The wait is over: Tony Iommi has announced his first solo album in 21 years
After speculation reached fever pitch earlier this week, Black Sabbath legend Tony Iommi has officially announced his first solo album in 21 years, From the Dark. Arriving 23 October via BMG, the album will be the Godfather of Heavy Metal’s first solo album since 2005’s Fused.
Tony Iommi’s riffs are legendary and have literally given birth to and shaped an entire genre, but he couldn’t do it alone, and so he’s pieced together a backing band consisting of Norwegian vocalist Jørn Lande, Mercyful Fate bassist Becky Baldwin, and former Robbie Williams drummer Karl Brazil.
READ MORE: Tony Iommi awarded an MBE for services to music and charity
Tony Iommi serves as co-producer of the record alongside Mike Exeter, who is credited on Black Sabbath’s final album, 13, released in 2013.
The announcement arrives alongside the launch of new single World Alone, which you can check out below:
As you’d expect from one of the founders of heavy metal, the track is rooted firmly in high-gain guitar riffs and a thunderous rhythm section. Iommi gets creative on the accompanying music video, which features a protagonist named The Believer thrust into a “twisted video game to save his life and ultimately find salvation”.
The rest of the album is said to be similarly heavy, with Black Times a “sucker-punch strike that takes no prisoners”, and Beyond the Dead featuring a “stately and sinister riff interwoven with epic orchestration”.
The track was premiered today at a special global streaming event hosted in Iommi and Black Sabbath’s hometown of Birmingham, England, a “stone’s throw” from the famous Black Sabbath Bridge.
Scent of Dark and Deified – two other tracks released by the Sabbath guitarist in recent years – will later be released as part of a deluxe-edition CD.
“It’s an album we’ve really enjoyed making. We’re not trying to prove anything – it’s a great album, it rocks!” says Tony Iommi.
Check out the full tracklist of From the Dark below:
Over The Violent Sun
Black Times
World Alone
Beyond The Dead
Stormwatcher
Death Wake
Return Of The Arbalist
Legacy
The album’s announcement lands just a few days after the first anniversary of Ozzy Osbourne’s death. Last week, Iommi paid tribute to his fallen Black Sabbath bandmate.
“It’s now a year since Ozzy’s passing and I still can’t believe that he’s not with us,” the guitarist wrote. “I watch him on YouTube and it feels like he’s still here with us. We always stayed in touch, almost every week or so and we’d usually talk about our ailments and then about what we’d been doing that particular week.
“The fans have been absolutely brilliant and the love and respect that they have shown for him has just been amazing. I’m so glad that we were able to play one final show with the original line up of Sabbath at the Back To The Beginning show in our home town of Birmingham! There will never be another Ozzy. I miss you my dear friend.”
From the Dark is available to preorder now.
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