Epica - Design Your Universe +Album Reviews

Best Symphonic Metal of 2009

philippe deroin | Gaithersburg, USA | 11/03/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Should you be concerned about Epica fifth full-length album and the unrestrained glee with which the band throws everything in the mix, then the kitchen sink, a sample of George H.W. Bush, quantum physics, the Mayan calendar and the Tibetan Book of the Dead for good measure ?

Oddly, No. Design Your Universe could have become a monument of kitsch but the dutch symphonic metal band makes it work. It is richer than its predecessor, Divine Conspiracy (TDC), even though it does not have as serene and accomplished a showcase as Chasing the Dragon ; the two longest tracks, Kingdom of Heaven and the title track, are majestic but less approachable.

For those unfamiliar with the genre, Symphonic Metal is a melodic form of metal, often female-fronted, that at times flirts with progressive rock and is an improbable melting pot of proto-metal like Motörhead, showtunemeisters like Andrew Lloyd Weber, past academic music pioneers like Carl Orff and epic film score writers like Hans Zimmer. Epica is front and center of the second generation of bands embracing the genre.

Epica has a new line-up with Ariën Van Weesenbeek now a full-time member on drums and Isaac Delahaye taking over lead guitar. Both come from the death metal band God Dethroned and their presence ensures that Epica, instead of drifting slowly away from the Beauty and the Beast template of the genre like Within Temptation did long ago, stands its ground... Therefore, instead of veering towards a mostly soprano-fronted sound like Tarja's Nightwish while keeping a few grunts for the scenery, Epica embraces the contrast with some excellent results, in particular on the title track, Martyr of the Free World or Deconstruct.

That said, Epica is more than ever Simone Simons' stage. Her voice does not seem to have suffered from her medical problems and she is at ease with pop or operatic vocals. Being a mezzo-soprano, her voice is particularly rich in the mid-range. Of course, singing for a symphonic metal band where bombast is the blood of life, she is often used in a higher range where her timbre shines less, to deliver the soaring anthems that are the guilty pleasure of the genre. And that she does magnificently on many tunes, the most impressive being Tides of Time which could have been syrupy but is instead a great metal lied, perhaps better than Living a Lie or Safeguard to Paradise on TDC.

Since DYU is an Epica album, the song roster cannot be simple. There is of course a quasi-mainstream song, the early released and first video Unleashed which is remarkably catchy, in the same commercial vein as Never Enough from TDC. But songs on an Epica album are often part of something more complex. Not only can they act as prologue (Indigo or The Final Embrace on TDC, Samadhi and the Price of Freedom here) but they also belong to song cycles that span several records. The first one, The Embrace that Smothers, dealing with organized religion, was a collection of nine songs started when Mark Jansen was still with After Forever, and came to a close with TDC.

The second, A New Age Dawns, deals with the collapse of the Mayan culture and possibly with the new, fashionable Y2-12 bug (the end of calendar times...). This cycle was started in 2005 on Consign to Oblivion and DYU adds three songs to the ongoing catalog: Resign to Surrender, Kingdom of Heaven and Design your Universe. They add to the canon and fuse with the overall vibe of DYU: not only that our passivity will be our downfall but also that it is not too late, that we can will ourselves to change the tide, design our universe if you will.

This of course makes Epica's work a little complex to follow. The effort as a whole, particularly seen album to album, is titillatingly ambitious, like an Ayreon continuing saga or Dream Theater's Mike Portnoy's chronicling of his recovery.

All this makes Design Your Universe a spectacular, no compromise Symphonic Metal album and probably one of the best albums of the year in any genre. It is particularly welcome since the ranks of Symphonic Metal are temporarily thinned. After Forever, perhaps the most underrated of all the founding groups of the genre, is disbanded and Floor Jansen is still at work putting a new band (ReVamp) together. Within Temptation has a light schedule due to baby duties. Nightwish will show in 2010 whether they can follow their brilliant Dark Passion Play or follow the less impressive Made in Hong-Kong. Krypteria and Lacuna Coil have both produced in 2009 good but very mainstream poppy albums and others like Tristania or Xandria have to adapt to a new singer.

