The Black Sabbath Super Deluxe reissue programme has been, not to put too fine a point on it, rather haphazard. To date, we have had super deluxe reissues of Paranoid, Vol. 4, Sabotage, Technical Ecstasy, and Live Evil. Additionally, we had deluxe reissues of Heaven And Hell and The Mob Rules, and a box set of the band’s Tony Martin Era (sans Eternal Idol).
To this, we may now add a Super Deluxe Box Set that brings together all of the material recorded under the Heaven and Hell moniker. Utilising the same formatting, and with a hype sticker on the front bearing the same design elements as the other sets, it’s clear that this, name notwithstanding, is seen as part of the official Sabbath lineage by the powers that be, and it sits nicely on the shelf alongside the other offerings.
Heaven and Hell holds a unique place in Sabbath’s legacy. While there were numerous points where, the line up having splintered, the Sabbath name could have been retired, Tony Iommi had nursed the flame, keeping it alive via sheer force of will. By 2006, however, the Sabbath name was riding high, and Ozzy was back in the band. At the same time, Rhino wanted to capitalise on the Dio years and suggested a box set focused on his time with the band.
The project was a success. Not only did the band reunite to record three new tracks but they decided to take it to the stage, leading to a hugely successful 2007 tour (documented in the set on discs 2 & 3, as well as on the blu ray). To avoid confusion, they rebranded as Heaven and Hell, a liberating approach that allowed them to focus exclusively on Dio-era material. The tour was a triumph and, with little to no fanfare, Heaven and Hell simply picked up where they left off, putting down the demos for what would tragically be their sole studio album, The Devil You Know. Released in 2009, it led to a handful of live dates but, with Ronnie already ailing, things got put on hold while he recovered.
He never did.
On May 16 2010, the music world lost a legend, leaving behind a remarkable legacy. Breaking Out Of Heaven 2007 – 2009 is but a small part of it, but it is an important one, gathering together everything this short-lived band achieved into a beautiful package.
The Package
As with previous Sabbath Super Deluxe editions, Breaking Out Of Heaven 2007 – 2009 is neatly packaged in a rigid case with a lift-off lid. With this being a multi-album box set, it has unique art on the cover, featuring a reimagined logo and the box set title. There’s also a hype sticker detailing the contents.
Inside, whether you opt for CD or vinyl, you’ll find each album in its own sleeve, an accompanying book (with liner notes from the ever-reliable Hugh Gilmour), a 2007 tour programme, and a poster of the Devil You Know artwork.
For the CD set (reviewed here), all four albums are housed in replica gatefold sleeves (apart from the blu ray), with plastic liners to keep the discs from scratching. There are no inserts, although lyrics and credits are printed in the centre fold of The Devil You Know (sadly, these are pretty hard to read), while the book contains additional details and credits. The book itself is a soft cover effort, which is a shame when you compare it to the previous hardback outings, but this is presumably to help keep the cost low, and Hugh’s notes are as detailed and informative as ever.
In terms of content, there is little that’s new, sadly – and no demos or outtakes at all. What you do get is The Devil You Know (disc 1) with three bonus tracks, Radio City Live (discs 2 & 3), Live At Wacken (disc 4), and a blu ray that includes both live sets (with the Waken set upscaled to HD), a handful of short featurettes, 30th anniversary interviews, and a Dio tribute – all of which were extras on the original releases.
The LP edition, while boasting the audio content spread over 7 slabs of vinyl, omits the blu ray which, considering the cost, seems a parsimonious oversight. Otherwise, the team once again deserve top marks for the care with which the package was assembled.
Audio Content
None of the audio for this set appears to have been remastered. However, given the quality of the original issues, this is not necessarily a sticking point.
The Devil You Know (2009)
From our original review:
Music journalists, like everyone else, are capable of messing up. With a huge array of records to review and limited time in which to achieve this, they are often prone to reject a record because it is a slow burner or over-hype something that gives up all its charms at once only to be revealed as a hollow experience on repeated listens. Heaven and Hell’s debut opus, however, is not a victim of hype. Having been badly (and unfairly) mauled over their last record – Dehumanizer – Black Sabbath’s instrumentalists have reconvened with Ronnie James Dio, and under a new name, to create a record of simply awesome power.
