Maiden’s Brave New World was actually pretty decent, though I haven’t really liked anything they’ve put out since.) With that said, 13 more or less met my lowered expectations; hey, these guys simply aren’t gonna recapture the magic of the 60’s when they’re well into their 60’s… which leaves me wondering what sorta stage show we’ll see next week.
When I saw Deep Purple last year, I felt like I was at a corpse-popsicle festival. Not only does Ian Gillan look downright decrepit these days, but the stands were packed with old fogies, the kind who’d actually yell “Down in front!” ‘n shit… What a weird trip, man.
On the other hand, AC/DC hadn’t yet hit their 60s last time I saw ’em (December ’08), and they put on a solid stage show at the SkyDome, although I was way too far from the stage to see the wrinkles on their faces, heh heh. Considering that they’re playing the local hockey barn, I’d expect a similar stage production from Sabbath–it’s just a matter of whether Ozzy’s voice, Iommi’s hands and Geezer’s fingers can hold up.
One way or another, I’ll still be crossing the biggest name off my Band Bucket List–y’know, bands I gotta see before they die. (On that note, Get Well Soon Lemmy!)
Peace,
Greg
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