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BLACK SABBATH AXE-SLINGER
JOINED BY VOCALIST/BASSIST
GLENN HUGHES AND DRUMMER
KENNY ARONOFF
TOUR
PLANNED AFTER THIS SUMMER'S OZZFEST
Tony Iommi, the legendary
Black Sabbath guitarist, will release his new album Fused on July 12,
2005, via Sanctuary Records. This will be Iommi's third solo album.
Joining Iommi on Fused
is former Deep Purple vocalist/bass guitarist Glenn Hughes and former John
Mellencamp drummer Kenny Aronoff, who has also played sessions with the likes of
the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Rod Stewart, Alice Cooper, Bob Seger, Lynyrd
Skynyrd and countless others. The trio will hit the road to promote Fused
later this year after Black Sabbath finishes headlining the 10th anniversary
Ozzfest tour.
The 10 songs on Fused
are: "Dopamine," “Wasted Again,” “Saviour Of The Real,” “Resolution Song,”
“Grace,” “Deep Inside A Shell,” “What You’re Living For,” “Face Your Fear,” “The
Spell” and “I Go Insane.”
Iommi has worked with both
Hughes and Aronoff in the past. Hughes is a longtime friend who sang on the 1986
Black Sabbath Featuring Tony Iommi album Seventh Star. In 2004,
previously unreleased songs they had collaborated on eight years earlier were
completed and released by Sanctuary as The 1996 DEP Sessions. Aronoff
played drums on the song "Black Oblivion" on Iommi's self-titled 2000 solo
album, which was loaded with all-star guest appearances. Fused was
produced by Bob Marlette, who also manned the studio boards for 'Iommi.'
"I put some ideas for four or
five tracks down about three years ago, but I hadn't written them specifically
with Glenn in mind," Iommi says. "After The 1996 DEP Sessions was
finished last year, I said to my manager that I should try Glenn on my solo
album. Glenn came over to England and we did a trial run writing more material
and it was unbelievable. His enthusiasm is amazing. He is so full of energy and
great song ideas.”
"The ideal thing for me is to
work with collaborators. I can come in with riffs until the cows come home, and
I do that all the time. I like to do it that way and then build the song with
somebody else."
Iommi and Hughes tend to write
quickly when they settle in. Once the basic song ideas were written for this new
album, Hughes worked on overall melodies and lyrics. The songs were in place,
but a drummer was needed to tie it all together. Iommi was eager to work with
Aronoff again and had him in mind from the beginning. The highly respected
skins-basher was thrilled about the invitation, especially when Iommi said he
wanted to tour to promote Fused.
"I definitely knew that for my
next album I wasn't going to use a lot special guests again. I wanted to use
just one singer, and I also wanted it to be more like a band this time. The idea
was to go into the studio with Glenn and Kenny play everything live. It was
great. I really enjoyed doing it that way," says Iommi. "That was the original
way you used to record, and that was the only way I knew how to record for a
long time. Only a few years ago did I start recording the other way, by building
up and layering tracks. By playing live in the studio, you can hear exactly how
the songs are going to sound and whether they work."
These new songs most
definitely work, and they rage with the same fire and intensity that mark
Iommi's best. There is nothing quite like the sound of a power trio, because
there can be no weak links -- each musician's efforts stand out. There is no
place to hide. Iommi, Hughes and Aronoff feed off each other, whether it's the
concise punch of "Dopamine" and "What You're Living For" or the fluid twists and
turns in the nine-minute epic "I Go Insane."
Iommi's lethal guitar crunch
leads the charge. Hughes truly pushes himself to the edge and adjusts his voice
to fit the overall direction of each song while simultaneously propelling the
rhythm with his pounding bass guitar. The volcanic thunder Aronoff unleashes
from his drums sounds like nothing he has done before. Marlette's sparkling,
crisp production results in a hard-hitting, modern, in-your-face sound.
"Bob is a fantastic producer.
He also played a few keyboard parts on this album because he wanted to get his
hands in there!" laughs Iommi.
Marlette's major role as the
producer was to provide that extra, objective pair of ears and determine when a
song was finished. He also judged Iommi's solos and usually found what he
looking for after four or five takes. However, Iommi often wanted to lay down
more solos with the purpose of topping himself with each pass.
"I tend to keep trying solos
until I get to where I say, 'Oh yeah, I really like that one.' It's not often I
say that, but you're always trying to get that one you're happy with," he says.
"Sometimes it is difficult working with a producer when you have been a producer
yourself, but it's good to compare ideas. To get the best end result you do
whatever it takes."
Iommi's excitement about
Fused is at a fever pitch and he cannot wait to tour with Hughes and Aronoff.
"In addition to playing
material from this album, we'll probably do a couple of tracks from The 1996
DEP Sessions and a few Sabbath songs too," he says.
www.sanctuaryrecordsgroup.com |
