Avenged Sevenfold, Coheed and Cambria, and Thornhill

The band came together in 1999, having formed in high school, quickly developing their sound and releasing their debut album, "Sounding the Seventh Trumpet" in 2001. Going by their aliases M. Shadows (vocals), Zacky Vengeance (guitar), Synester Gates (guitar, Johnny Christ (bass) and The Reverend, Avenged Sevenfold soon moved from Goodlife Records to the label, Hopeless, beginning work on their second record. Released in 2003, "Waking the Fallen" arrived to critical acclaim, helping to build hype around the band which drew the attention of major label, Warner Bros.

With an aggressive, punk sound that was full of melodic harmonies from their dual guitar attack, their debut for Warner Bros., "City of Evil," was to be their breakthrough album, finding them mainstream success after its June 2005 release. The album peaked at number 30 on Billboard's Top 200, bolstered by the popularity of the single, "Bat Country." The band's success was celebrated after being awarded the award for 'Best New Artist' at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards.

Avenged Sevenfold quickly returned to the studio to work on their fourth record, the grittier and harder-edged self-titled release, which peaked at number four on the Billboard Top 200 after appearing in October 2007. Three singles from the record also broke into the top five of the UK charts, with the band quickly becoming global stars and embarking on a number of tours in support of the release.

In 2009, Jimmy "The Reverend" Sullivan, the band's long time drummer, tragically died, with the remaining members considering disbanding. However, they continued, finding a replacement in Mike Portnoy, formerly of Dream Theater, releasing "Nightmare" in 2010. It was several years before they returned with a new full length, 2013's "Hail to the King," which again brought them commercial success, reaching the number one spot on the Billboard 200 and the UK Album Chart.

Rising from the ashes of their former band Toxic Parents, Claudio Sanchez (lead vocals) and Travis Stevers (rhythm guitar) experimented with a host of genres influenced by the likes of: Led Zeppelin, Misfits, Pink Floyd, At The Drive-In and Iron Maiden. Originally known as Shabutie, the band released their debut EP “Plan to Take Over the World” in 1999 through Wisteria Records and followed later that year with “The Penelope EP”.

With the new millennia came new direction encapsulated in the release of their third EP “Delirium Trigger” (2000) with many of the tracks based on science fiction comic series Sanchez had been penning, initially known as “The Bag.On.Line Adventures” and later became “The Amory Wars”. It would be these works which would evoke a recurring theme which would inspire future material for the band starting with the name change to Coheed and Cambria after the two main characters.

Having signed with Equal Vision Records, the band went on to release their debut full length album “The Second Stage Turbine Blade” in 2002, taking its concept from the comic series. Later in the year the band connected with a man who take their career to unprecedented heights, Blaze James who would become their manager. Spending the next few years relentlessly touring playing alongside: Linkin Park, The Used, Slipknot, AFI and Trivium unleashed them into the public as they saw their fanbase known as Children of the Fence (another comic reference) increase tenfold.

It was the release of their second album “In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3” in 2003 which really got the ball rolling. Certifying platinum in the US, it caught the attention of Columbia Records and in 2005 they signed a multi-album deal. Five top 10 albums later, line-up changes, a fine selection of festival appearances across the globe, Coheed and Cambria continue pushing genre divides while remaining true to the very essence of what they’ve created.