M. Shadows: 70 Percent of New Avenged Sevenfold Album Is Done

Avenged Sevenfold have already said that they won’t release their next album while the pandemic still has a grip on the world, but the work on the successor to 2016’s The Stage has continued. Singer M. Shadows now estimates that 70 percent of the new record is complete.

Late last year, the Avenged Sevenfold frontman stressed the importance of releasing new music while also having the ability to support it on tour. Citing the quick turnover in excitement around new recordings, the group wants to ensure they’re maximizing their opportunity, especially when three years of time have been poured into the recordings.

Speaking with Minneapolis, Minnesota’s 93X radio station (audio below), Shadows said of the highly-anticipated eighth studio effort (transcription via Blabbermouth), “We’re working on stuff. We have pretty much 70 percent of the record done.”

The pandemic has put certain aspects of recording on standstill, however. The singer relayed, “We have some things we can’t finish right now because of COVID — string players, et cetera. We know Andy [Wallace, longtime Avenged Sevenfold mixer] doesn’t wanna travel, or his management doesn’t want him to travel because of COVID. So there’s just a lot of things going on.”

Reiterating how critical touring is to the new record, Shadows urged, “It doesn’t make sense for us right now to put out a record and not be able to tour it. The world has changed. Putting out a record on Spotify without touring for a rock band, it just doesn’t make sense to us. So we’re going to wait till everything is back, then we’ll come out with the record, finish it up, and all will be good.”

Fans did get a taste of something new from Shadows earlier this year, just not with Avenged. He took part in a multi-guest version of “Linewleum” by NOFX, which was a new version of their classic song “Linoleum,” made as a tribute to so many artists who have covered the song since it was released on 1994’s Punk in Drublic.

Avenged Sevenfold also have an enticing offer for fans once concerts make their return. As part of an initiative the helps build homes for U.S. military veterans, they partnered with a motorcycle for a sweepstakes prize pack that includes a VIP trip to a show and a lot more.