Epica Albums (8)
'Design Your Universe'
Release Date 10/16/2009
Tracks 11
Label Nuclear Blast Records
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What The Critics Say
Dutch pomp-metal band Epica, fronted by classically trained mezzo-soprano Simone Simons, released their second album for Nuclear Blast only a year after their label debut, the more unique The Classical Conspiracy. That two-disc live set found them performing a mix of classical works and their own songs with backing by a full orchestra and choir. This album offers more of their bombastic goth metal songs, with Simons' vocals floating atop an ever flowing stream of complicated drumming, epic riffs, and shredtastic solos. The use of orchestral instruments to add John Williams-like climaxes is intermittently successful, but the music is just as frequently stripped down to an unaccompanied piano or to just the rock band, and that works, too. The very occasional interruption of male death growls is less necessary; frankly, the band should just let Simons do her Sarah Brightman-esque thing and keep the riffs cranking behind her. If you like this sort of thing (Lacuna Coil, Nightwish, After Forever, Leaves' Eyes, etc., etc.), or if you're a big Andrew Lloyd Webber fan, this is exactly the sort of thing you'll like. ~ Phil Freeman, All Music Guide
'The Classical Conspiracy'
Release Date 1/1/2009
Tracks 27
Label Warner
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What The Critics Say
One complaint that metal purists have had about some of Epica's more orchestral work is that at times, they have ended up sounding more classical than metal. But for those who value intrigue and adventure more than they value purity, the very fact that a metal band has had some honest-to-God interaction with the European classical world is fascinating -- and The Classical Conspiracy documents the Dutch gothic metal band's June 14, 2008 appearance at the Miskolc International Opera Festival in Miskolc, Hungary. That gathering is hardly Ozzfest; it is a classical-oriented event that has been going on since 2001, and the performers are much more likely to pay tribute to Béla Bartók than to tackle anything that's metal-related. But as The Classical Conspiracy demonstrates, Epica take their classical music seriously. Disc one finds Epica (who are joined by a 40-piece orchestra and a 30-piece vocal choir) performing arrangements of a variety of familiar classical and film music, ranging from Giuseppe Verdi's "Dies Irae" and Antonio Vivaldi's "Presto," to John Williams' "The Imperial March" from Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. But if the metal factor is generally low on Disc one, that isn't the case on Disc two -- which is dominated by Epica's own material. Although the Euro-classical influence is quite strong on Disc two, the main ingredient during that portion of the concert is gothic metal. But the classical lovers in the audience were no doubt well aware of the fact that lead vocalist Simone Simons is a classically trained mezzosoprano. If Disc one isn't metal enough for the metal purists and Disc two isn't classical enough for the classical purists, that doesn't make Epica's performances any less inspired or enriching. The Classical Conspiracy is a fine document of Epica's 2008 appearance at the Miskolc International Opera Festival. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
'Divine Conspiracy'
Release Date 1/1/2007
Tracks 13
Label Nuclear Blast
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What The Critics Say
After two albums of generally finely crafted symphonic metal, Dutch ensemble Epica decided to indulge their orchestral kinks to the fullest with 2005's metal-free The Score: An Epic Journey, but they are back to their usual, genre-meshing stomping grounds with 2007's The Divine Conspiracy, which many fans will likely consider their proper third opus. Whatever the case may be, the album gets under way with the entirely symphonic "Indigo" prologue, before slamming into the metallic portion of the program with "The Obsessive Devotion." This, in typical Epica fashion, showcases not only the angelic soprano of Simone Simons, but also a manly baritone choir and ever more demonic death grunts from bandleader Mark Jansen -- all of them juggling lyrics in English and Latin! As with all of The Divine Conspiracy's -- and indeed Epica's -- best tracks (here including "Fools of Damnation" and "Sonata Terra"), the attraction ultimately hinges on exploring the sonic contrasts of light and dark; the punishing intensity of those elephantine guitar riffs and hyperactive drumming cast against the soaring, layered sweetness of the orchestrated strings and keyboards. Remove these contrasts and the fireworks they ignite, and largely uniform offerings like the ballads "Safeguard to Paradise" and "Chasing the Dragon" (overlong, featuring a brief black metal freak-out, and not about a great big lizard, believe it or not) simply leave one wanting more. Similarly, Epica still struggle to compete with hit-penning machines like Nightwish or Within Temptation when it comes to commercial singles with overpowering hooks (see the merely serviceable "Never Enough"). And just when you think Epica had escaped the shadow of the band that spawned them, After Forever, along comes the ambitious but uneven four-song suite titled "The Embrace That Smothers," which, actually originated in Jansen's former group (even though its first five installments appeared on Epica's debut). All that being said, give Epica credit for staying the course (winding as it may be) long enough to deliver the crowning achievement of their career thus far in The Divine Conspiracy's colossal, multi-faceted, 14-minute title track, which closes this LP. Now, if they can only maintain that stellar form for the duration of their next album, things could get really interesting. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
