In 2011, California metal outfit Avenged Sevenfold—whose albums like Nightmare (2010) marked a shift from nu-metal to progressive builds, earning Grammy nods—headlined day two of Pinkpop, Europe's oldest annual festival, returning to the stage post the tragic 2009 death of drummer The Rev. Their hour-long set on June 12 in Landgraaf, rife with aggressive riffs and Synyster Gates' emotive solos, opened with the titular "Nightmare" featuring orchestral hues, escalating through "Critical Acclaim" and "Welcome to the Family," introspective "Buried Alive" and "Afterlife," the anti-religious "God Hates Us," wrapping with "Bat Country" amid cheers from a 50,000-strong crowd, where new drummer Arin Ilejay injected freshness. Fans and reviewers dubbed the performance an "epic tribute" to the Nightmare era, affirming A7X's festival dominance with millions of recording views.