10 Scariest Albums Ever Made
4. Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath
At the end of the '60s, horror didn't really have a voice in the world of rock. Sure, there were definitely some controversial songs coming out of the psychedelic movement like "The End" by the Doors, but most of the late '60s were still under the guise of flower power. On the other side of the Atlantic, four working class kids from Birmingham made a record that put a stake through the heart of the hippie dream.
Coming right as the '70s got underway, Black Sabbath's debut release is the first sounds of heavy metal, with Tony Iommi coming into his own as a masterful guitarist. Whereas the other members were still mining the typical bluesy sounds of the day, Iommi's riffs were the encapsulation of torture, with the title track still being one of the scariest tracks in metal history.
Aside from the music, the album also contains some of the most off-putting lyrics in hard rock, from the title track's recounting of a paranormal encounter to the demonic love story that comes through on "NIB." Sealing the deal in the middle of it is Ozzy Osbourne, whose bluesy belts sound like a madman ready to snap at every turn.
No genre is birthed in a vacuum, but if you could trace back heavy metal music to its dark origins, Black Sabbath's debut is what truly started it all.