Sanctuary is a name used by multiple musical artists:
1. Sanctuary is an American heavy metal band formed in 1985 in Seattle, Washington. The band was inactive between 1992 and 2010. Its line-up has included Lenny Rutledge (guitar), Joseph Michael (vocals), George Hernandez (bass), and Dave Budbill (drums), while Warrel Dane served as lead vocalist until his death in 2017. The band has released three studio albums and one live EP.
Although the band did not achieve significant mainstream success, it has been cited as an influence within the Seattle hard rock and heavy metal scene of the late 1980s and early 1990s, alongside acts such as Mother Love Bone, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Queensrÿche, Metal Church, Fifth Angel, TKO, Culprit, Rail, Forced Entry, and Q5.
Sanctuary was founded by cousins and guitarists Lenny Rutledge and Sean Blosl. The group initially performed cover versions and original compositions before completing its line-up. After Warrel Dane joined as vocalist, the band focused on original material and recorded its first demo, which received airplay on the Seattle college radio station KCMU. The demo came to the attention of Dave Mustaine of Megadeth, who agreed to produce the band’s debut album.
Sanctuary performed several support shows with Megadeth before recording its first album, "Refuge Denied", produced by Mustaine. The band secured a recording contract with Epic Records and released the album in 1988. It subsequently toured internationally, appearing with bands including Megadeth, Warlock, Savatage, Testament, Nuclear Assault, Flotsam and Jetsam, Vio-lence, Fates Warning, Meliah Rage, and Forced Entry.
In 1989 the band recorded its second album, "Into the Mirror Black", released in 1990. A music video for the song "Future Tense" received airplay on the MTV programme "Headbangers Ball". During the supporting tour, guitarist Sean Blosl left the band and was replaced by Jeff Loomis.
Following the tour, disagreements arose after Epic Records encouraged the band to adapt its sound to the emerging Seattle grunge scene. As a result, Sanctuary disbanded in 1992. A planned full-length live recording from the final tour was reduced to a promotional EP, "Into the Mirror Live". In 2010 "Refuge Denied" and "Into the Mirror Black" were reissued as a double CD.
After the break-up, Warrel Dane, Jim Sheppard, and Jeff Loomis formed Nevermore in 1992. Lenny Rutledge later worked as a music producer and contributed to the demo sessions for Nevermore’s 1999 album "Dreaming Neon Black". Nevermore went on hiatus in 2011.
In 2010 four founding members of Sanctuary reunited for live performances, leading to a permanent reformation. Jeff Loomis participated in early reunion shows before departing. Former Forced Entry guitarist Brad Hull joined as a permanent member.
Sanctuary performed at ProgPower USA in Atlanta in September 2011 and appeared at the "70000 Tons of Metal" festival in January 2011. In 2013 the band signed with Century Media Records.
The band’s third studio album, "The Year the Sun Died", was released in October 2014. Songs released in advance included "Arise and Purify", "Exitium (Anthem of the Living)", and "Frozen".
In 2015 Brad Hull left the band, and guitarist Nick Cordle, formerly of Arsis and Arch Enemy, performed with the band on tour. In 2016 George Hernandez became the permanent bassist. Around the same time, the band discussed plans for a fourth studio album tentatively titled "Dead Again" and announced a compilation of early demos titled "Inception".
Warrel Dane died on 13 December 2017 in São Paulo, Brazil. In 2018 Sanctuary toured North America with Iced Earth on a tribute tour, with Joseph Michael performing lead vocals.
The positive reception to the tour led to continued work on new material. Former guitarist Sean Blosl died in a traffic collision in Seattle on 26 August 2024.
Studio albums include "Refuge Denied" (1988), "Into the Mirror Black" (1990), and "The Year the Sun Died" (2014).
2. Sanctuary is an atmospheric electronic music project by Alex Bober.
3. Sanctuary is a Dutch gothic metal band that performs original material and has also performed cover versions of songs by Epica, Nightwish, and Sonata Arctica.
4. Sanctuary was a thrash metal band from Australia.
5. Sanctuary was a German heavy metal band that released two demo recordings in the mid-1980s before disbanding in 1988.
6. Sanctuary is a Colombian heavy metal band that released the demo "La Marca Del Mal" in 2008.
7. Sanctuary was a German progressive power metal band. After releasing a self-titled demo, the band changed its name to Deathless Sanctuary in 1990.
8. Sanctuary is an electronic music project by Jonah Smith from Chicago, United States. The project has also been associated with The Mysterious PXRTY BXYZ and Sensitive Thugs.
9. Sanctuary is a black metal project from the United States that has released three untitled demo recordings, one in 2011 and two in 2012.
Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License and may also be available under the GNU FDL.
…shrink me down again