The grunge legends were set to join the bill for ‘Back to the Beginning’, the final show of heavy metal icons Black Sabbath, featuring founding members Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler, Tommy Iommi and Bill Ward. The stacked support lineup featured other rock and metal royalty such as Metallica, Alice In Chains, Gojira, Anthrax, Guns N’ Roses, KoRn, Tool, Slayer, Pantera and more.

@consequence Black Sabbath perform “War Pigs” at their farewell concert. Credit: Universal Music Group #blacksabbath #ozzyosbourne #backtothebeginning #warpigs #heavymetal ♬ original sound – consequence

But during the event, fans noticed that Soundgarden didn’t make their planned appearance at the show. It was speculated that they may have been the band that organiser Sharon Osbourne kicked off the show due to a dispute, where Sharon claimed their manager was making up “bulls**t lies”, as reported by NME.

But Soundgarden have now shared an explanation of their absence on social media, clarifying that they weren’t the act to be booted off the lineup. On the band’s Instagram account, they wrote: “Congratulations to Black Sabbath on the grand and final pealing of their vesper bells!

 

 

 

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“Thank you for an astounding career that provided us and your legion of fans with a lifetime of beauty, horror, love, power, happiness, melancholy and a profoundly sublime, yet viscerally rocking transcendence informed by both doom and hope. Your majestic brilliance has inspired greatness in scores of other bands, musicians and songwriters. However, the crown will forever remain yours!

 
“We are very grateful to Tony, Ozzy, Geezer and Bill, as well as Sharon Osbourne and music director, Tom Morello for the honor and invitation to Soundgarden to perform at the Back to the Beginning festival! We are super bummed and regret that we were unable to coordinate the schedules of our individual and collective projects to attend and contribute to the festival. The warmth, love and support from the Black Sabbath team has been a continuing source of encouragement and strength throughout our career.”

Alongside their kind words, they shared pictures of themselves with members of Black Sabbath. This included a cheery snap of the band with Tommy Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne and Soundgarden’s late singer Chris Cornell at Download Festival in 2012.

You can catch MXDWN’s highlights of the Black Sabbath farewell show here.

The book, set for release on October 7 via Grand Central Publishing/ Hachette Book Group, promises to be a raw account of the rock legends life. It focuses heavily on the serious health issues Osbourne has battled over the past decade. These include spinal injuries and multiple surgeries stemming from a 2003 ATV accident and his 2020 diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease- challenges that led to his decision to retire from touring.

Beyond his health, ‘Last Rites’ will explore key moments and relationships across Osbourne’s life and career, from his marriage to Sharon Osbourne to behind-the-scenes preparations for ‘Back to the Beginning’ farewell concert. The memoir will also recount his friendships and encounters with fellow rock icons, including Slash, Bon Scott, Keith Moon, and a poignant chapter on his final moments with Motörhead’s Lemmy Kilmister before his passing in 2015.

In a recent press statement about the memoir, Osbourne said: “People say to me, if you could do it all again, knowing what you know now, would you change anything? I’m like, fuck no. If I’d been clean and sober, I wouldn’t be Ozzy. If I’d done normal, sensible things, I wouldn’t be Ozzy. Look, if it ends tomorrow, I can’t complain. I’ve been all around the world. Seen a lot of things. I’ve done good… and I’ve done bad. But right now, I’m not ready to go anywhere.”

According to a release from publisher Grand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Group the book, is the “shocking, bitterly hilarious, never-before-told story of Osbourne’s descent into hell”. The release added that the memoir is “unflinching, brutally honest, but surprisingly life-affirming”.

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This will be Osbourne’s second memoir, following the critically acclaimed ‘I Am Ozzy’ (2009) which became a Sunday Times bestseller. The new release is expected to offer a deeper and darker, but ultimately hopeful, look at The Prince of Darkness – one of rock’s most enduring and complex figures.

Ozzy Osbourne’s announcement follows his emotional final appearance at the ‘Back to the Beginning’ farewell concert in Birmingham, where Black Sabbath performed alongside acts including Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Smashing Pumpkins, and Rage Against the Machine.

MXDWN’s coverage of the highlights of the Black Sabbath Farewell Concert and Ozzy Osbourne’s final performance can be read here.