Which leaves Epica at the top of their game with their best album yet.

"

Epica does it again!

Zephyr | 11/03/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After the long anticipation of waiting for Epica to release a new CD, it is finally here! I'm not one to write reviews on every CD I like, but I think this one deserves it. I truly believe this is one step forward for Epica once again. There isn't one CD by this band I could really say stands out as my favorite because they all have their ups and downs. With Design Your Universe, the band decided to go for a more "heavier" sound and prove why they belong in the symphonic metal genre. Many will argue it's a bad thing and many will probably say it's good for them. I am one of those who says good for them! Fans of "Consign to Oblivion" may not be too happy with this change as that was the only CD with very few of Mark's repeated growling, and altogether the CD had a more soft side to it.

On this CD most of the tracks feature the growling, and as an added bonus, way better choirs. Epica also did something they have never done before-- they added guitar solos. I felt this was missing for a long time from their music and kept wondering when they would add them in. They belong in the songs and they definitely don't take away from them. Simone sings in a much more variety of ranges and goes from sounding almost "pop" like to her usual operatic voice. The band has also added a Duet featuring Tony Kakko (Sonata Arctica) and actually has two songs over 9 minutes long ("The Kingdom of Heaven" and "Design Your Universe").

"Design Your Universe" explores the topic of new breakthroughs in quantum physics and their 13 tracks as well as their lyrics revolve around this topic. Truth be told, I had to read their Wikipedia page before I even began to understand what they were singing about. A lot of times, Epica explores topics that seem very deep and something that you really have to explore on your own; re- read their lyrics before you even remotely began to see the light at the end of the tunnel telling you what exactly you're hearing. This however is something that sets the band apart from the other hundreds of female fronted symphonic metal bands. The fact that their messages are deeply hidden within their music makes you listen to them over and over again to figure it all out. They just released their new video "Unleashed" which is track number 3 on their new CD. I watched it on YouTube and I truly didn't understand it at first. Then I read an interview online with Mark where he went onto explaining that the video portrays a married couple who go home to their apartment and the woman's husband gets shot by burglars. The man dies, but his soul still lingers there and doesn't understand he's dead or why his wife can't see him. That right there is something that isn't very obvious on the first watch, but can eventually be figured out.

Epica seems to be always so convincing with their lyrics and messages, that sometimes hidden deep within there are corny bits to their songs and some things that make you just go, Why? This CD actually only had two tracks where those feelings evolved for me. The first one being the duet with Tony Kakko. "White Waters" is truly a beautiful love song, and Simone does a top notch job. However, Tony's vocals weren't up to par for me. It took away the credibility for me that this song was written by a symphonic metal band, it wasn't really powerful enough and actually brought me minutes of Deja Vu when I listened for the first time to Nightwish's first release where the male vocals were provided by Tuomas. The song is good, but the male vocals bad... The second time I asked why and this time I actually burst out in chuckles, this has never happened to me before, was on the song "Kingdom of Heaven". The song itself is really heavy, but somewhere along the way, somwehere in the middle to be more exact the song is just butchered for me. There is a spoken piece in there, I believe it might be Mark? (I am not one hundred percent sure on that) God actually speaks.

"God: It's not your time

You have to go back... back!

Now!

Guy: No, no, I don't want to return,

Please let me stay here, don't make me go back

God: Go back, you've got work to do"

The above was taken straight from their lyrics. Just reading it, it isn't bad, but give it a listen on the track and it sounds unconvincingly lame. Why? simply because the person playing God and the guy God is talking to is voiced by the same person (at least it sounds that way). There isn't a variety between the two people talking and it seems like the person is arguing with themselves in an almost bipolar way. It really ruined the heavy mood of the song, at least for me, and made the whole track rather unconvincing because by the time it was over, I was still stuck on the one spoken piece. However, none of these reasons are reasons why this couldn't be a five star CD and none of the tracks are bad. They are all awesome in their own right. Stand out tracks for me were "Martyr of the Free World", "Resign to Surrender", "Burn to a Cinder" and a very pretty slow songs is "Tides of Time".

