The album opens with "Wheels Of Confusion/The Straightener", which is a sludgy/heavy powerhouse. This is arguably the heaviest on the album. The lyrics are reflective and sad. "Tomorrow's Dream" is a r&b-rocker with groove. "Changes" is a beautiful piano-based ballad. The combination of Ozzy Osbourne's emotive vocals and the sad orchestral backdrops make this a somewhat painful track to listen to at times. "FX" is a short experiment featuring eerie guitar feedback from Toni Iommi. "Supernaut" (to me) proves that music is a transcendent force without limits or boundaries. The mix of boogie, classic psychedelic r&b and metal, shows that unlikely combinations can work - which almost makes it seem like it was never "unlikely" to begin with. "Snowblind" is a slow heavy rocker. Tony Iommi does some of his best soloing on this track. The end features some orchestral backdrops (possibly from synthesizers). "Cornucopia" is probably the most ominous sounding on here (check out the opening section). The dark lyrics contribute to this aspect as well. "Laguna Sunrise" is the beautiful and evocative acoustic guitar instrumental. If anyone were to listen to this calm, sedate and airy track (without knowledge of it being Sabbath), you wouldn't guess that this was the same band known for their dark and sludgy output - that's talent. "St. Vitus' Dance" is an upbeat, summery and "happy" sounding rock track - at least on a musical (excluding lyrics) level. "Under The Sun/Everyday Comes And Goes" sounds the most "Sabbath-esque" on here. The beginning is heavy and ominous. It then segues into a straightforward heavy rocker. The lyrics are deep, thought-provoking and rebellious. They address such issues as religion, personal beliefs and violence.

In short, _Black Sabbath Vol. 4_ is a classic metal album, which deserves to be owned by diehards, as well as those interested in Black Sabbath, or the roots of heavy metal. This would serve as a good introduction, as it features a well-crafted balance between heaviness and mild experimentation.

21 of 25 found the following review helpful:


Sabbath's 'Dark Side Of The Moon'  Mar 07, 2000 By Johnny S Geddes "OC"
1972 was a watershed year for hard rock and Black Sabbath both. Luckily, the maturing group was able to spearhead the next part of the Proto-metal Revolution they'd founded with 'Master of Reality' in the form of this, their best work. 'Volume Four' was a functional, utilitarian name that was used to try and capture something whose essence could not be described with any adjective except, perhaps, 'shifting'. Unlike any of their previous three albums, the Sabs were able to keep their distance from a formula [more or less homogenous doom rock with the occasional 'let up' (although their first LP is a mish-mash of blues and the beginnings of their 'doom rock')] and make this effort become an entire soundscape filled with moving atmospheres - the ultimate in a heterogeneous texture.

'Wheels of Confusion/The Straightener' - THE STORYTELLER. The whining guitar notes, basic chord structures and past tense narrative lyrics find an experimental-minded band. The shifts in tempo were something they'd become very familiar with by this time but it never had sounded this good. Instrumental 'The Straightener' kicks in to round out the epic. Geezer's bass text is used as a canvas by Iommi here as he spatters riff spirals and twists all over the place. 'Laguna Sunrise' - THE MIND CREATES A FANTASY. Pretty number written for the beachfront where the Sabs were staying during their work on 'Volume Four'. A very haunting superimposition of Spanish guitar over a strings backing.

'F.X.' - THE UNKNOWN REALM. 1 3/4 minutes of sound effects, particularly picking noises. Probably very useful if you're doped up but much better when sober. 'Snowblind' - ROCK REFLECTION ON LIFESTYLE. The 'best' rock track of the album, 'Snowblind' was a single. It accurately depicts the group's concerns at the time. Money and fame had allotted them nicer cars and nicer drugs to fool with. 'Cornucopia' - ROCK REFLECTION ON SOCIETY. 'Take a life, it's going cheap; Kill someone, no-one will weep.' A thundering bass-driven track that's almost uglier in structure than the post industrial nightmare described by Osbourne's frenetic lyrics.

'Tomorrow's Dream' - LOVE DISCARDED. A short rocker that scored as a greatest hit. The whole feel here is of turning away from the woes of the Present and starting a whole new existence. 'Supernaut' - THE SELF TRIUMPHS. 'I've seen the future and I've left it behind.' Ward's frantic cymbal-bashing and Iommi's smokingly fast riffs and overdubs augment Osbourne's grandiose lyrical delivery perfectly. A hard, spiralling anthem. 'Changes' - LOVE REMOVED. A long piano/synth bit with Ozzy half-lamenting the joy of love taken away, half-asserting his understanding of the adjustment he's making to compensate. 'Under The Sun' - THE MIND REACTS AGAINST REALITY. Very heavy guitar and bass work drones with the strength of the nihilistic, sometimes self-contradicting lyrics. Soon the tempo changes and both the guitars and voice become more desperate to convey their point. The songs ends on a helter-skelter of doomy rhythm and amorphous riffs. 'St. Vitus' Dance' - ANTI-COMMUNICATION. This short, fast rocker bounces Osbounre's lyrics back and forth. It's about problems with understanding the female mind.

Altogether and in a sequence, these make up what is termed 'Volume Four'. There is but one other ingredient necessary to facilitate a successful listening - a mind of any type and in any condition. None of the songs will grow on you; you will see them ever after in the same light under which you orginally found them. The shade of that light depends on your perceptions and no two shades will ever be alike. This is an album saturated in an ebbing, ethereal fluid, one of the consequences being that the sounds recorded on 'Volume Four' make it quite impossible to place the whole in any single genre. This is a work that declares there are an infinite number of idiosyncratic interpretations of it available. I have given mine here: to find your own, you need to get this CD.

