Avenged Sevenfold

About Avenged Sevenfold

The band started young, recording their debut Sounding the Seventh Trumpet when members were eighteen years old. Originally released on Good Life Recordings, it was re-released on Hopeless Records after Synyster Gates joined and re-recorded the opening track. Their second album Waking the Fallen also arrived on Hopeless Records and received attention from major publications before Warner Bros. Records picked up the band.

City of Evil marked a deliberate shift away from metalcore in 2005. M. Shadows moved from screaming to melodic singing as the band pursued a heavier metal and hard rock direction. Rather than vocal injury, this reflected a stylistic choice the band had planned years earlier, as confirmed by producer Mudrock. The band's name draws from the biblical story of Cain and Abel, and religious imagery appears throughout their lyrics and song titles like Chapter Four and Beast and the Harlot, though the members have stated they use these references for thematic depth rather than to promote beliefs. Beyond original material, Avenged Sevenfold placed tracks like Bat Country and Blinded In Chains across multiple video game soundtracks including NHL and Madden franchises.

The band experienced significant personnel shifts, most notably the loss of original drummer James The Rev Sullivan in 2009. Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater and later Arin Ilejay filled that role before Brooks Wackerman from Bad Religion and Suicidal Tendencies joined in 2016. Their discography spans from Sounding the Seventh Trumpet through Life Is But a Dream in 2023. The Groove Hunter currently tracks 9 editions of Avenged Sevenfold vinyl, including notable pressings of Nightmare, Waking The Fallen in bone vinyl, The Stage, Hail to the King, and Avenged Sevenfold.