Epica is a Dutch band that plays symphonic metal. The band was started by Mark Jansen, a guitarist and singer, after he left After Forever. Originally, Epica focused on symphonic metal with gothic influences. Later, the band added strong death metal sounds to their music. Starting with their third album, they also included progressive metal styles. The band often uses thrash metal and groove metal riffs, black metal drumming techniques, power metal sections, and influences from Arabic music. Some songs include electronic sounds, djent transitions, and folk metal melodies inspired by Middle Eastern, Chinese, and Celtic traditions.
Epica is known for its vocal melodies, which contrast with heavy instrumentals by using catchy, complex, and expressive lines. The band's music combines soprano vocals by Simone Simons and growled vocals by Mark Jansen. They write their own lyrics, which explore themes such as philosophy, psychology, spirituality, morality, science, the environment, social issues, global topics, and personal experiences. Epica also uses orchestral arrangements and operatic choirs in their music.
In 2003, Epica released their first album, The Phantom Agony, through Transmission Records. Their second album, Consign to Oblivion, came out in 2005 and reached No. 12 on the Dutch charts. After Transmission Records went bankrupt, the band signed with Nuclear Blast and released their third album, The Divine Conspiracy, in 2007. This album reached No. 9 in the Netherlands. Their fourth album, Design Your Universe (2009), was more successful, debuting at No. 8 on the Dutch Albums Chart and receiving praise from critics across Europe. Epica's fifth album, Requiem for the Indifferent (2012), was well received and achieved international success, entering the US Billboard 200 at No. 104 and Japan's Oricon Albums Chart at No. 172.
In May 2014, Epica released their sixth album, The Quantum Enigma, which was a major international success. It debuted at No. 110 on the US Billboard 200 and reached No. 4 in the Netherlands. In June 2015, Epica won the Music Export Award, which honors the Dutch act with the most international success in the past year. Their seventh album, The Holographic Principle (2016), continued their success, matching the chart position of its predecessor in the Netherlands. The band released their eighth album, Omega, in February 2021.
History
In early 2002, at the age of 23, Mark Jansen left the band After Forever because of differences in ideas. He then looked for musicians to form a new group that would create classical and symphonic music. The group was first called Sahara Dust. In late 2002, the band asked Helena Iren Michaelsen, who was part of Trail of Tears, to be their lead singer. Soon after, she was replaced by Simone Simons, who was Mark Jansen’s girlfriend at the time. The band’s lineup included guitarist Ad Sluijter, drummer Jeroen Simons, bassist Yves Huts, and keyboardist Coen Janssen. Later, the group changed its name to Epica, inspired by an album with the same name by Kamelot.
Epica then formed a choir (two men and four women) and a string orchestra (three violins, two violas, two cellos, and an upright bass) to perform with them. Still called Sahara Dust, they created a two-song demo called Cry for the Moon in 2002. This led to them signing with Transmission Records.
The Phantom Agony is Epica’s first full-length studio album. It is the first album recorded by guitarist Mark Jansen after leaving After Forever. The album was produced by Sascha Paeth, who has worked with bands like Angra, Rhapsody of Fire, and Kamelot. It was released in June 2003. On this album, Mark Jansen continued a series of songs called “The Embrace That Smothers.” The first three parts of this series were on Prison of Desire (2000), After Forever’s debut album. The next three parts were on The Divine Conspiracy (2007), Epica’s third album. These songs discuss the dangers of organized religion. One song, Façade of Reality, was written about the September 11 attacks and includes parts of speeches by Tony Blair.
The album had three singles: The Phantom Agony, Feint, and Cry for the Moon.
Their second album, Consign to Oblivion, was influenced by the culture of the Maya civilization. This influence is seen in the song series A New Age Dawns, which refers to the Mayan time system that extends to 2012. The album was inspired by film scores, with Hans Zimmer and Danny Elfman as key influences. Guest vocals by Roy Khan of Kamelot appear on the song Trois Vierges. Epica also supported Kamelot on parts of their tour for the album The Black Halo, where Simone Simons sang on the track The Haunting (Somewhere in Time).
