M. SHADOWS CHATS COLLECTION POGS, MEDITATION, & MORE WITH THE ILLINOIS ENTERTAINER.

M. Shadows chatted with the Illinois Entertainer about Avenged Sevenfold’s first Grammy nomination, the cover songs on “The Stage” Deluxe Edition, keeping his vocal chords healthy, collecting Pogs, social media, meditating and more.

Instead, Shadows and his wife spend their spare time doing Transcendental Meditation, the David Lynch-popularized practice that keeps their minds in tune with their bodies. Avenged’s manager turned him onto it, and he hired another professional coach to come to the house and teach a proper course. And now – rather than getting emotionally bogged down in the daily news of rampant political corruption – he peacefully mediates. And in so doing, he says, “I’ve just embraced my children, I’ve embraced my family, and I’ve embraced a feeling of love. I spend more time with my family as I try to make a difference in this world in a positive way. And if you can get to that point, that’s the way you can sleep at night – by understanding that you’re not here for very long, and it’s a gift to be able to open your eyes each morning. But part of the deal is, you have to go at some point, and that puts some perspective on your life and allows you to enjoy it.”