Mike Portnoy Completes Drum Tracks for Avenged Sevenfold LP

Posted on Feb 25th 2010 12:00PM by Chris Harris Comments
Dream TheaterOne week after it was first revealed that he'd be contributing drums to the forthcoming Avenged Sevenfold record, Dream Theater's Mike Portnoy has apparently finished tracking for the disc, according to the PRP.

Portnoy was enlisted by the band to handle the studio drumming for Avenged's new album, giving life to parts originally written by late drummer James 'The Rev' Sullivan, who passed away late last year.

"What an amazing and emotional experience," Portnoy reflected. "Me and Zacky celebrated by getting matching Death Bat tats here in the studio. I must thank the amazing A7X fans for being so open and welcoming to me. I was fearing them being very defensive over the Rev's drum throne but they've all been so supportive, open-minded, understanding and excited by the news ... it is a huge relief to me and the guys," who he says are now "my brothers for life. Hopefully this won't be the last time I play with them. And oh yeah, the album is gonna be incredible! The Rev is absolutely looking down with a big-ass smile on his face!"

Guitarist Zacky Vengeance says Portnoy's drums "sound f---ing amazing" on the album, and that "Jimmy will be proud. Jimmy's also smiling knowing that Mike Portnoy has a Death Bat forever tattooed on him. To show Mike that A7X is deeper then just a band, I got one to match his. Jimmy would have done the same. Mike realized that our fans and friends are considered family. Being an A7X fan isn't always easy because it means you're not only gonna laugh with us, but cry with us and defend us on occasion. If you're part of the family, it's for life. Shads dedicated his right hand to our brother, without hesitation."

There's no word yet on when the record will be released. Portnoy, according to Avenged, was Sullivan's favorite drummer, which is why the band called on him for the project. An official cause of death for Sullivan has not been released.

Filed under: News

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