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“We’ve been in the studio. We’ve been living in the studio, is what we’ve been doing”: Black Sabbath’s Bill Ward has two new solo albums on the way

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By ( Metal Hammer, Classic Rock, Louder ) published

The seminal drummer says he doesn’t “give an ‘F’” as he records his first solo efforts in 10 years

Bill Ward drumming for Black Sabbath in 1973
(Image credit: Ian Dickson/Redferns)

Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward has “nearly finished” recording two new solo albums.

Talking to Long Beach radio station 99.1 KLBP-FM, Ward, who will return to Sabbath for their founding lineup’s final show this weekend, says that he has “two albums that are nearly finished”. They’ll be the follow-ups to his third solo record Accountable Beasts, which came out in 2015.

Ward says (via Blabbermouth): “We’ve been in the studio. We’ve been living in the studio, is what we’ve been doing. And we’ve got two albums that are nearly finished. And we will put them out. And we are finishing up.”

He adds: “We’ve gotta go back in the studio in about another week. And we’ve got four days left to finish our final overdubs for the newest album that’ll be coming out. And we haven’t got it mixed yet. But we’ll get that done too.”

Black Sabbath on the cover of Metal Hammer issue 402

(Image credit: Future)

Regarding what his new efforts will sound like, Ward explains: “I’ve just let everything go. I basically don’t give an ‘F’, and I think it shows up in the record. I don’t have anything to swagger about. I wanted to play something that plays in my heart and then comes out of my soul. I wanted to play some things that keep me awake at night.”

Ward co-founded Black Sabbath in 1968 and left the band in 1980. He returned for a handful of stints over the following decades, including a brief tenure during the original lineup’s reformation in 2011. He stepped away in early 2012, before the four-piece recorded 2013 album 13, as he said he hadn’t been offered a “signable contract”.

Ward will play with Sabbath’s other classic members – vocalist Ozzy Osbourne, guitarist Tony Iommi and bassist Geezer Butler – for Osbourne’s farewell show at Villa Park in Birmingham on Saturday (July 5). The lineup will be rounded out by a who’s-who of rock and metal, including Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Gojira, Slayer and Anthrax.

The original Sabbath are on the cover of the new issue of Metal Hammer. All four members talk about the upcoming Birmingham show, as do several of the artists on the rest of the bill. The new issue also contains interviews with Cradle Of Filth, Zeal And Ardor, Bambie Thug and many more. Order your copy online now and get it delivered directly to your door.

Matt Mills
Matt Mills
Contributing Editor, Metal Hammer

Louder’s resident Gojira obsessive was still at uni when he joined the team in 2017. Since then, Matt’s become a regular in Metal Hammer and Prog, at his happiest when interviewing the most forward-thinking artists heavy music can muster. He’s got bylines in The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, NME and many others, too. When he’s not writing, you’ll probably find him skydiving, scuba diving or coasteering.

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