Black Sabbath - Perth Arena, 15th April 2016
Words: Karen Lowe
Black Sabbath are one of the most influential bands of our time. With Tony Iommi's incredible guitar work, Geezer Butler's talent with the bass and solid fret work and of course Ozzy Osbourne's vocals and antics over the years, they truly are the Almighty Creators when it comes to heavy music. Last night, they rolled through town on what has been billed as their final tour, appropriately titled The End, and the faithful turned out to give the Lords of Metal one last resounding send-off.
As the lights dimmed in Perth Arena, signalling the start of the support act, one could feel the excitement building as the Californian band Rival Sons took centre stage. There may have been some collective disappointment that Five Finger Death Punch had to cancel their support slot, however their replacement made a lasting impression on the Arena.
Rival Sons opened up with Electric Man, Secret and Pressure and Time. Lead Singer Jay Buchanan said, “This song is about forgiveness. Which one of you fuckers out there have done things you regret? We all have. That's why this song is called Where I've Been” before finishing with Keep on Swinging.
To describe their sound, close your eyes and imagine that Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Black Crowes procreated, had a son and that son was raised on a steady diet of Deep Purple, Black Keys, Orange Amplifiers and Gibson Firebirds - that is as close as you can get.
They are bluesy rock, classic rock and modern rock rolled into one hot bundle and the crowd loved it. Jay Buchanan owned the stage with his rock star poses, smooth vocals and quiet confidence. A perfect start to a bitter-sweet evening.
The lights dimmed once again over a sea of black shirts and the crowd went wild. Puffs of smoke could be seen in various spots throughout the pit and the smell of the Devil’s oregano permeated the building as Black Sabbath came out on stage opening with their namesake song Black Sabbath.
Ozzy Osbourne shouted to the audience “Let's go crazy tonight!!! Let me see those fucking hands!” The moshpit went crazy and people started to jump, waving their hands in the air. The crowd was greeted with “How ya doing? Good to be back!” before breaking out into Fairies Wear Boots and After Forever.
Ever the showman, Osbourne strutted across the stage (although never too far from the mic stand) and had the audience in the palm of his hands. In what would become the catchphrase of the night, he told the audience “I can't fucking hear you! I'm gonna count to three and then you will say yeah!” the crowd screams “You can do better! One more time for luck so my wife can hear you back in America!” The arena erupted as they played Into The Void.
As Warpigs started, they had to stop almost immediately. “Sorry about that folks! We'll be back” as Tony Iommi had guitar issues. Osbourne decided to keep the crowd entertained by singing out of tune into the mic as people laughed along with him. They soon started again much to the delight of the audience.
They continued to play their hits Behind the Wall of Sleep, N.I.B., Hand of Doom before launching into Rat Salad and the most impressive eight minutes or so of the drum solo by the brilliant, most talented Tommy Clufetos. It was pure pleasure to watch and just when you thought it was finished, he would just keep going.
The mosh was a thriving mass with crowdsurfers galore and most impressively, a brave soul crowdsurfing in their wheelchair before being set down in the most graceful movement one had ever seen.
They ended their set with Iron Man, Dirty Women and Children of the Grave before coming back on for one encore song Paranoid to a standing ovation. Tears of joy ran deep as the whole arena stood to pay their final respects.
Black Sabbath were a once in a lifetime experience and they are going to be sorely missed. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your music Black Sabbath. Thank you for the memories. You will never be forgotten.
As the lights dimmed in Perth Arena, signalling the start of the support act, one could feel the excitement building as the Californian band Rival Sons took centre stage. There may have been some collective disappointment that Five Finger Death Punch had to cancel their support slot, however their replacement made a lasting impression on the Arena.
Rival Sons opened up with Electric Man, Secret and Pressure and Time. Lead Singer Jay Buchanan said, “This song is about forgiveness. Which one of you fuckers out there have done things you regret? We all have. That's why this song is called Where I've Been” before finishing with Keep on Swinging.
To describe their sound, close your eyes and imagine that Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Black Crowes procreated, had a son and that son was raised on a steady diet of Deep Purple, Black Keys, Orange Amplifiers and Gibson Firebirds - that is as close as you can get.
They are bluesy rock, classic rock and modern rock rolled into one hot bundle and the crowd loved it. Jay Buchanan owned the stage with his rock star poses, smooth vocals and quiet confidence. A perfect start to a bitter-sweet evening.
The lights dimmed once again over a sea of black shirts and the crowd went wild. Puffs of smoke could be seen in various spots throughout the pit and the smell of the Devil’s oregano permeated the building as Black Sabbath came out on stage opening with their namesake song Black Sabbath.
Ozzy Osbourne shouted to the audience “Let's go crazy tonight!!! Let me see those fucking hands!” The moshpit went crazy and people started to jump, waving their hands in the air. The crowd was greeted with “How ya doing? Good to be back!” before breaking out into Fairies Wear Boots and After Forever.
Ever the showman, Osbourne strutted across the stage (although never too far from the mic stand) and had the audience in the palm of his hands. In what would become the catchphrase of the night, he told the audience “I can't fucking hear you! I'm gonna count to three and then you will say yeah!” the crowd screams “You can do better! One more time for luck so my wife can hear you back in America!” The arena erupted as they played Into The Void.
As Warpigs started, they had to stop almost immediately. “Sorry about that folks! We'll be back” as Tony Iommi had guitar issues. Osbourne decided to keep the crowd entertained by singing out of tune into the mic as people laughed along with him. They soon started again much to the delight of the audience.
They continued to play their hits Behind the Wall of Sleep, N.I.B., Hand of Doom before launching into Rat Salad and the most impressive eight minutes or so of the drum solo by the brilliant, most talented Tommy Clufetos. It was pure pleasure to watch and just when you thought it was finished, he would just keep going.
The mosh was a thriving mass with crowdsurfers galore and most impressively, a brave soul crowdsurfing in their wheelchair before being set down in the most graceful movement one had ever seen.
They ended their set with Iron Man, Dirty Women and Children of the Grave before coming back on for one encore song Paranoid to a standing ovation. Tears of joy ran deep as the whole arena stood to pay their final respects.
Black Sabbath were a once in a lifetime experience and they are going to be sorely missed. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your music Black Sabbath. Thank you for the memories. You will never be forgotten.
