Sometimes it’s wild to think that we live in a world where Nevermoreis back with a new lineup and playing shows. After the band’s breakup in 2011 and the death of vocalist Warrel Dane, it seemed like they were dead and gone. Yet here we are 15 years later and things are looking up for Nevermore, with plans to release new music in 2027 — even if former members aren’t exactly thrilled it’s going on.
Word of the band’s plans came about when guitarist Jeff Loomis spoke with Headbanger News. In the interview, Loomis explained the process that went into finding the band’s new members: vocalist Berzan Önen, bassist Semir Özerkan, and guitarist Jack Cattoi, as well as the band’s first show as a revived unit on April 1 at IF Performance Hall Beşiktaş in Istanbul.
“It definitely took – it took some doing. It took a while to get everything finetuned to the way we liked it, to make sure that it was even going to be possible.
“And that happened with finding the right people to complete the job. And we had to audition quite a few people to make sure that we found the right people that could actually do it. So, we’re very, very fortunate that we have Mr. Berzan Önen on vocals, Mr. Semir Özerkan on bass, and Mr. Jack Cattoi on guitar.
“So these are the three new members. And, of course, it’s still me and Van – me on guitar and Van on drums. And, yes, we just had our first show just a few days ago in Istanbul. And it went really, really well. The crowd was phenomenal. They sang along to all the songs and really just made us feel welcome. And now we’re coming down to South America to do some more shows. So we’re really, really excited.”
Noting that the new members are not 1:1 replacements of their counterparts, Loomis said he wants this new version of Nevermore to reflect everyone in the band. Only through continued collaboration among the members, he said, will Nevermore be able to stay true to its roots while doing something new and engaging.
“The core of the Nevermore sound is not ever really going to go away. And I think that the core, you could say that that would be me and Van, where we’re writing in the style of Nevermore and it’s still holding its own weight there.
“But I think when it comes down to longevity in bands, you’ll always notice that everybody contributes. Like a band like Rush, for instance – everybody’s contributing something in that band. And we don’t wanna have Nevermore just be the Van-and-Jeff show. We wanna have the other guys contribute as well. We wanna have Berzan contribute lyrics.
“We want him to contribute lyric melodies. We want Jack and Semir to contribute riffs. So, will that change the core sound of Nevermore? I don’t really think so. I think it’s just gonna add to the dynamic and make it cooler, ’cause there’s gonna be other little elements of cool musical passages that are gonna be available now to use.
“And I think it’s just gonna be that much more interesting for the listener. It’ll still have the same core elements as it did back in the day, but it’ll be new and interesting with a new vibe, so to speak. And that’s kind of what we’re looking for for the new Nevermore.”
As for Önen, Loomis said the band knew the idea of finding a replacement for Dane was fraught with potential pitfalls. From the beginning, he said the band wanted someone unique that can perform all the songs but do it with their own unique voice.
The last thing they wanted, he said, was someone to mimic the late singer.
“The initial talks, back when Van and I first started talking about [putting Nevermore back together], was, can it be done? And I think so. If you can find the right people that can perform the songs in the correct way, it can be done.
“We weren’t looking for a Warrel Dane clone either. We were looking for somebody that could still sing the songs, but also had his own personal style. So that’s what we were looking for from the very beginning, and that’s what I believe we found. And we’re very happy.”
As it stands, Nevermore currently have a number of tour dates lined up with this new roster of performers. If you want to catch ’em live, you can do so at any of the listed dates below.
Nevermore tour dates
4/1 Istanbul, Türkiye IF Performance Hall Beşiktaş
4/24 Santiago, Chile Teatro Cariola
4/26 São Paulo, Brazil Bangers Open Air
4/28 São Paulo, Brazil Carioca Club Pinheiros
7/26 Plovdiv, Bulgaria Hills of Rock
7/28 Rasnov, Romania Rockstadt Extreme Festival
7/30 Budapest, Hungary Barba Negra Blue Stage
8/1 Wacken, Germany Wacken
8/3 Pratteln, Switzerland Z7 Open Air (w/ Savatage)
8/5 Jaromer, Czechia Brutal Assault
8/8 Derbyshire, United Kingdom Bloodstock Open Air
8/9 Kortrijk, Belgium Alcatraz Festival
8/11 Warsaw, Poland Progresja (w/ Savatage)
8/12 Leipzig, Germany Parkbühne (w/ Savatage)
8/13 Bonn, Germany KUNST!RASEN (w/ Savatage)
8/15 Carhaix Plouguer, France Motocultor Festival
9/11 Bern, Switzerland Festhalle Bern (w/ Judas Priest)
9/12 Strasbourg, France Zenith (w/ Judas Priest)
9/14 Lyon, France LDLC Arena (w/ Judas Priest)
9/15 Bordeaux, France Arkea Arena (w/ Judas Priest)
9/17 Paris, France Arena Zenith (w/ Judas Priest)
9/18 Bruxelles, Belgium Forest National (w/ Judas Priest)
9/21 London, United Kingdom Eventim Apollo (w/ Judas Priest)