Product Description
Produced by Mike Elizondo (Dr. Dre, Eminem) and mixed by noted engineer Andy Wallace, the new Avenged Sevenfold album, "Nightmare", draws on everything from the earliest influences and inspirations that bonded the musicians in their youth to the vast spectrum of tastes these friends have developed over the years, reaching far outside the rock and punk universes one might expect.
Album Description
2010 release, the fifth album from the Alt-Metal outfit, produced by Mike Elizondo (Dr. Dre, Eminem) and mixed by noted engineer Andy Wallace. The album is the first from the band without drummer James The Rev Sullivan, who passed away in December. Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy plays drums on the album. Over the years, Avenged Sevenfold has built a fanatical fanbase that includes more than one million fans on Facebook. They have also attracted 93 million plays on MySpace.
84 items found.
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The Rev is lucky he's no longer around to hear the horrible monstrosity known as Nightmare by Revenged Sevenfold!
I've been a metal head since 2007 so you can imagine that over this time I have come to learn good metal when I hear it; and I DON'T hear it from Avenged Sevenfold!
There were so many cliche blast beats that I couldn't make out the lyrics; the lyrics are the most important part of any metal album, take St. Anger by Metallica for example.
Another problem with this album, is that instead of keeping it clean like all good metal groups, A7x tries to look tough by putting profanity in a few of its songs! I was hoping to share this CD with my nephews, Steve and Steward, ages 6 and 8 respectively!
In closing, avoid cliche, wannabe metal such as Avenged Sevenfold, and stick to tried and true metal classics such as St. Anger by Mettalica, and anything by Creed, Nickelback, and The Real Tuesday Weld!"
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The Patriarch,
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Like all four previous A7X studio albums, this one took a while for me to understand and fully appreciate. After five or six listens I finally "got" what they were trying to accomplish. Yes, it is a fitting tribute to the Rev. But mostly it is A7X taking elements that defined each of their four previous albums and combining them into a coherent album that surpasses each of their previous records. First, a way of background since reviews don't mean anything unless the reader knows where the reviewer is coming from. Additionally, to fully understand "Nightmare", one should know something about their previous albums. I assume that most people who have heard "Nightmare" have heard at least one of their previous albums, but here is my take on them (if readers want to skip right to my review of "Nightmare", skip the next four paragraphs):
I first heard A7X in 2002 when a friend recommended "Sounding the Seventh Trumpet" to me. This was after Synyster Gates had joined the band and the album was re-issued on Hopeless Records. To be honest, I didn't appreciate the album as much then as I do now. I wasn't a huge metalcore fan then - actually, I'm still not - but I still had to acknowledge that certain songs had an undeniable intensity that made me keep listening. The first seven tracks on the album are all great. This album, with a few exceptions, is heavy on M. Shadows' screaming (a trademark of metalcore). He does it exceptionally well. This album has a simpler approach (but loud, heavy and extremely effective) on guitar since Zacky Vengeance had sole duties for all but one song.
While "Sounding the Seventh Trumpet" wasn't my favorite album of all time, I enjoyed it enough that I purchased "Waking the Fallen" upon its release in 2003. This album continued somewhat in the same vein as its predecessor, but the addition of Synyster Gates on lead guitar was noticeable. The band's music had increased in complexity. Also different was that, in addition to his howling and screaming, Shadows used his singing voice on a good portion of the album. Many A7X fans consider this to be their favorite record: enough metalcore intensity to keep the original fans happy and enough melody to bring in the new fans. This album has many standout tracks and was a clear step forward for the band.
"City of Evil", released in 2005, was a shock to fans like myself who enjoyed the metalcore-based attack of their previous two albums. "City of Evil" was more in the vein of classic heavy metal. Gone were the guttural metalcore howls and screams by Shadows as he used his singing voice 100% of the time. The slower, heavy guitars that could be found on their first two albums were replaced almost entirely with lightning-fast lead guitar work that conjured up thoughts of Iron Maiden. This album, thanks to songs like "Bat Country", crossed over somewhat into the mainstream. For the first time, A7X was being played on many rock radio stations and garnered some MTV attention. Although the band insisted that their original plan all along had been for their third album's vocals to consist entirely of singing, it was still surprising to hear. While the songs were technically difficult, this album didn't quite do it for me: with all the guitar wizardry and undeniably talented drumming by the Rev, it didn't have the same intensity or emotional impact as their first two albums. Additionally, Shadows was not yet a very good singer. Of course, he was not a good singer in the technical sense on their prior albums, but that shortcoming was covered up by the fact that he did not use his singing voice often and when he did, it was often for a contrasting effect.
Their self-titled release came next in 2007. It is arguable which album was more surprising - "City of Evil" or "Avenged Sevenfold". Their self-titled album lacked the coherent theme of the previous three albums. It had more songs that were radio-friendly length but shifted genres throughout the album. The first two albums could be classified as metalcore or a derivative of it. The third album was pure old-school heavy metal. The fourth album was all over the place. It was hard rock, heavy metal and alternative all rolled into one. Shadows didn't return to screaming/growling, but his singing vocal ability had noticeably improved. There were hard rock songs, a song with children's choir (!), a song where Shadows used a vocoder (!) and a long, extravagant song that incorporated classic showtunes sounds. It even ended with a slower countrified rock ballad. Some songs were great; others were a bit bizarre. It was clear that A7X was stretching themselves, sometimes even successfully. Certainly they received more mainstream radio play with this album than with their prior releases.
