Briefly – I wrote several weeks ago about the many heartfelt notes and letters I’ve received this year in regards to some articles I wrote about Jimmy Sullivan, the drummer from the band Avenged Sevenfold. They’re based here in Huntington Beach where I live, and the Sullivan family are friends of ours.
There was some controversy this week after a Los Angeles Times review of the band’s new album, “Nightmare,” closed with this thought: “”With imagery haunted by death and lyrical allusions to alienation and
angst, Avenged Sevenfold’s fifth full-length is almost impossible to
appreciate unless you fit the prime demographic: tormented teenage
boys.”
angst, Avenged Sevenfold’s fifth full-length is almost impossible to
appreciate unless you fit the prime demographic: tormented teenage
boys.”
Understandably, many fans of the band took issue with this gross generalization. The points I want to make are, after coming in contact with hundreds of fans this year, that:
1. about 70% of the communiques I received were from females – and not just teenagers
2. I would not describe any of them as “tormented” – Upset? Sure. Devastated? Absolutely. Passionate about a band they revere? Yes.
In my opinion, that line in the Times piece is the sort of crass, off-the-cuff crack that serves nobody except the writer – it ‘s a cheap shot – nothing more, nothing less, at the expense of a fan base that endured an epic loss this year but pulled together in support of the music (and the band) that they love.
Photo – the new CD – right where it belongs – connected to one of its creators
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