Who is avenged sevenfold lead singer

Matt was reduced to "M" because it had a better ring when combined with his stage name and ever since he has been known as M. Matt used to play the piano before he began to sing in his first band, "Successful Failure".

In following years, Shadows formed a number of bands with Avenged Sevenfold's rhythm guitarist Zacky Vengeance. Zacky was previously a member of a punk group called 'MPA. While Shadows was in the previously mentioned "Successful Failure", The Rev was slotted to play drums but was admittedly too good.

While in this band he penned the song "Streets," which would later be recorded after Avenged Sevenfold band was formed, and released on the first album, Sounding the Seventh Trumpet.

The album was a mix of metalcore and punk rock but also includes a softer, more ballad-like song Warmness On The Soul. Sounding the Seventh Trumpet was first recorded and produced while Shadows and the rest of Avenged Sevenfold were still in high school.

Shadows has stated that he feels a strong support for the troops serving the United States, having very close friends who are currently in service in Iraq. The song "M. The song "Gunslinger" from Avenged Sevenfold's self-titled album further expresses these feelings though it was stated in the album's extra MVI that it's not just about troops - "It can be about anyone away from home, missing their families.

Shadows has made guest appearances on numerous albums by numerous different artists. He also produced The Confession's album, Requiem, which, according to an interview, was one of the first steps which led to Avenged Sevenfold self-producing their self-titled album.

In the band's debut album, Sounding the Seventh Trumpet , M. Shadows' vocals had a heavy metalcore influence and consisted mostly of screaming vocals. This style gradually decreased in later albums into more conventional clean singing and had been almost completely jettisoned with the exception of backing introduction screams by the release of City of Evil , the band's major label debut.

After the release of City of Evil a rumor had developed stating that the reason why M. Shadows dropped the screaming was either due to blowing a blood vessel or ripping a vocal cord in the back of his throat.

As he grew older, he expanded his tastes and found he was a fan of heavy metal, and so he learned guitar, which he told us during an interview of "Wikipedia: Fact or Fiction? After a short period in a band called Successful Failure while he was in high school, Shadows went on to form Avenged Sevenfold with some of his classmates. I got forced into it," he laughed.

The newly-appointed vocalist adopted the alias "M. Shadows" because he felt he was "the darker character in the group" amongst the rest of his bandmates.

Inspired by Slash , the rest of them decided to pick stage names as well. Shadows has been the distinctive, powerful voice behind the band since its formation in , and they've released seven albums together so far. It's been quite the journey so far, between overcoming the death of their drummer the Rev and Shadows' several throat surgeries, but they've still got a long way to go. Check out the gallery below to see photos of Shadows through the years.