Van Williams (born December 5, 1966) is an American drummer, best known as the former

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...

Nevermore Nevermore was an American heavy metal band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1991. The band has been inactive since 2011, due to personal issues between the band members. In April 2015, lead singer Warrel Dane confirmed that Nevermore had n ...

. Van Williams hails from New York where he began his music career in various bands, later relocating to Seattle, Washington in 1993. After auditioning for the band Nevermore (ex

Sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a saf ...

) they were soon signed onto

Century Media Records Century Media Records is a heavy metal record label with offices in the United States, Germany and London. In August 2015, Century Media was acquired by Sony Music for US$17 million. Background Century Media was founded by Robert Kampf and Oli ...

. He used to play drums for Ashes of Ares and Armageddon, and he currently drums for Ghost Ship Octavius and musical project Pure Sweet Hell. Williams continued to play with Nevermore until 2011 when he announced along with

Jeff Loomis Jeff Loomis (born September 14, 1971) is an American musician, best known for his role as lead guitarist in the progressive metal band Nevermore during its existence from 1991 to 2011, as well as brief tenures in its precursor, Sanctuary (band) ...

that he was leaving the band. Also a graphic artist/illustrator, Van has created the logos and numerous T-shirt designs for Nevermore and his other band project Pure Sweet Hell which features Van singing main vocals as well as drums. Pure Sweet Hell also features long time friends and fellow musicians Chris Eichhorn (guitars and bass) and Jim Colson (also supplying vocals). The new Pure Sweet Hell album will feature guitar solos from a few of heavy metal's top shredders, including Glen Drover (Eidolon, Megadeth) Steve Smyth (Nevermore, Testament, Forbidden), Chris Amott (Arch Enemy), Jeff Loomis (Nevermore) and Attila Voros (Leander, Nevermore). John Winters (Hatefist), also who contributed in the production/engineering of the record. On June 26, 2012, former

Iced Earth Iced Earth is an American heavy metal band formed in Tampa, Florida and currently based in Columbus, Indiana. They were formed in 1984 under the name the Rose, then Purgatory, by guitarist and main songwriter Jon Schaffer and original drummer ...

vocalist

Matt Barlow Matthew Barlow (born March 10, 1971) is an American heavy metal singer. He is the lead singer for Ashes of Ares and former lead singer of Iced Earth and Pyramaze. He is Jon Schaffer's brother-in-law. History Barlow joined Iced Earth after the ...

announced on his Facebook page the creation of a new band named Ashes of Ares with former Iced Earth bassist Freddie Vidales and former

drummer Van Williams, posting on YouTube two one-minute teaser videos. Shortly afterward, Van Williams was also announced as the drummer of Ghost Ship Octavius, featuring former God Forbid guitarist Matt Wicklund and vocalist Adōn Fanion. Ghost Ship Octavius released their debut album on March 23, 2015.

Equipment

Van Williams endorses Pearl

drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a she ...

s, Sabian

cymbal A cymbal is a common percussion instrument. Often used in pairs, cymbals consist of thin, normally round plates of various alloys. The majority of cymbals are of indefinite pitch, although small disc-shaped cymbals based on ancient designs soun ...

, toontracks and ProMark Sticks.

Drums: Pearl MMX maple

*10x8" tom *12x9" tom *13x10" tom *13x5.5" snare *16x16" floor tom

Cymbals: Sabian Cymbals

*22" professional power ride *18",20" professional power china *8",10" rock splash *17",18", rock crash *8" raw bell *13" rock hats *14" regular hats

Drum Sticks

Promark Naturals 5b

Discography

Nevermore

* ''

'' (1995) * ''

In Memory ''In Memory'' is Nevermore's only EP. It was recorded in April and May 1996 and released on July 23, 1996. It features a Bauhaus medley. It was re-issued in 2006 with 5 bonus tracks, which are all demos of songs from the next full-length album, ...

'' (EP, 1996) * '' The Politics of Ecstasy'' (1996) * ''

Dreaming Neon Black ''Dreaming Neon Black'' is the third studio album released by American heavy metal band Nevermore, and was released through Century Media in 1999. Unlike its predecessor, '' The Politics of Ecstasy'', ''Dreaming Neon Black'' contains many slowe ...

'' (1999) * ''

Dead Heart in a Dead World ''Dead Heart in a Dead World'' is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Nevermore, released in October 2000. In a style comparable to a darker, heavier Queensrÿche, its songs range topics such as criticism of drug possession penalt ...

'' (2000) * ''

Enemies of Reality ''Enemies of Reality'' is the fifth studio album by American heavy metal band Nevermore, released in 2003 by Century Media. Due to the mixed reception of the album's production by Kelly Gray, it was remixed and remastered by Andy Sneap in 2005. ...

'' (2003, remixed in 2005) * ''

This Godless Endeavor ''This Godless Endeavor'' is the sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Nevermore, released on July 26, 2005. The album was produced by Andy Sneap and is distributed by Century Media Records. Overview Guitarist Jeff Loomis revealed in ...

'' (2005) * ''

The Year of the Voyager ''The Year of the Voyager'' is a double DVD/CD released by Nevermore. It was released in Europe on October 20, 2008 and in North America on November 25, 2008 via Century Media. The set covers the ''This Godless Endeavor'' touring cycle, starting ...

'' (2008) * ''

The Obsidian Conspiracy ''The Obsidian Conspiracy'' is the seventh and final studio album by American heavy metal band Nevermore. It was released on June 8, 2010 in North America by Century Media and at the end of May in Europe. The band's previous album, ''This Godles ...

'' (2010)

Pure Sweet Hell

* Demo 2002 (2002) * ''The Voyeurs of Utter Destruction as Beauty'' (2005) * ''Spitting At The Stars'' (2011)

Ashes of Ares

* ''Ashes of Ares'' (2013)

Ghost Ship Octavius

* ''Ghost Ship Octavius'' (2015) * ''Ghost Ship Octavius Delirium'' (2018)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Van Living people 1967 births Nevermore members 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians