Matthew James Traynor is an American musician that primarily performs

metalcore Metalcore is a broadly defined fusion genre combining elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk, originating in the 1990s United States and becoming popular in the 2000s. Metalcore typically has aggressive verses and melodic choruses, combined ...

, and best known for being the former drummer of the metalcore band

Blessthefall Blessthefall (stylized as blessthefall or BLESSTHEFALL prior to 2013) is an American metalcore band from Phoenix, Arizona, signed to Rise Records. The band was founded in 2004 by guitarist Mike Frisby, drummer Matt Traynor, and bassist and vo ...

from its formation in 2004 until his departure in 2018. He is originally from

Massapequa, New York Massapequa (, ) is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the Oyster Bay (town), New York, Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, on the South Shore (Long Island), South Shore of Long Island, in Ne ...

, but moved to

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

and eventually helped form Blessthefall.

Background

Traynor has been playing drums since 2000. Traynor started his musical career with bassist Jared Warth and guitarist Mike Frisby in 2002. The trio formed the band and hired vocalist

Craig Mabbitt Craig Edward Mabbitt (born April 9, 1987) is an American singer and the lead vocalist for the rock band Escape the Fate. He was formerly the lead vocalist for the bands Blessthefall and The Word Alive. He is also the current lead vocalist of his ...

in early 2004. Traynor is one of the only two remaining original members, the other being Warth, after Frisby left the band in 2011. In 2018, Traynor announced his departure from the band.

Personal life

Traynor married fitness blogger and personal trainer Brianna Stevens on March 21, 2015. They announced that Brianna was pregnant with their first born son, later announced to be named Jaxin James Traynor, on February 15, 2017, and would be expecting him around September the same year. Jaxin was born on September 21, 2017. Brianna and Matt would also end up having a girl, Quinn Harper Traynor, on October 3, 2019. As of 2020, Traynor posted himself on Instagram working as a postal worker with

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...

in Scottsdale, Arizona. In his free-time, Matt is an avid fan of the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

, and

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

. He also had a corgi legend named Nugget, whom passed away in 2024 at the age of 14. He also hopes to regain a fantasy football championship win, after losing in the 2024 season.

Influences

Traynor states that his three biggest influences were

Travis Barker Travis Landon Barker (born November 14, 1975) is an American musician, songwriter, and music producer who is the drummer for the rock band Blink-182. He has collaborated with hip hop artists, is a member of the rap rock group Transplants ...

Blink 182 Blink-182 is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Poway, California, in 1992. Its current and best-known line-up consists of bassist and vocalist Mark Hoppus, guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. Though its so ...

Jordan Mancino Jordan Mancino (born May 22, 1983) is an American musician. He has played with several metal acts as the official or as a live member, including As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage, and Wovenwar. Background Jordan Mancino started his musical ...

As I Lay Dying ''As I Lay Dying'' is a 1930 Southern Gothic novel by American author William Faulkner. Faulkner's fifth novel, it is consistently ranked among the best novels of the 20th century.The New Lifetime Reading Plan: The Classical Guide to World Lit ...

, and

Matt Greiner Matthew Wilson Greiner is an American drummer, best known as a founding member of the metalcore band August Burns Red. In 2012, he also cofounded the drum company ''Greiner&Kilmer'' with fellow drummer Kaleb Kilmer. Greiner is an outspoken Chris ...

August Burns Red August Burns Red is an American metalcore band from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, formed in 2003. The band's lineup of guitarists John Benjamin "JB" Brubaker and Brent Rambler, drummer Matt Greiner, lead vocalist Jake Luhrs and bassist Dustin David ...

Discography

References

External links

Matt Traynor
on

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

Matt Traynor
on Zildjian Cymbals * {{DEFAULTSORT:Traynor, Matt 1987 births Living people American heavy metal drummers Fearless Records artists 21st-century American drummers American male drummers Drummers from New York (state)