Warrel Dane, the legendary vocalist of Sanctuary and Nevermore, has passed away at 48, having suffered a heart attack Wednesday (December 13th) in São Paulo, Brazil, according to reports surfacing online, reported Bravewords.com. Dane was in Brazil working on his second solo album, Shadow Work.
According to Brazil’s UOLDane’s guitarist, Johnny Moraes, says he was with Warrel when he began to feel bad around midnight.
“He tonight had a heart attack. It was in the flat where he stayed for the recording of the record, when it happened. I got to do cardiac massage, we called the SAMU (Mobile Emergency Care Service), who arrived very fast, but when they arrived, he had already died,” said Johnny.
According to the guitarist, Dane already suffered from health problems. “His health was already very weak because of diabetes and his problems with alcoholism. He was already facing many health problems.”
The report reveals that Warrel Dane had a long-standing relationship with the Brazilians, not only because of the shows. Since 2014 he has been recruiting Brazilian musicians to do some solo touring. Since Nevermore dissolved, he went on to do two European tours with the Brazilian musicians and then decided to record the new album with them.
Dane released his first solo album, “Praises To The War Machine”, in 2008. Now, he was already in the advanced stages of the recordings for his new album
“The record had almost all the instruments completed and we started to record the voice. Much of it was done,” said Johnny. The musicians are already thinking about how to use the material for a posthumous tribute. “Maybe we can count on guests. But there’s nothing official about it.”
European matrix death metallers DESECRATE have released their new video “Nevermore”, directed by Ildo Brizi. The song is part of the horror movie soundtrack STRIDOR, directed by Ildo Brizi and it’s featuring in the lastest DESECRATE full length, “Orpheus”.
Watch “Nevermore” here:
The band stated: “We are proud of the collaboration established between the band and the world of independent filmmakers of our circuit. Earlier we had the pleasure of shooting the video of the first single “To the Hades and Back” directed by Alberto Bogo. Now the collaboration born with Ildo Brizi for his horror movie STRIDOR allowed to realize this new video and we are enthusiastic!”
Formed in 1995, DESECRATE immediately became protagonist in the Italian underground scene. Their debut full-length album “Moonshiny Tales (The Torment and the Rapture)” came out in 1998 via Mephisto Records. Due to several musical disagreements, the band went to hiatus in 2001, but after nine years, in 2010, DESECRATE raised from the ashes again, releasing a new album, “XIII The Death” in 2012, via Inverse Records. The band’s sound has remained faithful to the European matrix death metal of the 90’s aggressive and scratching sonority, with several arrangement innovations which together with the constant use of the piano, create a very personal sound. Recently the band has toured in Italy, having one of the highlights the final show with Dark Tranquillity. DESECRATE‘s latest effort “Orpheus” came out in January 2015, followed by a promotional tour in Italy.
European matrix death metallers DESECRATE‘s song “Nevermore”, from their latest album “Orpheus”, will be featuring in the movie, entitled “Stridor”. The film will come out in late January/early February 2017.
DESECRATE stated: “We are proud to announce that our piece “Nevermore” was choosen for the ILDO BRIZI and ANDREA LIONETTI’s new movie “STRIDOR”, directed by ILDO BRIZI. DESECRATE is going to be engaged with a small part in this Horror Gothic Slasher movie and from this cooperation will be extracted the new videoclip that will come out at the beginning of 2017, when the promotional activity of the band will continue, they also will be committed in several dates abroad.”
Formed in 1995, DESECRATE immediately became protagonist in the Italian underground scene. Their debut full-length album “Moonshiny Tales (The Torment and the Rapture)” came out in 1998 via Mephisto Records. Due to several musical disagreements, the band went to hiatus in 2001, but after nine years, in 2010, DESECRATE raised from the ashes again, releasing a new album, “XIII The Death” in 2012, via Inverse Records. The band’s sound has remained faithful to the European matrix death metal of the 90’s aggressive and scratching sonority, with several arrangement innovations which together with the constant use of the piano, create a very personal sound. Recently the band has toured in Italy, having one of the highlights the final show with Dark Tranquillity. DESECRATE‘s latest effort “Orpheus” came out in January 2015, followed by a promotional tour in Italy.
New Jersey’s progressive metal masters SYMPHONY X are set to release their brand new, ninth studio album called Underworld on July 24th via Nuclear Blast Records.
SYMPHONY X have revealed a lyric video for the opening track “Nevermore.” Watch it here:
SYMPHONY X have triumphed, creating a panoramic “album rock” experience in an era cursed with diminishing attention spans. “This new one is about the song, really crafting each one on its own, to be as strong as it could be” says Michael Romeo, chief writer in the band, and proprietor of The Dungeon, the tricked-out studio in which the album was crafted, newly equipped with the latest in technology required to execute the band’s famous symphonic and orchestrated touches.
“Musically, Underworld has things reminiscent of the bands previous albums but this one definitely has its own individuality,” stated Michael. “Every element added was in service of the song, so the album flows and becomes a total listening experience from start to finish. Every song is to-the-point and fine-tuned, with us paying a lot of attention to the hooks, voices, riffs, and keeping the interest and the energy high for the entire record. It is heavy and aggressive as fuck when it needs to be, yet soaring and emotional at other times. I think the balance is just right. It had to have all the elements of what we normally would do, just tweaked up a notch and really fine-tuned. You know, industry people have talked about how we’ll never see a complete album again, and that idea. I wanted to defend the reputation of the album, and really try to make Underworld worth listening to as a whole record. It’s what I love about great individual songs, but still an album experience. I don’t want to sound like I’m preaching, but it was a point we wanted to make. It was about the progression of the whole record. It speeds up here and then it dips down here. It all makes sense together, it all works together and it all flows together.”
