Matt Shadows

I think you gotta have balls to be an Avenged fan sometimes. A lot of our fans get hated on just as much as us. To me Avenged fans aren't just fans of a band, they are fans of everything that surrounds it, like a lifestyle. We live it, you live it. You go to the shows and you can feel it. It's a great experience and people that aren't involved will never understand. So they can stand on the sidelines and talk, but we will just continue to do what makes us all happy." - M. Shadows -



M. Shadows not only has a wonderfully unique singing voice and a natural ability to create lyrics that tell a story, he also plays piano/organ and guitar/bass. According to Zacky Vengeance, M.Shadows also has a musical ear for detail and the abilty to add tiny nuances needed to make the music perfect.


Facts:



•M. Shadows said at the Myrtle Beach, SC concert (11-28-2008) that the band had been visiting many of the wounded American Soldiers.
•M. Shadows has one younger sister, Amy. His parent’s names are Gary Charles and Kimberlyann. You can see Gary in the intros on the DVD "Live in the LBC".
•M. Shadows’ vocal coach is Ron Anderson who has coached none other than Axl Rose.
•M. Shadows has said that he spends up to 8 hours a day, seven days a week, writing songs.
•M. Shadows smoked his first cigarette with The REV when he was 12 years old.
•In 2007 M. Shadows along with Synyster Gates was featured on the Good Charlotte video/song "The River".
•M. Shadows' grill cost $8000.00 and it's made of platinum and diamonds. It was made at Eddie's Gold Teeth Atlanta, GA.
•M. Shadows tested to see what kinds of alcohol affect his body so he knows what he can get away with drinking. He drinks Grey Goose with Cranberry Juice.
•Bill Bourroughs, an early member of the "Vicious Circle Gang", later the TSOL is M. Shadows' uncle.
•Riding a motorcycle is an escape for M. Shadows. It allows him to get away and clear his head. He has always wanted a custom chopper. He however has never been able to find time to go get one made.
•M. Shadows has 1 dog. Its name is Bella. Bella is a yellow lab who apparently has a liking for "special" brownies and looking at the ocean after consuming them.
•M. Shadows filled in for Jonathan Davis of Korn in Europe when Jonathan became ill before a performance.
•M. Shadows is allergic to grass.
•M. Shadows is 6'1 and has hazel eyes.
•M. Shadows produced the confessions most recent album Requium unfortunately the band has now broken up.
•At one point M. Shadows liked the song Barbie Doll by Aqua. He drove the Rev so crazy with it that the Rev threw it out the bus window while it was moving. The interesting part is that it was the Revs CD.
•M. Shadows was sitting in a bar in Bangkok, Thailand trying to rap his mind around all of the young men parading past him who have had sex changes in order to become prostitutes when suddenly he gets hit by a something mushy on his leg. Well many girls in Thailand have the ability to use their privates to let’s say launch items like ping pong balls. When he looks down he realized he had been hit by a banana from a girl across the room. He immediately ran to the bathroom trying to remove it from his pants while trying not to touch it. He said it smelled really bad.
•M. Shadows wrote the guitar riffs for The Beast and the Harlot and Critical Acclaim.
•M. Shadows wrote the lyrics for Dear God, Gunslinger, Brompton Cocktail and Seize the Day completely. In reality M. Shadows does the majority of the lyrical writing for the band.
•At the 2005 warped tour, while the guys were doing a meet and greet, Matt was spat upon by a dude who didn't like his music. Synyster Gates slammed the dudes head down on the table and held him there until security came. M. Shadows walked away being the bigger man we all know he is. Val came out and handled the dudes girlfriend.
•M. Shadows had a polyp removed from his vocal cords. He did not have a ruptured or torn vocal cord. This also has no bearing on why the band no longer screams. The decision not to scream anymore was a group decision to change the direction and sound of the band.
•M. Shadows is a huge supporter of the American troups overseas. Thus the reason why he wrote MIA and Gunslinger. He stresses though that the band is not a political band and they have no intentions of becoming one.
•M. Shadows lists his musical influences as Guns N' Roses, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Megadeth, and Pantera. His screaming influence is Philip Anselmo formerly of Pantera and now the front man for the band Down.
•Before Avenged Sevenfold M. Shadows had a band called Successful Failure. During that time he wrote the song Streets which was added to A7X first album "Sounding the Seventh Trumpet".
•M. Shadows original background is deeply ingrained in the Metalcore of the West Coast.
• M. Shadows made a guest appearance in the 18 Visions video for the song "I Let Go". 18 Visions is no longer together.


