NICE!!!

http://www.facebook.com/jaredlward
http://www.myspace.com/jaredwardmusic

-"God is Love"

Props to MP for helping them out!

That's pretty fuckin' badass!

"We live in a world where good men are murdered, while mediocre hacks thrive and proliferate." - Bill Hicks

Xbox Live Gamertag: CAHKMOMETER

Unexpected, yet amazing news! Cant wait to see the result :)

MP: Do you guys know how long it took to find a gravestone with the name Victoria Page, and the dates 1905-1928 on it?! Took us months!

Wow, he just never stops working! Ever!

Talk about being classy. That is just a very respectable and admirable thing for MP to do. Kudos to Mike for being such a good human being

I really hate when I'm at a vuvuzela concert and people start playing soccer.

whoa this definitely was a surprise

This. Is. Awesome!!!

We'll still have her song to sing. Sing softly, bring me to the lake. Sing softly, sing me to the lake.

wow, how cool of a guy is MP.

Really,  it just blows my mind. I feel like he's a buddy of mine that I've grown up with or something. This is cool, and I guess I'll have to take back what I said about never buying an Avenged Sevenfold album.

It was really weird when the Rev died. I got into drumming on The Rev, and Mike's what kept me playing. As I moved into prog and avant-garde metal, and I moved away from Avenged Sevenfold...but now, Mike's going to be on their album. I expect it'll be their best one, because that's how Mike rolls.

Rest in peace, James Sullivan, and long live the King of Prog!

God bless Mike Portnoy once again.

HOLY SHIT!

After hearing of Jimmy's passing, i was left wondering... how the hell was going to be able to play with A7X now?

I have no doubt that MP is the man for the job, since his influence on The Rev's drumming was always noticeable. Can't wait to hear what this will sound like!

I honestly grew up on Avenged Sevenfold. They showed me Dream Theater! 
What a dream come true out of 'A Nightmare to Remember'
Shall the Rev be 'Avenged Sevenfold'!

Mike is THE MAN! Proving it, yet again.

Wow that's freaking awesome on several levels.

I'm seriously speechless right now.  

I cannot express how overjoyed I am by this; not just because my favorite drummer is playing with one of my favorite bands, but that The Rev would be smiling BIG if he could see this.

Fuck.  This is so good.

A onetime singer for Malmsteen once told us: "Yngwie and I parted over religious differences.  He thought he was God, and I didn't agree."- Asbury Park Press

Wow...that's amazingly awesome of MP...especially coming from a person who personally can't stand the band...

I'm gonna have to check this out...if I like it...I will seriously go buy an A7X album.

Again, mad props to MP.

Get up and deconstruct.
messagetoal.com - Please sign this if you want change in the Oakland Raiders organization!

I was going to have a hard time accepting anyone filling this role.  Jimmy is all over every nuance of A7X.  I am very pleased with this news!

Maybe a June or July release (fingers crossed)? 

We are forum members of the greatest human, hero, and musician to grace this earth!

(microwave dings)
MP: "James, I don't take offense that you got up and left during the drum solo..."   JLB: "Sorry, man! Chai Latte takes precedence over the drum solo!"  JR: "You think people at home would go to the bathroom?....Mike, would you be insulted if I went to the bathroom?"  MP: "He really is!" JP: "There he goes!" (I&W Live In Tokyo commentary)

Not sure it's the best move their Mike.

Save a Drum, bang a Drummer

A musical farewell from ‘The Rev’

A really nice article with Jimmy's parents about his last few months and the writing of the new album.

Oh wow.

I have a lot of respect for Mike Portnoy anyway, but wow. That's fantastic. What a lovely bloke.

If I suddenly died (touch wood) and John Myung recorded bass instead of me, with my best friends, I would be honoured. I swear, Mike is the nicest bloke in rock.

DaRk0


Not sure it's the best move their Mike.

what?!

