Masterminds and epic creators of the symphonic metal scene, EPICA, have worked hard to pump the blood in the heart of metal music once more and are set to see the release of their newest album on September 30th. “The Holographic Principle” is another epical masterpiece from the band, which is a crossover between symphonic, progressive, power and thrash metal, as well as modern production meets old school elements.
The band will also hit the road and skies to support this album with a huge tour around the world. I recently had a chance to have an interview with guitar player and growl screamer, Mark Jansen, where we could talk about EPICA, “The Holographic Principle”, science fiction movies and much more. You can check out what he had to say on the audio player below, along with a few excerpts:
“The Holographic Principle” will be the band’s seventh studio album, which will be released via Nuclear Blast. But how is Mark feeling about the forthcoming album release?:
“I’m really excited and I cannot wait any more, because it was already finished by the end of May and then you have to do all the promo activities and also the video clip shoots and the label needs time for the preparation of the album.
And now finally we’re almost there, it’s just a matter of two weeks now, so getting really excited.”
EPICA‘s new album won’t only be a sacred number in their brilliant discography, but a record “bigger” and more complex than previous ones. I asked Mark about the difficulties during writing and producing this album, he answered:
“I must say everything went extremely smooth, so we had no real big things. The only thing that happened was basically in the end of the recordings when we were going to mix the album, we sent all the material to our mixer Jacob Hansen and we already prepared him that it would be quite some work, because we recorded so many instruments. Some songs were about a thousand tracks for just one song. So, we wrote him be prepared and start in time as it’s going to be a lot of work and he got the material and he was instantly sick one week! (laughs)
So, we were all the time on schedule, then maybe he got a very big shock when he received all that material and then he thought ‘shit I cannot handle this, I’m sick!’ But after one week he was recovered and he started to work and basically we managed to finish the album in time. We had some listening sessions that were not with the full album, but I think everything happens for a reason and the album turned out with different songs than we initially thought. So we are happy now with the songs we have on the album, this is the way it’s meant to be I think.”
Just like any other great album, this one is also accompanied with wonderful artwork, full of eye catching details and regarding that, Mark stated:
“It’s Stefan Heilemann, it’s a guy that we work already with for four albums now and he’s always amazing us with his work. He gets the lyrics upfront with a brief description of what the lyrics are about and then he starts working. With The Quantum Enigma already he came up with great artwork, this time with The Holographic Principle it took him a bit longer because he was looking how to start. But once he was on the right track, he started working for one week nonstop and presented us with this great piece of art.
You can find many nice little details and that’s the good thing about covers, when there are some details that you only notice when you look long enough at it and there’s a few of them on this cover as well.”
EPICA‘s tour for supporting “The Holographic Principle” will start soon and it is going to be a big tour around the world. From Brazil to the UK and from New York to their homeland, the Netherlands they are going to travel far and beyond to celebrate another year of being together. The journey will be long and probably with some difficulties which obviously won’t be unfamiliar to the band, but I asked Mark about it and he answered: “It’s sometimes hard, but it’s the way you look at it – there’s hard things with every job in life and easy things. The hardest thing for being on the road is the flights, because that’s very tiring and you have to go through security every time and it’s a hassle, it’s a pain in the ass, it’s stressy. It’s also boring because you have to wait often very long. But the good side of touring is that you get to see so many places in the world, you meet many different people, you play live shows, that’s last but not least.
That’s what makes it worth it, when you play the music in front of your fans and you see the happiness on their faces – that makes up for all the troubles facing travelling.”
For more than 20 years, HENNING BASSE has been one of the most successful singers in the Rock/Metal scene. He has sung for the most influential bands in the business and toured around the globe several times. He sang amongst others for bands like BRAINSTORM, FIREWIND, HELLOWEEN, GAMMA RAY, ULI JON ROTH and is known to most as the frontman of the highly acclaimed Power Metal band METALIUM and the Progressive Power Metal Band SONS OF SEASONS. Henning is currently a member of Mark Jansen‘s band MAYAN who released their second album “Antagonise” in early 2014.
Just recently Tarja Virmakari had a chance to interview Henning, in between his busy schedule, talking about his most memorable co-operations, about MaYan, his impressive voice, work as a vocal coach. Henning also confirmed the rumours of touring this February/March with Gus G. …to know more about this and much more, please sit down and go on reading.
