Ozzy Osbourne's eighth solo studio album,
Down to Earth, shows the madman of
rock relying on a supergroup of
metal musicians to bring his sound together. Longtime
Ozzy guitarist
Zakk Wylde is back, this time with
Suicidal Tendencies bassist
Robert Trujillo and
Faith No More drummer
Mike Bordin supplying the rhythm. Despite the ever-changing world of
heavy metal,
Ozzy has a strangely timeless sound that he does not stray from on this record. Thick, heavy songs like
"Gets Me Through" could really be on any
Ozzy record after 1989 and fit in, but it is this bizarre reliability that keeps the album as listenable as it is. There are a few off moments, most specifically when it comes to the occasional murky production that muffles
Wylde's fiery guitar and
Bordin's drums. Producer
Tim Palmer gives it more of a
grunge sheen than a
heavy metal sound, which does work on some tracks but takes a little of the punch out of songs like
"Junkie." Still, this has all the main ingredients of good
Ozzy: a big fat
Black Sabbath number (
"Gets Me Through"), some wonderfully cheesy
ballads (
"Running Out of Time"), some tracks that can offend teenagers' parents (
"Facing Hell"), and the song about how darn crazy he is (
"Alive"). Sure it may be predictable, but no one looks to
Ozzy to pioneer new sounds. Anyone who liked
Ozzy's output from the '90s will probably embrace this album with open arms, and anyone who does not like him will probably know to avoid this. ~ Bradley Torreano
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