Once again a top notch release from Epica, and definitely one step forward. They don't seem to be the type of band that by their second or third release tone down and don't improve. Finally a band that actually gets better and better. They deliver the "goods" every single time and leave you with a release you don't get tired of listening to. This isn't something that will ever make it to the radio in the U.S.A. or something that you will hear blasting out of people's cars (although you might hear it from mine), but it is GOOD and they are talented. They weren't ruined by MTV or people's opinions and keep growing as a band.

"

Nothing Comes Close

Metal Maniac | Here | 12/10/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have roughly 160 Gigs of Metal/Rock/Death/Black Metal/Industrial/Symphonic/Goth etc all collected over the last 10 years or so, and nothing I have ever heard can in my opinion hold a candle to this album. I have never felt the need to write a review about music, after listening this a couple times I couldn't stay away from writing about it.

This album is bombastic to the extreme in a way that makes other attempts seem silly, however it pulls it of the flawless execution. It is so deeply layered with a multitude of sounds and flawlessly pulls off grunt vs harmony that I can't fault any of the main songs (the ballads are not my style, of which there are only 2 on this album).

As a musician myself I can appreciate the intricacies of blending an orchestra, choir, and female fronted death metal band, and doing it well. It is very well done, the transitions are fluid and dynamic. There is quite a bit of mixing major and minor for a dark yet inspiring and powerful sound, especially when the orchestra stays major and the electronic strings all go minor, then layer in Simon over the top with her unbelievable vocals that have an incredible range of style and sound, and it comes together in an album that does not fit in a little package of "symphonic metal" or any other label, it defies it, and it does it well.

I think why it strikes me as so unbelievable is that it takes so many components of all the different various types of rock/metal/etc that I listen to and combines it into one band with extremely complex songs that still have enough accessibility to be enjoyable. Epica doesn't go off roaming on technical timing or odd off beat breaks to prove they can do it, they do it, but that is not the focal point, the focus is the balance of Simon and everything else in harmony. Yes, it has honest to god Harmony.

In the same way that certain classical pieces can inspire very strong emotional reactions in people who truly appreciate them, Epica can inspire the same, and oddly enough, Kingdom of Heaven, a near 14 minute song, can swing emotion all over as it twists and turns through power portions and then flows back into a darker death sound.

All that said, if you like complex, strong music that you can listen multiple times and pick out new things for quite a few listens, this album is for you, though, if you want something that you will hear on the radio and be "cool" , this isn't it, they will never get air time, it's too much for the general public to consume.

Forget 5 stars is a 10/10 :)"

Brilliant, but perhaps too much B&B...

R. Areman | 02/19/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"As a connoisseur of the genre tentativly entitled "Symphonic Metal" for many years (my first contact was with Nightwish in 2003), I have listened to many bands either fronted solely by men (Kamelot, Symphony X, Sonata Arctica,etc) or by a more female focus (Nightwish, Delain, Tears of Tragedy,etc). The middle ground, or B&B (beauty and the beast) as it is usually reffered to, highlights and contrasts a male and female voice. Not being much of a fan of the Beauty and the Beast method with which After Forever in particular mixed heavy grunters and female Opera vocals, I avoided Epica with a passion.

Lucky for me, I happened to be listening at a friends computer and overheard Never Enough from Epica's album The Divine Conspiracy. Suffice to say, I decided to give them a second chance and so I bought The Divine Conspiracy. I ended up loving it, but due to the length of many of its songs (which were extended because of the repetitive and dull riff sections put in for grunter Mark Jansen's vocals and further exacerbated by the lack of guitar solos) ended up not listening to many of its songs more then couple of times

Hearing that the ex-God Dethroned death-metal drummer Arien van Weesenbeek would be joining Epica's current line up of Simone Simmons(vocals), Mark Jansen (rhythm,vocals), Yves Huts (bass), Coen Janssen (piano) permanantly with his shredder buddy Isaac Delahye, I waited with baited breath to see what Epica would do with their fourth studio album, Design your Universe. Having listened to the album five or six times by now, a couple of design changes to the epica universe (damn, that was a terrible pun) have definitely lifted Design Your Universe up and above all of Epica previous albums. Unfortunatly, despite these changes and improvements, it still suffers here and there from some of the problems I have come to associate with Epica.

