Black Science

Geezer Butler was incredibly busy in 1997. When he wasn’t reunited with Ozzy Osbourne for a Black Sabbath tour, the longtime Sabbath bassist was fronting his own band, GZR — a thrash metal unit that doesn’t hesitate to be brutally intense on Black Science. It’s crystal clear that when Butler recorded this superb CD, the last thing on his mind was trying to emulate Sabbath. In fact, the band’s sound is closer to Slayer than Sabbath, and the bonecrushing, ultra-heavy album is best described as thrash with elements of alternative rock and industrial noise. From “Man in a Suitcase” to “Among the Cybermen” to “Trinity Row,” Butler and colleagues Clark Brown (a passionate vocalist who has learned a thing or two from Slayer’s Tom Araya), Pedro Howse (guitar) and Deen Castronovo (drums) never fail to sound evil and menacing. Black Science demonstrated that almost 30 years after Sabbath’s formation, Butler was still willing to take chances. – Alex Henderson