It is, of course, not uncommon for musicians to cover each other. It’s perhaps a bit more unexpected when established indie musicians go and form a full-blown cover band. That is, however, what has happened with Black Sabbath Cover Band Rehearsal. As you might be able to tell from the name, it’s not exactly your typical cover band — the stuff we’re maybe used to seeing booked for state fairs or casinos if you lived in such a place where that stuff was relevant. Instead, BSCBR gathers a bunch of known quantities from the indie sphere and gets them together for the simple joy of playing Black Sabbath music.

The project began when Nick Zinner, Angel Deradoorian, and Greg Fox met up at a music residency in Berlin and, evidently, began jamming on some Black Sabbath. They brought it back home to NYC, where they also enlisted Interpol’s Brad Truax and Mick Barr of Ocrilim/Krallice. And then somehow, against anyone’s expectations, this turned into a going concern in all their lives. BSCBR started playing gigs around the city.

Now, they are making the even more unusual move and actually releasing recordings of their faithful Black Sabbath covers. Next month, Famous Class Records will issue Black Sabbath Cover Band Rehearsal’s Masters Of Rehearsal single, featuring “Sweet Leaf” and “Fairies Wear Boots.” Today, they’ve released “Sweet Leaf,” with Deradoorian providing vocals and leading the band through a convincing recreation of the Sabbath original. Suddenly the prospect of a post-pandemic Black Sabbath Cover Band Rehearsal gig sounds like a lot of fun. Check it out below.

The Master Of Rehearsal single is out 9/4 via Famous Class Records. Pre-order it here.