Agree Julio, I am a follower of the Tony Martin era Black Sabbath from the 1980’s etc, (except Forbidden). I always enjoyed the different take on the 80’s and earlier 90’s songs and the feel of that era. I have alway enjoyed the Seventh Star, it was a rather good different solo album from Iommi, with Hughes still singing like he did in the 70’s. Agree with the take on Iommi and that he lowered himself big time in all that post 2000’s contractual crap with the O$Bourne’s. Probably easier to say from where I sit no doubt, but still. Cheers.
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The Purple guys write as a team Fla, poor ole Tony is by all himself and worn out too. Mind you Ian Gillan live is sounding really worn out, he is 81 almost. These things happen in life. The old warriors are still doing what they want to do in that aspect, have to admire that they can still battle on. Especially Iommi with his health issues from 2012 onwards. What else are they going to do? Well you know what I mean. Cheers.
Am I now only allowed to comment when called upon, Latin Lover? 
I disliked Fused until last year or the year before when it was remastered. I sat down with it and heard it several times over in a concentrated fashion. I then did something mainly to annoy Herr MacGregor, I changed my mind about it! I now think it is a credible piece of modernist metal.
As for Seventh Star, it never did anything for me, coming after an album as fearlessly controversial and treading new ground as Born Again, it was way too safe for me, almost counter-revolutionary.
But then over the decades I have realized: Most hard rock and heavy metal fans are conservatively disposed! 
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We both are Lovers, Uwe.
Me, of music.
You, of the sound of your own voice.
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Can someone tell me which software generates the awful, synthetic sounding snare drum on this new single? The same snare sound that can be heard on 80% of all new melodic hard rock albums, robbing drummers of any personal identity.
The song Sleep Eternally by Lex Legion also has synthetic sounding drums. And Mikkey Dee is a great drummer, so it’s a shame.
There is nothing that makes me feel more like an old fart than when we are discussion music recording in the 2020’s. I agree, most drums sound the same these days while in the past, you could even hear what kind of snare the drummer used. And they even used different snare drums, depending on what the song needed.
Chances are the engineer or producer might stumble on this discussion, getting angry and asking themselves what kind of ignorants we are that doesn’t realise how much time they used to tweak this snare drum, and how dare we accuse them for using samples. Well, if samples aren’t used, what is the point of tweaking the real recording to the point that it sounds like a sample.
In the same vein, I ran across a video last night about someone analysing Roxanne by The Police. The song has some famous pauses that defies anything resembling a click track. Yes, because they didn’t use a click track. The video maker concluded that, “they must have been in the studio at the same time and looked at each other all the time!” Hmpf. That is exactly how music is supposed to be done if you ask this old grumpy man.
And don’t get me started on all young bands who even need cues in their in-ears for when the next verse starts when they are playing live. Learning a song isn’t even normal these days? Wow, I am really getting old…
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Trigger on the drum elements + audio samples you like and you’re done.
but also with products like fractal audio axe-fx iii you can simulate all the guitar sounds of your favorite guitarists and your favorite albums.
The sound engineer’s job has often become more of a DJ’s job nowadays with all the simulation technology that exists.
A really deep [non-purple] subject that should merit its own thread perhaps?
In my view, not all technology is bad, only the “convenient” and mediocre use of it brings it down.
I operate on an insignificant “spare time” audio level, but I do use - and love - Addictive Drums from Svante’s fellow countrymen XLN Audio.
I sometimes overlay 30% of their high-quality natural sounding samples beneath the actual acoustic live kit. It does help a lot when you record in a little room with non-stellar elements (including my engineer skills). So it’s a 70/30 balance at most.
What I don’t do is “time align” or “copy/paste” (learn the effin’ song and record as many takes as needed to get a single good one)
I only use Addictive Trigger for Kick/Snare (everything else is full natural) and I set it to track the actual performance’s dynamics. So the sample’s velocity varies following the human pulse.
It also helps NOT squashing the Drum Bus or the Mix Bus afterwards!!!
Errr…that’s it!
Regards, J.-
Alright Fla76, then I have to check him out 
I’ve only ever seen Iommi once (Sabbath in 1992) and it was a really good show. I then saw Page/Plant twice - Unledded was an interesting concept. Waking into Clarkesdale was probably the single worst concert experience I’ve had with a major act. The SECC in Glasgow never had great sound, but that night was abysmal. Page came on stage drenched in sweat and, to my ears, didn’t produce a competent solo all night
I will probably pick up the Iommi album though as I quite like the single.
This was both better than expected and a bit of a letdown. There is something going on in “uncanny valley” there. It is as if it’s almost but not quite like something I have heard before. Of course at that age making a soundalike of what you have done before is even to be expected. Tony is in fine shape for his age, but at the same time there is a lineup of Black Sabbath left that could cut another album that would be better than what he does just by himself (okay, techincally two - the band could also be literally Born Again 
) , but I’ll take what I get and will give the album a listen anyway once it’s out.
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Iommi is a craftsman, he never drops beneath a certain quality level. Some people don’t like Fused, I don‘t think Seventh Star is all that great, not all Sabbath albums are musical milestones, but nothing is outright junk either. I have the new album on order too.
As for his guitar playing, he has an immediately recognizable solo style and is a riffmeister, but with his chopped off phalanxes things like the Black Dog or Lazy riffs or the Highway Star solo are naturally technically beyond him for sheer physical reasons. He couldn‘t play Ten Years After‘s I‘m Going Home either.
Kudos however for him persevering against all odds and creating his own riff empire and music legacy.
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Of course Tony Iommi has recorded with choirs before, so yes indeed another approach to music that he is more than capable of. Let’s not forget the old Sabotage ‘classic’ Supertzar from 1975. Karin and a few other aficionados may not have heard these tracks before, I don’t know. Plus the Estonian ensemble Rondellus recorded an album of 70’s Sabbath classics, authentically. A wonderful sojourn that is for anyone interested in hearing Sabbath’s music from a ‘medieval’ perspective. Iommi’s music fits into old world music in many ways. He is much more than a modern day doom hard rock riff meister. Cheers.
Thanks for the Rondellus recommendation, Tassie boy, I wasn’t aware of that, a state of affairs that will be rectified subito!
2 posts were split to a new topic: Seventh Star remaster