WARREL DANE: Documentary Released Featuring Footage From Recording Of Final Album ‘Shadow Work’
October 22nd, 2018
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The late Warrel Dane, formerly of Sanctuary and Nevermore, posthumously issues second solo full-length studio album Shadow Work on October 26th, 2018 through Century Media Records.
In 2014, Warrel had teamed up with Brazilian musicians Johnny Moraes (guitars), Thiago Oliveira (guitar), Fabio Carito (bass) and Marcus Dotta (drums) as his touring band and ultimately this collaboration led to plans for a new studio album.
Recordings for Shadow Work began in autumn 2017 at Orra Meu Studio, São Paulo, Brazil. Travis Smith commenced to create the artwork, following a concept and ideas previously discussed with Warrel.
On December 13th, 2017, Warrel Dane died of a heart attack at the age of 56, which placed the status of Shadow Work in limbo for a while. After reviewing the material that could actually be completed using vocals from various studio and pre-production sessions with Warrel, the decision was made to release his final recordings as Shadow Work.
Jens Prüter, head of A&R, and Stefan Franke, product manager of Century Media Records, commented: “We are looking forward to release these 40 minutes of music in October. We and many other workmates at Century Media Records have known Warrel for years, have been through thick and thin, and are fans of his art just like the many, many people supporting him since the 80s. The dedication his band, Travis Smith and our team invested in completing Shadow Work was astonishing and the entire record carries an eerie atmosphere of Warrel already feeling that this might be his last work. It is heartbreaking that he was right in the end. Rest in peace, friend.”
Shadow Work will be made available as as special edition CD mediabook offering a 44-page booklet, as gatefold LP plus CD and 12-page LP booklet and on all digital platforms. Each song is illustrated by Travis Smith’s art, created as his personal tribute to Warrel and further explained in his personal liner notes. Furthermore, photos, lyrics and moving statements from the musicians are included as well.
Travis Smith stated: “Warrel told me he wanted the cover for this one to be a personification of one of its songs, affectionately titled ‘Sweet Madame Satan, And Why.’ I dug up the skeleton of an old idea we’d talked about once before, and with a few details and alterations of his own, it was exactly what he had envisioned. He ‘loved it,’ approved it, and then gave me an outline for what he wanted to do for the back cover to complement it as a sort of prologue.
“I finished the additional artwork taking inspiration from old conversations, titles, absorbing passages from his notebooks, and some lyrics that he’d passed along earlier…
“Thank you for everything these past 20 years… It was an honour. It will be missed. You are missed. I know we did you proud.”
Thiago, Johnny, Fabio and Marcus added: “To give birth to a work like this, is for us a tribute to someone that was like family and honour his memory by sharing some of the savage poetry that he created and was ultimately so proud of.
“Warrel came into our lives like a storm, took us into a very intense ride, we roamed endless roads into the unknown, into places that we never dreamed of both inside and outside our minds, and left. He was someone who lived with us, dreamed with us and enjoyed our hospitality, and in return gave us so much back. Some of us acted like his mother, some of us saw him as a father figure, some of us took care of him in some of his darkest moments. Yet he was a friend, and somehow, will be always there.
“To record such an album, and to work alongside an artist as gifted as Warrel, is somehow like being enthralled by his brightest light, and, at the same time being engulfed by his darkest shadow. There is so much to say, and yet nothing to say. In the meantime, we are proud to share this portrait of the storm we went through in form of art. Light, peace and love.”
While recording the album, photographer Renan Facciolo visited the group in the studio to capture footage documenting the creation of Shadow Work. Directed by Fabio Carito, the clip can be viewed below.
The band explained: “This documentary was shot mostly during Warrel’s final days, in late 2017. Although he was frail and his body was showing signs that it would eventually fade, at that time, he was still putting his heart and soul in every part of Shadow Work. We hope this stays as a testament to his artistic commitment and good will, when it came to producing an album in the studio.”
Ultimately, his band members completed the documentary in 2018 to offer an insight into the promising beginning and tragic end of Shadow Work. Jens Prueter and Stefan Franke added: “It is nearly impossible to watch this documentary with probably the last footage recorded of Warrel without getting emotional since, at some point in our lives, we and his fans were witnesses to his grandeur and failure, his strength and his frailty. The latter is obviously present in this moving video and we are grateful Warrel’s family agreed on its public release. There is no glamour, no stardom in this video – it just depicts the shadow of a man passionately and endearingly being busy with Shadow Work, and a band being torn apart between ambition and tragedy. So, while we are glad to share it with you all, it is almost a relief to not have to watch it again.”
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The track listing is as follows;
01. ‘Ethereal Blessing’
02. ‘Madame Satan’
03. ‘Disconnection System’
04. ‘As Fast As The Others’
05. ‘Shadow Work’
06. ‘The Hanging Garden’ (The Cure cover)
07. ‘Rain’
08. ‘Mother Is The Word For God’
Shadow Work’s recording line-up was as follows;
Warrel Dane (vocals)
Johnny Moraes (guitar)
Thiago Oliveira (guitar)
Fabio Carito (bass)
Marcus Dotta (drums)
The tracks ‘As Fast As The Others’ and ‘Disconnection System’ can be streamed below.
Debut solo studio record Praises To The War Machine was released in April 2008 via Century Media Records.
