SANCTUARY – Will The Sun Set?

In my mind it’s a modern classic, one that seemingly gets better with every listen but holy shit what a gamble it was!

I just finished listening to Sanctuary’s The Year The Sun Died for the umpteenth time.

In my mind it’s a modern classic, one that seemingly gets better with every listen but holy shit what a gamble it was!

Don’t agree with me? Just think about it, Warrel Dane leaves the successful progressive metal act Nevermore, effectively ending that band (although he says the dissolution was amicable). He re-forms his old group Sanctuary, a moniker that hasn’t sniffed the circuit since 1992. Then to top it all off the band’s first effort in 20+ years is a concept album. Are you fucking crazy? But you know what? It worked. Holy hell did it work.

Sanctuary was a heavy metal band from Seattle, Washington formed back in 1985. They were a pet discovery of Megadeth guitarist Dave Mustaine, who helped get the band signed to CBS/Epic Records, produced their first album, and took them out on tour.

I’ve been a fan of Sanctuary since I saw them on this tour. They opened for Warlock and Megadeth supporting Refuge Denied. Although a huge fan of death metal in the early ‘90s, I still got a copy of Into The Mirror Black the first week it came out. The vocals of Dane were the driving force. Little did I know, Sanctuary was being pressured by its recording label to change its musical style by switching from metal to grunge. This was largely due to the mainstream success of bands such as Nirvana and Pearl Jam, who ironically, were also from Seattle. Two members of Sanctuary, Warrell Dane (vocals) and Jim Sheppard (bass) did not agree with this direction. They left the band and proceeded to create a new project called Nevermore. Dane fronted Nevermore from 1991 to 2011. They released 7 full length albums.

The ‘80s featured some of the most prolific vocalists of heavy metal and I think Warrel Dane belongs in that group. He was trained for five years as an opera singer and utilized a very broad vocal range. He had a recognizable voice with a hypnotic delivery that kept you coming back.

These vocal nuances are easily recognizable within both bands. A trademark style that comes off like a cleric reading from the gospel. A religiously authoritative feel that borders on maniacal. No where is this more evident than on Sanctuary’s third and final studio album, The Year The Sun Died. 

In my mind, this is a vocal masterpiece on par with Queensryche’s Operation Mindcrime (another Seattle band), it’s just that good. The bleak subject matter truly enhances Dane’s performance offering him a chance to hit the high notes you’d only expect from a Sanctuary record.

Highlight tracks for me are: “Let The Serpent Follow Me”, “I Am Low”, “One Final Day (Sworn to Believe)”, “Question Existence Fading”, “The Dying Age”, “Ad Vitam Aeternam” and “The Year The Sun Died”.

As you are probably aware, Warrel Dane (Warrel George Baker) tragically passed away from a heart attack back in 2017. He was only 56 years old.

Sanctuary has apparently moved on citing Joseph Michael (ex-White Wizzard) as vocalist. I’ve heard Michael’s vocals via some live recordings on YouTube and I’ll readily admit he can definitely hit Dane’s Refuge Denied notes. I’m excited to hear this rendition of the band live.

Nevermore appears to be split-up permanently following the death of Dane and former guitarist Tim Calvert  (Forbidden) who died in 2018 from Lou Gehrig’s disease  (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) He was 52 years old.

On a final note, I wanted to mention that about a month after Dane’s passing, a Brazilian movie director named Daney Carvalho released a short film called O Ano em que o Sol Morreu (The Year The Sun Died), on YouTube. The film was originally released in 2016 as part of the CineJardim festival in Brazil but Carvalho made it available to the public after Dane’s death. Warrel was given a private screening of the film after it was finished and supposedly found it was ‘great’ and ‘terrifying’.

As the date of Warrel Dane’s passing draws near once again, I urge you to give The Year The Sun Died another listen. Relive beauty through this tragically epic vision. \m/

Sanctuary (2014):

• Warrel Dane – Vocals
• Lenny Rutledge – Guitars
• Brad Hull – Guitars
• Jim Sheppard – Bass
• Dave Budbill – Drums

Nevermore (2005):

• Warrel Dane – Vocals
• Jeff Loomis – Guitars
• Steve Smyth – Guitars
• Jim Sheppard – Bass
• Van Williams – Drums