Bill Ward, Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi and, of course, Ozzy Osbourne announced at a press conference last week that the mighty Sabbath would ride again. Although only one date had surfaced at that time – Download Festival in Derby, England, June 10, the word was that other festival dates would be announced shortly.
Now the band has detailed the first leg of its worldwide outing, beginning at Moscow’s Olympiiski May 18. Other stops include St. Petersburg, Russia, at the city’s New Arena May 20; Helsinki, Finland, at the Hartwall Arena May 23; and Stockholm’s Olympic Stadium May 25.
Other festival dates in addition to Download include Norway’s Bergen Calling May 29; the Azkena Rock Festival in Bilbao, Spain, June 15; Hellfest in Nantes, France, June 18; the Graspop Metal Meeting in Dessel, Belgium, June 22; and Gods Of Metal in Milan, Italy, June 24.
The classic Black Sabbath lineup is currently working on its first new album in 33 years. Produced by Rick Rubin, the album is scheduled for a fall worldwide release on Vertigo Records (Vertigo/Universal Republic Records in the U.S.)
The possibility of a Black Sabbath reunion was a constant rumor during the summer and received some extra press in August when British newspaper Birmingham Mail ran a few quotes by guitarist Iommi who reportedly said the band would tour and release a new album. However, Iommi quickly denied the Mail article, saying he was “saddened” that the reporter had written about a conversation that had taken place in June and make it sound “like we spoke yesterday about a Black Sabbath reunion.”
For more information about the tour, click here for the Black Sabbath website.