When Ozzy Osbourne passed away, the entire musical world stopped what it was doing to take a moment and reflect on who was undoubtedly one of the most important musical minds in centuries.

Let’s put it this way, if you look at every single metal band making music right now, you should look at them as if they are ripples in water. Then, if you travel downstream, eventually you will come to a Black Sabbath shaped sinking stone, patient zero, the band that all of these individual ripples can be traced back to.

Yes, they were the first band to ever champion that iconic heavy metal style, and plenty of bands followed suit afterwards. There were a few different factors which contributed towards the band’s sound; these included Tony Iommi’s tuned-down guitar playing, the heavy and droning rhythm section, and Ozzy Osbourne’s pained vocals. All of them came together in a bid to deliver a sound which was unlike anything that had been released prior. It felt like frustration put to music, some of the most honest and brutal sounds available at the time. 

It wasn’t just their sound which was important, though. It can never really be understated just how influential a band Black Sabbath were. They might have directly influenced heavy metal, but there is a lot more to it than that. Essentially, anyone who makes music that veers towards the alternative side of things, on some level, owes something to Black Sabbath.

They showed that it was possible for people to make music that existed outside of the mainstream pop and rock sphere, but still have success with it. This opened doors which opened doors which opened even more doors. Anything you listen to now which is slightly weird or “out there,” at some point, can be traced back to the dark and doom-laden dynasty that was Sabbath. 

The band were always pretty humble in their success, and were just happy that people were making the music they wanted to make. Being such a huge influence presents itself as a double-edged sword, as while they have helped inspire plenty of musical outfits, not all of these bands are ones they like. While Black Sabbath had a darker and heavier sound to them, there are a lot of metal bands who took that style and exaggerated it. Don’t get me wrong, a lot of metal fans love these extremes, but Ozzy Osbourne wasn’t one of them.

“A lot of these new bands have the aggression, but where’s the melody?” Osbourne said. “I don’t fucking run out and buy the latest records by Snot or Sepultura or Megadeth. That music is not new for me, and what I do for a profession and what I like are two different things.”  

This might come as a surprise to some people, but it shouldn’t. While Sabbath can certainly be celebrated for their ability to champion that iconic heavy metal style of music, Ozzy Osbourne was raised on the likes of the Beatles and all of the pop music that came out in their wake. Amongst the dark themes, heavy guitar and screeching vocals, those elements have always existed within Black Sabbath (and all the solo work Osbourne went on to produce), it’s just presented in a slightly different way.