1.0 awful

Daniel Kisielewski | June 24th 06

This is honestly one of the worst albums I've ever heard. For one thing, M. Shadows does not even resemble a competent vocalist. His harsh, guttural scream assaults your ears like a World War II blitzkrieg and just sucks. Screaming is good, but not when you do it retardedly enough to get polyps and sound like a, well, retard. Furthermore, the instrumentation leaves much to be desired. While Synester Gates and Zacky Vengeance are decent enough guitarists, their performance on Waking the Fallen is pathetic. Don't even get me started on The Rev. The bassist, I suppose, is alright, not that you can hear him amongst the flurry of overlaying trash. Avenged Sevenfold, for all of their arrogance, are a laughably terrible band. If I was pressed to choose a good point to this album, it would be "Chapter Four." Mostly because it was on Madden a few years ago. Also: the nicknames are beat you fags. 17 Bumps | Bump

4.0 excellent

Jacob6293 | June 27th 06

This was the first Avenged Sevenfold album I ever bought, and it straight-up rocks. My favorite song is "Chapter Four". And "Unholy Confessions" is an amazing song, too. It also remains heavier and more hardcore than City Evil. There is much more screaming than their newest album. But the bottom line is, this album is truly amazing, so if you don't yet own it, go out and buy it, or download "Chapter Four" and if you like that, buy the album. 13 Bumps | Bump

1.5 very poor

Josh Deragon | February 2nd 08

One of the worst albums ever probably. The vocals are utterly atrocious. I don't see how anyone can like them, really. The guitars, while good, don't display any sign of talent. Anyone can solo these days. Besides any leads, there is nothing to brag about. 14 year olds on YouTube mastered the album long ago. Amazing? No, not really. "Matt Shadows" is possibly the worst "vocalist" in the history of vocal chords existence. Terrible, terrible album. 5 Bumps | Bump

3.5 great

Nick Butler STAFF | January 17th 07

While you don't need to bother with anything else Avenged Sevenfold have ever done, this is actually quite a good mainstream metal album. It's catchy, punchy, and it manages to be neither too dumb to like nor too intelligent to enjoy - both traps countless metal bands fall into. None of the band members are especially impressive, yet when the band lock into one of their vaguely Pantera-influenced grooves - "Eternal Rest", for instance - that doesn't matter. "Chapter Four", "Unholy Confessions", and the big ballad "I Won't See You Tonight" are all very enjoyable, too. Many things grate about Avenged Sevenfold - Shadows' vocals, wanky guitar, boring songs - but none of that can be found here. Unexpected, to say the least. 4 Bumps | Bump

1.0 awful	xTomx | February 4th 09
I cant give lower than a 1 and its just such a terrible cd only for greasy kids with long metal hair 3 Bumps | Bump

5.0 classic

Bfhurricane | May 11th 07

This album will always remain among my favorites of all time. This album is the epitome of metalcore - all aspects of performance are executed with nothing less than perfection. Avoiding the popular trend to scream and churn out heavy, uninspired riffs, A7X puts life into all their songs and will assault you with some of the best riffs you have ever heard. The combination of riffs in "Second Heartbeat," from the intro to the solo, simply cannot be competed with. Shadow's vocals, which are often a topic of debate, are a hit or miss. I believe they fit the bill perfectly, as Shadows explores the soft side of his voice as much as his brutal scream. The main aspect of this album that makes it a classic is that it's truly memorable. The music is one of a kind, and the musiciansnip in every song on this disc is unexpectedly brilliant. A7X set the metalcore bar with Waking the Fallen, and in my opinion it has yet to be beaten. 3 Bumps | Bump

4.0 excellent

Greg Viessman | January 5th 08

This is my second favorite Avenged Sevenfold release. Unlike City of Evil, who's songlisting was almost flawless, this has some flaws. There are only about a half dozen songs on here that I like, but they are really good in the process. Second Heartbeat is my favorite song, and the solo at the end stacks up as one of my favorite solos ever. Unholy Confessions and Chapter 4 are great as well. The finale of this disk, And All Things Will End, is a spectacular 7 minutes, but the solo near the end is very strange. Overall though, a great album. 2 Bumps | Bump

4.0 excellent

Drunken Viking | August 27th 06

Waking the Fallen, the second full length effort from A7X. My favorite album from them, Shadow's clean voice was definitely stronger then his voice now, and not quite as nasaly. Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance made beautiful arrangements, including using a piano and a few orchestral instruments. Johnny Christ the bassist is somewhat inaudible, and The Rev supplied some devastating fills and beats. 2 Bumps | Bump

0.0	Conor Mackie | March 21st 09
While not a terrible record, Waking the Fallen leaves much to be desired in all departments. Shadows' vocals are horrible, the guitarists are alright, the bass is near inaudible and the drumming is of generic metalcore variety. I've heard much, much worse, but if you're only a casual A7X listener, get City of Evil, which is all the A7X you will ever need. 1 Bumps | Bump

