NEVERMORE/SANCTUARY singer Warrel Dane spoke with Jay Nanda Thesilvertongueonline.com recently about a number of topics. A few excerpts from the chat follow:

The Silver Tongue: Why have you chosen to reform Sanctuary after 20 years, especially with Nevermore doing so well?

Dane: "Well, I said years ago that it would never, ever, ever fuckin' happen, but that was at a time when we weren’t really friendly with each other. But we are now. “Water under the bridge” would be the best way to describe our relationship, and I’ve heard some of the new material Lenny (Rutledge) the guitar player has been working on, and it’s fuckin' killer. So I had to re-evaluate the situation. It’s kinda weird, because Nevermore has been doing so well."

The Silver Tongue: So was the grunge factor of the early ’90s the reason for Sanctuary’s casualty after Refuge Denied and Into The Mirror Black, or was there something more to it?

Dane: "You know, I’m pretty sure that did affect the break-up in some way. The songwriting got a little weird toward the end, and at that time, there was a lot of pressure, especially from record company people saying, 'Well, I expected something a little grungier.' Ugh! 'We’re not a grunge band!' When you have a major label telling you that, it just goes to show that they’re so fuckin' clueless."

The Silver Tongue: What did you guys learn early in your career from (MEGADETH's) Dave Mustaine as he produced the first Sanctuary record?

Dane: "Oh boy, that whole period is kind of a drunken blur (laughs). I think every band gets a break somewhere, and to make it in the music business, you get your foot in the door. We were fuckin' lucky that Mustaine paid attention to us. Had it not been for him, I probably would not be talking to you right now, so I have to give much respect to him for that. We were at a KING DIAMOND/Megadeth show, and Lenny gave somebody a demo, and he heard it, and we were told he said, 'I’d like to produce you guys.' And we were like, 'Yeah, right.' But he must’ve been serious, because we got the call, and the rest is just crazy history."

The Silver Tongue: Will Sanctuary be working on another album, or is the cruise a one-off reunion thing? Will every original member be part of it?

Dane: "We’re gonna do another record, but I’m not sure when we’re going to have time because the touring cycle for Nevermore just started, and it’s going to get crazy. (Guitarist) Sean (Blosl) didn’t really want to do it basically, so Jeff (Loomis), who was actually a member of Sanctuary at the end, is going to do it live. I’m not sure he’ll be recording, though. That band was about Lenny, and Nevermore was more about Jeff, so we try to keep both of those separate.

Read the entire interview here.