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ENTERTAINMENT
Avenged Sevenfold, Shadows Fall top X-Fest bill
Buckcherry rocks X-Fest 2007 at Harris Riverfront Park in Huntington. This yearÕs headlners include national acts Avenged Sevenfold and Shadows Fall as well as Pop Evil, Egypt Central, Another Black Day and Midnight to Twelve.
Purchase this photoHUNTINGTON -- In years past, some of the biggest bands in rock music have played to throngs of black T-shirt-clad fans by the riverside at local rock station X106.3's annual X-Fest daylong concert.
| X-Fest schedule Here is a schedule for Xfest which is Saturday, Sept. 6, at Harris Riverfront Park: Loud and Local Stage 1:30 to 2 p.m. Downtrend 2:45 to 3:15 p.m. Stitch Rivet 4:10 to 4:50 p.m. Bud Carroll & the Southern Souls 5:50 to 6:30 p.m. PI 7:30 to 8:15 p.m. XFactor1 Main Stage 2:05 to 2:40 p.m. Midnight to Twelve 3:20 to 4 p.m. Another Black Day 5:00 to 5:40 p.m. Egypt Central 6:40 to 7:20 p.m. Pop Evil 8:25 to 9:10 p.m. Shadows Fall 9:30 to 11 p.m. Avenged Sevenfold |
Disturbed, Nickelback, Staind, Three Days Grace, Seether, Papa Roach and Hinder are just a handful of names that have graced the stage in recent years.
This year's festival is building a buzz around town with festival headliners Avenged Sevenfold and extreme heavy metal act Shadows Fall on the bill.
Local rock station X106.3 hosts its 12th annual X-Fest concert Saturday at Harris Riverfront Park. Gates open at 1 p.m. The music starts at 1:30 p.m.
Other national acts on the bill include Pop Evil, Egypt Central, Another Black Day and Midnight to Twelve.
The Loud and Local stage features XFactor1 (Columbus, Ohio), PI (Ironton), Bud Carroll & the Southern Souls (Huntington), Downtrend (Pikeville, Ky.) and Stitch Rivet (Bloody Creek, Ky.).
All acts are subject to change.
Tickets are available at all Ticketmaster outlets including the Big Sandy Superstore Arena Box Office and are $30 in advance and $45 day-of-show.
A limited number of "Pit Passes" are still available - through Friday only - for $45 at the arena box office at 1 Civic Center Plaza, Huntington, or by calling 304-696-4400.
This year's festival hosts Avenged Sevenfold, one of the hottest bands in rock music these past few years.
They are touring behind their self-produced, self-titled album, which topped the individual "Billboard" alternative, hard rock, and rock charts one week after its Oct. 30, 2007, release.
The follow-up to 2005's platinum-selling "City of Evil," "Avenged Sevenfold" also debuted at No. 4 on the "Billboard" Top 200, marking the biggest sales week ever for the quintet.
The album's first single, "Almost Easy," was a Top 10 hit at Active Rock, went Top 20 at Alternative, and was a "Number One Most Played Video" on Fuse TV.
Other Avenged Sevenfold hits include "Bat Country," "Beast and the Harlot," and "Afterlife."
The accolades haven't stopped there, however. Earlier this month, the band earned British music magazine Kerrang!'s "Album of the Year" award.
"That was a cool award to get, because it was voted on by the fans," said the band's bassist Johnny Christ (born Jonathan Seward) in a recent telephone interview. "It's a big honor and to be recognized like that made our summer one of the best we've had so far."
Avenged Sevenfold includes lead guitarist Synyster Gates, vocalist M. Shadows, drummer "The Rev," and rhythm guitarist Zacky Vengeance.
X-Fest is the first stop on the band's latest North American tour. They will soon join forces with X-Fest 2007 alum Buckcherry for what will be a raucous co-headlining venture.
"It will be a chance to play some bigger arenas and let more people see our bands," Christ said.
