Throwback Thursday: City of Evil, by Avenged Sevenfold

 
Hard to believe that this album is already 10 years old. I remember when it was new. When City of Evil, by Avenged Sevenfold came out in 2005 it was the band's first step into the more marketable direction they became known for sound-wise as they had just signed to Warner Bros. Records. This record is the one that really landed them on the map and made them one of the flag ship bands of modern metal.

What separates City of Evil from Avenged Sevenfold's previous albums is that for one thing all traces of the band's original metalcore sound are completely gone. There are no more screamed vocals and the overtone shifted to more of a deeper 80's speed metal/Iron Maiden kind of vibe. Despite taking a bit more commercial approach to metal, most if not all of the tracks are unforgettable. They are melodic, heavy, fast, and impacting.

One of the most well known tracks from Avenged Sevenfold came from this album: Beast and the Harlot. This track opens the album by grabbing you buy the balls and pulling you for a wild ride. The drums and chugging guitar riff absolutely do not let up or slow down at any point. The dual harmonized soloing between guitarists Zacky Vengeance and Synyster Gates only makes it that much better. Vocalist M. Shadows admits that this is the most tiresome song to sing live. By the time it's over you feel exhausted, yet pumped for the rest of the ride that is City of Evil.

One of the more creative pieces is a song called Sidewinder. Though it is primarily a metal song, there are sections (especially a long one at the end) that is Spanish flamenco guitar themed. In fact, the ending is a flamenco guitar dual between lead guitarist Gates and his father and guest guitarist Brian Haner. I think it's one of the absolute best parts of the entire album, to be honest. Nothing like some acoustic sprinkled in to make a metal album that much more interesting.

If you are a fan of heavy 80's metal or newer metal or want to know where to begin with Avenged Sevenfold, then City of Evil is just what you need. It really did help bring metal back from the brink of disappearing. Despite the fact that A7X did kind of "sell out" with this record, that doesn't mean it's bad by any means. They just changed their style up to something they more enjoyed and opened them up to a wider audience. Nothing wrong with that.

City of Evil, by Avenged Sevenfold receives 4 out of 5 stars.

Track List:

1. Beast and the Harlot
2. Burn It Down
3. Blinded in Chains
4. Bat Country
5. Trashed and Scattered
6. Seize the Day
7. Sidewinder
8. The Wicked End
9. Strength of the World
10. Betrayed
11. M.I.A.

Buy the album on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/City-Evil-AVENGED-SEVENFOLD/dp/B0009I7NNA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1440129147&sr=8-1&keywords=City+of+Evil