(microwave dings)
MP: "James, I don't take offense that you got up and left during the drum solo..."   JLB: "Sorry, man! Chai Latte takes precedence over the drum solo!"  JR: "You think people at home would go to the bathroom?....Mike, would you be insulted if I went to the bathroom?"  MP: "He really is!" JP: "There he goes!" (I&W Live In Tokyo commentary)

and Mike said he was not SUPERMAN
  +   =

Live for Dream Theater...... Dream Theater to live

That is really cool news.  Mike is a total class act for doing this, and I'm sure The Rev wouldn't have wanted anyone else filling his shoes for this record.

That said, I highly doubt Mike will have much of an effect on the actual musical content of the new record.  I think it's been made clear that the material for the new CD had already been written with The Rev before he passed.  So I doubt we'll hear A7X sounding any more DT-ish than they did before, since Mike will probably just be tracking the material given to him by the band.  Although I'm sure we'll hear at least a few of his signature fills and flourishes (to say nothing of the way their kits sounded, which was very different from one another).

That's not a bad thing, though.  I like A7X, and I was already looking forward to what they might do next.  Now I'm even more stoked.

"The good man is the only excellent musician, because he gives forth a perfect harmony not with a lyre or other instrument but with the whole of his life." - Plato

This is so awesome I'm speechless...
MP you are THE MAN!

Never was much into A7x but, I will have to check this out.

Wow. . .  all this empty space to put something worthwhile and I blew it 

wow... that was unexpected!!! o.O 
Should be great!

Mike, you are such a good man for doing this!! *thumbs up*

The headless lover of three...
an unspeakable affair...

I'm not a fan of the band, but I have a few friends that are gonna freak, and be really happy that A7X is working.

How are your feet doing Mike?

Damn! That is class right there. Kudos to Mike.

that is AMAZING!! way to go Mike!

"How dare you talk to me on a talk show!"
-Conan O' Brien

Oh wow!... I didn't know that about Jimmy Sullivan. RIP.
Again I'm not that familiar with the band Avenged Sevenfold. Will check them out soon. Kudos to MP... how cool is that! The band couldn't have picked a better person for this job.

Steve

 
 

My friend txt'd me this and my jaw dropped.  I have "Grew" up with a7x.  I followed their earliest material up until "City Of Heroes," but I did pick their self-titled album and I LOVED it!!  I realized this band has adapted perfectly to M. Shadows injury and I love what they have become, "mature" is a sense. 

This is awesome news for fans like me, and for a7x fans because I know MP will be able to make great music with syn gates just like the rev did

You are THE man.

Even under normal circumstances, I would've been happy to help the guys out in any way I could as I think Avenged Sevenfold are a great band...but under these incredibly sad and tragic circumstances, I must say I am truly honored to have been asked to play with them...and I didn't even have to think twice about saying yes.

These guys are a true family and it is an incredibly emotional experience to be here with them for the first time without their lost brother. But they have welcomed me into the family with open arms and there's a real excitement to make the record they had set out to make...

I am treating my participation on this album with the utmost respect for Jimmy's memory and am remaining as true as possible to the drum parts that he wrote for the songs and the record he wanted to make.

I want their fans to realize that I'm not trying to step into or fill The Rev's shoes...I'm just merely lacing em up for him!

MP
 
 
 
 

 

What a class act, way to go Mike

Withdrawn and Introverted, Infectiously Perverted

Best of luck sir.  Wonder what kit will be used?

Mike, if you check back on this thread... will you be regarded as a permanent member of the band, or is this only a temporary thing until they can find themselves a new drummer to call their own?

Do you know the biggest lesson I learned from what you did to me? We are a lot alike, you and I. You tested me, I tested you. You killed me, I... oh no wait, I guess I haven't killed you yet. Food for thought... - GLaDoS

When Mike posted that he wasn't doing anything with Åkerfeldt or Wilson, I actually started to suspect this.

The Fish


I'm not a fan of the band, but I have a few friends that are gonna freak, and be really happy that A7X is working.

How are your feet doing Mike?

after playing an entire tour opening with A Nightmare to Remember every show......I think he's good and warmed up :)