Avenged Sevenfold’s new record is a mixed bag. This is the first time I’ve listened to one
of their albums – they’re new to me even though they’ve been making music for over
15 years and this is album seven. So I’ve
no frame of reference as to how The Stage
compares with their previous material, but I bought it on a recommendation and
found much to love. It’s a record that
is full of interesting, progressive metal songs. Indeed, this is an album that is as much
about the mellow parts, the layers and the key changes as it is about punching
riffs (although there are some pretty good riffs on show here too: ‘Simulation’,
for example, has a central riff that recalls Metallica’s 1988 classic ‘Blackened’, before shifting tone and drifting
into shoegaze territory). This is metal
with an accompanying string section, and occasionally a brass section too. The quality dips every so often: it’s
definitely a patchy affair. And the pseudo-Layne Staley style vocals grate a bit
after a while. But when it’s good, it’s really good. The unexpected trumpet-bounce that suddenly
happens part way through ‘Sunny Disposition’ is worthy of a special mention.
sample track: Sunny Disposition