You have just been on the gigantour (DREAM THEATER, DAVE MUSTAINE, SYMPHONY X. FEAR FACTORY, DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN...). It was a great Experience, or?

Jim Sheppard:   Yes, this tour that is Dave Mustaine putting together is amazing, very organized and very well ran. It was fun!

 Wasn't it a problem for you to just play half an hour? I mean half an hour is rather short...

Jim Sheppard:   Of course it was ok, because it was a priviledge to be on that tour.Yeah...but half an hour isn't enough to really play NEVERMORE's music. So we are really happy to play 1:40h this night.

 As far as I know you have been at Century Media Records from the very beginning on. I think it is unusual, that a band stays so long at one label. How comes? Is it just like a family feeling?

Jim Sheppard:   Yeah, it is definitely something like a family, they have become a very good record company and we are happy to still be with them- And I think, if you know the people you are working with... you will have the same problems wherever you go at the record companies. The secret is knowing who you are working with and working through the problems. We feel comfortable now with Century Media Records and with our relationship with them.

 You have had with "This Godless Endevour" a huge success in America - have you expected that success?

Jim Sheppard:   Well, we always expected from day one on to gain an audience a little faster. But the critical claim for this record was that it is extremely enlightening especially with it being so braodly accepted. We always got good reviews in Europe, but not in America, Canada and England. It really means a lot. It is a new NEVERMORE now and and we are focusing on keeping the level in head, not drinking too much and working on the performances and playing longer sets.

 So, as you said, before this record you have been more successful in Europe than in America - Isn't it a strange feeling when you have somewhere abroad more success than in your own country?

Jim Sheppard:   It has been disappointing at first, that we are doing much better in Europe, but thanks to the rebirth of Headbanger's Ball, the American audiences are starting to grow. And we are getting a lot of fans in the US as well. How long it will last I don't know. You know, people in Europe can just find, respect and appreciate music in their own way. But in America whatever MTV is giving you the kids will like.Fortunately they are now getting Headbanger's Ball. So hopefully, when they are getting turned on to real musicianship and solos and stuff they will create a fan base that stays for a while I hope.

 OK, So I hope that this metal hype because of Headbanger's Ball will last longer as it did in Europe, because here it almost disappeared again. Do you think it will last much longer in America?

Jim Sheppard:   Well the first Headbanger's Ball lastet for about ten, twelve years I think and elevated metal and then it kept going till Headbanger's Ball slowly faded out. So I think it got a way to go now. It's been now for about three or four years. So I think it has got some staying power. I do not see that factor in Europe that much with the underground metal scene you have.

 And now, with this success, are any DVDs planned?

Jim Sheppard:   Yes. We are in the process of doin a dvd right now. We filmed lot of stuff in America, we gonna start filming in Europe in Greece at the end of this Tour. And we want to come back with the DVD crew for the festivals and probably another headlining or co-headliningtour in March or April. And we will bring the DVD-Crew along with us to Europe.

 Great. So it will be a lot of stuff then?

Jim Sheppard:   Yes, we have been sort of compiling it for a couple of years now but really got serious with "This Godless Endevour". And we're doing a documentary about how NEVERMORE works and promotes the records and comes along with Century Media, a lot of behind the scenes, comical stuff, what other things we do...and of course a full live show as well. A 2-DVD!! Yeah!

 Yeah...! So really much stuff! Ok, and lets stay at that record things...you recorded with Andy Sneap "Dead Heart In A Dead World", changed then to another producer for the "Enemies Of Reality" and returned now to Andy Sneap - is there any reason you skipped one CD or any reason you returned?

Jim Sheppard:   There is more than one reason, and one of the reasons was Andy's availability, another reason was the budget of our last record because our contract at Century Media and they were trying to put pressure on us to resign. But we wanted to finish the record contract and become free agents to get the best deal we can get for ourselves. And so Century Media was not shure if we gonna be with them and so they went back to the original budget that we signed the contract for. And that wasn't much money. Before that they were very generous and gave us much money as we needed. And so the budget was quite small and we recorded in Seattle with Kelly Grace, who is a great Producer. But unfortunately he had never to realy mix a metal band that is very complicated and so the mix got a little lost. And returning to Andy Sneap is something we always wanted to do. An he was then able to remix the "Enemies Of Reality". And now it sounds like it should have sounded in the first place.

 Ok. So lets jump back to success - whats about success in Asia?

Jim Sheppard:   Unfortunately not with NEVERMORE. With SANCTUARY we sold well over 20 000 units and toured there. But for some reason NEVERMORE has not made the same connection. We haven't gone there to tour yet. We had a different record company in the past and now we have a new one. This one of the things why we did change the record company. And hopefully we this new record company we will bring on a tour.

 Ok. A complete other topic: 'Sentient 6' is the sequel to 'The Learning', because the machines get more human and learn to hate. When did you have the idea to continue 'The Learning'. Was it more a idea you got in the songwriting process of "This Godless Endevour" or did you have that idea quite early and you took up again when you wrote "This Godless Endeavour"?

Jim Sheppard:   I think it kind of naturally happened because it's a topic we always have been fascinated with. And as soon as the opportunity rises we write about it. And when we were done we realized that it is more a part two of 'The Learning'. So it was something which came up with this record, which was natural. And we made the conncetion afterwards.

 Lets get back in time to the "Dead Heart In A Dead World". It contains a quite unusual cover of 'The Sound Of Silence'. How did you get the idea to make it let's say brute?

Jim Sheppard:   Warrel has been a big fan of sixties music and SIMON & GARFUNKEL was one of his favourites and he always wanted to cover 'Sound Of Silence'. And whenever he brought in that sugestion it was like "no, I don't know, it is that far from being heavy..." and we never could convince Jeff of it. And one day Jeff attended with this song and Warrel started singing and was just singing sound of silence over it and it was weird. And basicaly we told Jeff "now you have started with a guitar melody from "Sound Of Silence" so people will know it and when listening to the lyrics figure it out. So, this was pretty intentional. We did not get anybodie's permission, we just did it. And we then were like "let's get back to all the sixties and destroy all classic"! (laughs) And that was pretty much how it was done.

 And has anybody who has anything like the copyright listend to the song or rated this song till now?

Jim Sheppard:   Not that I am aware of it. So I know when we played with that old gothic punk band BAUHAUS and covered "Sound Of Silence" Peter Murphy actually heard it. And he came to Seattle and requested if we would come down and meet him. And he told us, that he heard the song and that he loved it and that it was the best cover he ever heard. And he said, that if were in the same city when playing, he will get on stage and sing it with us. But I am not really sure, if Paul Simon would have had the same words...(laughs)

 And finally: Is the band's name, NEVERMORE, taken from Edgar Allen Poe's raven or did you just have the same idea and think "hey, that is a cool name!". Or are you just a bunch of Edgar Allen Poe fans?

Jim Sheppard:   Not really. Warrel has it been when he studied literature at college. But the reason of the misconception was that "Nevermore" and our second record, "The Politics Of Ecstasy" is related to Poe and so the people started putting it together and thought that we called ourselves after the raven. But actual he was listening to a song and heard the name "Nevermore" and just started heavily thinking about it. And the concept behind is to never repeat the mistakes we made in the past. I Think it was a kind of homage to SANCTUARY. So you know, when we were loosing with SANCTUARY the band and the name. NEVERMORE is pretty much...even so the name is NEVERMORE it will be forever.

 Ok. So this was the last question, thanks for the interview.