TONY IOMMI Praises METALLICA: ‘What They Did With The Metal Sound, Turning It Into Thrash, Was Fantastic’

In a recent Guitar World interview, iconic BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi shared his thoughts on the band’s impact on the thrash metal movement.

“It was nice to hear those thrash bands paying tribute to us,” Iommi said. “It’s great how they were able to push it forward into something new and turn it into their own thing. I was just coming up with things I liked. So it was brilliant to hear about other musicians liking what I’d done, taking the same kind of idea and improving on it, evolving it into their own sound.

“Like METALLICA, for instance, who probably learned things from us as well as other people. What they did with the metal sound, turning it into thrash, was fantastic. They’ve always been respectful toward us and they’re lovely guys. I love their attitude toward things, the way they write and everything. It reminds us a lot of how we were — everyone in one room rehearsing together and taking it seriously.”

Iommi is not inclined to offer musical criticism, but certain contemporary metal trends may diverge too significantly from his own artistic sensibilities. One such trend is the emergence of extraordinarily technical musicians, whom he respects for their skill, even if their approach differs from his own.

“The technical players these days are brilliant,” he says. “Even really young kids in their bedrooms are doing incredible things. But I always go back to the roots of the blues, looking deep inside myself and telling the truth. I don’t think about what can impress people or break speed limits. The only thing that matters in my mind is how it sounds to me.”

“Some of the guitar playing I hear these days is too technical,” he later added. “You have to be precise on this note or that note. I can’t do that – if I do a solo on a record, it’s never the same live. I can’t reproduce what I did in the studio. I’ll do something similar but not exact.”