Avenged Sevenfold will release a DVD/CD package called "Live in the LBC & Diamonds in the Rough" on Sept. 16. The live DVD features the band's April 10 hometown show at the Long Beach Arena, headlining the "Rockstar Taste of Chaos" tour.
The DVD was directed by Core Entertainment's Rafa Alcantara, who also worked on the band's 2007 road documentary "All Excess."
"The live DVD is something we have been putting off for a while," Christ said. "It's something we wanted to do for our core fan base. Some of them haven't had a chance to see us in concert before, and this was a way to make that happen."
The CD contains previously unreleased b-sides that were recorded during the making of their second Warner Bros. album "Avenged Sevenfold," plus various covers, and other never-before-heard material.
The cover songs reflect Avenged Sevenfold's true roots in classic heavy metal.
"We did Pantera's 'Walk' and Iron Maiden's 'Flash of the Blade' for a couple CDs that Kerrang! issued," Christ said. "The covers were songs that we loved that didn't quite fit on the last two albums, so we're stoked to get that out there to people."
X106.3's program director Erik Raines said he jumped at the chance to book the Huntington Beach, Calif., rockers for their first ever Tri-State visit.
"Avenged Sevenfold is an amazing band that has never played here in the Tri-State," he said. "I thought it would be a cool edition to the long list of X-Fest bands we have had here in town over the years."
It's a list that goes back 12 years and includes a diverse group of bands from nearly aspect of the hard rock spectrum.
Addressing some criticism that previous editions of the festival haven't featured many heavy metal bands, Raines reminds concertgoers that X-Fest isn't just a heavy metal show.
"I don't really want to have just one kind of festival," he said. "I like to think of it as a reflection of all of the rock we play on X106.3. You get slice of every kind of music we play. If you look at our past headliners, all of them are rock bands, but they're all different kinds."
Heavy metal fans should enjoy this year's addition of Avenged Sevenfold, Shadows Fall, and Columbus, Ohio's XFactor1, Raines said.
"This year, I really didn't make a conscious effort to book a harder-edged metal act like Shadows Fall, it just came about and they were available. It's all about availability and who's on the road at the time of our event each year.
"There are a lot of bands that are on our list of who we would like to see come to town, but many are touring overseas, out West, or just not touring. So, you hope for the best and do a lot of e-mailing and calling to see who's out there and make your decision from there. "
The fest also features a Loud and Local stage with bands from Huntington and Ironton among others.
"Diversity is also something we like to offer with the Budweiser Loud and Local Stage," Raines said. "We try to offer different local and regional bands each year and hopefully give these great bands a chance to rock at X-Fest."
This year's Loud and Local stage offers a spotlight to some of the hardest working bands in the Tri-State area, too.
"Basically, if you want to play the local stage at X-Fest," Raines added, "you have to impress us with your band's dedication and put together the highest quality product possible. That's what we're looking for each year."
X Fest cometh
Here's a look at the upcoming 12th annual X-Fest, hosted by X-106.3-FM, WAMX-FM.
WHAT: X Fest, a day-long music fest featuring all types of hardcore, heavy metal and modern rock acts both regionally and nationally.
WHEN: Gates will open at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 6.
MAIN STAGE: Avenged Sevenfold, Shadows Fall, Pop Evil, Egypt Central, Another Black Day and Midnight to Twelve.
LOUD AND LOCAL STAGE: Budweiser Loud and Local Stage will be X Factor 1 (Columbus, Ohio), PI (Ironton, Ohio), Bud Carroll & the Southern Souls (Huntington), Downtrend (Pikeville, Ky.) and Stitch Rivet (Bloody Creek, Ky.).
HOW MUCH: Tickets are $30 in advance and $45 day of show.
GET TIX: At all Ticketmaster outlets including the Big Sandy Superstore Arena Box Office.
PIT PASSES: Also, a limited number of Pit Passes will be available in advance for $45 at the arena box office at 1 Civic Center Plaza, Huntington or by calling 304-696-4400.
ON THE WEB: Go online at www.x1063.com.
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