Stylus Groove Vinilo y CD

Review: A chance to catch the 1989 iteration of Black Sabbath in action in Japan on their Headless Cross, in support of their 14th fourteenth studio album (of the same name), the second with Tony Martin on vocals. This nine track selection from the show is fairly evenly spread across their already almost two decade long career, with that album's title track nestling alongside older triumphs such as 'Iron Man', 'Paranoid' and 'Black Sabbath' and Ronnie James Dio-period faves like 'Mob Rules' and 'Heaven & Hell'. The recent addition of the legendary Cozy Powell on drums just makes it an even tastier prospect.

Review: The year 1970 truly served as the dawn of Black Sabbath with not only the release of their iconic self-titled debut LP but also their even more legendary sophomore follow-up Paranoid also arriving the other end of the calendar. Embarking on a mammoth 121 date tour across Europe and the United States, kicking off in Swansea, Wales in September all the way through to April 1971, the middle point just before Christmas saw the metal pioneers land at L'Olympia, Paris on 20th December 1970 for a grandiose performance made up of some their greatest works and legitimately the most vital metal tracks of all time. From the opening riffage of the quintessential title-track to the resurgent 'Iron Man', the proto-doom stylings of 'N.I.B' and 'Behind The Wall Of Sleep' to the ultimate anti-war anthem 'War Pigs', this setlist reads almost exactly like the first disc of one the band's many greatest hits collections, as it just so happens that this early in their tenure, they'd already penned such a bevvy of classics. Pulled directly from the soundboard, this is Ozzy and co in their absolute prime before ego and mass quantities of narcotics would join as a permanent fifth member.

Review: If you've seen Metallica live and in the flesh you'll appreciate how ferocious their shows are. It's not just the music that's loud, all aspects of the performance seems to hit like wrecking ball, raising the volume and intensity on each chord of every riff, drum-packed crescendo, and disorientating outro. And it's always been that way, as this reissued recording from one of their legendary shows proves. Captured in 1994, when the thrash metal pioneers played Woodstock, USA, Justice For All certainly lives up to the name of the outfit's classic 1988 LP, And Justice For All, which earned them their first Grammy nomination. It's pretty powerful, potent stuff, running through a number of the group's strongest tracks in a live context, which goes some way towards transporting us to the gig itself.