Roaring out of the gate with the magnificently doomy Atom and Evil it’s clear that age and experience has done nothing to dampen the infernal fire that burns within these four musicians. Dio’s voice is on top form as he chews his way through lyrics that deal with the weighty subjects of death, cannibalism, and biblical imagery and he is matched every step of the way by Iommi’s towering riffs and incandescent soloing.
Bible Black is a case in point, a heavy-as-hell stomp through rock’s dark side it’s followed by the gloomy, yet sublimely catchy Double The Pain and Rock And Roll Angel – both strong outings on the album.
And yet, choosing a highlight on this record really is tough because the quality is sustained throughout and you’re likely to change your mind depending on the day. Moreover, the album’s ten songs pass in what seems like a heartbeat thanks to the first-class musicianship and any fears that these ageing statesmen of rock could still ‘cut it’ are instantly allayed.
If this should turn out to be the final statement from a band that has steadfastly refuses to die, despite myriad incarnations, controversial records and well-documented issues, then what a statement it is. This is a modern metal classic fit to stand head-to-head with any of the bands that have crawled forth in Sabbath’s wake (no matter how worthy they may be) and is surely a candidate for one of the albums of the year. A metal masterclass. 9/10
With the benefit of hindsight
Did we get it wrong?
Listening to The Devil You Know some sixteen years after it first landed with a hefty metallic thud on our desk, nothing has changed. Not only has it not aged one whit, but it sounds as heavy and vital as any album likely to be released this year. From the ferocious snarl of Iommi’s riffs (which, honestly, have never sounded heavier than they do here) to Dio’s convincing and committed performance, the stars aligned for an album that is a testament to the chemistry shared by the four members of Heaven and Hell.
We may mourn the passing of Dio and the demise of the band, but we should be grateful indeed that they managed to create this one unassailable missive.
Live From Radio City Music Hall (2007)
Released two years prior to The Devil You Know but placed out of sequence as discs 2 & 3 in the box set, the Radio City Music Hall show showcases the remarkable chemistry the band shared on stage and helps to place The Devil You Knowin its proper context. Spread over two discs, it finds the newly minted band tearing through fifteen songs, including two of the three tracks recorded for The Dio Years box set that kickstarted the whole thing.
What makes this album so special is that, freed from the shackles of the Sabbath brand, Heaven and Hell are able to tear through a selection of heavy hitters from the three albums they produced without having to nod to Ozzy-era tracks, resulting in a set that is overall darker, heavier, and more representative of their time together. This is in no way a slight on Ozzy, but there are plenty of live albums covering those songs, and it is refreshing for both band and audience to have a set comprised solely of cuts from Heaven And Hell, The Mob Rules and (YES!) Dehumanizer.
From the very start, it’s clear that Heaven and Hell are operating in a doom-laden world of their own. Opening gambit E5150 / After All The Dead stretches out to a leisurely eight minutes of gruelling riffing and acid-tipped vocals. Indeed, with the exception of a punchy The Mob Rules, nothing clocks in at under five-minutes in length, while a truly monstrous Heaven And Hell is more than doubled, hitting fifteen minutes and ten on the Richter scale.
Highlights come thick and fast on this perfectly recorded set. A vicious Sign Of The Southern Cross, a punishing Computer God and, of course, a pair of new tracks (The Devil Cried and Shadow Of The Wind), both of which highlight just how effortlessly the old magic returned.
The happy recipient of a stunning mix from Wyn Davis, Mike Sutherland, Live From Radio City Music Hall is an absolute belter of a live album, and one that captures Heaven And Hell in the first flush of a career that would burn brightly for just two years before being extinguished forever.
Neon Nights: 30 Years of Heaven & Hell (2010)
By 2009, Ronnie James Dio was struggling. Not that you’d know it from his blinding vocal performance on Neon Nights: 30 Years Of Heaven And Hell, which was recorded live at Wacken in 2009 and released six months after his tragic passing.
Given the circumstances, it is impossible to listen to this remarkable concert without a twinge of sadness, knowing what was to come. However, the experience is bittersweet, and you’ll also feel a sense of awe at Ronnie’s irrepressible presence, energy, and talent. It helps the album to step out from under the shadow of its release, with the whole band delivering an absolutely stunning performance.