Two singles were released from Consign to Oblivion: Solitary Ground and Quietus.
Epica’s non-metal album, The Score – An Epic Journey, was released in September 2005. It is the soundtrack for a Dutch movie called Joyride and can also be considered their third album. Mark Jansen described the album as typical Epica music, but without singing, guitars, bass, or drums.
In 2005 and 2006, Epica toured North America with Kamelot. After the tour, drummer Jeroen Simons left the band to pursue other musical interests. In Fall 2006, Simone Simons sang on two tracks, Blücher and Season’s End, from Kamelot’s album Ghost Opera. In December 2006, Ariën van Weesenbeek of God Dethroned was announced as a guest drummer for Epica’s new album, though not as a permanent member.
In September 2007, Epica headlined their first North American tour and released their third album, The Divine Conspiracy, under the label Nuclear Blast. That December, Ariën van Weesenbeek became Epica’s permanent drummer. The band toured North America again in April 2008 with Into Eternity and Symphony X. During this tour, Amanda Somerville filled in for Simone Simons, who had a staph infection (MRSA). The album was released in Europe on September 7, 2007.
The theme of The Divine Conspiracy is that God created many religions for humans to discover and understand, showing that they are all the same. This idea is reflected in the album’s title. The album also finishes the Embrace That Smothers series, which began on After Forever’s Prison of Desire and continued on The Phantom Agony. In total, the series includes 10 songs exploring the dangers of organized religion.
The first single from the album, Never Enough, was released on August 10, 2007, with a music video. The second single, Chasing the Dragon, was released in 2008 without a video.
On December 16, 2008, Ad Sluijter left the band, saying he could not enjoy composing music due to deadlines. His replacement, Isaac Delahaye, was announced in January 2009. Isaac was a member of God Dethroned.
In 2008, Epica recorded their first live album, The Classical Conspiracy. The performance took place in Miskolc, Hungary, on June 14, 2008, as part of the Miskolc Opera Festival. The show included a 40-piece orchestra and a 30-piece choir. The setlist featured Epica’s songs and covers of classical music by composers like Antonio Vivaldi and Giuseppe Verdi, as well as movie soundtracks from Star Wars and Spider-Man. The live album was released on May 8, 2009.
On March 4, 2009, Epica announced they would return to the studio to record a new album. In April 2009, the album was named Design Your Universe. It continued the A New Age Dawns series from Consign to Oblivion. The album was released on October 16, 2009. To promote it, the band performed in Amsterdam at Paradiso on October 10, 2009. This is the first Epica album to feature Isaac Delahaye. The album also includes a guest appearance by Sonata Arctica’s vocalist Tony Kakko on the song White Waters. The album received positive reviews and reached No. 8 on the Dutch charts
Musical style
Epica combines several types of music, including symphonic metal, gothic metal, progressive metal, death metal, and sometimes thrash metal, power metal, and folk metal. Their former guitarist, Ad Sluijter, said the band connects power metal and gothic metal. Vocalist Simone Simons prefers the group to be called symphonic metal, but the band’s founder, Mark Jansen, says it is okay to also call them gothic metal. Jansen has also described the band as "symphonic death metal" and as a link between death metal and symphonic metal.
The music of Epica is described as "epic, grand, and majestic," with some songs being "more subdued and introspective." The band is also known for using progressive metal techniques. Their music often includes a gothic atmosphere and emotional themes.
Epica uses a style common in symphonic and gothic metal by mixing two extremes: loud, harsh sounds on one side and soft, melodic female vocals on the other. Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic says the band’s appeal comes from the contrast between intense, heavy guitar riffs and fast drumming and the smooth, layered sound of orchestral strings and keyboards. Simone Simons sings in a classical (operatic) style, but she has also started using a more modern singing style, such as belting (as she described in an interview about the album "Consign to Oblivion"). She later corrected herself, explaining she is a soprano, not a mezzo-soprano. Mark Jansen adds deep, growling vocals that support Simons’ singing and add variety to the music. The band also uses human choirs, orchestras, and includes spoken word parts, as well as lyrics in Latin and Arabic.