Hi Henning, welcome to Metal Shock Finland. Before we go to the questions, please introduce yourself, using only 3 words…
Self-employed surviving powerhouse 😉
For more than 20 years, you have worked with so many bands and artists, mentioning them all, would be nearly impossible and the list extremely long… but please tell me, What are your greatest memories and greatest band-collaborations, so far?
I got great memories with Metalium during the “ successful years, when youre regonizing the first fans in several countries like Spain screaming those lyrics out and you’re only standing there with goosebumbs all over and realising “wow they got that record”…
Meanwhile happened alot in my life.. but lets say with Lingua Mortis Orchestra feat. Rage. Our first rehersal and first show in front of thousands of people was something unique too.. cause since then it was one my childhood dreams to work and sing with an orchestra. Working with Uli Jon roth during our USA tour was something too I might never forget.
Currently you are the member of Epica – Mark Jansen’s symphonic death metal act MaYan, formed 2012 (full member since 2013), which released the second album “Antagonise” in early 2014, via Nuclear Blast. Please tell me how you got together with the band?
We`d been touring with my Ex band Sons of Seasons back in 2009 with Epica all over Europe. And it seemed very familiar hanging out, and our keyboard player Oliver Palotai is married to Simone Simmons and we were all hanging out.. Mark Jansen came up to me after asking if I would be interested in joining a new idea of writing songs. And it came up fast cause they wrote a pre production I gt to know.. it was really refreshing and even inspiring cause I never sang in something like Mayan is about.
After the album release MAYAN has played in some festivals, but not touring, is it due to other engagements? And will we see you touring with Mayan in the near future?
Never say never.. sure it is complicated to raise up touring and stuff when you got other engagements.
How Antagonise has been welcomed by fans and critics?
Since the release very positive. Antagonise sets the trademarks of this band. I guess we found our kinda style.
And what will happen next in the Mayan camp?
I guess writing for the next record and we need to talk about options regarding the touring..
You work also as a vocal coach and Producer over 10 years and you’re running your own vocal studio in Lüneburg… so, if I one day would come over to your studio wanting to learn to sing death metal, how would you start to train my voice?
I am definitly not the person for teaching how to do Death Metal grunts.. 😉
Are you still training your own voice, or has it reached its perfection?
You never never stop learning …and I am far away from perfection, I even don’t want to have perfection, there has to be an instinctively point, mixed with control regarding singing technic and emotions… you need to be the person who’s selling the song right away to the crowd, within seconds you need to be able to come up with your inner feelings, emotions in a authenticly way. BUT WITH CONTROL.
What are your personal influences and favorite bands?
Beethoven, Queen, David Bowie, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, several songs from different artists (Not only metal) to me it’s about melodys and the song has to be “strong”
Nature, Silence ,the special moment when you feel the magic..
Talking about songwriting, what is your method? I mean how a new song sees a daylight? What are your favorite topics and themes?
You could have a few chords on the piano, or on several guitar parts, put on the drum computer and try to built a reasonable song: first it’s the music.. even my people in the band do send me sometimes the finished music and I put some nice singing melodys on it with “pseudo” english.. to form phrases first.. sometimes it happens by accident, some words are cool or fitting the music then we just stick to it. Last thing is to built the real lyrics on it. It’s such a priviledge to do a pre production cause you can see your music growing better.
Talking about your instrument, your impressional voice, I read that you started at a very young age at the children’s choir of Lüneburg, later on you had professional training for classical singing. what other “ingredients” your voice has?
Patience and training I would say … 😉 it is what it is: if you tread your “instrument” and muscles well with all positive and healthy stuff it will lasts forever to stay in shape. Regarding the sound of it .. I think all life experiences good and bad: the voice sucks it, in somehow you can hear the soul of a singer if he’s able to release his rich colours and his versatilitys..
What would you like to tell me about the Metalium and Sons Of Season years?
It was a good learning process the years in Metalium I would say. Even I am also grateful for people around the globe which are Metalium fans. Still I recieve so many positive vibes and mails. But in the end it was good we ended up. There were line up changes and even the writing wasn’t really good anymore for a long time. No inspiration.
