I still have a split 12" vinyl.. one side Sanctuary, one side Fifth Angel, both with tracks and interviews with the band. I should find a way to rip that.
Better Know A Band: Sanctuary
- Thread starter General Zod
- Start date
J. Golden
Heaven and Hell Records
Ok then I'll clear it up a little; I refer to my circles, people at shows and the metal world before it was at a stroke of a key and click of a mouse. And I have never heard shouts at a Nevermore show for 'Future Tense' but plenty of begging for 'Battle Angels'. Either way they are both great albums. And Nevermore was a pretty good extension for a while. Then the albums are started to sound the same around the past few.
J. Golden
Heaven and Hell Records
Well I made my history with the band clear. But I tell you what, on Saturday there was a lot of people asking about for Sanctuary CDs and telling me they had never heard them. I always get a kick out of the guys a decade older then me who have no idea who these classic bands are, and more often than not that is the case. At least they're trying to catch up now two decades later.
J. Golden
Heaven and Hell Records
I hollow you and understand your reasoning. But let's not down play those albums or the band it was not exactly hidden. There weere U.S. yours, video on Headbangers Ball, and magazines had plenty of ads and coverage.
I guess when I would think of a "hidden gem" it would be a bit deeper undercover. Sanctuary alway seemed up at the surface but obviously not up with 'Operation' and such.
VenomGA
At War With Stan
- Jul 28, 2005
- 4,221
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I DID! In fact, I saw Sanctuary when they opened for the Mighty Megadeth and Warlock in Atlanta for their Refuge Denied album. Talk about a hell of a show!!
notworthynotworthy
dcowboys311
Member
Eh I don't really agree with this at all. There are plenty of bands who share members yet they both have their own distinct sounds. I mean would you call Ghoul and Impaled the same band? It's almost the exact same lineup, yet it's pretty easy to tell the two apart just by listening. Plus, Loomis doesn't really count because he was in the band for what, a year as a live guitarist? Also, if I remember correctly, Rutledge wrote most of Sanctuary's music whereas Loomis does most of Nevermore's, so it's different songwriters. Stylistically, Refuge Denied doesn't really have anything in common at all with any Nevermore release.
I never had the chance to see Sanctuary since Refuge Denied came out before I was born and Into the Mirror Black came out when I was in diapers, but I picked up Refuge Denied because I knew the Nevermore connection a few years back when Tower Records was having their closing sale. I was hooked as soon as Warrel's vocals came in during Battle Angels. Definitely one of my favorite heavy metal bands, and I haven't been this excited to see any particular band at ProgPower in a long time.
skyrefuge
Member
Just a fact-check here: I believe Glenn has made a couple mentions of them potentially doing 2 other US shows. Is this exclusivity announcement newer than that info, or maybe dependent on the "2011" part or something?
Nice bit of writing here! (and accurate, IMO)
heh...this is like if you ran a 9.9 second 100 meters, and as everyone gathered around to congratulate you on your incredible time, Usain Bolt strolled by and said "Fast? that's not 'fast'...I guess when I would think 'fast', I think more like 9.7 seconds or less". You're the king of the underground, so if you're talking about what's "underground" with normal people, you should try looking from a more global perspective, not just your own perspective!
Zod's post is for potential ProgPower attendees who are unfamiliar with Sanctuary. That's an entirely different group of people than those who got 'Refuge Denied' when it was released, so from my perspective, his take seems much more useful for his target audience. I think someone in that target audience *is* much more likely to prefer ItMB over RD (heck, just from the production alone!)
For more unbiased, global perspective, some last.fm stats:
Sanctuary listens: 273,325 plays (24,131 listeners)
Nevermore listens: 7,002,336 plays (190,330 listeners)
Maybe there was a big fanbase who knew and loved Sanctuary back in the day, but by now they're apparently old and dead, or have stopped caring.
Also, with the exceptions of "Battle Angels" (#1), "White Rabbit" (#5), and "Die For My Sins" (#6), the rest of the top 10 most-listened-to is filled with ItMB songs.
Neil
nomisofsiman
Member
Maybe back then they were a lot more popular. I just consider a classic something that most metalheads tout as being one of the greatest discs and also a disc that the newer generation will dig into once they start digging into metal. I know for a while at least one of those discs were really hard to find at a decent price. I paid for one of them for like 25 bucks years back, because it was out of print but I had to have it.
So, I would consider it a hidden gem in that regard.
J. Golden
Heaven and Hell Records
hey kiss my ass.
Zod I was not trying to play down anything said or having any pissing contest with you and I think you probably figure that. But leave it to some jackass to try and make it appear that way.
And by the way skyrefuge I am pretty underground if you ever want to talk metal sometime then we certainly can.
J. Golden
Heaven and Hell Records
I would agree in that regard these albums certainly aren't 'Machine Head' or something like that. But they were usually common albums over most of the metal guys I knew.
They did seem to start fetching a few bucks there for a while but ya know I have never know Sanctuary CDs to be that difficult to find, it just took a bit of looking. After they were supposedly out of print I could still wander into a record store and find one new occasionally. Now granted this has not been for a couple of years now.
Claus / Intromental
20 years of uniting the powers of metal
Ahhh yeah - the comments from some people here is EXACTLY why I asked how many actually knew of the band back when ... it seems like most people who post here don't realize that the band actually sold way more than most of the prog/power bands we like today do in the current scene.
