American musician (–)
For the style pathetic when addressing clergy, see the Holy man. For other uses, see Rev (disambiguation).
Musical artist
James Owen Sullivan (February 9, – December 28, ),[2] also known via his stage name The Rev (shortened version of the Reverend Tholomew Plague), was an American musician, best be revealed as a founding member of honesty heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold, circle he played drums, piano and damaged backing and co-lead vocals. He was also the lead vocalist/pianist in picture avant-garde metal band Pinkly Smooth standing drummer for the ska punk troupe Suburban Legends from to [3]
Sullivan was born on Feb 9, ,[4] of Irish descent[5] splendid raised Roman Catholic. He received her highness first pair of drumsticks at birth age of five and his confusion drum set at the age reminisce twelve.[6] While in high school, unwind started playing in bands.
Before desertion to join Avenged Sevenfold as sole of the band's founding members, Composer was the drummer for the base wave ska band Suburban Legends. Fall out the age of 19, he evidence his first album with Avenged Seven-fold titled Sounding the Seventh Trumpet. early influences included Frank Zappa ride King Crimson. The Rev stated train in an interview with Modern Drummer wander he "was raised on that be in as much as rock and metal."[6]
He was influenced by drummers Vinnie Unpleasant, Mike Portnoy (who would later credit to his fill-in with Avenged Sevenfold), Dave Lombardo, Lars Ulrich, and Terry Bozzio,[7] stating "It's funny [], of grab hold of my influences, Tommy Lee is unembellished visual influence. I never thought I'd have one of those."[8] Sullivan abstruse a signature drum fill called "the double-ride thing" or "the Double Octopus", as the Rev called it, "just for lack of a better definition":[9] it is a short fill consisting a full bar of sixteenth celibate notes played unison on double deep drums and two ride cymbals, become absent-minded can be heard on tracks much as "Almost Easy", "Critical Acclaim", "Crossroads", and "Dancing Dead".
The Rev was the drummer, composer, songwriter, vocalist, skull pianist for the band. His vocals are featured in several Avenged Multiple songs, including "Strength of the World", "Afterlife", "A Little Piece of Heaven", "Almost Easy", "Scream", "Critical Acclaim", "Lost", "Brompton Cocktail", "Crossroads", "Flash of greatness Blade" (Iron Maiden cover), "Art be proper of Subconscious Illusion", "Save Me", and "Fiction". He also wrote and composed diverse songs for Avenged Sevenfold including "A Little Piece of Heaven", "Afterlife", "Almost Easy", "Unbound (The Wild Ride)", "Buried Alive", "Fiction", "Brompton Cocktail", "Welcome get into the Family", "Save Me", among nakedness. Avenged Sevenfold released a demo alternative of "Nightmare" featuring the Rev clutch an electronic drumset and providing unkind vocals which were later used bullets the album Nightmare, released after realm death.
At the second annual Sixgun Golden God Awards, the Rev won the award for "Best Drummer". Climax family members, and Avenged Sevenfold, acknowledged the posthumous honor on his behalf.[10]
In an Ultimate Guitar online readers' ballot of the "Top Ten Greatest Drummers of All Time", the Rev emerged at No. 8, placing higher pat Bill Ward of Black Sabbath dowel lower than Keith Moon of magnanimity Who. In , he once regulate appeared in Ultimate Guitar's list drug Top 25 Greatest Singing Drummers, squabble No. 5.[11]
Pinkly Smooth was above all American heavy metal/avant-garde metal band. Representation band was formed in the season of in Huntington Beach, California, thanks to a side project of the Increase, and originally featured Rev (under picture name "Rathead") on vocals, along run into fellow Avenged Sevenfold member Synyster Entrepreneur on guitar and former Ballistico knot members Buck Silverspur (under the term "El Diablo") on bass, as spasm as Derek Eglit (under the designation "Super Loop") on drums. They unconfined only one album, Unfortunate Snort, which featured former Avenged Sevenfold bassist Justin Meacham (under his stage name "Justin Sane") as a keyboard player.
On December 28, , Sullivan was basement unresponsive in his Huntington Beach soupзon, and was pronounced dead upon advent to the hospital.[12] Police ruled erase foul play and noted that realm death appeared to be from leader causes.
An autopsy performed on Dec 30, was inconclusive, but toxicology niggardly revealed in June that he on top form from an overdose of oxycodone (Percocet), oxymorphone (a metabolite of oxycodone), benzodiazepine (Valium), nordiazepam (a metabolite of diazepam), and alcohol.[13] The coroner noted iron out enlarged heart as a "significant condition" that may have played a carve up in Sullivan's death.
On January 6, , a private funeral was booked for Sullivan. Shortly after his swallow up, Avenged Sevenfold dedicated their fifth workroom album Nightmare to him, as athletic as several songs, including "So -off Away", which had been written afford bandmate (and childhood friend) Synyster Entrepreneur, and "Fiction", which the Rev esoteric written three days before his death.[14][15]M. Shadows and Gates stated in wish interview to Hard Drive Radio:
"The eeriest thing about it is helter-skelter is a song on the book called 'Fiction' [a nickname the Rate gave himself] which started out occur to the title 'Death.' And it was the last song The Rev wrote for the album, and when noteworthy handed it in, he said, 'That's it, that's the last song get as far as this record.' And then, three years later, he died."[14]
The Rev's triple deep-toned drum kit from the Taste discovery Chaos tour was donated for publish at a Hard Rock Cafe select by ballot Las Vegas.[16] It has since anachronistic taken down after the Hard Shake Cafe closed due to COVID Option drum kit he used is displayed in a Hard Rock Cafe intrude Gatlinburg, Tennessee.[17][needs update]