Meanwhile I started together with Oliver Palotai Sons of Seasons. I cannot thank Oliver enough for giving me the chance to write interesting and very inspiring songs back then. We had a blast creating those 2 albums. And it was good that my friend Pepe Pierez joined that band. Sons of Seasons gaved me the chance to sing differently than I did and to find my inner freedom when it comes to singing limits.
Rumours have come to my ears, saying that you’ll be touring with Gus G. in February/March… so please, tell me more about this.
True! We will tour all over Europe, looking forward to this. Gus asked me if I would join. We are friends since 2007, after our first worldtour we stayed in contact. We`re promoting his Solorecord, it’s a pure masterpiece.
In these 20 years you’ve done more than many of us put together, but I’m sure you’ve still so many plans and dreams to make come true, would you like to reveal me some of them?
To be honest:
1. to be happy (and that is meant to be staying healthy and to earn money with making music on a monthly base)
2. to have just 1 band and maybe a side thing.. since 2013 I am working on so many things to stay alive. 😉 sometimes it is not easy to manage things.. but I need to do this.
Now a hypothetical question: If you should form a new band, from the past and present musicians… so, you in voice, who would play with you and what genre you would be playing?
I would love to have nice and down to earth people in the band, I am sick of ego shit… it’s not easy to combine my wish with musicly abilitys sometimes.. but I also know alot of very good and very known people in the business who managed to be down to earth and cool, even not so known people.. there are alot maybe too much to mention.. but I would say I would put both hands into the fire for my friend Pepe Pierez. Known people like Gus G (Ozzy Osbourne) or Chris Caffery (Savatage, TSO) Michael Ehre from Gamma Ray. Victor Smolski, Uli Kusch, just to mention a few.
Henning, I thank-you for this intervew and all what you wanted to share with me. Now the word is yours, what are your greetings to your fans and to our readers?
Keep visiting my Facebook page for upcoming news and leave some nice comments there.. looking forward to see you of course in my future shows, stay healthy and keep the faith!
Dutch symphonic rockers EPICA will release their new album, The Quantum Enigma, on May 2nd in Europe, May 5th in the UK, and May 13th in North America through Nuclear Blast.
Guitarist/founder Mark Jansen recently issued the following update:
“I have been listening to our new album the whole day now and I can’t get enough of it! It sounds more modern but with all typical Epica elements inside. Refreshing might be the right word. This album has also been the result of a real group effort. It was great to see everyone being so motivated to create our best album!
Even though the sound is more heavy (the guitars, bass and drums sound so brutal!) it’s still a very catchy album as well. Some old influences from our earliest work, some references to Design Your Universe and some new elements.
I can’t wait ’till the moment you’ll be able to listen to our newborn which makes us all very proud!”
According to another update from the band, the forthcoming album will also include some acoustic bonus tracks. Stay tuned….
According to Nuclear Blast Records, Today Dutch Symphonic Death Metal formation MAYAN releases their first song called ‘Faceless Spies’ – out of their upcoming new album »Antagonise« – as lyric video on YouTube.
Enjoy the video here:
Mark Jansen comments: “’Faceless Spies’ is the last track on the album and deals about governments spying on their people, not only for safety reasons but also in order to control them.”
»Antagonise« is featuring 11 tracks, and will be released on January, 31st 2014 via Nuclear Blast. The band explains, that “it’s about the current state of the world in which a small group of elites have all the power and try to dominate humanity. The tension is rising and the outcome yet unknown.”
Picture by Tim Tronckoe
For more information about the lyrics and the production, watch the two album trailers:
The album was recorded at the “Sandlane” studio, along with producer Joost van den Broek (REVAMP, STREAM OF PASSION). Guests on ‘Antagonise’ are: Floor Jansen (NIGHTWISH, REVAMP), Marcela Bovio (STREAM OF PASSION) and the Greek virtuoso violinist Dimitris Katsoulis.
