Avenged Sevenfold Triumph at Southern California Stop of Uproar Tour

On the night of Oct. 9th, Huntington Beach-based modern metal giants Avenged Sevenfold returned to Southern California for the first time in more than a year as the Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival rolled in to Chula Vista, just outside of San Diego. Though still a good two hours south of their stomping grounds, this was as close as A7X would get to playing a home show - their last local gig was last year's Uproar which included a stop in Irvine.

It was also the Southern California debut of their drummer, Arin Ilejay, who took over for former Dream Theater founder Mike Portnoy after the latter stepped in after the death of the band's original drummer, Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan.

Last year it was Disturbed that closed the show but this year Avenged has made it to official headlining rank on the popular tour, which kicked off back in late August. They shared the main stage this year with Three Days Grace, Seether, Bullet for My Valentine and Escape the Fate, while the Best Buy Music Gear Stage featured Sevendust, Black Tide, Art Of Dying and Hell or Highwater.

Black Tide drummer Stephen Spence told Noisecreep that the tour has been a great opportunity for his band, and also for him to watch some other powerful drummers. "I always try to catch some of the other bands," he said. "When you've got groups like Avenged Sevenfold and Bullet out there every night, it'd be crazy to not make time to watch them."

Following powerful main stage sets by Three Days Grace, Seether, Bullet For My Valentine and Escape The Fate, the near sellout crowd got what it seemed most of them came for - a blistering A7X set that spanned most the group's entire career.

Watch 'Nightmare' From Avenged Sevenfold

Kicking off with a fire-and-brimstone version of the title track from their last album, 'Nightmare,' the band steamrolled through 'Chapter Four,' 'Welcome to the Family,' 'Almost Easy,' 'Buried Alive,' 'Afterlife,' 'M.I.A.,' 'God Hates Us,' 'A Little Piece of Heaven,' 'Bat Country,' and the ferocious closer, 'Unholy Confessions.' Their massive stage set included their now iconic Death Bat centerpiece, constant flame towers and a state-of-the-art lighting rig.

Lead singer M. Shadows wasted little time on chatter, though he did pause to remember The Rev which seemed to delight the delirious crowd - based on the number of "Sullivan" t-shirts studding the crowd, clearly the fan base has not forgotten the beloved drummer - in fact, his legacy seems more alive than ever.

After wrapping up the Uproar Tour on Oct. 14th, the band then heads back out across the Midwest and south for another American jaunt that will last until mid-December.