TONY IOMMI TO RELEASE SOLO RECORDINGS WITH GLENN HUGHES ON VINYL FOR THE FIRST TIME

TONY IOMMI TO RELEASE SOLO RECORDINGS WITH GLENN HUGHES ON VINYL FOR THE FIRST TIME

‘THE 1996 DEP SESSIONS’ AND THE 2005 ‘FUSED’ ALBUM TO BE RELEASED ON LIMITED COLOURED VINYL, DIGISLEEVE CD AND DIGITAL ON OCTOBER 4TH VIA BMG.

LISTEN TO THE NEW DOUBLE A SIDE SINGLE ‘GONE’ / ‘SAVIOUR OF THE REAL’

 AND PRE-ORDER HERE https://tonyiommi.lnk.to/depfusedPR

The relationship between iconic Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi and English musician Glenn Hughes stretches far back into the mid-eighties. Best known for playing bass and performing vocals in the hard rock band Trapeze and in the Mk. III and IV line-ups of Deep Purple, Hughes sang on the 1986 Black Sabbath album ‘Seventh Star’. It was the twelth album from the fabled heavy metal originators and was initially intended to be the first solo release from Iommi, but record company and management pressures led to the album being billed as ‘Black Sabbath featuring Tony Iommi’. Despite these demands, the album was a commerical success and reached the Top 30 of the English charts. Glenn’s powerful, soulful voice complimented Iommi’s unique guitar style perfectly and even though the eighties was a turbulant time for Black Sabbath, it was clear that Iommi and Hughes would work together again in the future.

That time came in 1996 when Iommi once again collaborated with Hughes for a release that would become known as ‘The 1996 Dep Sessions’, recorded at DEP International Studios in Digbeth, Birmingham. The recordings were demos and were left unfinished due to the original line up of Black Sabbath reforming at the time. However, a bootleg recording known as ‘Eighth Star’ was circulated among fans so in 2004, to combat this, the session was eventually offically released.

After Black Sabbath’s 1995 album Forbidden, the band would go on hiatus. So when Tony and Glenn reunited in 1996 to record together, it was with a renewed creative vigour and ambition to take a step away from the signature Sabbath sound and forge a new direction. The results were a formidable, contemporary take on a classic rock sound with Glenn’s soaring vocals combined effortlessly with Iommi’s monolithic riffs. These eight songs sound as vital as the day they were recorded and are now being pressed on vinyl for the first time in limited Translucent Black Ice colour.

The official release of ‘1996 The Dep Sessions’ in 2004 proved to be a catalyst for Tony and Glenn, who rekindled their collaboration and within a year, released what would be Iommi’s third solo album in 2005. Titled ‘Fused’, the album was recorded at Monnow Valley Studios in Wales and saw Iommi sounding heavier than ever. The album is chock full of stomping, grinding riffs that saw Iommi tipping his hat to the metal genre he had helped spawn decades before. ‘Fused’ sounded completely modern for what was happening in heavy music at the time and still stands the test of time today. Once again, Glenn’s vocals glided effortlessly over Iommi’s earth-shattering six string attack. Produced, engineered and mixed by American record producer Bob Marlette (whose credits include everyone from Rob Zombie and Alice Cooper to Sheryl Crow), the album was a success and reached number 34 on Billboard’s Top Heatseekers Chart. ‘Fused’ is now reissued for the first time on Translucent Cobalt Blue vinyl and includes three bonus tracks.

In addition to being an active session musician, Hughes also maintains a notable solo career. He currently fronts the supergroup Black Country Communion, and fronted California Breed from 2013 to 2015 and The Dead Daisies from 2019 to 2023. In 2016, Hughes was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Deep Purple. Tony Iommi’s legendary status is assured and he continues to record new music to this day, always pushing the bounderies and staying ahead of the pack. It’s only right that these fantastic recordings from his solo years are being cut to wax for the first time for new and old fans to enjoy as well as new digisleeve CD and digital editions. Pre-order ‘The 1996 Dep Sessions’ and ‘Fused’ HERE: https://tonyiommi.lnk.to/depfusedPR

Tony Iommi presents Deified

Tony Iommi presents Deified

Tony Iommi and luxury Italian perfume house Xerjoff present Deified, the brand new perfume along with a new soundtrack and music video.

