So, the Prince of Darkness himself Ozzy Ozbourne has come out and released a brand new album Patient Number 9, his latest release since 2020 with Ordinary Man. Produced by the ever amazing Andrew Watt and with a list of guitarist features including the iconic strings of Eric Clapton, Patient Number 9 promises a rollercoaster of rock and guitar-centric vibes to blast on any occasion. Strap on in, and enjoy my track by track breakdown of the new album.
(Ozzy Ozbourne - Patient Number 9 - Courtesy of Epic Records, a division of Sony Music)
Patient Number Nine - This track is the most amazing opener to this record, and one of the strongest tracks on this record full stop. I love this song, the vibes from the outset are spooky and creepy with discordant noted building to the opening. The writing is brilliant from Ozzy, the chorus is wonderfully performed with his signature tones and the guitar motifs here are really driving. Paired with the drums its a really brilliantly done track with a really cool underlying concept. The album is certainly off to the best possible start.
Immortal - This track is pretty good, not as good as the opener but nonetheless a good one. The guitars are mastered quite loud in this one, but I like the drum beat and complex and distorted riffs that have been produced to layer superbly. Ozzy's vocal style is sounding a touch strained in areas of high pitch on this one which as a stylistic choice is interesting, but nonetheless its a good track that keeps the tempo of the record driving on.
Parasite - When I first heard the chunky opening riff I knew i was in for a banger and Parasite fucking delivered. More excellent production in love the addition of the bass, again very loudly mastered but with this aggressive style it goes perfectly. Ozzy sounds great in the build-up, and flourishes in this higher range on this track unlike the strained style in Immortal. More great song writing here from the Price of Darkness, really lovely and hard hitting song writing here. A bit of an odd choice for the digital sounding drum fill before smashing into the chorus again, but the breakdown's echoey vocals sound great and make up for the odd change of pace. The song finishes with a nice build-up to a semi - well earnt guitar solo, I just hope this motif isn't beaten to death later on in the record as I know that all the featuring artists are guitarists, and as much as I love a good shred, I can see it getting a touch exhausting.
No Escape from Now - Love the opening to this one, the sorrowful chords and the underwater sounding vocals are really stylistically diverse from the last few, a breath of fresh air from the metal ballads of the last three tracks. The slower approach is nice, paired with the classic Ozzy sound in the palm muted chord progressions and hard drums we might just be onto striking gold. Interesting bridge - I like the sound, but the slower burn is really effective in the delivery of the vocals and the natural progression of the song. When Ozzy puts emphasis on his vocals he sounds stunning, like he hasn't aged a day since Sabbath! Don't know why but it gives me serious haunted house vibes, which I'm seriously digging. Nice guitar in the concluding parts but I'm starting to get a little sick of the repetition in the songs structure, I love a good solo more than the next guy but another isn't really necessary for this track, but a switch back to the opening motif at the end is a very effective touch.
One of Those Days - I like the opening notes and the layering here, feels like the intro to a classic rock tune. It's very suicide solution with less driving bass in it's sound and I like that, with a very nice build-up to the chorus. I love the choppy chorus, paired with another brilliantly written song I'm properly getting into this one. Let's talk about Eric Clapton for a sec, because his feature is what makes this song go from a good rock track to a brilliant playlist permanence. Eric Clapton's guitar sounds great in this track, the really fast fingerstyle is really cool and melds perfectly with the vibes of the song, and even though it's another solo it works so well I'm giving it a pass because its truly a masterclass in subtle yet perfect solo. This merges into a final chorus that sounds excellent and leaving me very satisfied. Absolute belter of a song here.
A Thousand Shades - More wailing guitars in the intro here, but it sounds quite nice. Lovely lyrics once again here and some good word play from Ozzy, this man is truly a juggernaut of macabre style and lyricism. The softer vibes are really nice here, the easy going nature of this track is such a palate cleanser between the last few songs, proving that although some may just peg Ozbourne as a one trick metal pony that he still has his brilliant versatility. More nice guitar but c'mon I need a break from the solos! We're only six tracks in and I'm staring to get a little bored of the constant soloing, but it builds to a nicely made final chorus. Overall it's a satisfying track, just a shame about the structure.
Mr Darkness -A similar opening sound to ATS, but paired nice broken drum beat and picked guitar that builds a cool vibe to this one that's similarly relaxed. Even more flexing from Ozzy's lyricism here with a brilliantly driving chorus. There's a surprising change of pace that really slaps you around but I like that its keeping me on my toes. Although there's a bit of an odd transition back into a slow verse it still sounds pretty great. It feels like a real song of desperation and pain which is, let's be real, Ozzy at his best. Back into the slamming chorus which feels much more smooth the second time, paired with a really nice guitar part, and although it sounds good I'm done with the solo sections of these tracks for now. I think a lot of these songs will flourish as singles but when played back to back it feels slightly laborious. The track continues to smash into a new pace which sounds similarly great before changing up once again. The track really plays with the pace of its instrumentation, which is a confusing but quite fun first listen, and an exciting track to revisit now and again.
