Artist description Melodic, heavy metal with punk influences. Lots of tempo changes and energy.

Music Style Hardcore/Metal/Punk/Black Metal/Rock N' Roll

Musical Influences Anything heavy or melodic

Similar Artists In Flames, Bad Religion, NOFX, At the Gates, Guns n Roses, Pantera, Disembodied

Artist History Bio written by Waleed Rashidi of Mean Street Magazine At a time when most hardcore punk bands wouldn't dare to be tagged as "heavy fucking metal," Orange County-based AVENGED SEVENFOLD wouldn't dare be caught dead pegged as the atypical O.C. hardcore punk band. In fact, the five-man act went as far as stripping their true identities for assumed names to place the emphasis on what matters most - the music. And it's those almost-overwhelmingly technical arrangements that make AVENGED SEVENFOLD so musically important. Ranging anywhere from glam rock (vocalist M.Shadows cites Guns 'N' Roses front man W. Axl Rose as one of his musical mentors) to melodic Bad Religion-esque skate punk to church-burning Scandinavian black metal, AVENGED SEVENFOLD precisely blends all of the aforementioned styles to create the 13 tracks of its domestic debut full-length titled Sounding The Seventh Trumpet, on Hopeless Records. Sounding The Seventh Trumpet encompasses an immense latitude of sounds and influences, garnering comparisons that are rarely listed in the same sentence together - from Skid Row, Guns 'N' Roses and Queen to Death By Stereo, Slayer and In Flames. Frustrated by the current state of music, AVENGED SEVENFOLD truly don't care about any scene, trend or clique; the act approaches music strictly on its own terms - terms that are proving to be a recipe for success. Recorded in less than a week's time with veteran producer Donnell Cameron, Sounding The Seventh Trumpet is highlighted by the intense guitar and bass riffings of guitarists Zacky Vengeance, Synyster Gates and bassist Dameon Ash. The tracks of Sounding The Seventh Trumpet are seamlessly driven by the double-kick drum accents and patterns of drummer The Reverend, who in a remarkable feat, banged out over half of the tracks in a single take. Furthermore, it's almost hard to fathom that the instrumentation is fronted by a cathartic combination of polished, straightforward melodies and possessed, murderous vocal growlings by Shadows. AVENGED SEVENFOLD's live show is just as intense and dynamic, with a radical package of visuals, lights and a distinguishable appearance; a guaranteed far cry from the standard-fare, straight-off-the-streets air of most hardcore and punk bands. And it's this show that AVENGED SEVENFOLD will deliver outside of its home base. So while every band might put its own spin on a certain, specific genre, AVENGED SEVENFOLD's Sounding The Seventh Trumpet puts a spin on the entire umbrella of hard and heavy rock music. Prepare for the assault.

Group Members M.Shadows-All Vocals, Zacky Vengeance-Guitar, Dameon Ash-Bass, Synyster Gates-Guitar, The Reverend Tholomew Plague - Drums

Instruments Guitars, Screams, Drums, Bass, Singing (additional instrunments) Piano, Synth

Albums "Sounding the Seventh Trumpet"

Press Reviews INTO-OBSCURITY WEBZINE: Since the release of their EP appetizer "Warmness on the Soul", it's been a hard few months to sustain myself from flying to Europe and commanding that the guys at Goodlife get the Avenged Sevenfold full length out already. After some delays (which I'm sure was out of the hands of both the band and Goodlife), "Sounding the Seventh Trumpet" was finally released and I was granted a copy. Never have I put so much expectation on a CD, but the EP had me so hyped that it was hard not to. What the new album brought with it was thirteen tracks (9 or 10 new, depending on how you look at it...more about that in a bit) of glam-rock inspired, metal-pop punk-core. Can you follow that? I know, it's hard to fathom, but I'm not just throwing industry buzz words at you. These guys really do combine all those styles to make music which breaks away from the mold of everyday metalcore. How many hardcore bands do you know that have love songs written on a piano?!? But enough with the accolades, let's get right down to the new album. To be honest, opener "To End the Rapture" gave me a bad first impression. The heavy metal version on the EP demolishes this cut which is written for the piano only. But ahead into "Turn the Other Way" which is my favorite song on the album. A rockin', head-bobbin' intro turns into a melodic, yet ultra-heavy verse. About halfway through the song is a nice little breakdown followed by some of the best sung vocals ever. Vocalist M.Shadows has spent a lot of time mastering the art of the cock rock inflection. I wish this section of the song was more than 30 seconds long. But alas, back into the heavy stuff, and then a melodic ending. This is one of the best song structures I've heard in a long time. Other memorable moments include the Bad Religion-esque intro to "The Art of Subconscious Illusion" into straight metal. The power metal, lighters in the air intro of "Lips of Deceit", complete with melodramatic "whoa's" from the singer. As much as Guns N' Roses was an influence on the EP, Bad Religion is on the full length. The rest of the songs are brilliant as well, but to describe each one would force me to write a book. Avenged Sevenfold were an instant hit with me after their EP and "Sounding the Seventh Trumpet" only solidifies that status.

Location Huntington Beach, California / USA - USA

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