Hail to the Stream: Listen to Avenged Sevenfold’s New Album

Okay, first thing’s first, so I don’t bury the lede: Avenged Sevenfold’s new album, Hail to the King is now streaming on iTunes. Thanks to Steven D. for promptly alerting me via Facebook. You’re a champ, Steve!

Second thing’s second: I’m only five songs deep right now, but it’s already clear that these dudes have taken their love of early 90s metal to new extremes, and I am fucking DIGGING it big time, bruh. (I’m roughly the same age as the dudes in A7X, so it makes sense that they would hit my musical g-spot.) “Doing Time” sounds like it came right off of Use Your Illusion (the intro owes a massive debt to the beginning of “Back Off Bitch,” right down to the rounded sound of M. Shadows’ yelp), “This Means War” is pure Black Album, “Heretic” pretty much is “Symphony of Destruction,” and I think “Crimson Day” was meant to recall Skid Row but really it recalls Firehouse but that’s cool, I’m still totally on board. If there’s a song deeper on the album that sounds like anything off of No More Tears, this may become my favorite album of the year.

Listen here, then argue about it in the comments section below. Hail to the King comes out August 27.