This review is by Pop Culture Beast photographer Liza Wilson:
Avenged Sevenfold took the stage of Heritage Bank Center recently in Cincinnati. The West Coast metal band released their eighth studio album at the beginning of June last year. The band’s stop in Cincinnati was a part of the third leg of their tour with very special guests Poppy and Sullivan King.
Avenged Sevenfold has quite the devoted fanbase. Fans came decked out in previous tour merch, some even sporting balaclavas in reference to the band’s latest single “We Love You Moar.”
Not only did Avenged Sevenfold put on a good show musically, the band also had accompanying visuals on 10-foot tall screens. These screens featured illustrations in the style of their latest album art. This brought a theatrical element to the show, and kept the stage engaging throughout the performance. The drawings were also paired with lyrics that encouraged the audience to sing along. This allowed for the fans to be singing loud almost the entire set, even if they didn’t know the words all that well.
The band opened up with the opening song of their latest album “Life is but a Dream” One thing that stood out from the many bands in this genre was how much fun the band was having on stage. Metal groups can tend to lean towards a more serious tone, but Avenged Sevenfold wasn’t afraid to show their enjoyment on stage. The band took the time to come towards the edges of the stage to interact with fans and show off their outstanding guitar solos.
With a great sound and amazing stage production, Avenged Sevenfold is not a show to miss this year.
PF Wilson has been writing about music, TV, radio, and movies for over 20 years. He has also written about sports, business, and politics with his work appearing in Cincinnati CityBeat, The Houston Press, Cleveland Scene, Cincinnati Magazine, Cincy Magazine, Atomic Ranch, and many more. Check out his podcast PF’s Tape Recorder available from Podbean or in iTunes.