Matt Bachand

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Matt Bachand
Matt Bachand at Turock Open Air in Essen, Germany, 2014
Matt Bachand at Turock Open Air in Essen, Germany, 2014
Background information
Born
Matthew Ryan Bachand

(1977-05-02) May 2, 1977 (age 48)
OriginEasthampton, Massachusetts
United States
Genres
OccupationGuitarist
Instrument(s)Guitar, bass, vocals
Years active1995–present
LabelsCentury Media, Atlantic, Roadrunner

Matt Bachand (born May 2, 1977) is an American guitarist. He has strong death metal and thrash metal influences. He is the rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist for the metalcore band Shadows Fall and the bassist for Act of Defiance.

Biography

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He is known for his deep growls or death growl, which is often heard in death metal genre. In Shadows Fall, he can also be heard using a clean vocal style, such as in the song "What Drives the Weak."

In his earlier days around the early through the mid-1990s, he was a guitarist for the death metal band Exhumed (not the deathgrind band Exhumed) and briefly was part of another death metal band, Perpetual Doom. Matt and Jon Donais formed Shadows Fall in late 1995 and released their first album Somber Eyes to the Sky in 1997, which was released through Matt Bachand's self-produced label Lifeless Records.

He also played guitar and sang in a band called Empty, who released an 11-song CD, Before the Sunrise, through Wilderness Records in 1996. The band's music is not heavy metal, and features Bachardt and Jeff Kukucka's harmonizing vocals together and playing acoustic guitars throughout. He also served as touring bassist for Times of Grace, replacing Daniel Struble who is unable take part in the tour due to personal matters.[1]

Shadows Fall went on to become one of the cornerstone/staples of the new wave of American heavy metal, being considered as one of its driving forces. In 2000 they released Of One Blood, and two years later they caught their first break when they released The Art of Balance which went on to sell over 100,000 thousand copies.[2] Bachand and the band achieved in more success with their 2004 follow up album The War Within which led to the group achieving their first Grammy nomination for best metal performance.[3] Individually Bachand and his fellow bandmate Jon Donais were voted best Best New Talent in the 2004 Guitar World readers poll.[4] That same year the duo were also named to Guitar Worlds list of the 100 best Guitar players of all time.[5] Bachand and Shadows Fall went on to release 4 more albums between 2006-2012, earning another Grammy nomination in 2008 for their song “Redemption.[3] However on On August 25, 2014 the band announced several final tours to take place in Europe and North America so the band could take a hiatus from future extensive touring. This farewell tour lasted into the summer of 2015.[6]

During Shadows Fall hiatus Bachand joined Act of Defiance which features former Megadeth members Chris Broderick and Shawn Drover and vocalist Henry Derek Bonner. He recorded two albums with them that were released in 2015 and 2017 respectively.[7]

In 2018, Bachand provided guest vocals for the song "Take It To The Cross" on Stryper's album God Damn Evil.[8]

On June 22, 2021, Shadows Fall lead singer Brian Fair confirmed that Shadows Fall were reuniting for their first show in over half a decade at the Worcester Palladium on December 18.[9] Then after playing a couple of live shows Bachand and the band released new material for the first time in 12 years on December On December 6, 2024, a single titled "In the Grey."[10]

In 2025 Bachand joined Hatebreed as a touring member following the group’s dismissal of their long time Bass player Chris Beattie.[11]

Equipment

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He uses a custom Ibanez Prestige RGA series guitar (MBM1 Matt Bachand Signature model) and two custom Ibanez SZ guitars. One SZ has a red finish and the other has a natural finish with a five-piece neck. All of his guitars feature active EMG pickups, an 81 in the bridge position and a 60 or 85 in the neck position. He also uses Engl amplifiers.

References

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  1. ^ VAN PELT, DOUG (2011-05-16). "Times Of Grace Tap Matt Bachand For Bass Guitar". HM Magazine. Retrieved 2024-10-27.
  2. ^ Blabbermouth (2004-11-19). "SHADOWS FALL Pass The 100,000 SoundScan Mark Again". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  3. ^ a b "Shadows Fall Grammys.com".
  4. ^ Vrazel, Jarrod (2003-11-25). "Shadows Fall". ZRock. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  5. ^ "Guitar World's 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Guitarists Of All Time!". Ultimate Metal Forum - Heavy Metal Forum and Community. 2004-01-24. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  6. ^ Blabbermouth (2014-08-25). "SHADOWS FALL To Embark On Final European, North American Tours". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  7. ^ "Matthew Bachand". Discogs. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  8. ^ "Listen To STRYPER's Heavy New Song 'Take It To The Cross'". Blabbermouth.net. 9 February 2018. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
  9. ^ Blabbermouth (2021-06-22). "SHADOWS FALL Announces December 2021 Reunion Show". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  10. ^ Blabbermouth (2024-12-06). "SHADOWS FALL Is Back With First New Single In More Than 12 Years, 'In The Grey'". BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
  11. ^ "CHRIS BEATTIE Opens Up About His Split With HATEBREED". Metal Injection. 2025-05-19. Retrieved 2025-10-27.
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