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VARIOUS ARTISTS
Nativity In Black II (Divine Recordings)
Reviewed by DJ Johnson
Everybody wants to pay tribute to Black Sabbath. Well, everybody in heavy metal does, anyway. And everybody in grunge, and half the bands in alternative (the other half want to be Kiss). Released in 1994, Nativity In Black is one of many Sabbath tribute CDs, but you'll notice I didn't use the word "just". Can't. Nativity kicked like pure moonshine whiskey, with covers by White Zombie, Sepultura, Biohazard, Megadeth, Ugly Kid Joe and several other metalheads, including their guru, Ozzy Osbourne. Yep, Sabbath's own. Can that act be followed?
Here it is, a mere 6 years later, and we have the answer in Nativity In Black II. I expect this won't be overtaking the original in the hearts of the fans, but there's a lot to get into here. Godsmack's crunchy version of "Sweet Leaf" kicks it off, and it's a creditable job that borders on exciting. Machine Head's cover of "Hole In The Sky" takes some chances and actually makes some of the lyrics audible, making a life-long Sab fanatic (me) realize he had a line wrong and must be punished. (Note to self: visit dominatrix.) The first huge surprise is Static-X's reconstruction of "Behind The Wall Of Sleep" in which some new possibilities are explored. It'll piss some people off. It makes some of us raise a beer on high. Even those of us who don't drink.
Megadeth's reading of "Never Say Die" is almost too faithful, and in fact Dave Mustaine's vocals were so much like Ozzy's I had to do a double-take toward the liners to make sure the Ozzmonster wasn't guesting. He was, but not with Megadeth. More on that later. "Snowblind," a song from Sabbath Volume Four that can best be described as a guitar, two dozen downers and some Nyquil for emphasis -- and I say that as a GOOD thing -- is assaulted by System Of A Down in a way that Flea would approve of. Shocking! Shocking, I tell you! I'm all for taking chances, so I'll just lay out the good ol' "personal opinion" here and say this really drove me crazy, mad, to distraction, under the waves, where I would have drown had it not been for Pantera throwing me a line with their razor-sharp rendition of "Electric Funeral." Not innovative, but just what the doctor ordered.
And then... there was Ozzy. The clouds parted, allowing the white rays of the moon to illuminate the tombstones scattered nearby as Ozzy sang "N.I.B." absolutely perfectly, making my day and raising this CD to 5 stars. What? Oh yeah.. sorry... Ozzy was just guesting with... um, lemme look... Primus! One of the few bands that has a bass player (Les Claypool) actually capable of playing Geezer Butlers parts. Of course, being Les Claypool, he didn't play Geezer's parts. But he could have. Anyway, the track is amazing.
Slayer drew the short straw and had to follow Ozzy, but they tore it up with their version of "Hand Of Doom," which they made all the more cerebral by using inhales and exhales as a percussion instrument. Nice touch, ya hairy freaks. They just smoke all the way through the song, and yes, they do make it their own without making you guess what it is.
Welcome to track 9. I'd like you to meet Soulfly, one of those bands that sound like Satan is their lead singer. Ooo, they can play, though, and with a great deal of power. Good thing, since they chose "Under The Sun." I know there are a lot of people who believe in employing bears as singers in metal bands, but I have to admit I don't get it, and during the passages where the vocal melody is important to this song, all we're getting is a very, very nerve-wracking flat-line. All I can think is "couldn't they find someone with a range of more than 2 notes?" Then again, hey, he's the prince of darkness. Are YOU gonna tell him he's out of the band? Hmmm... only halfway through. I'm going back to Slayer.
Okay, what is Hed(pe) and what do you clean it with? And why do I like the... no, LOVE the funk-in-space version of "Sabbra Cadabbra" they're doin' here? No, I'm not kidding. This is pure funk, and YOWWW!!!! Okay, now it's metal. The kind that hasn't set yet. The kind that's molten and flowing under your ass and you can't move. Jeezuz Palamino! Hed(pe), huh? I don't know what that means, but they sure as hell can play and they have come up with a unique twist on this great ol' Sab tune.
Monster Magnet's supposed to be playing "Into The Void," but I've been waiting close to two minutes so far and all I'm hearing is a buncha machine clicking and hissing and distant conversation. I dunno. I like this band, too. Okay, just before the two minute mark the festivities begin. The guitar is suitably heavy (well, as close to suitably as you can get when the original was Tony Iommi, or as he is known among guitarists, "He Who Cannot Be Copied Correctly") and there's an overall sense of doom essential to the song. But here, at the halfway point (about 4 minutes), we're back to distant voices and sounds and nothing much happening. I dunno. Maybe it'll grown on me. If it does, I'll have to watch it. If it suddenly changes I'll have it surgically removed.
Well, kiddies, we have one track to go, and I'm worried as hell because it's Busta Rhymes. Doing "Iron Man." I'm trying not to prejudge. I am.
Still trying.
I think he said "niggers" forty-five times in the first twenty-one words. How is that possible? Okay, maybe only a few times, but it feels like more, and now he's just pounding his chest and threatening everyone. Neato.
Ozzy is singing on this with Busta. This has nothing to do with "Iron Man." It has to do with more opportunities to act like a badass and use the word "nigger" and "muthafuka" and I just don't see the talent in this. Sticking this at the end of what was a pretty good CD has left a bad taste for me.
What? Well... yes, I'm white and over 30, why do y... Up yours! The point is we were here to celebrate Black Sabbath. Several bands did. Busta celebrated himself, as per usual. Too bad. But it sells CDs, doesn't it? So in the end, my report reads thusly: Nativity In Black II has some ridiculously hot rock and roll, some blow-you-over riffage, some interesting, clever and ultimately memorable adaptations of Black Sabbath Songs, possibly a few items that will irritate some, but that's a judgment call, and one great big blemish at the end that stole everything away from it. Might as well have swapped the cover image for a Coke logo.
Dear Record Label: If you're taking requests for Nativity In Black III, please don't sign Eminem to turn "Spiral Architect" into a song recommending domestic violence. Please?
© 2000 - DJ Johnson