I have loved music for as long as I can remember- all kinds, all forms. The first instrument that I ever experimented with was the saxophone, which I made my own from grade school past high school playing a variety of jazz, marching, classical, and symphonic pieces. However, not long after I began playing the sax, and following in my father's footsteps, my true passion was unleashed in the form of the drums. After weeks of playing a cardboard box with novelty baseball bats, I acquired my first set at the age of 12 (a monstrous Slingerland kit).

From the time I could keep a beat, I was playing with friends, musicians, and anybody that would give me the time of day. In other words, I developed a philosophy of playing that remains with me today; I want to be playing as much as I can. A group known only as CUD, which was comprised of some good musicians, and good friends took the middle school scene by storm and eventually evolved into the group Blind Fate. In 2002, Blind Fate wrote and recorded their first and only full - length album. That album leads us to Taufkirchen Vils (a town in Bavaria, Germany) upon the request of their mayor. It marked a milestone in my musical career, as well as the end of Blind Fate.

After high school, I enrolled at Northern Illinois University and began the next stage in my musical history. In a way, it was a letting go of the past and embracing the future. During my college experience, I participated in a number of bands that all proved to be incredible learning experiences, and were crucial for shaping my playing, my artistry, and my character. Lying In Ashes, a Chicago based progressive female-fronted metal group, and Sacred Dawn, a progressive metal outfit, name a couple of those bands in which I am still a part of.

The next chapter in my musical career begins with but a single conversation with none other than the Shred Demon himself, David Shankle. He and I have always had a bit of an unorthodox relationship at best. In fact, my Father David Sabathne (Dad Sabbath) was one of the first drummers that Shankle had played with in their youth. As I grew older and became more enthralled with the drums, my dad took me out and bought “The Triumph of Steel” record and showed me not only some impressive drumming, but that his friend, and fellow musician, had created this. After that, there were only a handful of instances where I was even in the presence of David, one of which was at the 2003 West Chicago Railroad Days Festival. That night I was able to see with my very own eyes what David was all about.

It wasn’t until a few years later that I would meet with David again, this time in an entirely different setting. I had heard rumors that he was putting together a new band and was looking for a drummer. With the help of some good friends (you know who you are), and armed with a disc I had recorded months before, I was offered the opportunity to try out for the David Shankle Group. I was given four songs to learn, and after a few weeks in the spring of 2006, I entered Farview Studio for my audition. Things went pretty well and I got the gig as full-time DSG Drummer seeing that I am writing this and you’re reading it. The rest of the summer I spent learning the material for the record, and about every two weeks I would be recording batches of 3 or 4 songs. It was an amazing experience, one that will not be forgotten. It is now 2007, and anticipation grows as the second full-length DSG record, Hellborn, will be released on Magic Circle Records/SPV