Tony Iommi and Xerjoff launch the second chapter of the Xerjoff Blends venture, with the release of Deified, the brand new perfume, accompanied by a new track of the same name written by Tony Iommi together with a mind-blowing music video, directed by Donato Sansone.

Xerjoff’s Founder and CEO, Sergio Momo, worked alongside Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi in the second experiment between sound, scent and sight on the creation of a new scent to enter the Xerjoff Blends collection, while Tony Iommi wrote the new song, produced by Iommi and Mike Exeter, with Sergio Momo also playing on the track which can be seen in the mostly-animated music video.

“Here we go again, another collaboration with my dear friend Sergio Momo (Xerjoff) with a new perfume called ‘Deified’. I’m really excited about our new perfume and after the success of our last one (Monkey Special) I hope that you’ll like Deified as much as I do. We’ve gone through the same process of trying different samples of perfume over the last year until we came up with this one and I really like it.” –Tony Iommi

“Everything has its own cycle. A riff, a melody, a perfume. In the ‘70s, playing a vinyl backwards was a phenomenon that became a popular way to hide subliminal messages. The palindromic

nature of a riff and backmasking became the catalyst for the creation of this journey with Tony.”

– Sergio Momo, CEO and Founder of Xerjoff

Tony Iommi Deified Parfum

Mystery possesses the mind in a dark and decadent experience that casts subliminal shadows on the wearer.

“Deify: to worship or regard as a god.” A forceful combination of multisensory elements that play on the palindromic nature of sound, scent and sensorial sequences see the theme of back and forth in the music, scent and video. Tony Iommi Deified is the second perfume to be created by the duo after a huge success with the first Xerjoff Blends perfume created together, Monkey Special.

Created on a duality of leather and spice, Deified perfume plays in a loop with no beginning and no end, its notes hitting emotions in the same way a music track uses notes to hypnotise and mystify the senses. Authentic and warm accents of saffron meet powdery and leathery facets that dance with the delicate touch of gourmand freshness. Cinnamon exalts spicier notes, complemented by gentle rose at the heart. The woody base of papyrus and patchouli leaves the senses longing for more in a rhythmic exchange of back and forth.

The scent can be purchased on Xerjoff.com and in Xerjoff boutiques worldwide. After the crystal collector’s edition, Deified Tony Iommi Signed Edition, sold out, Deified was released in a dark and gothic flacon following the limited edition of the signed flacons.

Especially for the release of the music video on 26th July, another 25 Tony Iommi Signed Edition Crystal flacons will be available to purchase on Xerjoff.com.

Discover Tony Iommi Deified here

Deified Soundtrack written by Tony Iommi

Deified, the new track written by Tony Iommi and produced by Iommi and Mike Exeter, is a heavy and mysterious masterpiece that, like the scent, possesses the mind in a dark and decadent vortex of mystery and wonder.

“Deified is a heavier, more medieval track than Scent of Dark. We’ve added voices and beefed up the overall sound.” – Tony Iommi

With a heavy and hard riff throughout the track, Iommi sparks incredible heights with the intricate and mystifying bridge which leads to haunting voices, drawing the whole composition to a climatic close.

Black Sabbath – ‘Sabotage’ – A Super Deluxe Edition

Black Sabbath – ‘Sabotage’ – A Super Deluxe Edition

BLACK SABBATH EXPANDS SABOTAGE

 

Super Deluxe Edition Of The Band’s Sixth Album Features Newly Remastered Original Plus A Complete Live Show Recorded During 1975 Tour

 

Both 4-CD And 4-LP + 7-Inch Versions Will Be Available From BMG On June 11

 

pre-order link here

Black Sabbath was embroiled in a protracted legal battle with its former manager in 1975 when the band started recording its sixth studio album, Sabotage. The group felt sabotaged at every turn – hence the album’s title – but that feeling helped fuel the intensity of the new music they were making. In spite of the distractions, the band created one of the most dynamic – and underappreciated – albums of its legendary career.

