Maps of Music

Hail to the King (2013)

Where the lyrics of Hail to the King take you, and where it was really made.

The album that gave Avenged Sevenfold their first UK number one was the first of their albums made without the music of their late founding drummer, Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan.

Key places

Recording at Can-Am in Los Angeles (2013)

Recording site Motown Recording Studios — The source lists Can-Am in Los Angeles as a recording location for this album. The point is placed at the city center, not at the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recording at Capitol Studios in Hollywood (2013)

Recording site Capitol Studios — The source lists Capitol Studios in Hollywood as a recording location for this album. The point marks the studio building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Hail to the King: sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold
• Released August 23, 2013, through Warner Bros. Records
• Produced by Mike Elizondo
• Only Avenged Sevenfold album to feature drummer Arin Ilejay, who left in July 2015
• First Avenged Sevenfold album without musical contributions from the late drummer Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan
• Bonus track "St. James" was written in Sullivan's memory

Background

• November 15, 2012: vocalist M. Shadows said the band had been working on a new album since recording "Carry On" in August 2012
• December 2012: band said it planned to start recording in January 2013, with release later that year
• January 2013: band started recording the new album
• May 2013: band streamed snippets of the album on its new radio app, where Arin Ilejay was confirmed as an official member and replacement for The Rev
• Metal Hammer interview: M. Shadows said the album would sound more blues rock-influenced, closer to classic rock and classic metal in the vein of Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin
• June 26, 2013: title, cover art and release date revealed
• July 2013: complete track list revealed
• August 8, 2013: "Shepherd of Fire" revealed as theme song of the Call of Duty: Black Ops II Zombies map "Origins"

Recording

• Recording began in January 2013
• Mike Elizondo credited as producer and as player of keyboards on "Crimson Day", "Heretic" and "Coming Home"
• Andy Wallace credited as mixer
• Session players included a string section, choir singers on "Requiem", and a horn and brass section on "Shepherd of Fire", "Requiem" and "Planets"

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in 1999 in Huntington Beach, California, by Matt Sanders, James Sullivan, Zachary Baker and Matt Wendt.
• Name taken from the phrase 'avenged sevenfold' in Genesis 4:24, referencing the story of Cain and Abel.
• Debut album Sounding the Seventh Trumpet was released in July 2001 on Good Life Recordings.

Members

• Current lineup: vocalist M. Shadows, guitarists Zacky Vengeance and Synyster Gates, bassist Johnny Christ, drummer Brooks Wackerman.
• Drummer James 'The Rev' Sullivan died in December 2009; Arin Ilejay later joined and left before Brooks Wackerman became drummer in 2015.

Career

• Shifted from metalcore on early albums toward hard rock, heavy metal and progressive metal.
• City of Evil (2005) was the major label debut and broke them internationally; the self-titled album followed in 2007.
• Nightmare (2010) debuted at number one on the Billboard 200; Hail to the King (2013) also reached number one.
• The Stage (2016) was a conceptual progressive metal album; Life Is But a Dream... (2023) is their eighth studio album.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Hail to the King received positive reviews upon release
• Metacritic average score of 70 from 9 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable" reviews
• AnyDecentMusic? score of 6.7 out of 10 from eight reviews, collated from more than 50 media sources
• Chris Epting of Loudwire called the album "a modern metal classic that reflects the past while very much embracing the present"
• Artistdirect's Rick Florino stated that the album raises the bar for the band and for everyone else to follow and compete with
• Dom Lawson of The Guardian judged the band to sound every bit as vital and imperious as the bands they aspire to emulate
• Q described the album as a clean sweep and a divergence into classic metal
• Tom Bryant gave the album 4 stars out of 5
• Jason Lymangrover of AllMusic gave a mixed review and said the band lost its sense of identity after imitating other bands so well
• Bradley Zorgdrager of Exclaim! gave a more negative review, saying listeners find it hard to recall any specific moment after the album ends
• Machine Head frontman Robb Flynn criticized the album in a blog post as a mere "cover album"; he later said he was joking

Records

• Debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart on September 1, 2013, the band's first UK number one
• Debuted at number two on the Official Finnish Albums Chart and at number five in Germany
• Sold 159,000 copies in the United States in its first week, debuting at number one on the Billboard 200
• Second Avenged Sevenfold album to top the Billboard chart, after Nightmare
• Topped the Canadian, Brazilian, Finnish and Irish album charts
• Spawned two number one singles on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart: "Hail to the King" and "Shepherd of Fire"; "Hail to the King" spent 11 weeks at the top
• Certified Gold by the BPI and the RMNZ, and Platinum by the RIAA and Music Canada

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · pt.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Robb Flynn later revealed he was joking and was actually "happy" for the band's success
• The album has been compared to bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica, and Pantera
• "Shepherd of Fire" became the theme song of the Call of Duty: Black Ops II Zombies map "Origins", included in the Apocalypse downloadable content pack
• The title track was released as a single on July 15, 2013, the same day the album became available for pre-order
• The album was streamed on iTunes on August 19, 2013
• Pre-order packages included a limited "Treasure Box" edition with a Death Bat challenge coin and a skeleton key

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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