•Bat country is M. Shadows favorite video.
•M. Shadows likes the snake tongues that were added to the Bat country video.
•M. Shadows thinks Seize the day is a sophisticated video.
•Synysters step mother, Suzie Haner, will pause the seize the day video on M. Shadows bare ass and tells him about it.
•Up until 2007, M. Shadows had a lip ring located on the right side of his bottom lip. Although there were several rumors floating about in regards to why he took it out including an incident of him almost swallowing it in his sleep he has not said anything official about his reason. He also has said he regrets gauging his ears so large now. His largest gauge was 7/16. He has downsized them considerably now.
•M. Shadows stopped a show in Scotland because I girl was hurt badly in the pit where he could see. They resumed where they left off after she was removed for medical attention. He also stopped a show during the Uproar tour in 2010 in the North Eastern United States when a boy fell while they were playing and they again resumed after he was taken to get medical attention.
•M. Shadows is a very fit individual as everyone can see. As part of his work out routine he runs, practices jujitsu, plays golf, and does core performance training. He eats healthy too.
•M. Shadows has an endearing quality of occasionally forgetting/rewriting song lyrics while performing. He looks to Zacky for assistance sometimes and even the fans others.
•M. Shadows has many tattoos. Click here to view them.
•M. Shadows is a fan of the Lakers and enjoys playing basketball on the street with friends when he is at home.


•M. Shadows favorite munchie food is Pop Tarts.
•M. Shadows prefers extra crispy over original
•M. Shadows says Bangkok, Thialand is a true City of Evil.
•M. Shadows Says Iron Maiden puts on the most elaborate shows.
•M. Shadowsfavorite actress is Angelina Jolie because shes hot.
•M. Shadows favorite tv show is South Park.
•M. Shadows prefers jagermister over taquila.
•M. Shadows admits to shoplifting in the past.
•The first real concert M. Shadows ever attended was Rancid when "Lets Go" came out.



o In 2007, Matt became engaged to long time girlfriend Valary DiBenedetto.
o They were married October 17, 2009 in Palm Springs, California. Matt's bachelor party was held October 3, 2009 at the Palms in Las Vegas, Nevada. The couple honeymooned in Africa.
o Valary was the bands original tour manager and merch dealer.
o Valary helped progress the bands success by promoting the band at Warped tour spending hours in the hot sun giving out tapes and posters to anyone who seemed to like similar bands. She also would steal money from her parents when the guys needed it. Valary appears in the bands video "Dear God". (Scene from video above)
o Valary is also seen in the video for "Seize the Day" as Matt's pregnant girlfriend who dies in the video. She is also interviewed in the "All Excess" DVD.

M. Shadows has a love for classic car and owns a 1972 Chevelle Convertible. He has totally pimped it out with a killer sound system, deathbat inlayed headrests, among other upgrades. In an interview, he stated that the car was no longer red and I believe he said it was now painted purple. I have misplaced the interview and when I find it I will make sure that is exactly what he said. In the 2010 making of "Nightmare" video, M. Shadows drove up in a 2010 tan Dodge Charger. In the "All Excess" DVD he was driving a black Chevrolet Yukon.

M. Shadows is an Avid Golfer and Gamer



Matt loves playing xbox,
This is Matt's xbox gamer profile as of 07/09/2010

Mattplayingxbox.jpg
M. Shadows' favorite game on Xbox is "Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2". He plays as much as he can when he has free time. He also has played with fans of the band. He has a special group he plays with on a regular basis. M. Shadows has also mentioned in many interviews about how just following Jimmy's passing he became even more into Modern Warfare. He said it was much better than turning to drugs or alcohol for an escape from the emensely unbearable pain and loss he was/is enduring.

M. Shadows Musical One Night Stands:

Matt sometimes guest sings on different artists albums in which he refers to them as one night stands.

These guest vocals include to date:

Slash--Nothing to Say
Good Charlotte--The River
Cowboy Troy--Buffalo Stampede
Steel Panther--Turn out the Lights
Kisses for Kings--Like Always
Bleeding Through--Portrait of a Goddess

Quotes:

"We don't consider being on TRL an accomplishment. We want to be selling out stadiums and selling millions of records."

"When other bands tour with us they usually say, wow! I learned a lot from A7X because they have their shit together."

"No matter how I word this it's gonna sound bad. We changed because we wanted to play the kind of music we liked but we were smart enough to want to be listenable to more people. We knew the metal core thing had a cap on it. There's only so far you can go doing that."

"I'll play hold'em if I'm sober and blackjack if I'm drunk."

"The first Metallica record I ever got was "And Justice For All". The video for one was my dad’s favorite. He got me the tape and I just flipped out. I went out and bought the entire back catalog."

"To do this tour let alone sing onstage with Metallica in Berlin it's something you can't even imagine when you’re just starting out in a garage. It's insane, it's a dream come true. You can't even put it into words."

"We have come to a spot where we have confidence in our own musical judgment and we are going to write a record that's truly us. “Referencing the album Avenged Sevenfold

"Yeah we're cocky, because we have confidence in what we do. We believe in what we do, and we've been successful at it."

