Avenged Sevenfold
Avenged Sevenfold | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Years active | 1999 to present |
| Members | M. Shadows Synyster Gates Zacky Vengeance Johnny Christ The Rev |
| Website | A7X Official Site |
Avenged Sevenfold, sometimes abbreviated to A7X, is a Alternative Metal/Symphonic Metal , and formerly metalcore band from Huntington Beach, California.
History
The band formed when the members were in high school. Their first album was titled Sounding the Seventh Trumpet, and was recorded when the band members were eighteen years old. Their follow-up album was entitled Waking the Fallen, which received a positive rating in Rolling Stone magazine.
City of Evil, released on June 7 2005, strays from metalcore, and adds a more "hard rock" sound with obvious influences ranging from various bands. Although the band have been labeled metal, metalcore and hard rock in many publications, the band themselves claim that they are a "metal" band and have no musical similarities to metalcore in any way although this is heavily debated by their peers. During the recording of City of Evil, M. Shadows' vocal stylings have changed more to focus on melodic singing than on hardcore screaming.
The band's name is an alleged reference to the book of Genesis in the Bible and the story of Cain and Abel, where Cain is punished to live in exile, alone and miserable. Anyone who relieved Cain of his misery by killing him would be "avenged in sevenfold," or punished in a way that is seven times worse than Cain's punishment. The title of Avenged Sevenfold's song "Chapter Four" references Genesis IV, the chapter of the Bible in which the story of Cain and Abel takes place. The song's subject also appears to be this story. Beast and the Harlot, yet another song derived from the Bible, comes from the book of Revelation and refers to the punishment of Babylon and the destruction of Pagan nations. Although the band's title and members' stage names make obvious references to religion, Shadows stated in an interview that they are "not really religious at all."
Their song "Blinded in Chains" was used in the soundtrack for the video game Need for Speed: Most Wanted. Another song, "Bat Country," was used in the soundtracks for SSX on Tour, NHL 06 and Madden 06, following in the footsteps of "Chapter Four" which had also been on the soundtrack for NHL 2004, Madden 2004 and NASCAR Thunder 2004. The song "Beast and the Harlot" was in the soundtrack for Burnout Revenge. All the above games, not coincidentally, are produced by various divisions of Electronic Arts.
During recent tours (Coheed and Cambria spring 2006 tour and Ozzfest 2006), Avenged Sevenfold have been performing the song "Walk", originally by Pantera, as part of a tribute to the late "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott.
Recently at the MTV Video Music Awards, Avenged Sevenfold received the award for best new artist. They took the award over several other artists--Angels and Airwaves, Panic! at the Disco, Chris Brown, Rihanna, and James Blunt.
Shadows announced in an interview that there will be a new album "sometime in 2007 possibly".
Band members
- M. Shadows (1999-Present) (Matthew Charles Sanders) — Lead Vocals
- Synyster Gates (2001-Present) (Brian Elwin Haner, Jr.) — Lead Guitars, Back up Vocals
- Zacky Vengeance (1999-Present) (Zachary James Baker) — Rhythm Guitars, Back up Vocals
- Johnny Christ (2002-Present) (Johnathan Lewis Seward) - not to be confused with John Christ of Danzig — Bass, Back up Vocals
- The Rev "The Reverend Tholomew Plague" (1999-Present) ((James)Jimmy Owen Sullivan) — Drums, Back up Vocals
Former band members
- Justin Sane (1999-2001) - not to be confused with Justin Sane of Anti-Flag — Bass guitar
- Daemon Ash (2001-2002) — Bass guitar
Equipment
Synyster Gates
- Uses Schecter guitars:
- Schecter Syn Custom
- Schecter C-1 FR (white with dot inlays)
- C-1 FR Hellraiser Avenger
- Syn Custom Avenger Models
- Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifiers with a 4x12 cab
- Ernie Ball Slinky Top Heavy Bottom Strings
Zacky Vengeance
- Uses Schecter guitars:
- S-1 Elite
- S-1 Regular
- S-1 Blackjack
- Vengeance Custom S-1 Models
Both Zacky and Syn have been seen using PT and Banshee models on special occasions
Johnny Christ
- Uses Ernie Ball basses
- Musicman Sterling
The Rev
- Uses DW drums
- 8 piece drum kit including two bass drums
- Uses Sabian AA Metal-X cymbals.
