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\n\t\u201cLet the madness begin!\u201d bellowed a mischievous\u00a0Ozzy Osbourne<\/a>\u00a0from his bat-and-skull encrusted throne in front of a sold-out Villa Park in Birmingham, England. The Prince of Darkness had finally taken to the stage after a marathon of legendary metal bands paid homage to his life and work throughout the day for his and Black Sabbath<\/a>\u2018s Back to the Beginning<\/a> concert on Saturday, July 5.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThe Summer of Sabbath had been in full flow in Birmingham for weeks now, though. The proud home city of heavy metal rolled out the purple carpet for its most famous sons\u2019 homecoming.\u00a0<\/strong>Boozers were decked with purple balloons and flags; murals were everywhere you looked; people donned Ozzy outfits, flooding the streets with battered T-shirts and denim jackets. It felt like a World Cup final for the metal fans who flooded in from every corner of the planet.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tThat carnival atmosphere hit the moment you stepped out of New Street Station, where fans gathered around the nearby Black Sabbath Bridge mural, which Osbourne and the band duly signed earlier in the week. We met one fan from London, who said he was on a Sabbath pilgrimage before the gates opened later in the day. \u201cI\u2019m going around the city doing all of the sites like The Crown where they played their first ever show, the various exhibitions and Ozzy the Bull!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThis of course was before you even made your way to Villa Park, the historic football ground housed in the working class suburb which was once home to the band\u2019s four members.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tUpon arrival, we were greeted by rumbles of\u00a0distortion and a giant inflatable Ozzy who watched over his parish. Heading into the stadium, Cody Holl, a fan who traveled from Pennsylvania, was in a state of giddy delirium. \u201cIt\u2019s Black Sabbath\u2019s last Sabbath,\u201d Holl said. \u201cI\u2019ve never seen them before and I told myself after that 2017 tour, I\u2019m going no matter what, I just had to be here.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe heavy metal royalty who graced the stage throughout the day were clearly struck by a similar sense of awe, that\u2019s perhaps because Black Sabbath have shaped and influenced each and every one of them, from openers Mastadon right through to thrash veterans Anthrax and Lamb of God. The latter delivered an early standout moment with a cover of \u201cChildren of the Grave,\u201d which drew a gaping circle pit that formed on the pitch.\u00a0<\/p>\n