Although Underworld is not a concept album, Michael stated “like the last couple of records, there’s a theme that carries through, without it being storytelling. We try to find something to key in on and get the juices flowing, and here the goal was to find something a little dark but with emotional content. I started looking at Dante, and Orpheus in the underworld, where he’s going to go to Hades or hell to save this girl. So there’s the theme of going to hell and back for something or someone you care about.” Heavily inspired by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri, Underworld draws on the themes from Divine Comedy most notably the part on Inferno. As homage to Dante’s use of the number 3 and its multiples, the band utilizes this motif in its music either in a lyrical or melodic context. The first song on the album is a three syllable, three note melodic phrase, and in the verses there are three references to three songs on the bands third album, The Divine Wings Of Tragedy. “There’s cool shit like this all over the record,” Romeo reports.
For Underworld’s cover art, SYMPHONY X went with their established illustrator Warren Flanagan (Watchmen, The Incredible Hulk, 2012), who similarly tapped into the “secret knowledge” vibe Michael and band embedded in the record. “Warren went with the masks, similar to the first record,” explains Romeo. “But when I discussed with him Dante and the underworld, he did his own research and designed a little symbol for each of the nine circles of hell. So there are these little geometric symbols that mean something. That’s just what he does. He gets in there and finds these things that maybe no one really besides us knows what it means and yet it has meaning.”
Below is the track List for Underworld:
01. Overture
02. Nevermore
03. Underworld
04. Without You
05. Kiss Of Fire
06. Charon
07. Hell And Back
08. In My Darkest Hour
09. Run With The Devil
10. Swansong
11. Legend
“A corpse wakes up in Hell and finds out he cannot rest and must return to the land of the living to find his soul that still lives on inside the body of a priest and drag it back to Hell. When the moon turns red, you must walk with The Walking Dead.”
Oakland, California based new horror concept heavy metallers FROM HELL is to release their debut album “Ascent From Hell” on Scourge Records on April 8th, 2014. It is as heavy as it is epic!
FROM HELL is the brainchild of George Anderson aka Aleister Sinn, the live narrator of this horror story. This project began in 2007 after his previous band Down Factor with then drummer Ramon Ochoa, Brooks Rocco on guitar and Waylon Ford on bass broke-up. Interested in putting a different type of band together that was not involved in politics, George formed FROM HELL to tell horror stories in the vein of King Diamond. Every song is in some way linked to all of the other songs and when each album starts, they don’t stop until the very end.
After several line-up changes, during the recording of the first album, George enlisted some amazing players to record with him in FROM HELL. For this debut recording, metal icons Paul Bostaph from SLAYER on drums, Steve Smyth from NEVERMORE on lead guitar and Damien Sisson from DEATH ANGEL on bass were recruited to make this record happen.
This recording is diabolically epic, and heavy as Hell! Every song is different from the next covering many genres of metal from thrash metal and black metal to death metal and doom metal. This album is as dynamic as metal can be! Also participating in this recording is Phil Bennett of the iconic rock band Starship, playing piano on the track Dead Reckoning and a 22-piece choir, The Pacific Mozart Ensemble on four other tracks. Establishing new ground, this record has the first recorded blast beat by Paul Bostaph, orchestrated with shredding guitar solos from Steve Smyth and heavy melodic & syncopated bass by Damien Sisson.
Produced by George Anderson and Steve “Snake” Green, guitar player from Skinlab, a Century Media recording artist, this recording is a theatrical 70 minutes long with segues in between each song to give additional detail to this horror story. With songs like The Walking Dead, Soul Crusher, Nun With A Gun and Ascent From Hell, this record will take you on a heavy metal horror ride to Hell!
As one can imagine, with so many legendary players in its ranks, it is hard to schedule live performances. There is a CD Release/Listening Party and signing event scheduled for early April 2014 in Oakland, California. FROM HELL will tour the West Coast and select East Coast markets to support the release of Ascent From Hell in the summer and fall of 2014. FROM HELL’s show will include a few different guest performers and members of the band who play in other bands will perform as their touring and recording schedules allow.
GHOST SHIP OCTAVIUS is a new band featuring guitarists Chris Amott (ex-ARCH ENEMY, ARMAGEDDON) and Matt Wicklund (GOD FORBID, ex-HIMSA) and drummer Van Williams (ex-NEVERMORE, ASHES OF ARES), along with vocalist Adon Fanion, and bassist Sara Claudius.
Formed in the summer of 2012, Ghost Ship Octavius have combined their diverse yet complimentary music styles to create a powerful and dynamic sound highlighted by soaring vocals, virtuosic guitars and hooky but progressive arrangements.
The band is currently creating its debut album and have unveiled a production sample below:
Stay updated on Ghost Ship Octavius via their official Facebook page.
THE ROCK ALCHEMIST – Italian Rock Band from Turin with a strong sonic identity that blends modern rock with progressive, hard, alternative, and pop elements!
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