"I want this to be a mature record, one where everyone can listen to it and get something out of It." referencing Avenged Sevenfold the album

"We want to do something that's completely original and completely us and not worry about trying to emulate someone else’s record. I think that's what being mature is-- doing your own thing and not worrying about what sounds cool at the time or what you used to listen to."

"I really like guns, but everyone thinks I shouldn't get one because of my temper and they’re probably right. I've had people come to my house before to fuck with me and I'd have shot them for sure if I had a gun. I just wouldn't be able to control myself. I know because I've tried to stab a guy before, and I've beat the shit out of people. It just wouldn't be a good idea."

"You explain these things to kids and they think you have gone off the deep end. Maybe we have."

"This album is way less indulgent than "City of Evil". It's all about making good music and making ourselves happy."

"We have always been about pissing people off and getting a reaction and we don't back down".

"Controversy has always followed us".

When asked about cancelling the UK dates in 2007 his reply was: "We were at each other’s throats. If we'd had come over for those dates there might not have been a band anymore. We'd have been out on tour for 16 months. It had gotten to the point where we just didn't want to be around each other."

"We grew the fuck up"

"When you meet fans you want to be in a good mood because they pick up on that. You want them to have a positive experience when they meet you. When I have met bands that I love and they didn't give me the time of day it totally sucked".

"It's the record we've always wanted to make so we called it Avenged Sevenfold".


"I think people have a weird misconception about us. They think we are trying to be a super-heavy band, but we really like our songs to have a certain pop element to them; If something we write isn't super-catchy, we try to get it to that point. Kids think we do it to sell records, but really we just like it. We like pop music."

"Oh yeah we sold out again." Matt says sarcastically about the Avenged Sevenfold album. "I think kids will like it--they will just have to get used to it."

"The whole records is about definitely trying to be a better person." referencing the Avenged Sevenfold Album

"Not to sound hippie or anything but there are way more important things on this earth than money, or how big your band is. To go out there and make a difference in kid’s lives, to make them happy for one night and get to interact with them...it's a very special thing."

"We are not a bunch of drugged out friggin' wannabes that don't give a shit about their music or their fans."

"Every band no matter how big they get started at the bottom."

"He's a buff guy. He's a fearless leader and the best fuckin front man ever. Great singer--as creative as they come. Huge horse cock. God I love that horse cock. He's made grown men cry."--Brian Haner in reference to Matt


"We may not be as bad as people make us out to be but we still like to have fun."

"I had this batman outfit that my mom bought me. I'd ride on my skateboard wearing it with Guns N'Roses "Lies" playing. I'd play "One in a Million" over and over again because it had shitty words in it. Everyone would throw shit at me because I was a complete nerd but I didn't care. I was listening to metal."

"It just kind of morphed into "hey lets rock out together". -Matt speaking about how the band began-

"No one knows what I think, they don't know me and they never will. You can't be in a band like this and be a reclusive, sit-in-the-corner guy. If you are like that you'll never dominate."

"We want to be the band that everyone has to go and see."

"Our fans like our honesty. They know they'll get the truth from us. That's why they become fanatic. It's like a life style, a look and a vibe. You might not agree with what we say but you know where not bullshitting. We don't smell of corporate shit."

"This is what we are either love it or hate it."

"That's part of who we are. If people have a problem then it's obviously jealousy."

"The reality is we get up at 6 in the morning and work our asses off. We make sure every show is the best show possible. Then we cut loose."

"I hate to see bands who are down to Earth." Matt's answer when asked what he thinks about elaborate shows verses the very plain ones.

"I still think we have a black album in us. Our very best album is yet to come."


"Dear God was an experiment but we loved it so much we thought how can we not put it on the record".

"My manager and my mom and dad hate when I ride motorcycles, but I just go ahead and do the opposite of what they say."

"We had this mack daddy tour with tons of production, pyro, and videos. We wanted to be able to offer it to kids who couldn't make it."-Referencing the DVD "Live in the LBC and Diamond in the rough"-


"Musically I want people to never know what to expect."



"The press was all like they want to be Guns N' Roses; all they care about is partying all they care about is girls. We all got steady girlfriends; I've got a fiancée. I'm not out there banging every groupie and getting hammered every night. I drank 2 times during the entire Asian tour."

"I don’t know what age exactly, but the week that Appetite For Destruction came out my Dad bought me that tape. I listened to Nirvana and stuff like that, but then I started getting into older punk like Black Flag and our drummer started getting me into Pantera, Metallica and those types of metal bands." Matt's answer when asked at what age did he get into music.

"I don’t know, I just love everything about it. It’s just catchy and I can really get into it; the guitar solos are amazing. Everything about it is just amazing to me. It’s the first thing that I got into so it’ll always be special. It’s just the perfect album." Matt's answer when asked what he likes so much about appetite for distruction.