Finally, this brings us to 2010 and "Nightmare". I won't re-chronicle in detail the circumstances surrounding since they can be found elsewhere(briefly, the Rev, A7X's drummer, tragically died at the end of 2009 after the songs for the album had been written; the Rev was replaced by Dream Theater's Mike Portnoy for the recording of this album), but "Nightmare" puts together all of the elements of their previous albums in a coherent and exciting way. It contains elements of metalcore as Shadows graces the listener with guttural howling on several songs. It has elements of classic heavy metal as Synyster Gates' lead guitar takes over on numerous places in the album. It has gut-pounding guitars and drums. It even has great singing vocals. All of the elements that are found on their first four albums are found here making this their most complete album and this reviewer's favorite. Here is my song-by-song review:
1) Nightmare - The lead single from the album. This is a no-nonsense track that immediately amps up the volume. At about the 4:00 mark, Shadows launches into some Hetfield-esque growling that exponentially increases the Wow! factor of this song. Other than the somewhat ridiculous "It's your f*#@ing nightmare" refrain, this is a great song.
2) Welcome to the Family - Shadows' style of singing here sounds like that on various places of their self-titled album. Screaming guitars from Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance are the standouts here. A great all-around hard rock song.
3) Danger Line - In my opinion, one of two weak songs on the album. The subject, a soldier's thoughts as he is dying on the field of battle, demonstrates A7X's empathy for our troops abroad, but the overall song is fairly nondescript.
4) Buried Alive - The album really starts to heat up here. This song is one of my favorites in the A7X catalog. After a great intro by Synyster Gates, the song starts in earnest with a couple of verses and choruses before picking up speed at the end of the second chorus. Then, after furious guitar work and drums, it settles down into a heavy Metallica-like groove. Shadows' vocal intensity picks up and ends with him growling "This...is now...your life! Die...buried...alive!" I had never thought of A7X as being particularly Metallica-inspired before this song, but "Buried Alive" is A7X's "One". A true A7X classic.
5) Natural Born Killer - Not letting up on the intensity, this song, if anything, ramps up the pace. Portnoy's booming double-bass kicks are evident throughout the song. The sheer speed and intensity of the guitars, bass and drums on this song is astounding. Another of A7X's best.
6) So Far Away - After the intensity of the previous two songs, A7X slows it down with their first ballad-type song on the album providing a much-needed respite from the relentless attack. This one didn't appeal to me immediately, but has grown on me with repeated listening. Excellent vocals by Shadows and some solid guitar work by Gates, including some acoustic guitar, make this a good song.
7) God Hates Us - This is it: the song all those fans of "Sounding the Seventh Trumpet" and "Waking the Fallen" have been waiting for. After teasing us with some metalcore screaming in a few prior songs, Shadows goes all-out here. The sheer force of the guitars, bass and drums pave the road for Shadows to lay down some of his most vicious vocals ever. Truly another standout track on the album; again, one of A7X's best.
8) Victim - A longer, slow song that again demonstrates excellent vocals by Shadows. This one really speaks to the pain and confusion the band is feeling from the untimely loss of the Rev. Probably my favorite slow song on the album.
9) Tonight the World Dies - This song, along with "Danger Line" is probably my least favorite on the album. It has a blues-based guitar attack that is interesting, but not overwhelming or particularly memorable. The same goes for the vocals and the lyrics.
10) Fiction - A highlight because of the last recorded vocals by the Rev. This song is slow - mostly piano and vocals - but the Rev's vocals complement those of Shadows impeccably. For fans of A7X, this is quite a poignant song.
11) Save Me - The album ends with a bang. This song harnesses some of the best drumming and guitar on the album as well as some excellent vocals and lyrics. Mike Portnoy's influence can be heard on this nearly eleven-minutes-long song. The double-bass kicks are pounding throughout the song. The complicated song structure is reminiscent of Dream Theater but the execution and delivery is 100% A7X. I hope to hear more like this from A7X in the future. Given the over-arching theme of the album - dealing with trials and tribulations, in particular the Rev's untimely demise - this song ends with a fitting refrain from Shadows: "Tonight...we all...die young!"
Overall, "Nightmare" has something for everyone. Fans of each of their previous albums will find something to like. Shadows' singing voice has never been better. The guitar work has never been more complex nor have Gates and Vengeance been as coordinated. Johnny Christ holds things together on bass. And Mike Portnoy fills in admirably for the Rev, upholding the Rev's memory while adding some new touches to A7X. This album isn't like any of their previous releases but it does have elements of the best of each. For those new to A7X, this is a great introduction to the breadth of the band's sound. For those who have heard them before, I encourage you to give this album a chance: you have never heard the band playing like this.
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T. Gerch,
Los Angeles, CA
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Naturally it was us bozos who broke the box within a day of getting this new release."
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M. Dionne,
Denver, CO
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In twenty years, this band will no doubt be referenced as a symbol of the "good old days" when heavy metal was king. Sadly, that speaks more about declining tastes and the state of modern music than the quality of the band itself. Avenged Sevenfold sucks and one dead drummer doesn't magically make them any less sucky. This is heavy metal for reformed emos who'd rather sit around and feel sorry for themselves than get up off their ass and have some fun in life."
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Danny,
South Philly
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Amazing album, melodic tunes, really catchy, a great tribute to the Rev, and in my opinion the best Avenged album so far, totally worth the money."
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Mosho,
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UPC/EAN:
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093624966555
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0093624966555
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