SNoAP no. 21
- Paranoia – Black Sabbath (Metal * 1970)
April 11, 2026 | I thought I knew what I was in for. I did not. | This morning vinyl listen with Ian was, by a mile, the biggest (and best) surprise of this project so far. I had promised Ian that I would listen to a Black Sabbath album with him, and I was not dreading it exactly but let’s say bracing myself. I wrote the band off long ago—probably largely influenced by the Satanic Panic judgment and also my assumptions that the “music” (and I’m using scare quotes here based on my prejudices) was just harsh noise. But a funny thing happened when I took time to listen and pay attention (perhaps especially because I had negative preconceptions): I changed my mind. My comments to Ian included, “This is actually music” and “Huh. I like this.” I was so pleasantly surprised, happy to stand corrected.