Also uses Pro-Mark 5BN Drumsticks and Evans drum heads.
Discography
Demo Recordings
For information, see Early Avenged Sevenfold releases.
Albums
-
Sounding the Seventh Trumpet July 24, 2001 Goodlife Recording -
Warmness on the Soul EP August 8, 2001 Goodlife Recording -
Waking the Fallen August 26, 2003 Hopeless Records #12 (Independant Album Chart) 175,000 US sales -
City of Evil June 7, 2005 Warner Bros. Records #30 (US Billboard) 697,000 US Sales
Singles
| Date of release | Title | Label | Other Info |
| September 19 2005 | Bat Country | Warner Bros. | |
| February 6 2006 | Beast and the Harlot | Warner Bros. | |
| June 12 2006 | Burn It Down | Warner Bros. | CD/Vinyl Release only. No video/radio play. |
| July 10 2006 | Seize the Day | Warner Bros. | Currently not available as a CD or vinyl. |
Videography
| Date | Title | Notes | Link |
| March 2001 | Warmness on the Soul | Professional video | (Video) |
| March 6, 2004 | Unholy Confessions | Live video with dubbed music | (Video) |
| July 28, 2005 | Bat Country | Professional video directed by Marc Klasfeld | (video from Bedlam Society) |
| February 6, 2006 | Beast and the Harlot | Professional video directed by Tony Petrossian | (Video from YouTube) |
| June 30, 2006 | Seize the Day | professional video directed by Wayne Isham | (Video From YouTube) |
Compilations
| Date | Title | Label | Song/s |
| 2002 | Plea for Peace/Take Action! Vol. 2 | Subcity Records | "Turn the Other Way" |
| 2003 | Take Action! Vol. 3 | Subcity Records | "Chapter Four" |
| 2003 | Metal=Life CD/DVD | Subcity Records | "Unholy Confessions" & Video |
| 2003 | Operation: Punk Rock Freedom | Hopeless Records / Subcity Records | "Chapter Four" & "Darkness Surrounding" |
| 2004 | Hopelessly Devoted to You Vol. 4 | Hopeless Records / Subcity Records | "Second Heartbeat" & "Darkness Surrounding" |
| 2005 | Hopelessly Devoted to You Vol. 5 | Hopeless Records / Subcity Records | "Chapter Four" & "Eternal Rest (Live)" (feat. "Unholy Confessions" video on Enhanced CD) |
| 2005 | Masters of Horror Soundtrack | "Beast and the Harlot" (live) | |
| 2006 | Kerrang! - High Voltage: A Brief History of Rock[1] | "Walk" (Pantera cover) | |
| 2006 | Hopelessly Devoted to You Vol. 6 | Hopeless Records / Subcity Records | "Darkness Surrounding" & "Unholy Confessions" (feat. "Unholy Confessions" video and "We Come Out at Night" live at Warped Tour 2003 video on included DVD) |
| 2006 | Kerrang! - Kerrang! Awards 2006 | "Beast And The Harlot" |
Trivia
- Zacky Vengeance owns his own clothing line, called "Zacky V. Presents..." It features the popular "Vengeance University" line, featuring shirts and belt buckles. [2].
- Synyster Gates also has a clothing line due out, tentatively titled "Syn."
- The Rev and Synyster were both members of the band Pinkly Smooth, formed with members of the now-extinct band Ballistico. The Rev sang and also recorded drums. Former Avenged Sevenfold bassist, Justin Sane, was also in the band.
- Zacky Vengeance was a baseball player in high school and has said that if he were not in a band, he would have pursued a professional career.
- The group won "Best New Artist" at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards despite being a band since 1999. The band themselves, who gave an incentive to those who voted for them (live, unreleased videos), commented that because they didn't think they'd win, there were no videos immediately ready.