Check out this chat that SOM had with the drummer Ariën van Weesenbeek on November 16th in West Hollywood.
First of all, let’s talk about this North American tour. How has it been so far and also, how has the public been reacting to the concerts when comparing to European and South American crowds?Well, so far it’s been going really, really well I must say. We had really nice shows, it has been pretty “packed” every night and everybody is really into it.
The crowd has been increasing. The music has been spreading out perfectly. It is really amazing that the venues where we are playing are quite “packed”. Sometimes they are bigger venues, sometimes smaller venues but overall they are pretty big I must say… not stadiums but big clubs! It looks pretty full. Not sold out but that doesn’t matter… as long as it looks full.
Comparing to Europe or South America, I guess, the intensity it is like South America but they [North Americans] are not standing the whole afternoon here to wait to get in [inside the venue] and in South America they do. The American crowd is in a way more aggressive than [the] European [crowd]. It all depends… sometimes in Europe you have some more aggressive shows but I guess here it is more like a habit.
You had a belly dancer dancing onstage in Vancouver a few days ago. How did this happen?
Oh yeah. It was a surprise for us as well. Apparently, there was an e-mail going on like, 5 months ago and we said: “Oh yeah, sure!” I guess she got most in touch with Mark [Jansen] and asked him: “What do you think if I’ve danced in one of your songs?” [He answered]: “Sure, it’s fine”. In Europe we do that every now and then in special occasions. Yeah, so, she was there, we were there so “What the hell”. It was nice!
You guys have also played at the Progpower in Atlanta this year. How was it?
It was fun. It was prior to our South American tour. It was on the 14th of September and we played with Epica as well as with Mayan. It was also a packed venue. But, it is a different festival than in Europe. Usually the European festivals are open air and this was like a big indoor fest. It was nice. It was a good experience.
This year you have released “Requiem for the Indifferent”. This was a very well reviewed album. Many people have compared it to “Design your Universe”. In your opinion, what are the major differences between these two albums?
Yeah. I guess most people do that. I guess it is a habit: you release an album and it alwa
ys gets compared with the previous one. I guess it’s normal.But, if you want to make a comparison, “Requiem for the Indifferent” it’s to me is a “colder” album, more “mechanical” while “Design your Universe” sounds maybe more “organic”, it has a warmer sound. And they have turned out different from each other and that’s what I really like: it is still Epica but it’s different worlds.
Also, when you look at the cover, its greyer… it looks colder compared to “Design your Universe” [which] is colorful and so is the music. [Requiem for the Indifferent] has this cold vibe, maybe a bit harsh, you know? Maybe industrial. Both albums are dynamic but in a different way, apart from each other. I guess that’s a good way to put it… I think (laughs).
You have released for this new album, the video for the song “Storm the Sorrow”. This video seems like a big production. Was it?
Yeah… we shot it in two days and it was really fun. We stood in front of a real rain machine, with medieval clothes, wearing paint on and doing those faces [he does like a screaming face] (laughs). I was having muscle pains the day after because of the swinging with the sticks and the big gestures. But, it was really fun. I got in some sort of “trance” with the water and the [again he does the screaming/growling face]. So I guess the final result was pretty cool.
There was a lot of computer enhancing of course. The studio was pretty small but it looks like it was in a big area… like a big forest or something. It was a big production but not huge.
Next year will be Epica’s 10 year Anniversary. You have a celebration concert happening in Holland, in March. Can you tell us what will be happening in this concert?
It’s going to be in Eindhoven which is in the South of Holland. It is going to be a “Retrospect”. That’s the name of the show. It is going to celebrate the existence of Epica for 10 years. We are going to do it with a real orchestra and a real choir just like we did with the Classical Conspiracy (we did it in Miskolc, Hungary) but now we are going to bring that whole showcase to Holland.
We are going to make a selection of songs from all the albums, maybe add some new ones, some soundtrack… maybe with some special guests, in a big venue and hopefully we can sell it out. If you guys want to buy tickets for that, please do because this is going to be a rocking show and it will be a night to remember.
CCCCC">Anything else planned for the Anniversary celebration next year?
No… I guess that’s pretty much the only thing. We want to celebrate it like a one time [thing], in a really big way and that’s a really special event. We are working on releasing a DVD for that and that’s also a way to celebrate it.
A few months ago, you guys have recorded the song “Forevermore” with a very special fan from Holland. Can you tell us a little bit more about that experience?
It was fun to do. And it was really nice to make that guy so happy and it was really interesting because he wrote the song by himself (just with some keyboards and vocals). He asked us to make it into an “Epica style” and to record it with us in the studio. He was really surprised with the outcome and our version of it. He couldn’t describe it, he was like: ‘I don’t have any words for this”. This guy has autism, he has talent but never had the opportunity to display it or work with it. So, this TV show invited him to participate and they asked us if we were willing to cooperate and of course we were. We were more than happy to do so. Yeah… it was a great experience. It was really, really nice to see that guy have the “moment of his life”. It made us happy too.
It was already declared in previous interviews that you guys already have more than 10 songs written for the next album. Can you give us a little information on this topic?
Mark has been writing some stuff. It is pretty catchy and pretty “rough” stuff. Isaac [Delahaye] wrote some stuff as well, Cohen [Janssen] is working on some tunes, I’ve wrote some little parts. So, yeah… it’s in the works.
Do you have any idea of when you will be recording this album?
Maybe next year, in September, we are going to the studio. But, first we have some more touring to do, we have the 10th Anniversary show, we have some festivals coming up, we are going to Australia in April, some Asian shows as well… and after the whole “fuss” then it’s time to go into the studio again…
Any messages to the SOM readers?
Yeah. I have a message. If you guys are interested in seeing a very special Epica show, come to Eindhoven next year, it’s on March the 23rd. You can order tickets online and really… come and check it out. You are going to have a great night. It’s going to be awesome. Just yeah… if you want to rock, come to Epica!
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Interview done by Deesse_de_la_nuit
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