Nothing Feels Right - Another similar opening here with the wailing chords, but I like the sound of this one. Ozzy has some interesting vocal delivery here which I enjoy, just adds a little more in terms of his versatility in this record. The chorus sounds brilliant, I really like the sound of this sweeping drum beat and guitar, builds to create a really really good vibe. I'm a big fan of the breakdown at the end of the chorus, and when this is paired with once again some excellent writing I really can't complain. The variation on the second chorus with the choppy cuts sounds really good, and the ending breakdown sounded even better paired with this new style. For the first time in a while I'm feeling a solo here and y'know what fuck it this one is totally earnt and toned beautifully. Along with the final chorus sounding awesome especially with the pitch change, it's a great way to end one of my personal highlights from this record.
Evil Shuffle - I like the heavier opener on this one - once again a far cry from the previous tracks. Yet more masterful production here with the subtle guitar licks adding some really great tonal shifts. I like the vocals being isolated and echoed through the guitar, it creates a really slick mirroring effect. The chorus section here is really really cool and adds some great instrumentation, and the change to the more foreboding verse is really smooth. Although it's an odd change back to the original tempo but it sounds great, and the solo feels earnt here even though as a motif it's seriously burnt out. By the end of this track it's evoking feelings of a classic rock ender, lovely stuff once again.
Degradation Rules - I really like this tracks vibes, it has some really good pacing, with doubled vocals that sound sonically pitch perfect. As a single this went really hard, but now its part of an album I can really appreciate its place amongst the other songs, with it's hard hitting instrumentation making this track stand out from some of the other more samey-sounding openers. What can i say, along with the blaring guitar of former Black Sabbath bandmate Tony Iommi this song sounds brutal and unique, even if it's just a song that's all about jerking off...
Dead and Gone - Some nice drums and bass in this one, with more wailing notes but a different tone that sounds fresh and ready to scream your face off. Yet more good delivery from Ozzy, as his voice pairs with the sudden driving guitars creating a crescendo of metal bliss. The chorus is really clever and its subtlety is where it really excels for me before it plunges back into it's original verse which luckily isn't as choppy as some of the other tracks. I know I keep saying this but the lyrics are so bloody good, culminating in a real headbanging track that's a definite playlist addition. A really awesome note to end on here comes from the pitch change, which is really welcome and sounds brilliant, creating a great sense of variation and a true high for this song to end on.
God Only Knows - Another different sounding opener here, but as we get to the latter end of the record I'd expect it to be as ever changing as it's been thus far. Ozzy's vocals really flourish in this style, a real closer of a track with some really great layered instrumentation that roars in your ears. I can't praise Ozzy's lyricism enough, 'better to burn in hell than fade away' hits far too hard and fits the style and sounds super slick - once again he's ticking all the boxes. Later verses sound brilliant and perfectly move into the chorus, with nice guitar work once again. I really feel like this should be the closer on the record so it'll be interesting to see the final song, but this tonally feels like it should end here. The song being about fading away into irrelevancy hits really hard and would be the perfect thing to end on, those emotions of legacy crumbling that both thematically and generally really resonate with people. When we're gone, what do we leave behind? How long will it take before we too are forgotten? We get it Ozzy but you'll always be one of the greats, and your name will certainly g down in history for generations to come.
DARKSIDE BLUES - All I can really say about this song is that it's sadly a rather sour end to the album. Although I understand that it's a conceptual peace meant to bring the narrative to a close, it feels completely out of place stood between the rock behemoths found on this record. The harmonica and blues inspired riffs meld well, yes, and the mysterious far off vocals build an interesting vibe, but this track really is a yellow note to end this album of wall to wall solid tracks.
(Ozzy Ozbourne - Image courtesy of Revolver Magazine)
Overall - I'm a big fan of this album. At its core, it's a really nice record that is clearly an appreciation of rock's more classic sound, and a lot of the beats of this record his perfectly true, with some amazing production and really strong instrumentation. The main appeal of this record is in the writing and lyricism of Ozzy Osbourne, his macabre style pairs beautifully with the tone of the record, and I cannot sing his praises enough. What Patient Number 9 culminates in is a brilliant display of work that both blows down doors and soars above your head with brilliant emotional sentiment, whilst staying true to Ozzy's signature style and tone. Where this record falls short is in it's guitar heavy build, which could simply be my own taste. Seeming as every featured artist is a guitarist it makes the very guitar-centric album tiring at times when the same structures are used again and again, especially the solo's which although impressive did grate on me after a few tracks. Overall a decent record with some songs I'll certainly have on repeat for a while.
Rating - 8.5/10
Personal Highlights - Patient Number 9, Nothing Feels Right, Evil Shuffle, God Only Knows
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