Technical ecstasy

"There's plenty of bonus material packed into the box. The inevitable Steven Wilson remix doesn't add a lot to proceedings, but a live show recorded in 1976 is a rough-as-arses yet exhilarating snapshot of a band barely holding it together, and the disc of alternative mixes is a fascinating, if incomplete, picture of how the album came together (someone really should put together a compilation of Ozzy's studio banter) ... It's an impressive package, albeit one that's unlikely to lift Technical Ecstasy from the bottom of the league table of 70s Sabbath albums, where it languishes with Ozzy's equally patchy swan song Never Say Die. But cash-rich Sabs-heads will appreciate the chance to show a little love to a sad orphan of a record that doesn't really deserve its pitiful reputation".

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"This massive boxed version includes a new mix by Steven Wilson and a bootleg-y live show. Less essential than the band's first six opuses, it's a fascinating chapter nonetheless".

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"While it was not as off-the-mark as their final album with Osbourne, 1978's Never Say Die, it was not on par with Sabbath's exceptional first five releases. The most popular song remains the album closer, "Dirty Women," which was revived during the band's highly successful reunion tour of the late '90s".

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