Only the end , of just the beginning

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  • Only the end , of just the beginning
    By  Zach Myers

     

    Only the end , of the just the beginning

     

     

    I joined Shinedown nearly 7 years ago. . . Before my 21st Birthday . That may sound like a suggestion like a letter that says I'm leaving. . . Well I am not. . .Im just trying to put this into perspective as well as can be portrayed onto an Apple Computer. All of those other years wouldn't even hold weight to the last 3 1/2 years of this thing we call Shinedown.

     

    After the Sound of Madness was recorded we had the task of having to find 2 new members of this band. . . . .It’s not something that was in our control. . But sometimes things don’t work . . and in this case. .that’s exactly what happened in this case.

     

    In Mid January we got together in Orlando and had rehearsals with Barry , Brent , And I with about 12 people coming in to fill the spots although we had the 2 people in mind we wanted. . we did stay opened minded to all the talented individuals who were coming in . These were emotional experiences as I’m sure you can Imagine . . . But it concluded with us being right about the 2 people we had pre-destined to be apart of this . And after 6 months one of those pieces got lost in the shuffle. . . So with all the doubters , The Haters , The Nay Sayers . We are a better band now. . than we ever had been in the past. .

     

    After those Orlando rehearsals in January 2008 , in all honesty we were 4 guys with a goal. But we were also 1 new guy and 3 guys who hadn’t really gotten along or been on the same page in quite sometime. . . or even known who each other were for a while as well. . .

     

    On December 7, 2010 as I’m writing this , We are 4 men who know each other better than anyone else knows us . . .Wives , Families , Dogs , Crew….Anyone . We are 4 best friends who took what could have been the end of this band and turned it into the most successful thing we have done to date. We are a BAND . And to all of those who stuck with us through tough changes. . .Thank you so much. . . You made it worth it. .

    And to the dozen or so who stuck they’re noses in the air at us and condemned us in some cases over here say and rumors and speculation . . well. . . .You missed something truly great because of your ignorance.

     

    We will play 449 shows on the “Sound of Madness” record cycle . . . and that . . Is a lot of shows no matter how you spin it ….

     

    Once we finalized the line up of Shinedown we had about a month off then we retreated to Orlando and got 2 houses in the Disney Burbs as we liked to call it. . And set shop at a movie studio on the Universal lot for 3 1/2 weeks with our crew . . and Built Gear , Learned Songs , and Virtually learned how to be the band we are today. . . We knew our first show was going to be in Jacksonville. . .needless to say this made a few of us nervous as to how the crowd would react to our new BAND . The show was amazing from what any of the 4 of us remember of it. . . 

     

    We started this thing with an AMAZING Crew and ended with the same thing although we parted ways with a few on the way it all went along to make us a bigger better machine than we started we all still love each other and there is no love lost with anyone who has ever worked for our camp. Shinedown watched this thing grow from the smallest clubs to arenas all on this record. And it was ALL because you YOU!. . 

     

    So to Ed Baker , Carlos Oliveres , Paul , Sam , Brent "Panda" Cook , Hoogie , Chris Dries , Bryan Jones , Rooster , Cubby, Jim Raggus , Shawn , Julie Cox , Andrew , Doogie , Ken Delvo , Lester , Cole , Wes , Galen Henson , Doug Nightwine ,Jeff Chase , Jeff Hannah , and our Core - Scott " boo boo" Allee - 8 Years ,  Chris Lightcap -5 years in  , Colin West , Sparky , Jake Lawson , Chris Chester , Teresa Collier , Ryan Ashurt , The Bear

     

    Thank you so much all of you , you never gave up on us . And all we did was for you and will remain so. It’s far from over we are just going to go make the 4th chapter of this thing that we call Shinedown . We are stoked to make a record as a band again and create together. We left blood , sweat , and tears on every stage every night. And we will continue to in years to come . I personally believe this band is in a better place than it has ever been . And I can’t wait for everyone to hear that reflect in what we do the best……Music.

     

    Thanks 

     

     

     

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shinedownssunshine

Sun, 12/26/2010 - 11:14

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