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M. Shadows
M. Shadows in 2008.
Background information
Birth name	Matthew Charles Sanders
Born	July 31, 1981 (1981-07-31) (age 28)
Origin	Huntington Beach, California
Genres	Hard rock, heavy metal, hardcore punk, metalcore
Occupations	Musician, songwriter, singer
Instruments	Vocals, piano, keyboards, guitar, bass, synthesizer, organ
Years active	1999–present
Labels	Warner Bros., Good Life Recordings, Hopeless Records
Associated acts	Avenged Sevenfold, Slash, Good Charlotte, Steel Panther, Cowboy Troy, Death by Stereo, Bleeding Through, Dream Theater

Matthew Charles Sanders, (born July 31, 1981) better known by his stage name M. Shadows, is the vocalist and founding member for the American metal/rock band Avenged Sevenfold. His sister is former Detroit Shock player, Amy Sanders

Biography

In Matthews's youth, he was notorious for his disorderly conduct and misbehavior. He was quoted as saying "I was in between a good kid and a terrible kid - I had a good heart, but a terrible attitude." He attended Huntington Beach High School after being expelled from his middle school in the eighth grade. As the band was just starting out, he was the darker character of the group (hence the name "Shadows") but he also wanted to incorporate his first name, Matthew, into his stage name. Matthew 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. Shadows.^[1]

Although he makes references to the Bible (as demonstrated in his songs Beast and the Harlot, Dear God, Chapter Four, etc.,) M. Shadows stated that the band does not wish to force their political or religious views upon anyone.

On October 17, 2009 Matt married his high school sweetheart, Valary Dibenedetto in Palm Spring, California.

Early Life

Sanders used to play the piano before he became a member his first band, Successful Failure. When he was growing up, he favorited punk rock bands such as H2O and The Misfits and got into the scene when his father bought him Appetite for Destruction by Guns N' Roses after he had seen them on MTV's Headbanger's Ball.

In following years, Shadows formed a number of bands with Avenged Sevenfold's rhythm guitarist Zacky Vengeance. Vengeance was previously a member of a punk rock group called MPA. While Shadows was in the previously mentioned "Successful Failure", The Rev was slotted to play drums (but was admittedly too good).^[2] While in this band he penned the song "Streets," which would later be recorded after Avenged Sevenfold 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.

Avenged Sevenfold

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.I.A." ("Missing In Action") was reportedly written in tribute to these friends. 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.") The song "Critical Acclaim" can be interpreted as an attack against those who criticize America. Shadows has made guest appearances on numerous albums by numerous different artists. He also produced The Confession's 2007 album, Requiem, which, according to an interview, was one of the first steps which led to Avenged Sevenfold self-producing their 2007 self-titled album.^{[citation needed]}

Vocal style

In the band's debut album, Sounding the Seventh Trumpet, M. Shadows' vocals had a heavy metalcore influence and consisted mostly of screamed vocals. This style gradually decreased in later albums into more conventional clean singing and had been almost completely abandoned 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. However, this is not true. Despite having admitted minor throat surgery this was not a cause for the change and in an interview on All Excess, manager Larry Jacobson states that Shadows had decided two years before the making of City of Evil that it would be an all singing album. He had made it clear to their producer, Andrew Murdock, that the album they were working on at the time Waking the Fallen would be half singing and half screaming, and that the next would be all singing. In the past Shadows would sing on all parts of the songs during live performances, supporting the theory that he was no longer able to scream or growl. Perhaps becoming fed up with those claims, Shadows has resumed screaming again during live shows, this can be seen in the band's new live DVD "Live in the LBC & Diamonds in the Rough" In almost all of the songs in the DVD, he does a 5 to 7 second long scream, and does some screaming vocals for Second Heartbeat and Unholy Confessions. In 2009, Shadows continued screaming when Avenged Sevenfold had performed songs from Waking the Fallen, such as Eternal Rest and Chapter Four, at the "Rock on the Range" and "Sonisphere" live shows. Some of Shadows' biggest musical influences are Metallica, Megadeth, The Misfits, Beastie Boys, Queen, Pantera, AFI, Coheed and Cambria and Guns N' Roses.

Death of Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan

On January 16th, 2010 Matt posted this message on the Avenged Sevenfold site:

"I don’t know how to start this or know where to begin. First I would like to thank all the fans for their support through the passing of Jimmy. It has been comforting to see his fans, our fans, and everyone in general give their support. Jimmy was my best friend, as he was best friends with many other people including the members of Avenged Sevenfold. He was hands down the greatest person I have ever known. I told him I loved him everyday [sic]. He demanded your love and was never afraid to give it back. I have walked side by side with Jimmy, everyday [sic], for the last 18 years of my life. I have no memories before Jimmy, and it’s going to be damn hard to move forward without him here. It still doesn’t seem real. He was my best friend, songwriting partner, band mate, confidant, and most importantly, he was my brother. The crazy thing about Jimmy was that everyday [sic] was a crazy story. We have told our favorite Jimmy stories for the last 2 weeks and never have we repeated ourselves. This guy was magical. The out pour of art from his soul was unlike the world has ever seen. Unless you spent a day with Jimmy, or 18 years, it’s impossible to explain, so I’m not going to try. He inspired people in different ways. He wasn’t just a drummer, he honestly didn’t care so much for the technical side of drums, cause he could play anything he wanted. He was all about creating beautiful songs, original fills and hopefully touching people with his art and mind. He told all of us for years, including his parents, that he knew two things in life. He wanted to be a rockstar, and that he wasn’t going to live past 30 years old. He was right on both accounts, but I know Jimmy, and if he knew how much pain this would cause for the ones he left behind, he would have done anything he could to stick around a little longer. Jimmy gave so much and in the end it was his time to go. All my reasons for wanting him to stay are selfish and I know he is in a better place then this, so in a way I’m joyful that my best friend is now at peace. He made it to the other side first and I can’t wait to hang with him again. I have so much to say but can’t find the words so I will wait until time can allow me to find a way to express myself. As for the rest of us, it has become clear what we need to do. We had just finished writing a record with Jimmy. I can’t promise what the future holds because right now it’s too painful to think about, but we know we need to record and put out this record in honor of Jimmy, for Jimmy. He would call me every night to talk about songs and tell me “this shit is gonna change the world.” I agreed with him, unfortunately I didn’t know it would be on these terms. Please be patient with us for we cannot imagine how hard this is gonna be to get through, we just know we have to do it for his legacy. After that, who knows? But I know Jimmy will help us make that decision when the time comes. I love you Jimmy and I feel like the luckiest man in the world to have known you and spent 18 years of my life with you. Rest in Peace my friend."

Shadows also a had a Deathbat tattooed on his right hand, in the form of the Rev, most particularly, his hairstyle. ^[3]

References