When Avenged Sevenfold drummer Jimmy ‘The Rev’ Sullivan died suddenly in 2009, Mike Portnoy came to the rescue, playing on their album Nightmare and joining them on tour. His good deed complicated his position with Dream Theater and contributed to his shock departure from the band he’d led since its inception. But in the end both outfits survived. Prog reported in 2010.
As Avenged Sevenfold’s explosive stage show blew up around him, Mike Portnoy reached over from behind his expansive drumkit, placed a marshmallow on his stick and toasted it over one of the flames licking around his riser. Portnoy was clearly enjoying his new role – but it was born from tragic circumstance.
After the accidental death of their drummer James ‘The Rev’ Sullivan in late 2009, as they were working on what would be fifth studio album Nightmare, Avenged Sevenfold found themselves fielding lots of calls about replacing him, while still trying to deal with the shock.
“Many drummers did offer from many massive bands, who shall remain nameless,” says guitarist Zacky Vengeance. “It was nice; but it was almost insulting to us, because it was too soon.
“But Mike offered his condolences and sent the family a cymbal, knowing that Jimmy was a big fan of his. The idea of reaching out to Mike was so easy to make happen. He said, ‘I’d love to do it, play whatever you want – whatever Jimmy left.’”
Portnoy fitted right in during studio session and live shows, playing The Rev’s ride cymbal as part of his kit every night and wandering around backstage with his familiar blue beard intact. He also happily told A7X about his other work, detailing the length of Transatlantic’s set at the year’s High Voltage Festival, then asking the bemused band if they’d use even more flames so he could cook sausages onstage too.
Of course, all these frolics were going on against the backdrop of Portnoy’s departure from Dream Theater, which came about mainly because he felt burnt out by his responsibilities in the band he’d led for 25 years. But the fact he was enjoying being on the road with A7X was at least a contributor.
“Honestly, it had nothing to do with the music itself or the musical chemistry within the band,” Portnoy told Prog. “I was always very inspired when writing and recording together, and I’m as proud of our last few albums as anything else in the catalogue. It really was more of the behind-the-scenes, personal relationships within the band.
“On the other hand, I would go out on tour with Transatlantic or Avenged Sevenfold, and all of the band members are hanging out, eating meals together and enjoying each others’ company.”
He added: “At the moment I’m very happy playing with Avenged Sevenfold and I don’t want to stop doing something I’m happy doing to do something I’m not very happy doing. I cannot do something with my life and career because I have to – I need to want to do it.”
Eventually A7X would decide to move on without Portnoy, who kept himself busy with a huge range of musical projects, before – as he’d more or less predicted – returning to Dream Theater in 2023.
Mike was very sympathetic. Everything was very meticulous and very respectful to what Jimmy wanted
M Shadows
Lead vocalist M Shadows told Metal Hammer separately that Portnoy’s presence offered an assurance of quality as they completed Nightmare, for which The Rev had mapped out but not finally recorded his tracks. “We didn’t want to put out a record and not have it up to the standard that we were used to having with Jimmy playing drums,” Shadows said.
“Mike came into the studio and was very sympathetic – he just said, ‘You guys just tell me what to play.’ He’d spend 10 hours on a song because he wanted it to be right. Everything was very meticulous and very respectful to what Jimmy wanted.”
On top of that, the singer noted: “He brought a real lightheartedness to the process, which was great; the last thing we wanted was a bunch of stress.”
Portnoy’s unflappable adaptability and quiet optimism had calmed Avenged’s nerves, leading guitarist Synyster Gates to tell Prog: “Portnoy does feel a bit like our saviour. He’s an unbelievable guy; he’s so happy all the time. You can’t get him down – he just loves life.
“When you see him up there having the time of his life it’s inspiring. And it’s good to know he’s kind of protecting us. We don’t have to think about the next step. We’re just here doing the best we can.”
