After having to reschedule the North American leg of its tour last fall, Epica will bring its mix of symphonic metal back to the U.S. on Jan. 21 in New York City.







Mark Jansen, the founder of the Dutch sextet, recently took time from the band’s recording of its follow-up to 2014’s epic “The Quantum Enigma” to talk with The Swerve Magazine about the upcoming tour, the band and what comes next for Epica











The Swerve Magazine: How is the work coming on the next album? Did rescheduling the US tour for the beginning of 2016 (because of the illness in Simone’s family, which we hope everyone is doing much better) affect the recording of the new album?









Mark Jansen: The new album is developing very well. As we speak, we’re recording guitars and bass. It’s very hard when something happens to your family while you’re on tour far away. One moment, someone is there and the next moment it can be over. Luckily, Simone’s father did recover but he’s one of the lucky few. Only 10% of the people recover from a severe heart attack with a coma. We are also very happy that our fans did understand our situation. For us, it was hard as well, we have waited one more week and were hoping Simone could come back but the situation kept the same for a long time. We’re glad that we could reschedule at least a part of the tour but our studio schedule got, even more, tight because of that as well. We’re still on schedule and it looks (and sounds) very good so far.





SM: You’ve said that “Quantum Enigma” is a heavier sound, yet more melodic for the band. Is the next album a continuation of the sound of “The Quantum Enigma” or is there something new emerging as you ready the new one?







MJ: The Quantum Enigma was a successful experiment and now we want to continue this road and evolve this new sound. All Epica ingredients are still there but we keep trying to get the best out of ourselves and keep looking for ways to improve our sound. I’m very proud of all of our albums but we want to avoid repeating ourselves. That’s why changing some routines sometimes can pull you out of your comfort zone and forces you to reinvent parts of your own way of working.







SM: “The Quantum Enigma” was sort of a watershed moment for the band, with the band pulling together more in the writing/pre-production process. Is that a process that is carrying over into the next record?







MJ: Absolutely, as we’re already recording the next album, I can confirm that we have worked this way again. Even intensified it!







SM: With “The Quantum Enigma” instead sending parts to each other via the internet, the band got together and worked on the material, while technology is making life easier, do you find it is also keeping people apart in a sense?







MJ: For sure. You see it also with modern telephones, you can lose yourself in it. It has many advantages but we need to be careful with the disadvantages as well. Almost everybody sometimes falls in that trap of going out with friends and spending more time on the phone than actually talking to your friends. That’s what I mean. We have these great tools with all their great advantages but there’s nothing wrong with not depending totally on them. Nothing can beat the chemistry of really being together in one room and work on songs.







SM: Epica is musically and lyrically it is smart. In a world where everyone seems to play to the lowest common denominator, Epica is exploring things like philosophy, religion, existence through various records, what led the band in this direction initially?







MJ: A desire to write about things that do matter. Make people think about useful things. If we present a topic and people start thinking about it or find strength in it, than that’s a great feeling. Of course, some people love more phantasy like lyrics to dream away and that’s fine too but we want to write lyrics that really adds something. We hope that our lyrics can contribute a bit to a better world, even if it’s a very little contribution.







SM: You and Simone write the bulk of the lyrics, seeing as that you are dealing with some pretty heady stuff (quantum physics), how does that partnership work? Is an idea born first and you both work on it? Or do you work separately and then together? Explain, if you can, a little about the process and how it changed with “The Quantum Enigma” and her not being readily available with the pregnancy and baby?







MJ: We work individually on the lyrics but every now and then we swap ideas to each other and brainstorm. For some reason, it works very well and when our lyrics come together it’s like a perfect balance. I approach topics in a different way than Simone does and so when it comes together it feels like the completion. A unity of ideas.







When she was pregnant, she still worked very hard and did her very best to balance her time. Also, once the baby was born she did an amazing job. It’s not easy to sleep, work, and take care of a baby at the same time but she managed and Epica could still keep going. Of course, we all need to adapt ourselves to the new situation but we do that with all our love.







SM: Metal seems to be bigger everywhere other than the US, being part of it is there any logic as to why that is? Also, metal fans on a whole seem to be a more loyal, dedicated bunch, do you find that so?







MJ: I have no idea why it’s bigger everywhere else. There are a few countries to be found where metal is smaller: North Korea, Jamaica, and also on the South Pole it’s hard to fill a venue being a metal band ;-) I think we have great fans in the USA as well. Metal fans all over the world have more in common than differences. Also, in the U.S. we have a very loyal fanbase.







SM: You’ve tackled the topics of science, religion, philosophy, where do you lyrically go next?







MJ: We’re working on the new album and also the lyrics are almost finished. I know already what we’re covering but without revealing too much, I’d like to say that we combine everything on this album.

