FIRST FOOTAGE OF AVENGED PORTNOYFOLD

Avenged Sevenfold’s Nightmare is out today (read Vince’s interview with A7X’s Johnny Christ here), and I’ve only listened to it twice so I reserve the right to completely rescind everything I’m about to type. But my initial impressions are that it’s a really good record, maybe the best pop metal album of the year so far, and that it’s not quite as good as the band’s last, self-titled album. I don’t think the band have pushed themselves quite as hard as they did last time out, when they suddenly revealed aspirations of being Queen. Even the really epic songs, like “Save Me” and “Victim,” don’t quite have the WHOA! factor of tracks like “A Little Piece of Heaven” or “Unbound” — songs that no one could have predicted after Waking the Fallen and City of Evil. Yeah, “Natural Born Killer” and “Tonight the World Dies” are excellent songs, but they’re songs that will surprise exactly no one who heard Avenged Sevenfold. (The one exception might be “Fiction,” which is a straight-up piano ballad.)

But don’t get your panties in a twist if you’re an A7X fan. I still think it’s a really good album.

Now the band has made their Rev-less live debut with Mike Portnoy on drums, and… yep, it stills sounds like Avenged Sevenfold. But for some of us, bootleg vids like this one (of the new song “Welcome to the Family”) will be our only chance to see Portneged Sevenoy so… enjoy!

Check out more clips of our favorite Jewish drummer from Long Island playing with our favorite glam Republicans from Orange County over at The PRP.

-AR