History Music / Nevermore

Singer Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard are the only current members of Nevermore, and both are concentrating on the reunion of Sanctuary. Loomis is even busier, juggling a solo career, the progressive metal supergroup Conquering Dystopia, and as of recent, Music/ArchEnemy, while Williams has largely retired from music outside of Ashes of Ares, which tours irregularly. Dane has hinted that a Nevermore reunion is very likely, but it will probably be without Loomis and almost definitely without Williams; Attila Voros, however, will likely be one of the new inductees. As of December 2017, whatever hope remained is gone, as Warrel Dane passed away at the age of 48 as the result of a heart attack.

Singer Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard are the only current members of Nevermore, and both are concentrating on the reunion of Sanctuary. Loomis is even busier, juggling a solo career, the progressive metal supergroup Conquering Dystopia, and as of recent, Music/ArchEnemy, while Williams has largely retired from music outside of Ashes of Ares, which tours irregularly. Dane has hinted that a Nevermore reunion is very likely, but it will probably be without Loomis and almost definitely without Williams; Attila Voros, however, will likely be one of the new inductees.

* TheAlcoholic: Dane and Sheppard became infamous for excessive drinking and it's been all but confirmed as one of the bigger reasons why Loomis and Williams left.

Nevermore are a [[ProgressiveMetal Progressive Metal]] band (with influences from every Metal sub-genre this side of Norway thrown into the mix) formed from the ashes of Power-Metallers Sanctuary in Seattle, 1991. They are noted for the blazing, technical lead guitar playing of Music/JeffLoomis, as well as frontman Warrel Dane's distinctively atonal and cynical singing style. Difficult to pigeonhole, the band tends towards the darker, more instrumentally complex sides of progressive music - though chaotic and heavy enough to compete with the most aggressive of thrash bands, they retain many more progressive aspects such as acoustic segments, classically influenced guitar arrangements and Dane's vocal delivery.

Vocalist Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard founded the band. They were veterans of Sanctuary, more or less a power metal group with thrash influences. Guitarist Jeff Loomis had recently quit a death metal band because he was sick of the [[HarshVocals vocal approach]], and was accompanied by Guitarist Pat O'Brien, who would later quit to join Cannibal Corpse (his favorite band).

The band debuted in 1991. They then became more progressive with sophomore effort ''The Politics of Ecstacy'', but otherwise, things remained the same.

* ''This Godless Endeavour'' (2005)

* EpicRocking: They have a few long songs - ''The Politics of Ecstasy'' and ''This Godless Endeavour'' both have notably extensive title tracks.

* IconicItem: Loomis's signature red Schecter C7 FR (he also owns and occasionally uses a C7 Hellraiser and a C7 Blackjack, but the signature model is what he usually uses for live appearances as of now).

* NewSoundAlbum: ''Dead Heart in a Dead World''. The next album, ''Enemies of Reality'', goes UpToEleven. ''This Godless Endeavour'' [[SerialEscalation does the exact same thing]] to ''Enemies of Reality''.
* PowerMetal: They have been associated with the genre, but it's debatable if they are, and if they are at all, they are far more popular among fans of extreme metal than most power metal bands as well as far heavier.

* TalkToTheFist: Dane was on the receiving end of this from Billy Milano (Stormtroopers of Death, M.O.D.). The actual reason is still up in the air; some accounts allege that Dane was drunk, depressed, and generally having a bad night and that Milano told him to [[JerkAss stop whining before punching him]], while others allege that Dane was [[CantHoldHisLiquor piss drunk and acting like an asshole]], and that Milano had been the target of significant amounts of verbal abuse and finally decided to do something about it. Some facts are consistent, however: Dane was drunk, Milano punched him, the police were called, and Milano was hauled off.
* UncommonTime: Inevitable for a prog metal act. While not as extreme as some, they've pulled off some tricky examples such as the main riff to "Psalm of Lydia".

