Music Monday – Life Is But A Dream Review
California metallers Avenged Sevenfold released their album Life Is But A Dream on June 2nd, their first new record since 2016’s The Stage. This was a special event for two of us here at FANdemonium Network. Clare and Clara first met many years ago on a message board called Chapter 4, dedicated to the band, so we figured it was only right that we take a listen and share our thoughts. (Apologies for the delay on this review – I had some stuff come up that meant I needed to take some time away from FN – Clare)
Ahead of the release of the album Avenged dropped 2 singles, Nobody and We Love You, which divided a lot of fans. What were your initial impressions of those tracks?
Clara – First listen I definitely liked Nobody better than We Love You. Then I listened to We Love You again and it all just clicked, I think the Nobody release threw me off, We Love You being the polar opposite seemed an odd choice to begin with but eventually they both became favourites. I will never hear the word “More” without breaking into song in my head ever again.
Clare – I don’t know if it was aided by the nostalgia trip of the livestream but I loved Nobody almost from minute one. The intro to We Love You threw me (like I think it did most people) but the rest was a trip.
There’s been a lot of chatter about the band’s writing process on this one, with all of the members discussing their experiences with psychedelic drugs. Did that influence what you expected from the album?
Clare – Oh definitely. How could it not? But in a good way. I guess I was expecting something a lot more musically adventurous than previous efforts, and that’s definitely what we got.
Clara – Definitely. Especially the narrative surrounding the album, it was always “weird, strange, trippy” and such being thrown around that when I did finally listen to it all the way through for the sixth time I was just thinking “OK but where is the ‘weird’? This is experimental, fun and groovy definitely but I’d never call it odd or unexpected in any way, especially not when The Stage is right there. This is definitely A7X’s most technically outrageous album, probably ever, and I’m loving it.
Okay, let’s make our way through the album, track by track. First up, what did you think of Game Over?
Clara – I love Game Over as an individual track, the slow moments with M Shadow’s isolated vocals. The heavy as hell guitars and the sheer amount of groove sets up the whole theme of the album in a masterful way. Only issue I have with it is that it becomes very forgettable, especially when followed by Mattel. Generally in isolation it’s a great song but probably one of the weakest on the album (that’s actually a compliment because this album is full of hits.)
Clare – This track kinda sets the tone for the whole album in terms of the musical whiplash effect. We go from The Beatles to System of a Down and back at breakneck speed. It’s fascinating. I do agree with Clara that it doesn’t stick in the mind the way some of the others do.
Mattel
Clare – Petition to make this the theme for the upcoming Barbie movie? Kidding. The lyrics for this one are among my favourite on the album – that Truman Show reference is absolute gold. It wasn’t an instant fave for me unlike a lot of people I’ve seen. It took a while for this one to grow on me.
Clara – Mattel is a stand out and for good reason. The whole song just screams at you to groove along and then the beautiful chorus that then smacks you in the face and brings you right back into headbang city. I love it and will never tire of it.
Nobody
Clara – Nobody has become kinda the “vanilla” song of the album. It still is a groovy and fun song and usually the one I’ll find myself singing out of nowhere but compared to the company it’s amongst, it’s very easily passed over as “oh, that song.” Not good, not bad, just very safe considering the context.
Clare – Like I said, I loved this from the first time I heard it on the YouTube livestream, but hearing it in the overall scheme of the album takes it up a notch. With repeat listening this one really built from that almost Rush-esque opening into something extraordinary.
We Love You
Clare – Okay, when I first listened to We Love You there was something about the intro that was weirdly familiar. I’ve now realised what it is. It sounds like a RWBY theme song.
I really enjoyed the vocals on We Love You and I have a feeling it’s going to remain one of my most played.
Clara – We Love You has kinda become the song I love more even than Nobody. The abrupt stops aren’t as jarring anymore and it feels right at home in an album like this that’s clearly going out of its way to push boundaries. I wasn’t convinced before the album was released, now it’s one of my many, many favourites.
Cosmic
Clara – What can I say? What a beautiful song. I mean, I could go on and on and on about how this one song has been stuck in my head for days now but instead I’ll just put it plainly; everything here works. The instruments, the vocals, the theatricality. It’s just a masterpiece.
Clare – I was a Dream Theater fan long before I was an Avenged fan, and I know that DT have always been an influence on A7X, but I don’t think it’s ever been more obvious than it is on Cosmic. The first instrumental section just SCREAMS Dream Theater to me, everything from the drumming to the way the piano/keyboard takes over from the guitars. And then those soaring vocals? Absolutely gorgeous.
Beautiful Morning
Clare – Definite Beatles vibes again on this one to start with, very psychedelic and then Syn’s guitar solo erupts out of seemingly nowhere and blows my mind EVERY TIME! Then that piano outro gives me chills!
