Video Surfaces of Warrel Dane Recording Vocals in 2016

Nevermore and Sanctuary vocalist Warrel Dane left this world in December of 2017 at the age of just 56. At the time of his death, Dane was working on a new solo album with his backing band. The band would go on to finish up that record after Warrel’s death using his last known performances, and it was released as Shadow Work on October 26, 2018. You can listen to Shadow Work on Spotify.

An unexpected gem has now emerged from Warrel’s recent past. The Turkish band Collector enlisted Dane to sing on their track “End This Life” in 2016 (along with ex-Nevermore guitarist Chris Broderick), and the band has started releasing some footage they shot of Warrel laying down vocals in the studio. Part one, released over the weekend, features half an hour of Warrel doing what vocalists do — multiple vocal takes, layering parts on top of one another, goofing around in the booth, etc. — which would be mostly unremarkable if not for the fact it’s one of the last known videos of Warrel and watching these kinds of clips posthumously evokes all sorts of eerie feelings. You can check it out below, with part two promised soon, and the resulting final version of “End This Life” underneath it.

Collector commented:

“As promised here is the first part of Warrel recording ‘End This Life.’ An exclusive behind the scenes look into the making of our debut song. This was an amazing and, as you will notice from our faces and voices, a very exciting experience for all of us. He was a legend and it was amazing to see him in action. Warrel was a mentor and a brother to us. We will continue to build on his teaching and only be better with every passing day. We will continue to cherish the amazing memories we made together…”

Warrel’s last known performance came live on Brazilian TV a couple of weeks before he died; you can watch that here. R.I.P.