'The Road to Paradiso'
Release Date 6/12/2006
Tracks 18
Label Transmission
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'We Will Take You With Us'
Release Date 8/9/2005
Tracks 10
Label The End
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'Score: An Epic Journey'
Release Date 5/20/2005
Tracks 20
Label Transmission
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What The Critics Say
For all its ambitious plotting, baroque soundscapes, and unquestionable technical merits, Epica's first album was distinctly lacking in the most crucial of categories: songwriting. In fact, it pretty much proved the point that musical education doesn't necessarily guarantee musical inspiration, ultimately achieving surprisingly little purchase in one's memory banks for an album so rife with Strum und Drang. In retrospect, it may also have been somewhat rushed in its construction, what with guitarist and creative leader Mark Jansen possibly being a little too anxious to prove his own mettle after quitting After Forever -- the band founded with his sister Floor, and who in fact helped pioneer the symphonic/progressive/power metal style still on dominant display here. Longer preparation has certainly had a positive effect on the sophomore effort, but, if anything, Epica remain more committed to that original vision than the increasingly modern-sounding (though no less progressive) After Forever, insisting on employing human choirs and orchestras throughout Consign to Oblivion, and rarely letting mezzo-soprano Simone Simons stray from an operatically correct delivery. Jansen's death growls have also taken a noticeable back seat this time around, but that's not to say that typical offerings such as "Dance of Fate," "Blank Infinity," and "Force of the Shore" fail to provide plenty of heavy staccato guitar riffing and hyperactive double kick drums. Single candidate "Solitary Ground," on the other hand, finds an adequate middle ground between rocker and ballad; "Quietus" pretty much waltzes away from start to finish; and the symphonic overkill is finally toned down for the surprisingly pop-campy, harpsichord-led ballad "Trois Vierges" (big-time Nightwish influence), on which Simons is joined by Kamelot vocalist Roy Kahn. And don't forget the four different movements of a fatalistic suite subtitled "A New Age Dawns" (partly sung in Latin, and decrying man's folly with nature -- you know the drill), which are strewn about the album in somewhat arbitrary fashion, and may only confuse things further. Nevertheless, Consign to Oblivion's overall presentation is as immaculate as its predecessor's, and definitely an improvement from a compositional perspective, promising better things to come in Epica's future. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
'The Phantom Agony'
Release Date 6/17/2003
Tracks 10
Label Transmission
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What The Critics Say
Dutch guitarist/vocalist Mark Jansen unveiled his highly anticipated post-After Forever undertaking -- a new orchestral metal project named Epica -- via 2004's The Phantom Agony album. Clearly patterned on Jansen's former band, Epica fuses his deathly croaking with the angelic tones of a classically trained mezzo-soprano named Simone Simons, over a lush foundation of symphonic power metal. However, as compared to After Forever's pre-established blueprint (and unfortunately, continual comparisons are inevitable here) songs like "Sensorium," "Cry for the Moon," and "Illusive Consensus" tend to prioritize guitars over keyboards, while making greater use of full-on choir backdrops. And although she is a gifted operatic talent by any definition, lead vocalist Simons simply lacks the sheer vocal prowess and versatility of After Forever's Floor Jansen. Whether this is the case by nature or design, one feels her talents are being underutilized; but then, perhaps Jansen didn't want her monopolizing the proceedings like the aforementioned Floor (although they apparently have no problem objectifying her sensual image on the album's cover). Furthermore, additional embellishments such as spoken word recitals, lyrics decried in Latin and Arabic, and complicated religious and philosophical exhortations featured on the likes of "Façade of Reality," "Seif al Din," and the preposterously overwrought title track make the whole bloated work almost too pretentious to stomach. And for all of this grand conceptualizing (The Phantom Agony's intricately intertwined movements indeed amounting to a concept album), what you have here is a samey-sounding LP by symphonic metal standards: lyrically engaging and brave of vision, to be sure, but disturbingly short on songwriting chops, and ultimately devoid of the genre's dramatic and defining peaks and valleys of emotion. Having said all that, The Phantom Agony's daunting palette of colors is vast enough to probably convert a few disciples to the group's cause. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
