Avenged Sevenfold
Ljubljana / Križanke / Slovenia
Wednesday, 18 June 2025, doors at 19:00, concert starts at 21:30
And then there are those special concerts. Special tours. Special bands! They go straight into the “Unforgettable!” category. Concerts by those rock/metal bands that have been ruling the global charts for a good stretch of years now! And finally — with a first-ever visit to Slovenia! Could that be A7X? Seriously? Absolutely. So it was crystal clear this one had to be attended. Križanke sold out more than two months before the concert spectacle. Possibly even the rock/metal concert of the year (in Slovenia). Reportedly, 2,800 tickets were sold.
In the hours before the concert, Ljubljana was literally flooded with the band’s fans. The moment the legendary Denis and I shuffled up to the underpass by Maxi Market, two fuzzy-faced youngsters crossed our path, accompanied by what was very likely their dad, who was steering them along and in all probability also pulling duty as the evening’s ‘lucky’ designated driver. And we converged on Križanke. From trickles, into streams, into a river that poured out onto Napoleon Square! Even this pre-concert overture — the gradual build of excitement toward an adrenaline rush — made it clear that something very special was in store at Križanke that evening.
Avenged Sevenfold are a genuinely big name on the international scene today. A band that stood their ground — defiantly. They’ve tried at least as many styles as there are eyelets on a pair of Puma high-tops, and from every one of those stories they’ve managed to pull a winning hand of aces from up their sleeve. They’ve always been in the right place at the right time, and the audience has absorbed everything they’ve put out — from the studio to the stage. And kept growing. Today, these Californian — loosely speaking — experimental metallers have genuinely become a colossal machine.
A short run of summer shows across Europe this June finally brought the band to the Slovenian capital as well. The Ljubljana date was the only one of the ten on this tour without a support act. On all the other shows, that role goes to Palaye Royale and Ignite.
Križanke was packed to the very last corner. The cauldron was boiling. In the minutes before the show, you couldn’t push through the main entrance anymore — you had to use that ‘side detour’ up the stairs on the right, which brought you right to the top of the venue. And even up there you ran straight into a frustratingly obstructed view of the stage. The quintet hit the stage at exactly half past nine! After the opening Nightcall — belonging to electro-house artist Kavinsky — the band launched into action with Game Over, a track from their current eighth studio album “Life Is But A Dream…”, which came out back in June two years ago! Sound from the very first note: excellent in the center, left and right, and up top as well. I caught part of the show near the main entrance — even on the left side of the venue (center, looking toward the stage) the sound was, right from the start, very solid.
The stage’s hyper-production added its own chapter to this unforgettable spectacle — massive backdrop projections, a phenomenal light show (including sweeping ‘laser’ beams), and thick walls of fog all weaving it together. But above all else, what counted was the performance from a perfectly tight five-piece of seasoned musicians who proved with every song that they’re at the absolute peak of their powers! With an enormous wealth of polished skill they worked the fired-up, frenzied crowd, which thundered along with the band at every single moment of the concert. Wherever you looked, every cue from frontman M-Shadows was met with a unified volley of crowd reactions. Hands constantly in the air, fanatical singalongs, thunderous responses. Wherever you looked. Križanke was shaking.
The band delivered a solid set of classics while also — as mentioned — showcasing their latest album, which isn’t really that new anymore. Returning to the setlist after years away was the older classic Chapter Four; the hit single Afterlife kept the first-half madness fueled; it was followed by its almost-anthemic (practically radio-ready) companion Hail To The King, then the beloved Buried Alive from the ‘Mike Portnoy album’ “Nightmare” (2010), which briefly brought the temperature down from full boil for a few minutes. Classic after classic (including a tribute to the late drummer Jimmy “The Rev” Sullivan in the beautiful ‘lament’ So Far Away). And an exceptional performance throughout. Even one of the new singles, Nobody — a prog-rock-flavored affair — slotted brilliantly into the live set. The dark and furious Nightmare, and then the surprise of the night: Not Ready To Die from the ‘forgotten’ EP “Black Reign”, which the band had only played live before back in 2011.
Križanke begins to burst at the seams in the grand finale with the ferocious, inevitable Bat Country, the even more inevitable Unholy Confessions — which literally threw the venue off its axis — and the excellent new, experimentally conceived Cosmic, which once again confirmed that Avenged Sevenfold have never been afraid to walk the razor’s edge when it comes to trying the untried and landing successful cross-genre collisions. At this point, the exceptional drummer Brooks Wackerman confirmed his mastery once more, absolutely detonating in the song’s second half. Wackerman is no joke. He comes from a drumming family! His older brother Chad, for instance, played with the legendary Frank Zappa and Allan Holdsworth.
Avenged Sevenfold are also incredibly commanding on stage. They’ve seen just about everything in their career, and the wide stage at Križanke suited them perfectly. The guys were constantly moving from their base positions across the full width and depth of the stage. The leading role was played by the commanding figure of charismatic vocalist M-Shadows! The band crowned what was a virtually flawless, one-hour-and-50-minute set with the expected anthem A Little Piece Of Heaven. M-Shadows announced in the finale: “We won’t leave you sad! We will fuck you up!” The crowd, of course, agreed unconditionally! Oh, and Ljubljana also got a bonus track on top of everything else, compared to the other dates on the current A7X tour!
No complaints. Not a single one. Maybe Shepherd Of Fire or Dear God were mildly missed from the setlist, but all things considered this was an event you won’t easily forget. When everything comes together into a perfect concert experience. In every respect — led by the insane crowd of a completely packed Križanke. Avenged Sevenfold came, saw, conquered! They’re in phenomenal stage shape, at the peak of their powers, and right now absolutely no one can take that away from them!
Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Photos: Denis Paradiž
Avenged Sevenfold – setlist:
1. Nightcall (orig. Kavinsky)
2. Game Over
3. Chapter Four
4. Afterlife
5. Hail to the King
6. Buried Alive
7. The Stage
8. So Far Away
9. Nobody
10. Nightmare
11. Not Ready to Die
12. Bat Country
13. Unholy Confessions
14. Cosmic
15. A Little Piece of Heaven