The tracklist of ‘Antagonise’ will be:
01. Bloodline Forfeit
02. Burn Your Witches
03. Redemption ~ The Democracy Illusion
04. Paladins of Deceit ~ National Security Extremism part 1
05. Lone Wolf
06. Devil in Disguise
07. Insano
08. Human Sacrifice
09. Enemies of Freedom
10. Capital Punishment
11. Faceless Spies ~ National Security Extremism part 2
MaYaN will present the album within two shows in the Netherlands on the 30th of January at the “Mezz” club in Breda and the 31st of January 2014 at the “Tivoli de Helling” in Utrecht.
According to Nuclear Blast, Dutch Symphonic Death Metal formation MAYAN has just entered the studio Sandlane to record their new yet untitled album, along with producer Joost van der Broek (REVAMP, STREAM OF PASSION) . The concept for the record critically concerns the current state of the world which is going totally insane. For example the explosive situation in Syria, governments who constantly accusing each other of lying, spying and using tricks to revoke their own population
The album will feature 10 or 11 tracks and is set for a release in January 2014 via Nuclear Blast. As a very special guest, Floor Jansen, vocalist of both REVAMP and NIGHTWISH will contribute her enchanting voice.
Vocalist Mark Jansen on the upcoming output: “I am very happy with the songs, the first album was one big (cool!) experiment but I have the feeling that the new material is more coherent and in balance. The philosophy of MAYAN is to let things happen intuitively and be totally open minded for each other’s ideas. This resulted in music that I can’t stop listening to myself! ”
MAYAN was born in early 2010 when versatile musician Mark Jansen (EPICA) started a project together with keyboardist Jack Driessen and guitarist Sander Gommans (both ex-AFTER FOREVER) to produce some heavy and technical Death Metal combined with Jack’s trademark symphonic arrangements. After writing some music together, Sander couldn’t find the time to go for it anymore. Mark then asked guitarist Frank Schiphorst (SYMMETRY, MARCEL COENEN & FRIENDS, CHRISTMAS METAL SYMPHONY), if he was interested in filling the gap. And he was. Ariën van Weesenbeek (EPICA, ex-GOD DETHRONED), Isaac Delahaye (EPICA, ex-GOD DETHRONED) and Jeroen Paul Thesseling (PESTILENCE, OBSCURA) completed the line-up. After nailing down a contract with Nuclear Blast, MAYAN wasted no time as to hire the Gate Studios with renowned producer Sascha Paeth (AVANTASIA, KAMELOT a.o.) and recorded their first album called »Quarterpast« which was released on May 20, 2011.
The current incarnation of MAYAN sees vocalist Henning Basse and Italian Opera talent Laura Macri, who were guests on the previous record, as full time members.
Check your mayan calendar, as 2014 will be the year of MAYAN!
EPICA‘s Simone Simons (vocals), Mark Jansen (guitars/vocals) and Coen Janssen (keyboards) will be participating in the rock opera video game Karmaflow. Check out the introductory video clip below:
The band is asking the fans to support the project; pre-order for both the game and the soundtrack is available at Indiegogo.com.
Epica recently checked in with the following news:
“Our show at Graspop on June 30th marked the end of the Requiem For The Indifferent touring cycle. We would like to thank all our loyal fans who have, once again, carried Epica to the next level. Our world-tour promoting Requiem For The Indifferent has given us a ton of wonderful new memories. We played a lot of new places like Australia, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Belarus and Dubai and welcomed new fans at every one of the 100+ shows of this world-tour. A new milestone for us was reached during Retrospect, the celebration of our 10th anniversary! We will never forget being on stage with this huge orchestra and choir in front of the 4,500 fans from all over the world.
“As you know we will take a step back from playing live shows for the upcoming months since Simone and Oliver and Coen and Linda are expecting children. During this period we will be finalizing our live CD, BluRay/DVD, Retrospect, which will be released in the autumn of this year. Besides that we are in the pre-production phase of the 6th Epica studio album which we will start to record at the end of this summer and which will be released in spring 2014. We can’t wait to share the Retrospect show and our new music with you all and we hope to see you on the road in 2014!!”
This week Wikimetal presents an interview with Epica’s Simone Simons, during which she talks about her career, the band’s last CD Requiem For The Indifferent, and their upcoming sixth album.
Simons also spoke about her main influences and her future plans to record a solo album.
“The Holographic Principle” will be the band’s seventh studio album, which will be released via Nuclear Blast. But how is Mark feeling about the forthcoming album release?:
