Avenged Sevenfold frontman M. Shadows says the band plans to put the finishing touches on their next record beginning in January.
Speaking to Loudwire, Shadows explained the band’s reluctance to play shows during the pandemic before segueing into the status of their next album, which will be their first since The Stage came out in 2016. He said:
“It’s just that we have to be very careful about getting everything going, building a whole new stage set, hiring everybody, renting buses and then having one person get sick and the tour gets canceled and we get to be on the hook for everything. And it’s not that we don’t wanna do it.
“People compare us to bands that are going and playing clubs. It’s not the same thing. Getting an arena tour going and playing these festivals, it’s just not the same thing. And also we wanna be mentally ready.
“These are all gonna sound like crazy excuses, but these are real. We have a huge stage that we wanna get built. We can’t get people to work. We can’t get the supplies we need to build it, which there’s a supply chain problem as well. Go look at the Long Beach, at the port right now, and these boats are just stuck out there. And so we have all these things going on where we’re not gonna come back on stage and have the stage from ‘The Stage’ record and then just go, ‘Well, same show four years later. Sorry, guys. The record’s not done ’cause we couldn’t finish it.’
“So, I would just say starting in January, we are gonna put our nose to the grind and we are gonna finish this record. And then we’re doing a couple of shows in Europe. And then I would love to — and I don’t wanna step on [festival organizer] Danny Wimmer’s toes here — but I would love to start at Aftershock [festival in October 2022] and then book a tour out from there.
“So, we’re gonna be doing stuff. But, yeah, it’s just kind of making sure we’re mentally there and we put our best foot forward when we do come out and make sure that it’s all good.”
Shadows revealed in November that, among other album-related delays, Covid-19 had prevented an orchestra from gathering in person to record. But “the songs are done,” he added, explaining that he still had some vocals to lay down in addition to the missing orchestral parts.
Shadows previously stated his position that the band isn’t going to release new music and tour until it’s 100% clear they can do so without hindrance from pandemic-related snafus, adding that everyone in the band needs to be in the right mind-frame.
At this point, late 2022 seems like the earliest new Avenged Sevenfold will arrive.
[via Blabbermouth]