History
Formation and Sounding the Seventh Trumpet (1999–2002)
The band was formed in 1999 in Huntington Beach, California with original members M. Shadows, Zacky Vengeance, The Rev and Matt Wendt. M Shadows came up with the name as a reference to the story of Cain and Abel from The Bible, which can be found in Genesis 4:24, although they are not a religious band.[4] Upon its formation, each member of the band also took on a pseudonym which were already nicknames of theirs from high school.[5] Matt Wendt was later replaced by Justin 'Sane' Meacham who was previously the bassist for Suburban Legends.Before the release of their debut album, the band recorded two demos in 1999 and 2000.[6][7] In mid-2001, it was reported that Meacham had attempted suicide [8] by drinking excessive amounts of cough syrup.[9] The attempt had an impact on the band's Take Action Tour.[8] During his hospitalization he remained in poor condition and was replaced by Dameon Ash.[9] In an interview, lead singer M. Shadows said of Meacham that "he perma-fried his brain and was in a mental institution for a long time, and when you have someone in your band who does that, it ruins everything that's going on all around you, and it makes you want to do something to prevent it from happening to other people."[9] Avenged Sevenfold's debut album, Sounding the Seventh Trumpet, was recorded when the band members were in their late teens and still in high school. It was originally released on their first label, Good Life Recordings in 2001.[10] After lead guitarist Synyster Gates joined the band after the album was released, the introductory track "To End the Rapture" was re-recorded featuring a full band element. The album was subsequently re-released on Hopeless Records in 2002. The band started to receive recognition, performing with bands such as Mushroomhead and Shadows Fall and playing on the Take Action Tour.[11][12]
Waking the Fallen and City of Evil (2003–2006)
Having found a new bassist, Johnny Christ, the group released their second studio album titled Waking the Fallen on Hopeless Records in August 2003. The album featured a more refined and mature sound production in comparison to their previous album. The band received profiles in Billboard and The Boston Globe, and played in the Vans Warped Tour.[13][14] In 2004, Avenged Sevenfold toured again on the Vans Warped Tour and recorded a video for their song "Unholy Confessions" which went into rotation on MTV2's Headbanger's Ball.[15] Shortly after the release of Waking the Fallen, Avenged Sevenfold left Hopeless Records and were signed to Warner Bros. Records.City of Evil, the band's third album and major label debut, was released on June 7, 2005 and debuted at No.30 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling over 30,000 copies in its first week of release.[16][17] It utilized a more classic metal sound than Avenged Sevenfold's previous albums, which had been grouped into the metalcore genre.[18][19] The album is also notable for the absence of screamed and growled vocals; M. Shadows worked with vocal coach Ron Anderson—whose clients have included Axl Rose and Chris Cornell—for months before the album's release to achieve a sound that had "grit while still having the tone".[18][20] The album received positive reviews from several magazines and websites and is credited for propelling the band into international popularity.
After playing Ozzfest in 2006, Avenged Sevenfold memorably beat out R&B Singers Rihanna and Chris Brown, Panic! at the Disco, Angels & Airwaves and James Blunt for the title of Best New Artist at the MTV Video Music Awards, thanks in part to their Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas-inspired song “Bat Country.”[21] They returned to the Vans Warped Tour, this time headlining and then continued on their own "Cities of Evil Tour."[22] In addition, their lead single "Bat Country" reached No.2 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Charts, No.6 on the Billboard Modern Rock Charts and the accompanying video made it to No.1 on MTV's Total Request Live.[23] Propelled by this success, the album sold well and became Avenged Sevenfold's first gold record.[24] It was later certified platinum in August 2009
