Avenged Sevenfold (often abbreviated to A7X) are a heavy metal/hard rock band which formed in 1999 in Huntington Beach, California, United States. The band consists of vocalist M. Shadows, lead guitarist Synyster Gates, rhythm guitarist Zacky Vengeance, bassist Johnny Christ, and former Bad Religion and Suicidal Tendencies drummer Brooks Wackerman. Heartbreakingly, the band's best friend and original drummer James "The Rev" Sullivan passed away in 2009.