The Stage
by Avenged Sevenfold
  • Record Label: Capitol
  • Release Date: Oct 28, 2016
User Score
8.7

Universal acclaim- based on 77 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 68 out of 77
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 77
  3. Negative: 3 out of 77
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  1. Xevon
    Jan 18, 2017
    6
    The Stage is an album that flips flops between good ideas and bad ones, ultimately crafting an uneven record with few consistently great songs and much tedium between the genuinely good bits. It's almost as if the album forgoes it's opportunity to be 'catchy' and deliberately goes in the opposite direction to prevent it. It's not to say that The Stage is a bad album, but perhapsThe Stage is an album that flips flops between good ideas and bad ones, ultimately crafting an uneven record with few consistently great songs and much tedium between the genuinely good bits. It's almost as if the album forgoes it's opportunity to be 'catchy' and deliberately goes in the opposite direction to prevent it. It's not to say that The Stage is a bad album, but perhaps distressingly middling for a band of this calibre. Even some of the albums highlight tracks such as 'God Damn' fail to reach the level of songwriting proficiency to be found on recent albums like Nightmare - The Stage seems too preoccupied with being a 'progressive' concept album to actually deliver the musical mastery we've come to expect from Avenged Sevenfold. The band is going to need to do a lot better than this next time around if they want to remain relevant within the Heavy Metal community.… Expand
  2. GamingReclaimer
    Dec 2, 2016
    4
    I feel that this album was very much like the band's previous album, Hail To The King. It was very different if you compare it to the bands original five albums and I personally do not like it anywhere near as much as I do the first five. Whether its the lack of The Rev I don't know but I really felt that they were missing something in these last 2 albums. I did like that it is aI feel that this album was very much like the band's previous album, Hail To The King. It was very different if you compare it to the bands original five albums and I personally do not like it anywhere near as much as I do the first five. Whether its the lack of The Rev I don't know but I really felt that they were missing something in these last 2 albums. I did like that it is a concept album though and the lyrics are deep but they certainly weren't A Little Piece Of Heaven's lyrics. I don't think they could ever do something like ALPOH in their current style which is unfortunate.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

78
#78 Most Discussed Album of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
74

Generally favorable reviews - based on 9 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 9
  3. Negative: 0 out of 9
  1. Q Magazine
    Dec 13, 2016
    60
    Even if Avenged Sevenfold are guilty of occasionally overreaching in places here, it's undoubtedly made them more interesting. [Feb 2017, p.117]
  2. New Musical Express (NME)
    Dec 9, 2016
    80
    It’s evident the band have begun a new chapter where they appreciate rather than become their influences. They’ve truly 
arrived.
    Read full review
  3. The Guardian
    Dec 8, 2016
    80
    They have blown the creative doors off, cramming an insane amount of ideas into 74 minutes of prog-metal bombast. Their knack for a chorus is as apparent on the shorter, sharper likes of Paradigm and God Damn, but it’s the outrageous opulence of towering ballads Higher and Roman Sky, and the overblown, starry-eyed Muse-ings of 16-minute closer Exist, that make this such a satisfying forward leap.
    Read full review
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