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helenaistheomelette
The Heart Of Everything
The Heart Of Everything
helenaistheomelette


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Registration date : 2009-05-13

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PostSubject: Biography   Biography I_icon_minitimeFri Jul 03, 2009 4:30 pm

Cry for the Moon (2002–2003)

In early 2002, Mark Jansen left After Forever due to creative differences. He then began looking for musicians who would work towards a more classical/symphonic type of music project; this was initially named "Sahara Dust". In late 2002, the band courted Helena Michaelsen (from Trail of Tears) as its frontwoman, but shortly after she was replaced by the then unknown mezzo-soprano Simone Simons, who was Jansen's girlfriend at the time. The band's line-up was completed by guitarist Ad Sluijter, drummer Jeroen Simons, bassist Yves Huts, and keyboard player Coen Janssen. The name was later changed to Epica, inspired by Kamelot's eponymous album.

Epica then assembled a choir (made up of two men and four women) and a string orchestra (three violins, two violas, two cellos and an upright bass) to play along with them. Still under the name Sahara Dust, they produced a two-song demo entitled Cry for the Moon in 2002. As a result, they were signed to Transmission Records.

The Phantom Agony (2003–2004)

Their debut album, The Phantom Agony, was produced by Sascha Paeth (known for having produced bands such as Angra, Rhapsody of Fire and Kamelot) and released in late 2003. The song "Façade of Reality" on the album was written about the September 11, 2001 attacks and includes fragments from speeches by Tony Blair.

The album was followed by three singles: "The Phantom Agony", "Feint" and "Cry for the Moon".

Consign to Oblivion / The Score (2005–2007)

Their second release, entitled Consign to Oblivion, was influenced by the culture of the Mayan Civilization, which can be noticed on songs in the "A New Age Dawns" series. "A New Age Dawns" refers to the time system of the Mayan people, which extends up to the year of 2012, and makes no reference of what may happen past said year. Consign to Oblivion was composed with film scores as a basis, with Hans Zimmer and Danny Elfman cited as major inspirations. The album features guest singing by Roy Khan (from Kamelot) on the song "Trois Vierges". Epica also joined Kamelot as a support band on parts of their tour for promotion of the The Black Halo album, to which Simons had contributed her vocals on the track "The Haunting (Somewhere In Time)".

Two singles were released from the album, "Solitary Ground" and "Quietus (Silent Reverie)".

Epica's non-metal album The Score - An Epic Journey was released in September 2005 and is the soundtrack for a Dutch movie called Joyride, though it could also be considered to be their third album. Mark Jansen describes the album as typical Epica, "only without the singing, without the guitars, no bass and no drums".

In 2005 and 2006 Epica went on their first tour throughout North America with Kamelot. After the tour, drummer Jeroen Simons left the band because of his wish to pursue other musical interests. In Fall 2006, Simone once again contributed vocals to album of Kamelot, this time on the tracks "Blücher" and "Season's End" on the album Ghost Opera. In December Ariën Van Weesenbeek from God Dethroned was announced on Epica's official website as the guest drummer for their new album, but not a permanent band member.

The Divine Conspiracy (2007–2009)

In September 2007, Epica headlined their first tour through North America and released their third album, The Divine Conspiracy, this time on a new label, Nuclear Blast. That December, Ariën Van Weesenbeek was announced to be Epica's permanent new drummer. The band toured North America again in April 2008 with Into Eternity and Symphony X, this time with Amanda Somerville because Simone had contracted a staph infection (MRSA).

The first single of the album was released on August 10, 2007 entitled "Never Enough".

The second single, "Chasing the Dragon," was released in 2008 without an accompanying video.

On 16 December 2008, Ad Sluijter left the band. He left a message on his Myspace page with his reasoning for leaving the band, which included frustration over being unable to enjoy composing music because of deadlines. Ad's successor on guitar was announced in January of 2009 to be Isaac Delahaye, who is formerly of God Dethroned fame.

In May of that year, Epica recorded The Classical Conspiracy, their first live album. The live show included a 40-piece orchestra and a 30-piece choir. It was released on May 8, 2009 through Nuclear Blast Records.

Design Your Universe (2009–Present)

On March 4, 2009, Epica announced their return to the studio where they would begin the recording process for a new album. In April 2009, it was revealed that the new album's title would be "Design Your Universe". It was said to continue the A New Age Dawns saga which started on Consign to Oblivion. The album was released on October 16, 2009. To promote this release, they performed in Amsterdam at Paradiso on October 10, 2009. This album will be new guitarist Isaac Delahaye's first. The record also contains a guest appearance from Sonata Arctica vocalist Tony Kakko on the song "White Waters". The album debuted in #8 in the Dutch charts.

On December 31, 2009, it was announced through their website that a new single will be released. The song is called “This Is the Time” and all profit will go to World Wide Fund for Nature.[citation needed]

In September 2010, Simone once again contributed vocals to an album of Kamelot, this time on the tracks "House on a Hill", "Poetry for the Poisoned, Pt. II: So Long" and "Poetry for the Poisoned, Pt. III: All Is Over" on the album Poetry for the Poisoned.

Requiem for the Indifferent (2012–present)

In an interview in November 2010, Simone stated that the band was going to start writing music around February 2011 after their Latin American tour is over. She also stated that they were hoping for a release in the first quarter of 2012. 14 tracks were written without lyrics by May 2011.

The band entered the studio later that year, with Sascha Paeth once again as the producer. On December 1, the band announced that the name of the album would be Requiem for the Indifferent, and would be inspired by such factors as the enormous tension between different religions and cultures, wars, natural disasters and the financial crisis. The album was released on March 9, 2012 in Europe, and on March 13, 2012 in the United States. On March 24, 2012, Epica announced on their website that original bassist Yves Huts and Epica had parted ways, to be replaced by Rob van der Loo (ex Delain, MaYaN). On April 24, the music video of Storm The Sorrow was officially released, earning 128,000 views on YouTube on the release day.

On 16 September 2012, the band made a guest appearance on the Dutch TV show "Niks te gek" (translation: "Nothing too weird"), where people with a mental disability can make their wish come true. In this episode, they recorded, together with Netherlands citizen Ruurd Woltring, one of his self-written songs called "Forevermore". The single was released through Nuclear Blast on 25 September 2012.

In interview with Valkyrian Music, Isaac annouced that Epica have 10 songs completed with basic structures, and a potential 2014 release date.

Source : Wikipedia
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