Avenged Sevenfold
Hail To The King

New album by Avenged Sevenfold. The Californian Metal group shuffles its cards and revisits once again the sound of the previous album. The new "Hail To The King," the second following the sudden death of James Sullivan "The Rev" heavily draws from Hard Rock influences of the nineties, recalling Iron Maiden but especially Metallica's "Black Album," however, without showcasing those tempo changes that have always been their trademark, offering instead a more classic, calm yet more mature sound.

The opening tracks "Shepherd Of Fire" and the title single "Hail To The King" are good Hard Rock songs, radio-friendly and effective. The first (and few) tempo changes only start with "Doing Time," the only track containing explicit lyrics (also the choice of clean lyrics represents an exception in its own way), in which Synyster Gates' solos must account for a drum section that manages to push but without going beyond the assigned task, it’s unnecessary to emphasize how much this is due to the necessary line-up change with the entry of Arin Ilejay on drums and how the band has been affected by this.

"Crimson Day" is the first rock ballad on the album, excellently executed and well contextualized within a sound that does not deviate from the course set by the entire LP, probably a further tribute to the late friend and colleague, certainly among the best tracks of the album and among the finest ballads of their career.

The hard rock robustness of "Heretic" is as evident as the solos present from beginning to end of the album, instrumental in concealing a sound that certainly has undergone a lightening but has served to reach a broader audience and certainly wider stages. It is no coincidence that the album debuted at No. 1 from the United States to much of Europe, even though the "hail to the king" is the least Avenged Sevenfold album of their career and why not, also a farewell to the sound of past years.