Dehumanizer

Ten years after they left Black Sabbath to form Dio, vocalist Ronnie James Dio and drummer Vinny Appice returned to the fold for 1992’s Dehumanizer. Also returning to the lineup was original bassist Geezer Butler. While this reconstituted cast was bound to rekindle some magic of the classic Sabbath incarnations, no one was prepared for the glorious onslaught of Dehumanizer. It’s not that the album re-creates the aura of Sabotage or even Heaven and Hell; it simply presents a group that appears to be at the absolute peak of its powers, brimming with fortitude and momentum. The production is a godsend. Reinhold Mack gives Sabbath a sound that's so loud and in your face that even the classic albums produced by Rodger Bain and Patrick Meehan can’t compare. There's simply no way to turn this record down; even if you play it with the volume low it'll jump out and smack you in the teeth. If you harbor doubts that a Sabbath album from 1992 could be one of the greatest rock albums ever made, take some time to bask in the wickedness of “Computer God,” “Letters from Earth," and “After All.”