Pros:

1- Guitar Solo are finally here! Isaac clearly decided that it would be quite boring to stand around riffing for songs of 10 minutes in length without some variety and so almost every song features a fantastic solo.

2- The song melodies are brilliant for the most part, and as a drummer, I find the drumming incredibly varied and unique.

3-The lyrics, which I could wax upon all day, are of very high quality despite some questionable writing in the song Kingdom of Heaven

-Man: I don't want to return. Don't make me go back!

-God: Go back! You've got work to do.

Otherwise, stellar.

Cons:

1- With the joining of ex-death-metal players, Epica seems to dive even deeper into the Beauty and the Beast contrast, and in my opinion, this is usually a bad thing. Though in a few stellar tracks, the duet is perfect and Jansen helps the tone, most of the time his grunts are the same, and become annoying quickly.

2- The mixing in previous albums always put the guitars in the back of the mix, making Epica sound overly symphonic, and lacking in power. However, though this problem is rectified in Design, it is way overboard. The guitar riffs tend to drown out the piano and keys, and lessen the impact of the choir. I would prefer is somehow they strike a more perfect balance between the two on Epica's next album.

Song-by-Song:

1-Samadhi (Prelude) - Very soundtrack-esque song, built as the album introduction. One of Epica's best instrumentals, and even manages to incorporate melody themes from the song Resign to Surrender into its end structure. 5/5

2-Resign to Surrender - (A New Age Dawns Part 4)- Mark Jansen continues his theme of the fall of Mayan civilization that he began on the album Consign to Oblivion. This song begins with a powerful choir, and then jumps into a driving metal riff. Mark's vocals are actually distinct and you can hear what he is saying clearly. I wish all the songs had this clarity; it would make the grunts more tolerable. The guitar solo is fabulous and as it is the first on the album, it made a particular impact on me. A brilliant, albeit heavy, opener. 5/5

3-Unleashed- I am sick and tired of people calling this song a "poppier", single oriented track (as if that makes it any less then the other songs on this album). It has heavy riffs, double bass, and a rousing powerful chorus. Though more approachable then most 10+ minute epics, it is in no way less then many of the other songs on Design. I loved its transition into an almost Sharon del Adel (from Within Temptation)fluttery bridge. Great song. 4/5

4-Martyr of the Free Word - Easily the heaviest song in Epica's library, it reaches almost a thrash metal pulsing beat remnisce of bands like Metallica and Slayer. This does not lessen the incredible lyrics and melody's. It has literally the best contrast of B&B in the end of the chorus, where the music drops out for a second, and then explodes with Jansen. I can't get enough of it. 5/5

5-Our Destiny- The rhythm on this song is really great and the melody is, once again, distinct and lovely. It also is Arien first major break from explosive double bass, and makes the song more relaxed (as much as you can be on an Epica album). Great shredding by Isaac once again. 4/5

6-Kingdom of Heaven- (A New Age Dawns Part 5)- I have very mixed feelings about this one. Although it clocks in at 13 minutes (and though I love songs like Poet and the Pendulum and Ghost Love Score from Nightwish that are also of this length), like The Divine Conspiracy (song) I feel that it just can't hold up overall. The lyrical choices are not nearly as strong as the rest of the album, and the abrupt time transitions hurt the overall dynamic of the song. It also wears out its welcome far before the end, despite valient lead guitar bits by Isaac and fascinating Saamba style beats from Arien. Majestic and very different, but far less enjoyable then the title song. The melody is also weaker then some of the other, shorter tracks. 3/5

7-The Price of Freedom - One of the coolest interludes I have ever heard (and I have heard A LOT of Kamelot), this 1+ minute song starts with piano and melds in voices of charismatic leaders in America. I think I heard Obama, Martin Luther King Jr., and Kennedy. 5/5

8- Burn to a Cinder- very eastern styled singing and really powerful choir. Fun, great guitar solo, a little long at 5:41. 4/5