Look at it this way:
- the band was on EPIC / SONY in the end of the 80's. You weren't on that label unless you were selling a decent amount of copies.
- the release of "ItMB" was promoted heavily in all metal magazines in Europe. Big full page ads AND interviews all over.
- the band had just toured with Megadeth and Testament all over Europe - that was pretty darn big back then.
- Headbangers Ball used to play their video all the time (at least in Europe).
Ignorance is bliss, and admitting that "okay, I don't really know anything and I'm talking out my ass because I wasn't around back then" is perfectly fine. But the moment you say "I don't know them, so they must have been underground" is ridiculous. Get real.
c.
Look at it this way:
- the band was on EPIC / SONY in the end of the 80's. You weren't on that label unless you were selling a decent amount of copies.
- the release of "ItMB" was promoted heavily in all metal magazines in Europe. Big full page ads AND interviews all over.
- the band had just toured with Megadeth and Testament all over Europe - that was pretty darn big back then.
- Headbangers Ball used to play their video all the time (at least in Europe).
Ignorance is bliss, and admitting that "okay, I don't really know anything and I'm talking out my ass because I wasn't around back then" is perfectly fine. But the moment you say "I don't know them, so they must have been underground" is ridiculous. Get real.
c.
Awesome. I can always count on you for raw data.
I completely understood where you were coming from, as I suspect Neil did. I believe his comment was merely intended as a humorous analogy.
Metalmilitia2000
UM's Resident Asshole
I've always preferred Into The Mirror Black to Refuge Denied too. I LOVE both albums, but I agree with the comments here, there was just something a little different about ItMB.
J. Golden
Heaven and Hell Records
I did not even think to mention they were on a major. But good to see I'm not the only one who remembers it that way. Here they toured with Megadeth and Warlock, and another set of shows with Fates Warning. And looking back through the countless 80s magazines I have they are full of Sanctuary ads and interviews etc.
zekeyou
Member
I remember when the first album came out my friends and I were surprised that they were on a major-- we hadn't heard of them until the cassette was in my hands.
I've always preferred the debut to Mirror, but regardless-- I hope next year's show is amazing.
I've always preferred the debut to Mirror, but regardless-- I hope next year's show is amazing.
BenMech
student of the d'eh
I only learned and learned to love Sanctuary (though I HATED and still do those Abusive unfortunate falsetto shrieks Warrel was forced to make). when I was getting into metal and Nevermore post- Politricks of Ecstacy. They were VERY easy to find on Amazon and the other online markets of the late 90s. I think I might have seen them in one or two record shoppes in Florida when I lived there, the smae places I discovered the first 3 Opeth albums and some nuggets of joy. Man, the 90s were the days to be under, weren't they?
KYF_Cincinnati
The Metal Professor
I understand and agree with this statement.
I understand everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I not saying anyone is right or wrong, but I'm just saying I couldn't DISAGREE more with this statement. I can only wish this statement was true.
Keep in mind I purchased REFUSED DENIED in 1988 when no one else, (in my little area of the world), knew who the hell they were. That release blew me away! The outrageousness of the album & the vocals left an Indelible impression on me.
IMO, NEVERMORE was completely a 180 from SANCTUARY. In NEVERMORE the vocals sounded nothing like SANCTUARY style vocals. The two people that were most responsible for the SANCTUARY "sound", (guitarist Lenny Rutledge & Sean Blosl), were no longer in the band and NEVERMORE only had one guitarist because the entire concept & style had changed.
I remember it as clearly as if it were yesterday. I bought the first NEVERMORE CD in '95 and put it in my CD player and was horrified by what I heard. It sounded nothing like SANCTUARY and I knew it was the end of REFUSE DENIED style of youthful, unbridled HEAVY METAL. I remember at the the time, I hated WARREL for changing his style... and then... in '96 "The Politics of Ecstasy" came out and it was even worse... it was a nightmare.
I was pissed...
Metalmilitia2000
UM's Resident Asshole
I understand and agree with this statement.
I understand everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I not saying anyone is right or wrong, but I'm just saying I couldn't DISAGREE more with this statement. I can only wish this statement was true.
IMO, NEVERMORE was completely a 180 from SANCTUARY. In NEVERMORE the vocals sounded nothing like SANCTUARY style vocals. The two people that were most responsible for the SANCTUARY "sound", (guitarist Lenny Rutledge & Sean Blosl), were no longer in the band and NEVERMORE only had one guitarist because the entire concept & style had changed.
I remember it as clearly as if it were yesterday. I bought the first NEVERMORE CD in '95 and put it in my CD player and was horrified by what I heard. It sounded nothing like SANCTUARY and I knew it was the end of REFUSE DENIED style of youthful, unbridled HEAVY METAL. I remember at the the time, I hated WARREL for changing his style... and then... in '96 "The Politics of Ecstasy" came out and it was even worse... it was a nightmare.
I love the hell out of sanctuary, but politics is one of the greatest metal albums ever produced, PERIOD.
skyrefuge
Member
Were some posts deleted from this thread? I read back through it and can't find anyone who said anything remotely close to this. As far as I can tell, everyone posting in the thread is a longtime Sanctuary fan. So who are you referring to?
Neil
