The last release from Avenged Sevenfold was back in 2005 with “City Of Evil” and, to say some fans have been chomping at the bit waiting for new material, would be an understatement. Now with this self-titled album “Avenged Sevenfold” having just hit the stores the wait is over.

The album opener “Critical Acclaim” is an opinionated number with attitude and bristling fat and fruity guitar riffs. The lead guitar breaks are smooth, controlled and melodic and to enforce the subject matter we get a harmony guitar solo with a Middle Eastern flavour. I have to say that the organ introduction to the song did have me thinking the band were about to launch into a version of Queens “I Want To Break Free” and that thought stayed with me every time I played the song back. Saying that it’s a great opener and sonically sounds superb.

Next up is “Almost Easy” which contains some twisting, turning and fiendishly clever drumming in the verses that has the odd effect of making the chorus sound a bit ordinary. Some great thrash drumming backs the guitar solo and the combination creates some very exciting moments. In fact the lead break is a real gem as notes skip across the fret board with clever phrasing.

“Scream” is a heavy and mildly melodically dark number with quirky inventive guitar playing in the verses. Once more the chorus is a bit predictable unlike the guitar solo that is outstanding. The vibe running through this track would make it perfect soundtrack material for the next Rob Zombie movie.

“Afterlife” opens with a string section before launching into a swaggering band performance. This time the chorus feels strong as it stands apart from the verses with greater melodic clarity than previous songs on the album. There is a cool middle section where the stringed instruments echo some of the electric guitar parts before a full on shred guitar solo lifts the roof on this track  to great heights. The song works well on many levels especially in the way the thrash elements sit alongside the anthemic chorus.

“Gunslinger” may surprise many long time fans with its strummed acoustic guitar parts that sound like they should be played around the campfire. As the band enter the song morphs into a commercial and radio friendly rock workout. It’s a good song but not one that I found myself wanting to return to due to its formulated by numbers character.

“Unbound (The Wild Ride)” is an up tempo song with drumming that feels like the band are on a runaway train charging down the track to oblivion. There is piano on this track which feels a little out of place, it’s too “plinky plonky” and I felt it would have been better if a guitar had taken these fills. As the track progressed I couldn’t help feeling that the band have been listening to a lot of Muse as the chord progressions and arrangement had some very “Museish” qualities.

“Brompton Cocktail” contains some great riffs that come to life thanks to a lush orchestral backing but the chorus had me once again feeling it blended with the verse just a bit too much. As a result this track never really caught my imagination or jumped out at me.

“Lost” opens with some very tasty harmony guitar bringing to mind Iron Maiden with a dash of Michael Schenker. However when the song gets going things get very modern with effected vocals mixed with straight vocals and some high energy drumming. Once more this track didn’t quiet give me the rush I wanted. There was something a bit “samey” about all the sections but saving the day there is a fine lead guitar play out to the song which I have gone back too and played many times.

“Little Piece Of Heaven” is a very orchestral track with the band sitting in the background for most of the song. The arrangement almost feels like a carnival band in full swing. The layered harmony vocals and the way the backing music moves around reminded me of the much-missed T-Ride. It’s a satisfying track that would sit perfectly on a film soundtrack like “The Corpse Bride” or “Beetlejuice”. As the song progresses the band enter and add some heaviness, which fills out the sound further.

“Dear God” is the final track on the album and one which sees the band entering country territory with banjo licks, pedal steel and even some George Harrison flavoured slide guitar. It’s a good song but one that may have fans thinking what’s going on. Personally I don’t think anyone should panic as it shows the band have a desire to grow and aren’t afraid to take a few risks here and there.

As a listening experience “Avenged Sevenfold” sounds fantastic with its big, lush rock mix. There are some moments that may alienate a few original fans but there are others which will see the band picking up many new ones and that is surely what all bands want. The musicianship within the band is outstanding and some of the guitar solos will put big smiles on those of us who like guitar players to push themselves to the edge. If some of the choruses had stood out more form the verses this release would have been a killer. Saying all that this album is going to get a lot of airplay in my household and also points the way to a bright future for the band thanks to them opening a few more doors with their sound.

Let us know your views on Avenged Sevenfold

 Track Listing

Critical Acclaim
Almost Easy
Scream
Afterlife
Gunslinger
Unbound (The Wild Ride)
Brompton Cocktail
Lost
Little Piece Of Heaven
Dear God

Line Up

M. Shadows - Vocals/Guitars
Zacky Vengeance - Guitars
The Rev - Drums
Synyster Gates - Guitars
Johnny Christ - Bass