5 of 5 found the following review helpful:


yeah... so here it is #130  May 08, 2006 By noone "who is"
130 reviews, what a joke right?

here's what i find amazing about the album. it's kind of chaotic, it's disjunctive. there's a lot going on and going into this album. it's like a whirlwind. i can't believe of the reviews ive read no one comments on the opening and the closing of this album. Both standout reasons to hear this album.

If you havent heard, well.. what the hell is wrong with you? you must be 14 right?

wheels of confusion/the straightener starts and ends beautifully, it has some decent lyrics too. tomorrow's dream is a standard riff-heavy throwback to Master of Reality, mostly forgetable in my book, but there is a moment it shines around 1:40. changes, well you're in the mood for that or you're not. it's kind of just "there" to me. fx? haha. whatever, you be the judge.

supernaut! what a cocaine-induced mind-bending 1972 track. it does rock, scintillatingly, it rocks. you'll know it if you've been there before. Snowblind... wow. what a song. i always thought of that as one of their best. to heck with the references, you just know when you hear "let the winter sun shine on". Cornucopia opens pretty doomishly, and from there, it just swaggers on in a condescending and bitter way. it's one of those you're either in the mood for or not.

laguna sunrise, mmmm. peaceful and serene, but in a very down to earth sort of way. think adam and eve without the serpent element and the blackness the world then descended into (you do know who adam and ever were right? sex-thirsty monkies in the glory garden!) St. vitus dance? kind of like a hippy song gone wrong. sets the stage for killing yourself to live if you really think about it.

finally, under the sun/everyday comes and goes. ooo, so dark in the beginning. from there it chugs on in a self-serving, almost indignant way. changes to more hippy sounding everyday comes and goes which is also filled with social satire. comes back down to under the sun after a short and decent iommi solo and ends in a good way. actually ends in a very lovely and sad way, one of black sabbath's best moments here at the end of this tirade.

overall: a weird disc. much to gain at times and at others absolutely nothing at all. its a mandatory listen. give me vol. 4, sabbath bloody sabbath, and sabotage anyday.

Edit: i actually LOVE paranoid, not hate it.

5 of 5 found the following review helpful:


Underrated Black Sabbath Classic  Jul 17, 2000 By R. Gorham "RCG2"
THE BAND: Tony Iommi (guitars), Ozzy Osbourne (vocals), Geezer Butler (bass), Bill Ward (drums).

THE DISC: (1972) 10 songs clocking in at approximately 43 minutes. The Warner Bros issue has 2-pages of liner notes and no artwork to speak of (basically the cover artwork and song titles inside). The remastered version is now considered an import from Castle Communications (1996)... this one has the digitally remastered sound from the original master tapes, as well as the "faithfully restored artwork" - 10 pages including all band photos that the original vinyl had, song credits and lyrics. I got lucky and found a used copy of the remastered version for a fraction of the cost.

COMMENTS: While maybe not their strongest effort in many a critic's mind, this is STILL one of my all-time favorites from Black Sabbath. Tony Iommi's muffled and distorted guitar(s) are in rare form on this album... almost a constant electric buzz (except for one heartfelt acoustical masterpiece that is probably Iommi's best ballad to date - "Laguna Sunrise"). "Vol. 4" was original titled "Snowblind"... due to the obvious reference to cocaine it was considered an unsuitable album title by Warner Bros. The songs that opened my eyes to Sabbath were "Snowblind", "Supernaut", the 8 minute "Wheels of Confusion" and "Tomorrow's Dream" (the first hit released from the album). These stand out among the others and are hard rocking Sabbath classics. "Cornucopia" and "Under The Sun" are underrated deep album rockers. The music seems varied, complex, and open to a little experimentation - much more so than on previous Sabbath albums. Sabbath's debut (1970), "Paranoid" (1970) and "Masters Of Reality" (1971) were equally brilliant early metal classics... and "Vol.4" showed a different side to the band. That's why I fell in love with this album... it was just a tad different than anything we'd heard before from Ozzy & Co. Great disc (4.5 stars).

12 of 15 found the following review helpful:


My Favorite Sabbath Release-Shouldn't Be Missed  Dec 22, 2003 By Phil "leaderoftheplague"
This album is my favorite album of any I've ever heard from Sabbath, well actually of any band. This is the definative Sabbath album.
1.Wheels of Confusion-great song with cool riffs and bass lines.5/5
2.Tommorrow's Dream-awesome song with a great meaning behind it.5/5
3.Changes-this song is very saddening, especially with Ozzy's moaning vocals portraying a very hurt individual. 5/5
4.FX-very useless and the only song (if it can be called a song) on the album i dislike 2/5
5.Supernaut- one of the best blues/metal songs ever written. This song can never be duplicated in it's complete majesty. This is sabbath at it's best 6/5 :)
6.Snowblind-this anthem about cocaine is my favorite Sabbath song of all time (other than Supernaut, and Junior's Eyes)10/5
7.Cornucopia- cool song about people dying in wars such as the Vietnam War 5/5
8.Laguna Sunrise-this song is a really good song but it's not near as good as Orchids 4/5
9.St. Vitus Dance- I love this song. It's friecken awesome. The lyrics are complimented by great music and cool bass lines. Great song-period 5/5
10.Under the Sun- This song is awesome. It's heavey as hell and explodes into the room whenever I play it. 5/5
Hope this review helps ya

5.

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