Unlike their previous album—Sabotage, which was packed with songs that lived up to Black Sabbath’s horror-movie name and origin—Technical Ecstasy softened the band’s sound considerably. Keyboards and synthesizers were brought prominently up in the mix, and the songs sounded closer to mainstream hard rock than the trademark Sabbath sound. Sections of “You Won’t Change Me” feature guitar riffs in sync with the band’s "dark" image, but most of the album is unlike anything the band had previously tried. Perhaps it was partly due to recording in beautiful Miami—but from the sweet, shuffling ballad “It’s Alright” (featuring drummer Bill Ward on lead vocals) to the upbeat rhythmic churning of “Back Street Kids” and the AOR guitar-keys mix of “Gypsy” and “Rock ’n’ Roll Doctor” (highlighting the inclusion of touring keyboardist Gerald Woodruffe), Technical Ecstasy is a sign of the times. Heavy metal and its audience’s taste were changing. The aforementioned songs all rock; they're just not what anyone expected from Black Sabbath.