Considering the strain Black Sabbath were under on their previous release, Sabotage, the fact the band got themselves back in the studio is a borderline miracle. They pushed through the strain of their previous album cycle and brought out a considerable, respectable effort. Technical Ecstasy is much different, but so too were the times, the styles, and the interpretation listeners were placing on the hard rock style Black Sabbath were releasing. Two robots in a state of bliss are what the cover represents, what the title more than hints at, and what vocalist Ozzy Osbourne would spell out in interviews after the release of this album. Subtlety is not necessary, but for a band like Black Sabbath, whose tenure during the run-up to Technical Ecstasy, had been slowly building toward a feeling of deeper thought and darker discussion, it feels like a sudden handbrake turn. It’s as though Tony Iommi and the rest of the band had lost faith after the strain of Sabotage.
Understandably so, though it doesn’t forgive the shortcomings of Technical Ecstasy. By no means a bad album but the band were now influenced by other artists, rather than influencing the mood of the times. No artist can carve a path through to the future of music their whole careers, and there is much to love about Technical Ecstasy irrespective of that lack of ingenuity. Opening track Back Street Kids has a phenomenal instrumental stylishness to it, though Osbourne is the weak link here. That rock and roll soldier writing skirts the line of cringe-inducing but he matches up well with the brilliant Iommi guitar structure. It salvages what could’ve been a very embarrassing start. This is not just Black Sabbath pushing through with hard rock, though. They sound fully open to the new instrumental sway of the times, that electronica-reliant tone which would steer the likes of Electric Light Orchestra and Queen well. It does mean Black Sabbath softens the blow of otherwise heavy material, but it’s nice to hear the band doing something different.
Major changes don’t strip the value of Black Sabbath away, though. Much of what returning listeners love about the band can be found on You Won’t Change Me, a hint of that gothic rock remains. Black Sabbath lose themselves a little, then a lot, with It’s Alright. Their burnout on Sabotage appears to have affected their very desire to write heavy rock songs, and the issue isn’t the alternative, but the quality of it. Warbling, wavering material like It’s Alright is chasing the chart dreams of other bands rather than cementing a new standard the band were capable of reaching. You can hear why the band weren’t all that keen to retread their heavier rock style – their heart just isn’t in it. You can hear it on the loose-sounding but still enjoyable B-side efforts, like All Moving Parts. It never comes to rest, that’s for sure.
Black Sabbath tries their hand at a relaxed style of rock and roll. It suits them. Nothing magnificent or any major standouts, but there’s a spirit to Technical Ecstasy which is hard to dislike. Rock ‘n’ Roll Doctor and She’s Gone are unlike anything in their discography, though that’s because the band drifted so far from what they were known for that they never did it again, not like this. Black Sabbath can’t quite find their way out of the stock rock sound on this one, though that by no means makes it a bad listen. They’re not quite pushing through with a sound worth hearing which is a real shame but, to their credit, holding it together after Sabotage is a miracle. Solid work, though the first real stumble from the band. It’s hard to bounce back from a sound that can’t stand out.
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