Avenged Sevenfold is an American metal band that rose out of Huntington Beach, California in 1999. Since their formation, the band has released seven studio albums, along with a single live album/DVD, two compilation albums, eighteen singles, and four special release songs for Call of Duty: Black Ops series.
All in all, in their over twenty years, the band has created a plethora of music that range in genre and style.
With such a long career and plenty of good songs to enjoy, let’s take a look at the 10 best Avenged Sevenfold songs out there!
10 Best Avenged Sevenfold Songs
10. Warmness of the Soul
This particular ballad can be found on Waking the Fallen, and its definitely one that will catch your attention. Waking the Fallen was early Avenged era where the focus was raw, driven more by the metalcore sound going for them.
While nearly all of the tracks on Waking the Fallen are raw, verging on violent in both sound and lyrically, this is one that tends to turn heads.
What ends up making this track so good is that Avenged Sevenfold showed their talent here, showing they could reveal a softer side. In fact, the song has had just an impact that an instrumental version is occasionally still heard at live shows!
9. Shepherd of Fire
Hail to the King was a no-nonsense pure heavy metal album and an excellent follow-up to the 2010 album Nightmare.
The album itself took a lot of flack for feeling as though it were dancing in Metallica’s Black album territory, however for anyone wanting a solid metal sound to rock out to, Hail to the King competes. It does its job well and feels more rooted in that heavy sound that pulled Avenged Sevenfold to the forefront of metal in the first place.
Shepherd of Fire is the epitome of that sound. This is the sort of track that you want to stomp and move to, with heavy-hitting riffs and a sound that is distinct to Avenged Sevenfold, Shepherd of Fire plays on the tone of the album perfectly.
The single is the first track on the album and it kicks off Hail to the King perfectly, reminding us exactly why we keep listening to Avenged Sevenfold, album after album with no end in sight.
8. Sidewinder
On that album, City of Evil is Sidewinder, which is a surprisingly overlooked song in comparison to the hits that did come off that album. The song itself is from the perspective of a villain.
There is no missing how much fun M.Shadows had crooning and hissing the lyrics over top of a shifting sound that shows the world that the band has no intention of constraining themselves to one style. It’s so clear they had fun with the song, letting loose from start to finish!
7. Critical Acclaim
The self-titled album Avenged Sevenfold had a lot of impressive qualities about it. It was diving deeper into the bands’ need to experiment with their sound, and it included a lot more work out of the Rev too.
Critical Acclaim makes the list because of how raw and apologetic it is. Themed around being pissed off at a particular crowd of people daring to criticize those that serve in the military while being unwilling to do the same if necessary, the lyrics leave very little to the imagination when it comes to displaying the bands’ opinion.
Mix that with the raw, heavy-hitting sound behind it, and this was always going to be a winner of a track.
6. God Damn
This is another jewel that came off The Stage, and it’s the only song on the album that comes in under four minutes.
The great thing about this song that gives it a spot on this list is the fact that The Stage was overall more progressive in sound, but God Damn brings us swinging back around to that hard rock sound that Avenged Sevenfold seemed to have moved on from with this more experimental record. It’s a fun kick in the teeth song that will have you banging your head from start to finish.
5. Fiction
Coming off of their Nightmare album from 2010, Fiction is the last song that the Rev wrote just three days before his passing. Originally titled ‘Death’, the band obviously opted to change the name. That doesn’t take away from the power of the song, however.
Fiction is allowed the space to be a ballad rather than a hard hitter. There is more focus on the drums and piano, even using some of the Revs demo vocal tracks that had been recorded before his death. The song itself is haunting and definitely serves as a final goodbye to the man behind the lyrics themselves.
4. Afterlife
Another coming off the self-titled album Avenged Sevenfold in 2007, Afterlife is another anthem written by the Rev.
Not only did he do the main writing for it, bringing it back to the band nearly ready to go, but this is also one of the songs that swung them straight into the spotlight. They had already been growing in popularity with the fluid movement of their albums, and the talent behind these albums.
Afterlife, however, was an instant hit for them. Making its way onto the radio, and pushing the band further into the mainstream after the success of City of Evil.
It was multi-layered with somber lyrics, but a bright and poppy sound that absolutely became an anthem at the time, and still maintains as a favorite for new and long-time fans alike.
3. Bat Country
Another hit off of City of Evil, Bat Country was not only a breakout song for the band, it was also a tribute to Hunter S. Thompson, an infamous journalist. In fact, Bat Country is in direct reference to his Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
The song itself has the same woozy feeling that comes with the way that Hunting S. Thompson own book. It’s heavy-hitting, with riffs and vocal hooks that play well with the sleazy feel of the song itself and the album. This was an insta-hit for the band and a go-to for old and new fans alike.
2. Nightmare
The album Nightmare and the self-titled track served as a moment of holding breath for the band and fans alike. Dropping just seven months after the Rev had passed away, this album was going to determine the future and it did not disappoint.
The idea was first conceived at M. Shadows’ wedding and brought to life. A story of a sinner condemned to hell for a lifetime of misdeeds.
With a xylophone opening that definitely gets attention to the soundscape that definitely gives way to those influences such as Ozzy, the song itself is impressive and helped shoot the band up to number one on Billboard charts.
1. A Little Piece of Heaven
A Little Piece of Heaven makes its way to the top of the list because it is entirely unique. Written by the Rev, as many of their very unique and earlier songs were, this song takes it to another level.
It’s fun and catchy, sounding like it should have been on some Tim Burton soundtrack, with raunchy lyrics that are enough to leave anyone a little wide-eyed.
This is one of those songs that is a treasure because of how outrageous it is from start to finish. You can’t help but dance and sing along while being totally aware of just how screwed up the song itself is.
This song stands out because it sounds like nothing else the band has done in its nearly twenty years of existence. This doesn’t even sound like it belongs on the album it’s featured on, but that is also what makes it perfect.
It shows the sheer talent the band has, and it gives insight to how much fun they really do have with their songwriting.
“Avenged Sevenfold, Hovefestivalen 08” by NRK P3 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.