The track listing alone is enough to have most metalheads foaming at the mouth, even if it does repeat a number of songs from the Radio City set. Of most interest, certainly within the context of this box set, are three tracks drawn from the superlative The Devil You Know (Bible Black, Fear, and Follow The Tears). Absolute belters all, they account for nearly eighteen minutes of the total runtime, and they sound utterly immense in the live environment.
Elsewhere, we get the best of Dio-era Sabbath, including two tracks from Dehumanizer (I and Time Machine), and a mind-melting Heaven And Hell which, at seventeen minutes in length, is even longer than the Radio City rendition.
It ends, as it must, with Neon Nights, leaving us with a lump in our throat and an understanding that we have just experienced the final stand of a truly majestic band.
Visual Content
Blu Ray
The blu ray gathers together both the Radio City and Waken shows, alongside a handful of extras, with the Wacken show upscaled to HD. Pop the disc in your player and you’re greeted with a simple menu from which you can select your show, browse the extras, and set the audio stream (PCM stereo or DTS HD Master Audio 5.1).
Radio City
I remember thinking, when the Radio City set was originally released (on both DVD and Blu Ray), just how good it looked and nothing has changed in the interim. Beautifully filmed and well-paced, the show comes vividly to life on blu ray. With inky blacks and colours popping, especially the blazing white of Dio’s shirt, you can clearly make out the fine details from Iommi’s artificial fingertips to the chipped paint of the band’s instruments. In short, it is a pristine presentation and one that is well worth having in HD.
In terms of audio, with a solid 5.1 mix that keeps Dio’s vocals right at the heart of it all, this 2007 show will blow you away.
Waken
Inevitably, the Waken show is nowhere near as visually impressive as the Radio City show, having been drawn from the live camera feed. Nevertheless, not having been released on blu ray previously, some effort has gone into cleaning it up as far as possible and there are moments where it really shines. However, for the most part, it cannot match the crisp, clean video of its forebear and some of the shots (especially the overhead shots of Vinny Appice and crane shots of the band) are of markedly lower quality.
The audio, on the other hand, is as punchy as hell, capturing the band in full flight with plenty of depth. Rawer than the perfectly balanced Radio City, there are moments where you can feel the live crew making adjustments on the fly, but it’s great to hear a veteran band captured with such authenticity, and it only adds to the energy of the show. As an added incentive, you get the opening E5150 and Country Girl – both cut from the CD – making this a complete record of an exceptional night.
Extras
All of the extras from the previous releases are ported over here. Thus, form the Radio City set, we get:
- Heaven and Hell Road Movie – a 2007 feature that captures the band on the road and in the studio while recording the three tracks for The Dio Years boxset
- Hail The Gods of Metal – a five-minute featurette
- Meet the Mob – an even shorter, three-minute clip introducing some of the band’s passionate following
- Radio City – a quick, four-minute look at this legendary venue
Then, from the Waken set, we get:
- 30th Anniversary interviews – four comprehensive interviews, each around fifteen minutes in length. Try not to get a lump in your throat when Dio speaks, we dare you.
- Ronnie James Dio tribute – three very short tributes to the late singer, each one only around a minute in length.
Overall
Final Thoughts
This is a decent box set with each individual album deserving of a top score. That said, the absence of any new material does make it a problematic purchase for fans who already have these albums as, with no additional tracks or fresh mastering, all it really does is bundle them together in an attractive box that sits comfortably on the shelf next to the other Super Deluxe Editions. Of course, with a lovely book and a blu ray gathering both of the band’s live efforts together, it is not without value (especially if you are missing one or more of the elements included). However, it lacks the depth and exclusivity of the other sets.
You probably already know if you want this. For completists, especially those who have enjoyed the previous Super Deluxe sets and want them all in one place, it is a very tempting purchase. For those missing one or more of the included albums (or, heaven forbid, all of them), then the music held within is as essential as it comes.
Overall, this sumptuously presented box set is a beautiful tribute to the memory of Dio’s final stand with Heaven And Hell. It’s just a shame they couldn’t rustle up at least a few demos or other exclusive elements to seal the deal. 8/10