''Dreaming Neon Black'' took the progressive instrumentalism of [=''TPoE''=] and notched it down a bit, but the lyrics became far more ambitious. The album is a ConceptAlbum, with lyrics about Dane's girlfriend, who got involved and a religious cult and is now missing.

However, the band's signature sound didn't settle until the release of ''Dead Heart in a Dead World'' in 2001, when Loomis busted out the detuned 7-string guitars and increased the pervasiveness of the Black and Death influences in their sound. However, the album was not without it's [[SubduedSection softer moments]], and whilst these moments are generally agreed to fit on the record (and ballad "Believe In Nothing" is even a fan favorite), 2003's ''Enemies of Reality'', the follow-up, is generally agreed to be their heaviest album overall.

Then, the band went for contrast. The result is 2005's ''This Godless Endeavor'', which has soft moments again (The first halves of "Sentient 6", "A Future Uncertain", and the [[AlbumTitleDrop TitleTrack]]), but the heavy parts of the album (everything else) got [[UpToEleven even heavier]]. This album made many Metal Magazines "Top X Albums of the Year" and "Top X Albums of the Decade" lists.

It would've been interesting to see where the band went next: Softer? Heavier? More progressive? [[SerialEscalation Even lower guitar tunings?]] But then Loomis and Drummer Van Williams quit, to the fans' dismay.

* ''The Politics Of Ecstasy'' (1996)

* ''[[NewSoundAlbum Dead Heart In A Dead World]]'' (2000)
* ''Enemies Of Reality'' (2003)

* BalladofX: "Timothy Leary" from self-titled.
* TheBandMinustheFace: If they do continue, Nevermore will not be the same without Van's drumming, or, more importantly, Jeff Loomis' guitar playing. Thus, this trope arguably comes into play.
* ConceptAlbum: ''Dreaming Neon Black'' is this: it's about the supposedly true tale of Dane's ex-girlfriend, who got caught up in a [[ReligionofEvil Relgious Cult]] and was never heard from again.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: This happens to everything from ''Dreaming Neon Black'' backwards if someone listens to anything from [[NewSoundAlbum ''Dead Heart In A Dead World'']] onward first. The first three albums are best described as Progressive-Post-Thrash. Everything after is that, but [[UpToEleven Cranked Up To 11]]. This can also apply toa few tracks on ''Nevermore'', which just sound like really heavy Grunge.
* EpicRocking: They've had a few long songs - ''The Politics Of Ecstasy'' and ''This Godless Endeavour'' both have notably extensive title tracks.

* HarshVocals: Considering the Extreme metal influences on everything in the post-''Dead World''-era, this is suprisingly Averted. Played straight on "Born" from ''This Godless Endeavor''.

* InTheStyleOf: [[OverlyLongGag "The Sound of Silence"]] [[SelfDemonstratingArticle In The Style Of Nevermore!]] [[FlatWhat What]].
* JerkAss: Sheppard and Dane both apparently had their moments of this thanks to a combination of excessive drinking and highly unpleasant personality shifts while drunk.

* NewSoundAlbum: ''Dead Heart In A Dead World''. The next album ''Enemies of Reality'' [[UpToEleven Cranks That One Up To Eleven.]] [[SerialEscalation ''This Godless Endeavor'' does the exact same thing to ''Enemies of Reality''.]]

* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVsCynicism: Warrel's lyrics are almost [[{{Anvilicious}} anviliciously]] cynical, [[SomeAnvilsNeedtoBeDropped which fits the band's generally dark tone.]]
* UncommonTime: Inevitable for a prog metal act. While not as extreme as some, they've pulled off some tricky examples such as the main riff to ''Psalm Of Lydia''.

* TakeThat: Their [[ProtestSong Protest Songs]] are usually [[FramingDevice Framed]] as this towards Government, Religion, and the Advance of Technology.

* UncommonTime: Inevitable for a prog metal act. While not as extreme as some, they've pulled off some tricky examples such as the main riff to ''Psalm Of Lydia''.