9-Tides of Time - the first ballad of the album, it is a gorgeous song where Simone Simmons shows off her dynamic control of her opera/classical vocals and her prettier (and though I want to kill myself to admit this) "pop" style. Beautiful, moving lyrics and a slower emotional guitar solo justify the length. 5/5

10- Deconstruct- Mark's voice is low enough that I barely noticed it, but is somewhat unnecessary. Solid song. Not much to say, besides that I love what Simmons does here with the jumping verse and chorus. Shorter for an Epica song at only 4 minutes. 4/5

11-Semblance of Liberty- here is where Epica breaks what they had fixed for Resign and Martyr. The opening is awesome, but then it moves into a jumping and tedious riff. Changes time all over the place, but not in the best way. Mark dominates this song so much it reminds me of the failure Menace of Vanity from Divine Conspiracy. The use of George H. Bush in the lyrics is cool, but the lyrics on the whole are not great. The length is also a bit much. I guess some metallers might like , but I really didn't enjoy this one. 2/5

12- White Waters - the second ballad on the album, featuring a nice duet between Tony Kakko from Sonata Arctica and Simone. Nothing to go crazy about, but pretty and short. Interesting airy dynamic on Simones part. I like Tides a little better. 3/5

13-Design Your Universe-(A New Age Dawns Part 6)- The title track, and the coup de grace of the album, Design attempts to put everything that makes Epica a standout in its genre into this song. Powerful and driving, Simone's parts mainly consist of very dynamic and softer vocal pieces, but the orchestra and Mark are the focus of this one. I wish Simone had done a duet with the choir after Marks chorus like she does live, instead of leaving them on their own. Much stronger song then Kingdom of Heaven, and does more with its length then Kingdom does. Despite being over nine minutes, it holds it all together and finishes Epica's album with a bang. 5/5

14-Incentive (Bonus Track)- Coming after Design Your Universe, and featuring a full-on metal song featuring Mark solo, I really felt it was anticlimatic. Not a very good song in my opinion. 2/5

-56/70 total including interludes and bonus.

-44/55 without interludes and bonus

Overall, I found Design Your Universe to be a well-designed, innovative album. Epica is clearly pushing boundaries, and unlike The Divine Conspiracy, it doesn't feel forced. With great variety, powerful riffs, GUITAR SOLOS!, and Simone Simmons shining with her usual grace, this album is a must for Symphonic Metal lovers. I just hope that on their next album they balance the mix a little more, and use Mark the way he is in Resign to Surrender and Martyr of the Free Word; more understandable and with better contrast to Simone. Don't be afraid to buy this; it's worth it! Support a great band!"

A Masterpiece!

R. Schaefer | 01/07/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is one of those rare events where you just have to wonder how anyone could have conceived it. How does one set out on a journey like making this album? The music is so complex, so beautiful, so reverent, so heavy metal exciting. I've listened to the album maybe 30 times, and your perspective on each piece changes over time. I've come to crave Mark Jansen's grunting parts, especially on the final piece, "Design Your Universe," where Mark's grunting is punctuated by explosions of sound. How does one marry diverse elements like Tibetan throat chanting, castinets, incredibly beautiful lead guitar riffs, choirs, heavy, heavy power drumming, grunting, and then the mega beautiful singing by Simone? It comes together perfectly. For me, and I'm an older person, it means a change in my perspective of music. I can let go of the past. I don't have to crave Neil Young at his best, or long for Jimmy Page's riffs on Stairway to Heaven. I can turn around and look forward, and that is very meaningful for me. Guess what, Isaac Delahaye shares an exclusive place among guitarists, he is awesome! Finally, I have to say that I cannot listen to "Tides of Time" without tearing up each time. When Simone transitions from her regular voice to her opera voice, you will think you're in the presence of something divine. The best album I have ever heard."

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	Epica Design Your Universe Genres: Pop, Rock, Metal Mezzo-soprano Simone Simons and guitarist Mark Jansen have broken new ground and created an inspiring, triumphant piece of work. Varied and accessible, these compositions (as just calling them songs wouldn't give them due ... more » « less
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