SynysterZouk Hunter: July 2010

Early life

Brian attended Mayfair High School in Lakewood, California and also Fountain Valley High School in Fountain Valley, California.
He studied at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood as part of the GIT program, studying jazz guitar. After six or so months of being there, he got a phone call from The Rev (and the rest of the previous line up of Avenged Sevenfold barre Johnny Christ) asking him if he wanted to join the band as lead guitarist. Brian joined up with them rather than continuing his education and becoming a studio musician. Up until that time he was primarily self taught by watching music videos and reading books. His father, Brian Haner Sr, is a songwriter and guitar player, having played with Frank Zappa and currently touring with ventriloquist/comedian Jeff Dunham under the stage name "Guitar Guy".

[edit] Avenged Sevenfold

Brian joined Avenged Sevenfold when he was 18 at the end of 1999, right before the recording of the band's first album, Sounding the Seventh Trumpet. He was featured on their EP, "Warmness on the Soul", and on the reissue of their first album. He has since been the lead guitarist of Avenged Sevenfold.
In the Avenged Sevenfold DVD All Excess, to emphasize the seemingly random placing of names, Brian stated that his name was thought of on a drunken drive through the park with The Rev. He has won numerous awards, including the "Young Shredder" award of the year in the Metal Hammer awards in 2006 and the "Guitarist of the Year" Award for Total Guitar Magazine in 2006.

[edit] Pinkly Smooth

Brian, along with Avenged Sevenfold’s late drummer, The Rev, played in an avant-garde metal band named Pinkly Smooth. Formed in the summer of 2001 in Huntington Beach, California the band also features ex-Ballistico members: Buck Silverspur (under the name El Diablo) on bass and D-Rock (under the name Super Loop) on drums.
Since then, the band has released only one album, Unfortunate Snort on Bucktan Records, which features a crossover sound of mostly punk, ska and avant-garde. Former Avenged Sevenfold bassist Justin Meacham was also featured on keyboards and piano on the album. There was speculation that Pinkly Smooth was going to produce another record, but due to the death of The Rev it is highly unlikely that they will produce any more material.