Search - Revamp :: Revamp

Forever After

philippe deroin | Gaithersburg, USA | 06/15/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Floor Jansen didn't so much lose her crown than put it aside for a while and go on walkabout following the collapse of After Forever at the end of 2008. A first follow-up project (with Pagan's Mind Jorn Viggo Lofstad) is still in limbo, the second took off and ReVamp was born, carrying high the After Forever crown. This is indeed very much an AF album, Jansen reuniting with After Forever keyboardist Joost van den Broek and producing a rather recognizable sound. The other musicians, including Grip's Waldemar Sorychta on guitar and bass, flow in pretty easily.



ReVamp is a clear success. The album is a collection of three to five minutes song, the center ones forming the mini-epic "In Sickness `Til Death Do Us part", and is a wonderful showcase for Jansen, all songs creating a sense of unity and tightness pleasant for a starting band while allowing the singer to go all over the map.



Of all the lead singers of the genre, Floor Jansen has been at the same time the most powerful, the most dynamic and one of the most versatile, matched perhaps by Anneke van Giesbergen, but no other delights as much in prowling all over her vocal range and abilities. The songs range from immediately accessible power ballads (Sweet Curse, Under My Skin) to little scorching numbers Krypteria should do but does not (The Trial of Monsters), to what seems like a dead-on Within Temptation pastiche (I Lost Myself). The mini-epic switches styles and mood throughout. As for the bonus track (No Honey For The Damned), it may be the most After-Foreverish tune of them all, or at least as much as "Million". No filler.



Why not five stars ? Well, since there is no male lead singer in the band, ReVamp has invited guests, George Oosthoek on the opener "Here's My Hell" Björn Strid on the heavy "Disdain" and Russell Allen on "Sweet Curse". All three do a good job but their presence kind of blurs the new band's identity. On another note, even with the support of a few real strings, van den Broek's keyboards have the flaw often encountered in symphonic metal bands, creating the feeling of an orchestral presence but too much on the synthetic side, as is obvious when bands have access to a real orchestra like Epica with 2009's The Classical Conspiracy.



As an aside, it should be said that while the ending of After Forever was rather bleak, it now appears that the history of the band will have been one of creative destruction. Like several early symphonic metal bands (Theatre of Tragedy also comes to mind), After Forever never got all the credit it deserved, the genre having not yet settled into an established -and sometimes gimmicky- form. But the legacy is there. Mark Jansen's early departure in 2002, instead of dooming the band, led to the growth of Epica, the new standard bearer that produced last year their best album yet, Design Your Universe. Floor Jansen, who gained a lot of creative space after Mark's departure, now resurrects After Forever, albeit with a slightly different vibe. And Sander Goomans, whose burn-out did a lot to bring about the demise of AF, came back in 2009 with a new band, HDK, also with Joost van den Broek, and a no holds barred, brutal album (System Overload) amusingly using as a lead female voice that of Amanda Sommerville, familiar to "soft" metal projects but not so much in more extreme genres. HDK is a third shadow of After Forever, which comes through on many songs (listen to Breakdown for example).



The legacy is in good hands.

"

Floor Jansen is back!

Katie | USA | 07/03/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"After the break up of After Forever two years ago, we finally have the long awaited album of Floor Jansen's new band, Revamp. To some degree, despite the long break, the album still seems to have been a little rushed. Floor only announced her new band around the beginning of this year and the album was out within months. While I'm not complaining about having this new treat from Floor, I feel as though she could have put more time into it and produced a solid 5 album.



That said, the album is wonderful. Floor is, without doubt, the most versatile female metal singer out there. She can sing in an operatic style, or soft and beautiful, or pull out a rough, hard metal voice. The album mostly rides on Floor's voice - I wouldn't say there is a huge amount of instrumental stand-out. This is one weakness of the album: it is basically Floor pulling through powerfully and the rest of the band fades into the background. The album follows closely in the style of After Forever's more recent albums. I would not say there has been a lot of growth since then but this album certain sets a great debut from which to grow further.



A break-down of the songs...



1. Here's My Hell - 3/5

Not necessarily the strongest start to the album. Floor's voice is actually somewhat drowned out at points by the heavy instrumentals. I like the theme of the song and the chorus is nice but nothing special.



2. Head Up High - 3.5/5

We've heard this one a lot before the coming of the album. The instrumental parts are strong in this song and it's a good typical Floor Jansen song.



3. Sweet Curse - 5/5

Great soft duet with Russell Allen from "Symphony X." Floor shows off ballad ability and she and Russell sound great together. I would have almost liked to see more of Russell.



4. Million - 2/5

Unmemorable. Fairly boring.



5. In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part: All Goodbyes are Said - 3.5/5

I like the whole three part "In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part." They build upon each other. This one is not as heavy as the other two but starts to increase in intensity throughout the song. The lyrics are great throughout the trilogy.



6. Break - 4/5

Starts softer and then they break out the metal. The chorus is very powerful.



7. In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part: Disdain - 4/5

The second part of the trilogy is definitely more intense than the first. We get the "Beauty and the Beast" style here with some male screams and Floor's singing together. I think this style works great for ReVamp (it was extensively used in After Forever) and I'd like to see more of it. This sort is reminiscent of De-Energized by After Forever.



8. In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part: Disgraced - 4.5/5

Tops off the trilogy. Great lyrics, nice variety of styles in one song.



9. Kill Me With Silence - 4.5/5

Very good song. Floor shines in this song and the whole thing has much more of a flow to it than many of the other songs.



10. Fast Forward - 5/5

By far, one of my favorite songs on the album. The verse is very heavy and Floor rips it apart wonderfully. The chorus is catchy.



11. The Trial of the Monster - 4/5

This song has the catchiest intro on the album. Great instrumentals here. The lyrics stand out for a band that tends to be so-so with lyrics.



12. Under My Skin - 5/5

Not necessarily a ballad but still a fairly light song for Floor. It reminds me a little of Within Temptation and Delain. Again, Floor proves that she can sing many different styles.



13. I Lost Myself - 2/5

I skip this song usually. It bores me. No offense, Floor, but while you're good at singing ballads, you're not that good at writing them (with the exception of the nice surprise, Sweet Curse).



14. No Honey For the Damned (bonus song) - 5/5

This is hands-down the best song on the album. I still don't understand why it was put last as a "bonus" song rather than towards the beginning to draw in the listener. It is epic, has a great chorus, good lyrics and I love the strings playing with Floor during the chorus."