''Dreaming Neon Black'' took the progressive instrumentalism of [=''TPoE''=] and notched it down a bit, but the lyrics became far more ambitious. The album is a ConceptAlbum, with lyrics about Dane's girlfriend, who got involved and a religious cult and is now LostForever.

Vocalist Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard founded the band. They were veterans of Sanctuary, more or less a power metal group with thrash influences. Guitarist Jeff Loomis had recently quit a death metal band because he was sick of the [[HarshVocals vocal approach]], and was accompanied by Guitarist [[HeyItsThatGuy Pat O'Brien]], who would later quit to join Cannibal Corpse (his favorite band).

!Tropes associated with {{Nevermore}}:

Nevermore are a [[ProgressiveMetal Progressive Metal]] band (with influences from every Metal sub-genre this side of Norway thrown into the mix) formed from the ashes of Power-Metallers Sanctuary in Seattle, 1991. They are noted for the blazing, technical lead guitar playing of Jeff Loomis, as well as frontman Warrel Dane's distinctively atonal and cynical singing style. Difficult to pigeonhole, the band tends towards the darker, more instrumentally complex sides of progressive music - though chaotic and heavy enough to compete with the most aggressive of thrash bands, they retain many more progressive aspects such as acoustic segments, classically influenced guitar arrangements and Dane's vocal delivery.

Singer Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard are the only current members of Nevermore, and both are concentrating on the reunion of Sanctuary. Loomis is even busier, juggling a solo career, the progressive metal supergroup Conquering Dystopia, and as of recent, Music/ArchEnemy, while Williams has largely retired from music outside of Ashes of Ares, which tours irregularly. Judging by how Dane and Sheppard were both billed as "ex-Nevermore" in a recent press release announcing Nick Cordle's induction into Sanctuary, it's likely that Nevermore is done for good unless a reunion happens somewhere down the line.

* TheBandMinustheFace: If they do continue, Nevermore will not be the same without Van's drumming, or, more importantly, Jeff Loomis' guitar playing. Thus, this trope arguably comes into play.

Singer Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard are the only current members of Nevermore, and both are concentrating on the reunion of Sanctuary. Loomis, meanwhile, has been having a decent degree of success with his solo career, while Williams has taken to devoting additional resources to Pure Sweet Hell, a side project that he started while in Nevermore. As for Nevermore itself, the future is uncertain. Dane has said that he wouldn't rule out a reunion, but the likelihood of it happening any time soon (if ever) does not seem awfully high.

* FourManBand: This, of course, is before half the band left:
** TheLeader: Dane
** TheLancer: Sheppard
** TheBigGuy: Williams
** TheSmartGuy: Loomis

* TheAlcoholic: Dane and Sheppard became infamous for excessive drinking and it's been all but confirmed as the reason why Loomis and Williams left.

* GenreBusting: A weird case in that while their sound isn't exactly oblique, they still don't really fit into any one genre.

* TalkToTheFist: Dane was on the receiving end of this from Billy Milano (Stormtroopers of Death, M.O.D.). The actual reason is still up in the air; some accounts allege that Dane was drunk, depressed, and generally having a bad night and that Milano told him to [[JerkAss stop whining before punching him]], while others allege that Dane was [[CantHoldHisLiquor piss drunk and acting like an asshole]], and Milano had had enough and decided to hit him. Some facts are consistent, however: Dane was drunk, Milano punched him, the police were called, and Milano was hauled off.

* TalkToTheFist: Dane was on the receiving end of this from Billy Milano (Stormtroopers of Death, M.O.D.). The actual reason is still up in the air; some accounts allege that Dane was having a bad night and that Milano told him to [[JerkAss stop whining before punching him]], while others allege that Dane was [[CantHoldHisLiquor piss drunk and acting like an asshole]], and Milano had had enough and decided to hit him. Some facts are consistent, however: Dane was drunk, Milano punched him, the police were called, and Milano was hauled off.

