Black Sabbath: The Vault by Paul Elliot
Without Black Sabbath, I wouldn’t be writing this and you wouldn’t be reading this… it’s that simple. Published by Carltonbooks, (available to order here)….
Ian Gillan
Just a few more sleeps to the Sabbath gig…
To date, I have never seen Black Sabbath live–Heaven and Hell notwithstanding. 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.
Book review: Sabbath Bloody Sabbath by Joel McIver
Covering not just the Ozzy period of Sabbath, but also the times when Ozzy wasn’t there which produced marvelous music, the Dio years were outstanding, and the Tony Martin era produced some superb and sadly underrated music. A splendid read!
Deep Purple @ Hamilton Place, Hamilton ON, February 13, 2012
“Veteran hard rockers Deep Purple are either insane or still some of the hardest working musicians in show business – there is no other explanation to describe their decision to tour Canada coast to coast in February. Even the most grizzled tour dogs usually avoid going nationwide in our frozen home and native land, but with its members now well into their sixties the quintet stopped down in my current hometown, Hamilton ON, for an early week show on Monday, February 13th that was nearly halfway through their Canadian only tour.”
Live review by Sean Palmerston; Concert photos by Albert Mansour
Deep Purple is touring Canada in February like it’s 1974. If only they’d bring back those ’70s ticket prices!
By the time you read this, tickets for the Deep Purple gig at Massey Hall next year will have just gone on sale. The band will be spending the entire month of February in our country on a 17-date Canadian tour that includes not one, but two gigs in Newfoundland, five concerts in Ontario, and at least one show in every other province except PEI and Quebec. I could be wrong, but I don’t think that a major non-Canadian recording artist has embarked on a cross-country tour of this magnitude in decades. Too bad they couldn’t turn back the clock on those ticket prices…
Cancer Bats Born Again as… Bat Sabbath!
On July 10, 2011 Toronto heavy rockers Cancer Bats went through some changes. Liam Cormier, Scott Middleton, Mike Peters and Jaye Schwarzer were swept into a void at the Sonisphere Festival in Stevenage, England, and when they re-emerged they became… Bat Sabbath, a hardcore Black Sabbath cover band. The Bat’s set, which was meant to be a one-off post-Slipknot after-party, attracted 5,000 bangers. More importantly, it captured the imagination of promoters. As such, starting this December, inbetween recording sessions for their fourth full-length album, Bat Sabbath will once again emerge from that hole in the sky and perform 11 dates across central Ontario and Quebec.
Aaron Brophy interviews Bat Sabbath’s Liam Cormier about this upcoming December tour
Classic Albums Revisited: Black Sabbath’s Born Again
“With the recent UK deluxe reissues of the mid-eighties Black Sabbath albums Seventh Star and The Eternal Idol creating quite a buzz about those releases once again I thought it might be time to revisit my favourite under-heralded Sabs relic. Born Again, the band’s 1983 release and only one to feature noted vocalist Ian Gillan, is one of the most dividing releases ever to bore the Black Sabbath moniker. it is one of those records that you either love or loathe. There is no middle ground needed, and none provided.”
Album review by Sean Palmerston