Ozzy Osbourne Live In Sydney, 2013 / Photo: Peter Coates

Ozzy Osbourne Says Black Sabbath’s Final Album & Tour Won’t Happen Till Next Year

The waiting game continues for Australian Black Sabbath fans to find out whether or not the heavy metal titans will be bringing their final ever tour to our shores.

Contrary to earlier expectations, frontman Ozzy Osbourne has now confirmed that the band will not be releasing their final album and embarking on their international farewell lap until 2016.

Speaking at a recent press conference in Brazil, the Prince of Darkness revealed that plans to wrap things up this year with Sabbath have had to be pushed back.

“The plan is that next year we’ll do the final Black Sabbath tour and album,” he said. “I’m not stopping… my wife spends all my money so I can’t.”

But Ozzy also added that plans “could change”. “We all live in different countries and some of them want to work and some of them don’t want to, I believe. But we are going to do another tour together.”

The notorious bat-biter also told the press that, while he understood his bandmates’ desire to stop touring, he’s not ready to throw in the towel just yet.

“[This will be] our last hurrah… Then it’s no more Sabbath at all. We’re disbanding the name and everything. They don’t want to tour anymore. I get it. But I love it. I’m gonna continue my solo thing.”

The forefathers of distortion had been tipped to perform their “last ever” show at Japan’s annual Ozzfest on November 22nd of this year, until that gig was unexpectedly cancelled, dashing Aussie fans’ hopes of an accompanying trip Down Under.

Should Black Sabbath’s final tour end up coming to Australia, it seems likely that founding drummer Bill Ward will be MIA. The estranged beatman recently became tangled up in an ugly war of the words with Osbourne over his physical ability – or inability – to tour with Sabbath.

Upon first revealing plans to record their 14th studio effort and embark on a final world tour, Osbourne originally said it would be “sooner rather than later” but “obviously a lot of it is coming down to Tony [Iommi’s] health.”

The legendary guitarist is currently undergoing treatment for cancer.

Gallery: Black Sabbath – Allphones Arena, Sydney 27/04/2013 – Photographed By Peter Coates

Watch: Ozzy Osbourne Press Conference – Monsters Of Rock Brazil 2015

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