AVENGED SEVENFOLD Band does its own thing

Singer Matt Shadow says his band wants a career like Iron Maiden's.
By JOHN BENSON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
Avenged Sevenfold singer Matt Shadow has always had a soft spot in his heart for Iron Maiden; however, it wasn't until last summer opening for the New Wave of British Heavy Metal outfit that he fully realized what influence the "Run to the Hills" group had over his own up-and-coming band.
"The one thing I've loved about Iron Maiden, I don't think they have the catchiest tunes or the poppiest melodies, but they've somehow crossed over to so many fans," said Shadow, calling from Reno. "We want to build a career like that. They'll have all of those loyal fans forever."
While there are hints of metallic influences to be found on Avenged Sevenfold's 2005 breakthrough album "City of Evil," Shadow's description of Maiden's not having "the catchiest tunes or the poppiest melodies" sounds very familiar. In fact, that pretty much describes this Southern California rock act, which formed in the late '90s while its five members were still in high school.
How the band evolved
Arriving at a perfect time, when punk meets metal was cool, Avenged Sevenfold initially fell under the emo umbrella but soon set out to distance itself through its music, which caters more to rock radio than alternative stations.
The first single, "Bat Country," helped break the band, while latest release "Beast and the Harlot," which channels a Guns N' Roses dual guitar attack, is shaping up to be the group's next big hit. Shadow understands Avenged Sevenfold stands out among today's radio rock bands and he wouldn't have it any other way.
"It's one of those things I don't really worry about," Shadow said. "We just do our thing. I think a lot of bands are a lot more listenable, a lot easier to hear on the radio. Like if you listen to Fall Out Boy, and I love that band, but they're very poppy and sell millions of records. I don't think Avenged Sevenfold is ever going to be like that, especially on this record."
He added, "I think our kids are going to get it and there will be a lot of people who hate it. And that's cool with us. We don't expect us to be some super huge band in 2006 but at the same time, we're going to keep putting on great live shows and putting out records that we think are cool. All of the critics' stuff is like cool but it's a lot of stuff that doesn't matter."
Spoken like a true rock 'n' roll hero, Shadow comes across as intelligent and confident but without the obligatory ego that often defines a new band.
Co-headlining
After Avenged Sevenfold toured as a headliner earlier this year with sold-out club dates, the next step would naturally be larger venues. However, Shadow and company decided on a slightly more conservative yet creative approach. The feeling is they just aren't ready to headline amphitheaters. At least not alone. The five-piece has teamed up with prog rock act Coheed & amp; Cambria for a co-headlining spring run that brings them to Cleveland on Saturday for a show at the Tower City Amphitheater and Pittsburgh on Sunday at the Chevrolet Amphitheatre.
"That's one thing we really wanted to do was do arenas and amphitheaters to close out this 'City of Evil' cycle for the major markets in America," Shadow said. "So it was like, how can we get in there? Let's co-headline and they can do their show and we can come out and do our show and make it really exciting and spectacular before we go do the new record."