Clara – This was and remains to this day my favourite song on the album. Yes, Synyster Gates’ section is extraordinary but the whole thing ties together beautifully. It’s heartfelt but doesn’t lose the unique “not your typical song” signature that runs through the entire album. Avenged outdid themselves here.
Easier
Clara – OK, controversial maybe but Easier is another song I find forgettable unless I go out of my way to listen to it. I can’t pull it from my memory bank, perhaps because it’s between Beautiful Morning and G which are arguably much stronger songs but this is one that I love for it’s heaviness and just in general think it’s good but in context again, does get lost, which is a shame because it’s not a bad song. It’s just not as stellar as the ones before and after it.
Clare – Please can I have a ten minute version of the guitars in the intro? As I said on my first listen they are absolutely filthy in the best possible way and I just want MORE (heh). The transitions in Easier are a little less jarring than some of the other tracks on the album and I love how it meanders through Shads’ vocals from those really heavy guitars at the start to a kinda surf rock vibe at the end.
G
Clare – The lyrics for G are a riot, and the two “spoken” sections – ooft. Shads vocal ASMR for the win.
Clara – I love this song. The lyrics are hysterical and I love the absolute bop it’s got going on. Everything is so groovy and I am 100% here for it.
(O)rdinary
Clara – Ah Johnny Christ how we all love you. I was kinda shocked at how little the bass seemed to feature in a lot of the songs in Life Is But A Dream so this was a very nice surprise. Makes me want to start with the old “big fish, little fish, cardboard box.”
Clare – Well hello Johnny Christ. That’s some serious bass work, I’m loving the fact that every member of the band has had a moment to shine on this record. The end of this one also has some serious Dream Theater vibes for me which I really dug.
(D)eath
Clare – We know this is not the first time that Avenged have written about suicide (I Won’t See You Tonight Parts 1&2, Brompton Cocktail), but I think this might be the most evocative. There’s a haunting beauty to the lyrics and the music that stuck with me long after the song was over. I think the positioning of this track right before LIBAD is pretty perfect too, giving you a chance to mull on the lyrics without any others overwhelming them.
Clara – The lyrics in this one are the stand out to me but I get the feeling that was always meant to be the case. It’s so powerful. A song describing suicide as probably the most beautiful and poetic thing I’ve ever heard, it rounds off the theme of the album perfectly. This is the beauty in ugliness, the happy life that walks side by side with death as a constant companion, the plastic daisies in hell. This is life and life is but a dream…
Life Is But A Dream…
Clara – I mean, what is there to say? We all knew every single member of Avenged were extraordinary artists but this solidifies it. After being beaten over the head with songs about the meaning of life and its opposite, this stunning piano piece by Synyster Gates gives the listener enough time to sit back and digest everything that they’ve just heard and try to make sense of it. Haunting, hopeful, deep and meaningful, this is a song that’ll stay with me for life.
Clare – Yeah, I don’t think I have much to add to what Clara said. This is an incredible piece, Gates absolutely shines. It also works rather beautifully if you put the album on repeat as it loops back to the almost Spanish influenced guitar at the start of Game Over.
Overall thoughts?
Clare – I was genuinely a little apprehensive coming into LIBAD. In all honesty neither of the last two albums (The Stage or Hail to the King) grabbed me in the same way that everything that had come before did, and I was worried this would be a miss for me as well. I don’t think I’ve ever been happier to be proved wrong. Avenged are BACK baby! I will say that for the most part this album is about the music for me, not the vocals. M Shadows definitely feels the weaker link for a lot of the album, but the music is good enough to keep me listening.
Clara – I had hope because I was a fan of Hail To The King and The Stage and both Nobody and We Love You had grown on me but even I didn’t realise how much I’d love Life Is But A Dream. The album is a masterpiece, an absolute love letter to art and music as a medium. This is my favourite Avenged album, not because of the “newness” of it but because of the fact that it so clearly throws the rulebook out of the window and doesn’t give a shit if it hits a neighbour on the head. It’s fearless and that’s precisely where metal and rock needs to be right now. Avenged Sevenfold haven’t delivered an album, they’ve delivered an experience and I cannot get enough.
Life Is But A Dream Album Rating out of 10
Clara – The urge to give 10 is very strong but I’ll go with a fair 8. Speaking purely objectively Easier and Game Over drag the score down by being just a tad too forgettable.
Clare – Yeah, I think 8 is about right for me. There are some moments that bring it down but it’s an incredibly solid listen, even after a couple of weeks!
Avenged Sevenfold’s Life Is But A Dream is out now, you can pick up exclusive vinyl variants and other merch from the band’s official store.