* TheAlcoholic: Dane and Sheppard became infamous over the years for their excessive drinking and the obnoxious, highly unpleasant behavior that followed.

* ButtMonkey: Van was apparently this to Dane and Sheppard, which is suspected to be the reason why he left. He's still good friends with Loomis, however, which makes it clear that Loomis was not among those who gave him hell.

* JerkAss: Sheppard has a reputation for being a drunken asshole, which is strongly hinted to be the reason why Jeff and Van left. Dane also had problems with this thanks to his heavy drinking and tendency to act like a douchebag when drunk, but he got somewhat better.

* JerkassWoobie: Dane. He may have had a reputation for being a drunken dickhead, but the man had an engagement horribly truncated by way of his fiancee getting involved with a cult and disappearing (and now being presumed dead). There's a good amount of evidence to suggest that he never really recovered from it.

* EpicRocking: They've had a few long songs - ''The Politics Of Ecstasy'' and ''This Godless Endeavour'' both have notably extensive title tracks.

* BalladofX: "Timothy Leary" from ''The Politics of Ecstacy'' (which is the title of a [[DepartmentofRedundancyDepartment Timoth Leary book.]] The album also has a title track!

* JerkAss: Sheppard has a reputation for being a drunken asshole, which is strongly hinted to be the reason why Jeff and Van left.

Singer Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard are the only current members of Nevermore, and both are concentrating on the reunion of Sanctuary. The future of Nevermore is uncertain.

Singer Warrel Dane and bassist Jim Sheppard are the only current members of Nevermore.

Then, the band went for contrast. The result is 2005's ''This Godless Endeavor'', which has soft moments again (The first halves of "Sentient 6", "A Future Uncertain", and the [[AlbumTitleDrop TitleTrack]]), but the heavy parts of the album (everything else) got [[BeyondtheImpossible even heavier]]. This album made many Metal Magazines "Top X Albums of the Year" and "Top X Albums of the Decade" lists.

It would've been interesting to see where the band went next: Softer? Heavier? More progressive? [[BeyondtheImpossible Even lower guitar tunings?]] But then Loomis and Drummer Van Williams quit, to the fans' dismay.

* BalladofX: "Timothy Leary" from ''The Politics of Ecstacy'' (which is the title of a [[DepartmentofRedundancyDepartment Timoth Leary book.]] [[BeyondtheImpossible The album also has a title track!]]

* NewSoundAlbum: ''Dead Heart In A Dead World''. The next album ''Enemies of Reality'' [[UpToEleven Cranks That One Up To Eleven.]] [[BeyondtheImpossible ''This Godless Endeavor'' does the exact same thing to ''Enemies of Reality''.]]

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[BeyondtheImpossible Almost Everyone]]. Proof?
** [[HeterosexualLifePartners Warrel Dane and Jim Sheppard]]. They're more known for Nevermore now, but in the 90's this applied as they came from Power-Metallers Sanctuary.
** Pat O'Brien, who left to join Cannibal Corpse.
** Chris Broderick, played live with the band after Steve Smyth left, formerly of Jag Panzer, and eventually joined [[AndTheFandomRejoiced Megadeth]].
** James MacDonough played live with Megadeth before playing live with them when Jim Sheppard got injured.
** Tim Calvert, formerly of Forbidden.
** James Murphy gets a guest solo on "The Holocaust Of Thought".
** This is now bound to happen to Jeff Loomis and Van Williams, whatever they decide to do next.
* HitlessHitAlbum: [[InvertedTrope Inverted]]. Whilst ''Dead World'' WAS a critical success, and well-received by fans, it's big single was supposed to be [[SubduedSection "Believe In Nothing"]]. Supposed to be.

* WordSaladLyrics: Warrel Dane's attempts to put together cryptic but meaningful lyrics [[YourMileageMayVary fails sometimes]].