On October 9th, Arch Enemy performed in Toronto at Rebel. Metal Master Kingdom caught up with guitarist Jeff Loomis to discuss the band's curent status and plans for the future, as well as his Nevermore career.

On the possibility of resurrecting Nevermore without vocalist Warrel Dane:

"It's one of those things where I think Nevermore had such a special sound and it was simply because of all the musicians that were in that at the time. Van (Williams / drums), me, Warrel, Jim (Sheppard / bass). We had numerous different guitarists in the band throughout the years. We had Chris Broderick, we had Tim Calvert, who sadly passed away. A lot of good players. Steve Smyth, Curran Murphy. All these guys were a part of Nevermore in the past. Honestly, in my vision, it's important that you move on in your life. I really would like to remember the spirit and the attitude that we had as a band with the music and just move on from there, because without Warrel, it's just not feasible, in my mind. He is sadly missed. He was one of my best friends. Things like that happen and it's a very sad situation. It really was, but we have the music to remember it all by."

On December 13th, 2017, Warrel Dane passed away in São Paulo, Brazil while recording the follow-up to 2008’s Praises To The War Machine. In essence, a tribute release, Shadow Work contains over 40 minutes of music with Warrel’s voice tracked during pre-production, demo and recording sessions. The album’s booklet was completed with Travis Smith providing artwork based upon concepts he had previously discussed with Warrel, thorough reconstructions of all lyrics from Warrel’s notebook, personal testimonies by his Brazilian band, and very moving photos.

While recording the album, photographer Renan Facciolo visited the group in the studio to capture footage documenting the creation of Shadow Work as the band further explains: "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 you an insight into the promising beginning and tragic end of Shadow Work.

Jens Prueter (Head of A&R, Europe) and Stefan Franke (Product Manager) add: “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.”

Watch the documentary below:

Shadow Work is out today 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. An unboxing video can be found below.

Shadow Work tracklisting:

"Ethereal Blessing"
"Madame Satan"
"Disconnection System"
"As Fast As The Others"
"Shadow Work"
"The Hanging Garden" (The Cure cover)
"Rain"
"Mother Is The Word For God"

Unboxing:

"As Fast As The Others":

“Disconnection System”: