Avenged Sevenfold
Avenged Sevenfold

THE REVIEW

Avenged Sevenfold is the latest work of the band with the same name, released in the last months of 2007 and presented as a precious piece of contemporary musical publishing. In reality, it is a good CD, but nothing as extraordinary as I've read: it has little metal (as indeed the singer of the band also emphasizes) and quite a lot of commercial elements. I had decided to listen to it after reading that this band was reviving the (dear to me) metal sounds of the '80s with great style and modernity, but in fact, after a few songs, I realized that it was just not the case. The music is good, quite tough, but sometimes, especially in the sung parts, the band falls into melodic, commercial emo-style parts. So, if you are looking for something hard but not metal and not too heavy, this album might suit you: it's enjoyable at first listen, varied especially in the first 4-5 songs; less interesting the second part. A point in favor of the band is the voice of Matthew Shadows, unique and rough but fairly versatile.

The album opens with "Critical Acclaim", which after a solemn start explodes into powerful guitar riffs. Explosive and powerful song, sung with a curious call and response between whispered and regular singing. Good rhythm, nice chorus, a bit less the soft melodic final part. It is followed by "Almost Easy", a good crescendo of initially aggressive and then more emotional sensations. The melodic part is too sweet. Another good track is "Scream", engaging and catchy with an aggressive ending. Introduced by orchestral arrangements, "Afterlife" progresses mysteriously and then opens up, becoming very catchy and quite radio-friendly. Only in a central part does it get more aggressive, with a powerful solo, before returning to more... popular sounds. "Gunslinger" is a nice and sweet ballad, "Unbound (The Wild Ride)" is another very commercial and catchy piece. "Brompton Cocktail" is not very fast and doesn't catch on the first listen. The eighth track is "Lost", which gives a nice energy boost and uses vaguely metalcore riffs. The vocals reach increasingly shameless peaks of melodicity, even being modified by electronic effects; it is followed by "A Little Piece of Heaven", a very strange song... at first, it seems like listening to Good Charlotte, but then it gets even worse by drifting into very trashy, folk-like sounds. I'd describe it as obscene. The whole thing concludes with a very sentimental ballad like "Dear God", pleasant.

In short, a lovely CD, for heaven's sake; it continues along the path opened by "City Of Evil", which was obligatory after the metalcore beginnings that strained Shadows's vocal cords. However, I expected better, especially after what I had read about it: I didn't know the band and expected stronger metal, but I will evidently have to look elsewhere...