Right after an appearance at this year's Headbangers Open Air in Germany, which marked SANCTUARY's European live debut with new vocalist Joseph Michael, the band entered a studio in Germany between select live dates to work on songs for its new album, tentatively titled "Transmutation". SANCTUARY's fourth LP will be released in the second half of 2020 and will include such songs as "We Are The Fallen", "Not Of The Living" and "Blind". The songs are neither a throwback nor a stark departure from the classic SANCTUARY sound. Michael comments:" Lenny [Rutledge, guitar] and I have taken our time getting to know each other as songwriters before really digging in and starting to write the record. "[Late SANCTUARY singer] Warrel [Dane] and Lenny were such a magic combination and though there is no way to get that back, we have stumbled upon something quite unique yet still will be familiar to die-hard fans. What we are striving for is to meld our musical palettes in a way that gives fans something new without messing with the DNA that makes the band stand out among its peers." SANCTUARY's current lineup is completed by Dave Budbill on drums, George Hernandez on bass and Joey Concepcion on guitar. The band toured the U.S. in July, performing SANCTUARY's entire 1988 album "Refuge Denied". Dane died in December 2017 while recording his posthumously released solo studio album "Shadow Work".
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