In an interview with MOJO's Phil Alexander, producer Rick Rubin (SLAYER, METALLICA) lifts the lid on the upcoming BLACK SABBATH album, 13, one of the most anticipated albums of 2013. A couple of excerpts from the interview follow:

Q: When it came to working with Black Sabbath, what was your biggest challenge?

A: "When I started working with them, they really hadn't worked together in such a long time and, because they've had such success in their career over the years, it was almost a case of red light fever. There was an anticipatory anxiety among different members of the band and they were worrying about whether [the music] would be any good, and whether they were up to the task. The history and myth of Sabbath loomed large and everybody really wanted to do it justice. No one wanted to do it just for the sake of it. The idea was that we were only going to do this as long as this was going to be as good an album as they've ever made."

Q: Geezer told me that you worked really hard with Ozzy in particular in the studio. Tell me about that.

A: "It begins with expecting the best and not settling for less. Ozzy knew that this was important and he really wanted to focus on it. For him, this was a band he was kicked out of 35 years ago, and this was his chance to redeem himself so he was willing to do whatever it took. He used to tell me almost on a daily basis, 'Anything you need from me, tell what I need to do and I'll do it. Anything I can do better, I'll do it'. And he did. He sang over and over again and it was a lot for him. It was much more work than I think he's put in on an album for a long time but, because of that and the way it came out, I think he feels more proud of this than anything he's done in a long time."

Read the complete interview at this location.

According to Black Sabbath Online, North American retailer Best Buy will be stocking an exclusive version of 13 featuring the bonus track 'Naïveté in Black'.

Black Sabbath continue to roll out new music while they are out on the road - the latest airing of a 13 album track is the bonus tune 'Methademic', which can be heard live from Melbourne, Australia at Rod Laver Arena:

Black Sabbath's first album in 35 years to feature singer Ozzy Osbourne, bassist Geezer Butler, and guitarist Tony Iommi (along with RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE drummer Brad Wilk) was recorded primarily in Los Angeles and was produced by Rick Rubin. The album will be released by Vertigo (worldwide) and Vertigo/Republic in North America on June 13th.

13 clocks in at nearly 60 minutes and features the following tracks:

'End Of The Beginning' (8:07)

'God Is Dead?' (8:54)

'Loner' (5:06)

'Zeitgeist' (4:28)

'Age of Reason' (7:02)

'Live Forever' (4:49)

'Damaged Soul' (7:43)

'Dear Father' (7:06)

Black Sabbath's new single, 'God Is Dead?', can be heard streaming below:

Click below to hear the live version of 'End Of The Beginning':

13 is available for pre-order on a variety of formats via BlackSabbath.com.

Options include:

- Standard CD album
- Deluxe double CD album in a deluxe soft-pack (includes a second disc of exclusive bonus audio material) as follows:

'End Of The Beginning' (8:07)

'God Is Dead?' (8:54)

'Loner' (5:06)

'Zeitgeist' (4:28)

'Age Of Reason' (7:02)

'Live Forever' (4:49)

'Damaged Soul' (7:43)

'Dear Father' (7:06)

'Methademic' (6:00)

'Peace of Mind' (3:43)

'Pariah' (5:35)

- Vinyl: a 12” heavyweight (180g) vinyl album in a gatefold sleeve
- Super Deluxe Box Set: a Limited edition 12” clamshell box set which contains: Deluxe double CD album, 12” heavyweight (180g) vinyl album in a gatefold sleeve, Exclusive DVD containing Black Sabbath--The Re-union documentary, plus 5 behind-the-scenes videos, Download card containing exclusive track by track interview with Black Sabbath, 13 exclusive photographic prints and hand written album lyrics.

Black Sabbath have now confirmed a full 20-city North American trek. Launching July 25th in Houston, TX, the tour will include shows in Philadelphia, Boston, Tinley Park (Chicago), San Francisco and other major markets, along with the previously announced stops in Holmdel, NJ (NY-area), Los Angeles, Seattle and Toronto.

Tickets for the newly announced dates will go on sale starting Friday, May 3rd at LiveNation.com and Ticketmaster.com. Beginning today, fans can visit this location to RSVP for early access to presale tickets available Thursday, May 2nd. VIP Packages are also available at VIPNation.com.

Tour dates:

July

25 - Houston, TX - Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
27 - Austin, TX - Frank Erwin Center
29 - Tampa, FL - Live Nation Amphitheatre
31 - W. Palm Beach, FL - Cruzan Amphitheatre

August

2 - Bristow, VA - Jiffy Lube Live
4 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Center
6 - Detroit, MI - DTE Energy Music Theatre
8 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
10 - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center
12 - Boston, MA - Comcast Center
14 - Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
16 - Tinley Park, IL - First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
18 - Indianapolis, IN - Klipsch Music Center
22 - Vancouver, BC - Rogers Arena
24 - Seattle, WA - Gorge Amphitheatre
26 - San Francisco, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View
28 - Irvine, CA - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
30 - Phoenix, AZ - US Airways Center

September

1 - Las Vegas, NV - MGM Grand Garden Arena
3 - Los Angeles, CA - Los Angeles Sports Arena