4.5 superb	dalukesta | May 4th 08
One of the best metal albums of all time. M. Shadows does a great balance of screaming and singing. By far Avenged Sevenfold's best album in my opinion. Great job. -also Syn's solo in Second Heartbeat is my favorite solo of all time 1 Bumps | Bump

5.0 classic	morevocals | December 6th 07
An absolute classic, influenced me to like an entirely new genre of music. Never liked screaming until when i was 17 and heard this cd for the 1st time. I may listen to a lot heavier things now like All Shall Perish and The Faceless but I will never forget this album. 1 Bumps | Bump

4.5 superb	MissShortcake123 | November 9th 06
Waking the Fallen is better than City of Evil, but only by a little. I'm not going to be one of those people who yells at everyone who doesn't like Avenged Sevenfold's older albums, but truthfully and musically, Waking the Fallen is just better than City of Evil. 1 Bumps | Bump

4.5 superb

nick962 | September 4th 06

This album is very close to a classic for me. I think I just happened to listen to this at the right time in my life for it to take me upon it's wing and show me a whole other side of music that I had never discovered before. Some of the great lyrical imagery with a bit of melody and some great leads and solo's combined with the slough of distortion and pounding drums, this album blew me away. Midly catchy, straight forward Metal - it's just what I enjoy. 1 Bumps | Bump

4.5 superb	MetalHead90 | August 30th 06
I thought that it was a damn shame that Matt broke a blood vessel in his throat cause I think that if he didn't then "City of Evil" would be better. But its hard for me to completly regret that cause I think Matt can sing just as good as he can scream. As far as instumentals.....they can't get any better. "waken the Fallen" has to be thier best Alblum. 1 Bumps | Bump

3.0 good	rockfan | August 5th 06
Theres some good stuff on thius album but some of the intros are too long for me, sows the seeds for City of Evil well though. 1 Bumps | Bump

2.0 poor	Lelle | July 15th 09
Why do I keep hearing people say The Rev is a good drummer? Oh and this record sucks btw, the riffs have no punch, the vocals suck, overall very boring Bump

4.0 excellent	Andrew Wyszynski | June 8th 09
A fine example of a bad band making a good album. It's an anomaly, but it happens. Bump

3.0 good	Fretbuzzy | June 7th 09
A good album with some good songs but sounds very overproduced at times and his voice annoys the shit out of me. Bump

4.5 superb	Ian Webb | April 2nd 09
All of the 1's this album receives are completely unjustified. Simply because they hate the "image" of the band and nothing more. This album is extremely well orchestrated, especially given the age of all of them when this was released. Vocals aren't for everyone, but since when is screaming supposed to appeal to the masses? I still love this CD. Bump

4.5 superb	A7xjk | April 2nd 09
Quite possibly their best album. It's a shame that Avenged Sevenfold strayed from the screaming in City of Evil. I enjoyed that album very much, but i think their ultimate forte was on this album. Great album, huge A7X fan. Bump

3.5 great

Dan Keyes | October 28th 08

Rightly criticized for devolving as a band from a solid metal outfit to a mediocre pop-rock band, Avenged Sevenfold should be given credit where credit is due. Waking the Fallen features solid technical ability, a refreshingly unique vocal performance, and fairly consistent quality throughout. In essence, this is an excellent album, puts most modern metalcore to shame, and deserves significant kudos from the metal community. Bump

4.5 superb	Ryan Cleary | May 26th 08
Great Guitar Work, really shows the true talent of the band before Matt's throat problem. His vocals are great, and the obscene length of pretty much all the songs is not annoying as it gets at times of City of Evil, it makes the songs epic, and often times very, very good. Sick drumming as well, and alot of the songs are anthemic. Bump

0.0	Maxwell A. Harkness | April 17th 08
Now this is how Metalcore should be! Guitar work go lore, druming power, screaming and singing, and it working together, this is a classic album for anyone who likes, or even approves of metal and hardcore, and should get anyone into the genre in a snap. Classic release. Bump

5.0 classic

Bobby Bowcut | January 6th 08

This is a flawless record of Metalcore, this is how it should sound like, amazing breakdowns, with killer solos as well. The vocal range is outstanding, going from very good screaming vocals, to M. Shadows amazing clean singing(now sucks tho). This cd got me into Metalcore, and is what many bands have been influced by with a great blend of Hardcore and Metal. Best Songs: "Chapter Four", "I Won't See You Tonight, Part 1", "Second Heartbeat, "Unholy Confessions". Bump

4.0 excellent

XDivineFireX | December 6th 07

So, BEFORE they sold out and all the little girls fell in love with them...they were pretty sweet. This used to be one of my fav albums, and still is a good listen. I just get upset that they sold out whenever I listen to them. That and the vocalist's vocal chords are not the same. City is nothing vocally like this, but they've always been pretty solid on the guitars. Appreciate the album once in a while, but I used to be a favorite of mine. Bump