Song of the Day: “Bat Country”– Avenged Sevenfold

“He who makes a beast out of himself, gets rid of the pain of being a man”

Any song that starts with a line like that—taken straight from “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”—is destined to be memorable.

Such was the case for the lead track off Avenged Sevenfold’s 2005 breakthrough “City of Evil” album.

Bursting out on a scene that was dominated by emo-punk acts and teeny boppers in tight pants, Avenged Sevenfold stayed true to the roots of Heavy Metal by proudly displaying evil themes, dropped tuning, and blistering guitar solos.

In my opinion, “Bat Country” was one of the last gasps of air for legitimate (and popular) American Heavy Metal.

Avenged Sevenfold has continued to have a productive career, but I’ve yet to see an album match the polished chaos that bled from “City of Evil”—probably because I’m not an angsty 15 year-old anymore.

Anyway, it’s Friday: let your inner demon out before you hit the nightlife this weekend.