M. Shadows

M. Shadows

M. Shadows (born Matthew Sanders on July 31, 1981, is the vocalist/lead singer for the American hard rock/metalcore band Avenged Sevenfold. He is from Huntington Beach, California but presently lives elsewhere in Orange County.

Biography

When Shadows was younger he was in a few other punk bands with Avenged Sevenfold's rhythm guitarist Zacky Vengeance. M. Shadows decided several years before the making of City of Evil that it would be an all singing album. He had made it clear to their producer, Mudrock, 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. Some of his biggest musical influences are Megadeth, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Pantera, and Guns N' Roses.

He was formerly a member of a punk band, called 'Successful Failure'. While in this band he penned the song Streets, which would later be recorded after Avenged Sevenfold was formed, and released on their first album, Sounding the Seventh Trumpet.

Sanders feels a strong support for the troops serving the United States, having very close friends who are currently in service. The song "M.I.A." ("Missing in Action") was written in tribute to these friends. This is also the reason behind writing the new song released on their self-titled album, Gunslinger.

On the A7X DVD, while all of the members were talking about how they got their stage names, M. Shadows said that he got his name because when he attended El Modena High School in Orange County, California, and the band was just starting out, he was a darker kid (hence the name "Shadows") but he also wanted to incorporate his name, Matt, into his stage name. Matt was reduced to M and since has been known as M. Shadows.

ohh and Midnight and Alyssa rock =]]

Guest appearances

• The River by Good Charlotte (Vocal)
• Buffalo Stampede by Cowboy Troy (Vocal)
• Savior, Saint, Salvation by Bleeding Through (Vocal)
• Entombed We Collide by Death By Stereo (Vocal)
• This Is Not The End by Death By Stereo (Vocal)
• Like Always by A Permanent Holiday (Vocal)
• I Let Go by Eighteen Visions (Music Video Cameo)
• Requiem The Confession (Produced Album)