BMG pays tribute to the patron saints of heavy metal with a collection that includes a newly remastered version of the original album along with a complete live show recorded during the band’s 1975 tour. SABOTAGE: SUPER DELUXE EDITION will be available on June 11 as a 4-CD set and a 4-LP set that includes the same music on 180-gram vinyl plus a bonus 7-inch with the single edit for “Am I Going Insane (Radio)” and “Hole In The Sky” on the flipside, with artwork replicating the very rare Japanese release of the single. Both the 4-CD and 4-LP versions are available for pre-order now: Pre Orders

The newly remastered version of the original album will be available via digital download and streaming services on the same day. Click Here to listen to the newly remastered version of Am I Going Insane (Radio), available today digitally.

Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward recorded Sabotage in London and Brussels and co-produced the album with Mike Butcher. The eight songs were released first in the U.S. in July 1975, and then in the U.K. that September. Certified gold in America and Silver in the UK, Sabotage earned positive reviews for hard-hitting tracks like “Hole In The Sky” and “Symptom Of The Universe,” as well as more experimental music like “Supertzar,” which featured harp, Mellotron, and the English Chamber Choir.

SABOTAGE: SUPER DELUXE EDITION introduces 16 live tracks (13 of which are previously unreleased) that were recorded in 1975 during the quartet’s U.S. tour for the album. The performances include songs that span the group’s career, from the title track to its 1970 debut Black Sabbath to “Spiral Architect” and “Sabbra Cadabra” from its previous album, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973). Sabotage is represented as well with live takes of “Hole In The Sky” and “Megalomania.”

The music is accompanied by in-depth liner notes that tell the story of the album through quotes from band members and the music media along with rare photos and press clippings from the era. Also included in the package is a 1975 Madison Square Garden replica concert book and Sabotage 1975 Tour colour poster.

Photo of Sabbath by Sam Emerson

Sea of Snakes – ‘World on Fire EP’ (Metal Assault Records)

Sea of Snakes – ‘World on Fire EP’ (Metal Assault Records)

Sea of Snakes are the latest signing to LA based Metal Assault Records and ‘World on Fire’ is their debut EP. The band consist of drummer Jeff Murray (Ex- the Shrine), guitarist Jim McCloskey (Ex – Motorsickle), bassist Mick Coffman and vocalist Tracy Steiger (Ex- Saul of Tarsus). Their aim is to “be loud, be heavy, and do what the fuck we want,”.

They certainly are loud and heavy, with a sound akin to classic Sabbath, Corrosion of Conformity, Down and Alice In Chains they have offered up an impressive debut that left me wanting to hear more. If you’re a fan of the aforementioned bands then you really should check out Sea of Snakes.

The band recorded the EP at the famous Total Access studio where such luminaries as St Vitus, Dio, Guns N Roses and Black Flag have recorded in the past. Studio owner Wyn Davis produced the EP and it has a great, thick, and sludgy sound. The cover art with skulls with snakes coming out of them is a good indication of what Sea of Snakes sound like. Opening track ‘Let the Fire Burn’ has the swagger and chug of Vol 4 era Black Sabbath, a real head banger. The rhythm section of Murray and Coffman really take the lead here with lots of swooshing crash cymbals and tom fills and thumping bass. McCloskey is no slouch in the guitar department either with plenty of wah pedal action. I really hope he was wearing bell bottoms whilst recording this! The accompanying animated video for the track is fantastic, full of snakes and winged demons. Of course!

‘Ride the Line’ is a more up-tempo affair with lyrics about lights in the sky and guns in hand. White Zombie comes to mind here with Steiger barking out the vocals with the rest of the band pounding away to their hearts content. ‘Son of Man’ is next up with more tasteful use of the wah pedal and vocalist Steiger sounds like Scott Weiland in parts here. That’s certainly no bad thing! The ‘take no bullshit’ lyrics fit the track perfectly and there’s more groove-laden drumming from Murray.

‘Fear Behind the Stare’ starts off innocently enough with some clean, almost pretty guitar work from McCloskey before another pulverising riff kicks in. The final track ‘Drink Your Teeth’ has a ‘Facelift’ era Alice In Chains feel to it with its solid backbeat and dream-like guitar tones. The track flows seamlessly into a thrashy crescendo with Steiger screaming like Cobain on ‘Territorial Pissings’

When the EP was finished, I really wanted to hear more and felt like I’d just got started with my Sea of Snakes journey. This is a solid effort from the band and I eagerly await to see what comes next from these guys.

Buy the EP Here

Author: Kenny Kendrick