"I think we considered ourselves a punk and hardcore hybrid band at first. We had some hardcore metal with a lot of punk rock influence and I think the hardcore scene embraced us at first, but we weren’t really looking to be embraced by that scene."

"Other bands started coming out as metalcore and they sounded so horrible that we didn’t want to have anything to do with it. It was one of those things where we don’t listen to metalcore, we don’t own any metalcore CDs and we don’t necessarily like those bands."

"We wanted to write something that we could call a creative metal record. We took a lot of different things musically and combined them into one record and that’s all we wanted to do."Matt referencing "City of Evil"

"Everything you read and heard about, you just know he’s one of the nicest guys. He’s always laughing, always good hearted, always having a good time drinking it up. You can tell he’s a great guy. That’s why he’s touched so many people.Dimebag was just a guitar God to us, so when I got the call that he had died, I couldn’t believe it; my heart totally stopped. I’d never met the guy, but I’d been listening to him my whole life and I knew every note on every song on every record. I just couldn’t believe it; we had always hoped for a reunion tour to happen."
Matt referencing Dimebag Darrell

The English press; they blow things way out of proportion, to the point where it’s not even funny.



"We recently met Metallica, and Rex [Brown] from Pantera came to our shows, and they're just like, "You guys are waving the flag now. Run with it and be proud." And those are the biggest compliments in the world, hearing stuff from Metallica and Pantera. Those are our idols, gods among men, and they've all been so supportive. ... When we hear people talking down to us in our own scene, that's just jealousy. But when you hear the big dogs talking to you, it's very, very inspiring."- 2006 interview-

"Joel from Good Charlotte, and he's like,"The art ends in the studio," and that kind of rang true. He's like,"You make the CD you wanna make, you give it to your label and whatever happens happens. When MTV comes to you and gives you an opportunity like, 'Hey we wanna put you on "TRL,"it's like just another video show, just go on there and see what happens." And we knew there would be a backlash, but the CD's a CD, it's not gonna change 'cause it got on "TRL," the video's not gonna change 'cause it's on "TRL," the band's not gonna change, there's nothing to change. It's there already, it was made months before this ever happened, so it came to us and it was like, "Let's just do it." There's already a million things going on where kids are stealing music, there's a million bands, so any way you can get it out there and sell some records and get some new fans." -Referencing the popularity of Bat Country and Seize the Day on MTV"s former show TRL and their appearance on that show.-

"We wanna go out there and we wanna destroy other bands — not physically, just onstage. [He laughs.] Maybe physically too, but we wanna go out there and that's what we're here to do. Every time we walk onstage, we give ourselves the world-domination sign, like we're trying to be the best band possible and play the best shows possible, 'cause if we don't we're furious at ourselves. And people take that as being like cocky or ego, but really it's just that we take what we do really seriously."

"The last [Warped Tour] we got on we heard rumors that people thought we had big egos and were stuck-up, but really it was just that mentally, we were just on a level of, "We wanna go out here and dominate every day. We wanna get fans."

"You gotta look like Flavor Flav if you're gonna be Axl Rose." -Matt Referencing his grill-



M. Shadows Teenage Misadventures:


-M. Shadows hated school so much his parents would make him go and drive him there themselves. He would wait for them to leave and then he would hop a city bus back home. His mother was so upset and stressed out about his behavior that she considered sending him to military school and sent out for literature. But thanks to his wonderful sister Amy who would hurry home after school and remove any literature from the mail before her parents would see them. Note: I just wonder if they had succeeded would we have M. Shadows or even An A7X? Sad thought!!

-M. Shadows and undisclosed others broke into a school and started small fires-it got out of control-"We were like shit!" "We got to go now!" "As we were leaving we heard all these fire engines. We got on top of one of my friends roof and watched the whole school burn to the ground."

-M. Shadows got into a brawl with guys from a rival neighborhood and ended up spending the night in jail for assaulting a cop. These dudes were throwing bottles at us and then their car got caught in a cul-de-sac. So I ran up with a whole can full of bottles and smashed in their front window. Then I threw brass knuckles through the back window. The neighbors thought the sound was gunshots and called the police. So we ran through the park. These cops on motorcycles pulled up with guns out and yelled "get down!" and me being an antagonistic fuck said what the fucks the problem officer? So a cop kicks me in the back of the leg and shoves me down. I got up and hit him. Then he hit me. So I grabbed him by the throat. Finally all the cops with guns put me in fucking hand cuffs and one of them cracks me in the back of the head with a maglite. That's the reason I didn't spend time in jail because he hit me and I had proof.

-M. Shadows was known at one time as the "kid that killed the principal" when the principal at his school had a heart attack after Matt had vandalized the school.