Black Sabbath and Philosophy: Mastering Reality

Black Sabbath and Philosophy: Mastering Reality edited by William Irwin (Wiley-Blackwell, 2012)

This is the latest in the Blackwell Philosophy and Popular Culture series and this one examines the mighty Black Sabbath, particularly their music, through the eyes of philosophy. Now this may seem off putting to the average fan with little or no interest in philosophical thought but the book has chapters that inject some levity into the proceedings such as Joel McIver’s look at whether Sabbath’s music really is evil.

There are fascinating chapters on what role Greek philosopher Aristotle would have if he joined the band (this makes the assumption that he is transported to the start of the band in the late 60′s/early 70′s but keeps his beliefs and opinions). You will have to read the book to find out who he takes the place of in the band…

Editor William Irwin gets the reader thinking with his chapter on Sabbath’s music and existentialism and provides a quick and easy to understand guide behind the ideas of existentialism. In fact all the authors explain clearly any philosophical concepts in their respective chapters within the book, meaning the book can appeal to a wide as audience as possible.

One thing that comes through the book is the lyrical genius of Geezer Butler and the fact that the band and their brand of heavy metal have a much deeper side to them. You can say with absolute certainty that someone like Justin Bieber won’t get a book like this on them.

A book to dip into, that will get you thinking and almost certainly have you going back and listening to your old Black Sabbath albums in a different light. Highly recommended.

Jason Ritchi

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