music
Avenged Sevenfold
"As musicians, the members of Avenged Sevenfold are definite virtuosos in a time when being accomplished artists seemingly means so little. They are inquisitive and never fully satisfied with their own work. They seek to grow and improve every day, regardless of the obstacles or costs involved.
They are a rock band. They are rock stars. They are Avenged Sevenfold" - Avenged Sevenfold's official website.
The band's name is a reference to the Book of Genesis in the Bible, where Cain is sentenced to live in exile for murdering his brother. God marked him so that none would kill him on account of his sin; the man who dared to kill Cain would suffer "vengeance seven times over" (KJV). The title of Avenged Sevenfold's song 'Chapter Four' references the fourth chapter of Genesis, in which the story of Cain and Abel takes place.
Although the band's title and members' stage names make references to religion, lead vocalist M. Shadows stated in an interview that they are not a religious band. "Anyone that reads the lyrics and really knew anything about us, they would know we're not promoting either," he said. "That's one thing about this band that I love is that we never really shove any kind of, like, political or religious beliefs on people. We just, the music's there to entertain and maybe thought-provoking on both sides, but we don't try to, like, really shove anything down anyone's throat. There's too many bands that do that nowadays, I think."
While often categorized as metalcore or hard rock, Avenged Sevenfold's material ranges across many genres, often leaving the concept of genres altogether (especially in their most recent album). For example, their debut 'Sounding the Seventh Trumpet' consisted almost entirely of a metalcore sound, however consisted of several deviations to this genre, most notably in 'Streets' which adopts a Punk style, and 'Warmness on the Soul' it is a very warm somg.
Avenged Sevenfold's self-titled album, again, consists of several deviations to less consistent genres and styles, most notably in 'Dear God', which adopts a country style, and 'A Little Piece of Heaven', which includes elements of broadway show tunes, using primarily brass instruments and stringed orchestra to take over most of the role of the lead and rhythm guitar.
The band has, though, changed considerably since its first album, which was characterized as very heavy, to being more of a hard rock type band. Although in disbelief to the public, they had gotten their motivation, and encouragement from the old style punk band 'NoFx.'