Review Summary: Everything about City of Evil represents darkness and sin; just the way I like it.
City of Evil: A Sinfully Good Album
Living in the city of Las Vegas, I drive a lot. When I drive, I, like many other citizens, listen to music as a distraction from the rising gas prices and idiotic drivers. Of every album I have ever popped into my CD player, (ranging from the Lilo and Stitch Soundtrack to Wrong Side of Heaven by Five Finger Death Punch), City of Evil by Avenged Sevenfold earns an enthusiastic “A” grade for its mixing, lyrics, aesthetic, and band members.
Let’s talk about mixing! Maybe its just my picky taste in music, but if I can’t understand a single thing the vocalist is saying because his microphone is catching nothing but his breathing, I can’t take the band’s music seriously. Lucky for me, the master mixer of Avenged Sevenfold seems to have painstakingly taken care in catching every last noise those crazy boys put out! The clarity of COE is beyond reproach, which seriously helps develop both the storyline and lyrical magnitude of its songs. However, where there is clarity, there is the misfortunate lack of panning effects and level variation. Beyond the use of slightly panning lead guitar to the left and rhythm guitar to the right, I found very little panning effects. This is especially sad considering how the band uses panning to send guitars around listeners heads in later albums. Another downside of the clarity is the fact that, because you can hear every last cymbal, you can also decipher that the high-end has been pulled up significantly above midrange and bass-range frequencies. Any bass that can be heard has been pulled to the front for only a brief period, and then disappears back to its regular volume. As my drum instructor once told me, “Rock drumming is built from the bass up.” I believe the low-end levels should reflect that. Considering all of this, I would give the clarity, level settings, and panning use in the mixing of City of Evil a solid “B+”.
Being that this is an Avenged Sevenfold album, I am happily unsurprised to discover that even their first mainstream album is awash with lyrical eloquence and storytelling. Only after listening to City while doing my dishes, and focusing on absolutely nothing else, was I able to fully appreciate the genius behind such songs as “Strength of the World”. Though the longest song of the album, clocking in at a whopping nine minutes and fourteen seconds, “Strength of the World” tells the tale of a vengeful cowboy who loses his family; starting the moment he buries his wife, going through every one of the murders he commits against the men who killed her, and ending when he accepts his fate of burning in Hell. Some authors couldn’t tell the same story as profoundly in 500 pages with 11 point font. Compared to any other Avenged album, (or even albums that were popular when COE was released), City of Evil has a better story-telling ability and eloquence by far. I give it an “A+” on both accounts.
Way back in 2005, when City of Evil was released, it was common knowledge that lyric books and album covers were a point of pride for any band or CD owner. My own sister, (a teenager during the emo revolution), plastered her walls with album art. Now I feel absolute rage at her for cutting up the lyric books, but I used to spend hours staring at the art. One of these albums was City of Evil. Featuring a snarling, leather-winged skeleton brandishing a sword on the back of a pale horse, City of Evil has a truly dark and creative aesthetic. When flipping through the lyric book, a Deathbat is watermarked on every page; the lyrics are contained in old, gold frames; and the pages are the color of desert sand. The obligatory photo of the band shows that even the way they dressed represented the aesthetic of the album; it showcasing their tattoos, black clothes, and menacing glares. Everything about City of Evil represents darkness and sin; just the way I like it. For its aesthetic, I give City of Evil a proud and kindred “A+”.
Finally, when discussing any album or song, I need to know one thing for certain: What are the band members like? It is important to me to know that I am supporting a band that deserves their notoriety and treats their fans right. In my many years of listening to Avenged Sevenfold, I have learned a thing or two about the band. I have learned that the members of A7X, (M.Shadows, Synyster Gates, Zacky Vengeance, Johnny Christ, and Jimmy “The Rev” Sullivan), are not only about as mean as teddy bears, they truly care about and appreciate their fans. Of every aspect about music that I care about, band members performance both on and off stage is most important. The boys of Avenged Sevenfold have always presented themselves to be incredibly friendly, humble, and honorable in the real world, and performed like the possessed when onstage. For all of this and so much more, I give them an “A”.
City of Evil has earned its place on my list of favorite albums, and I can truly say that even now, 10 years after it’s release, it is one of, if not the only album I can listen to over and over again and never get tired of. 10/10, would recommend.
