Conversations between young metalheads and old about metal’s pioneers – Priest, Maiden and, first and foremost, Black Sabbath – seem to always involve comments from the younger pups that come straight from the “what have you done for me lately?” camp. Something like, “I respect their contribution to metal but I just can’t get into ‘em.” It’s an understandable question and one that we old-timers sometimes have difficulty handling. Thankfully, Heaven & Hell have crafted for us a de facto response in The Devil You Know.
There should be no question as to the quality of the musicianship here, as this crew has more than proven itself. A more pertinent question might be whether there is a tendency to rely on old tricks or new gimmicks and, more pointedly, whether this comeback amounts more or less to a last gasp attempt at riding the relatively recent wave of throwback nostalgia and old school reunions. The answer, happily, is “no” on all counts, as the authenticity on The Devil You Know is evident from start to finish. It is rather remarkable, though, no matter the level of respect he has earned, how vibrantly strong and expressive Dio remains and how still perfectly matched is his tone to that of Iommi’s impassioned leads.
While this particular Black Sabbath incarnation has always had a penchant for the rocking tunes, and there are a few here to be sure, the overriding vibe on The Devil You Know is dark and cynical; a sign of the times or, perhaps, the inevitable product of a sage and hardened perspective hammered out over the years. Even in the rockers there is less of the playfulness of the previous Dio-led offerings and more of the shadowy pessimism of the earliest Sabbath efforts, with the notable exception of the relatively lighthearted “Rock and Roll Angel.” And it’s with the doomier tracks that this record really scores the knockout punch. Case in point: From its ultra heavy, grungy opening riff and slasher-flick synth effects to its portentious, howling solo that conjures images of the proverbial torch-bearing mob, “Follow the Tears” is as good a slab of epic doom as has cast its shadow on the metal scene in recent years. Simultaneously pardoning the isolated and misanthropic among us and admonishing those who cling to a more optimistic worldview, Dio warns in the sardonically compassionate bridge, ‘We’ll be there for you’/ I believe, and I can tell you it’s not true/ Run away before they find you again/ The consequence of conscience is that you’ll be left somewhere/ swinging in the air.
It is tempting to say that Heaven & Hell have come with a vengeance to finally and definitively answer the youngsters’ query posed above. The thing is, they don’t seem to feel the need to answer anything at all apart from the ever ringing siren call to play kick ass heavy metal. And, coming from a group of guys who essentially defined the genre, that’s just as it should be.
