Celebrating 20 years in 2022, Epica continues to roll out captivating new content all the time along side they launch of Epica Universe. The band previously announced reissues of The Holographic Principle and The Quantum Enigma! They will also perform an anniversary show at Tilburg’s 013! Continuing the celebrations, the band has today released a live video for “Beyond The Matrix,” taken from the Zenith in Paris. Watch the video now!
Epica has prepared a massive celebration from January to December to mark their twenty years. Starting with re-relases of their first three albums, including the now-classic The Phantom Agony, Consign To Oblivion, and The Score 2.0, via Nuclear Blast. with an extensive physical re-release on CD, vinyl, as well as strictly limited earbooks and boxsets later this year. They have an anniversary show on September third taking place at the same venue Epica played their first show: The legendary 013 in Tilburg, The Netherlands. They also just launched their new immersive site, Epica Universe. Continue reading
Apocalyptica has announced they have been forced to postpone their expected co-headline tour of Europe with Epica, “The Epic Apocalypse” until 2023. The band cited “the worsening situation of Covid all around Europe” as the cause of the second postponement of the tour that was to take place originally in 2020. This move does not affect their current tour of churches in Finland.
Colorado Springs Symphonic Metal band Beyond Forgiveness has been on our radar for a while! Originally formed as a studio project as well as working through finding the perfect line-up, the band released their first EP, “The Ferryman’s Shore.” Featuring new singer Talia Hoit, the album was well received and the bands’ star is again rising! Reformed in 2014 by original guitarists Richard Marcus and Greg Witwer, the band is known for their creative songcraft featuring classical orchestras, choirs, and operatic vocals with hint of folk, colliding with extreme elements found in death metal and black metal which some have labeled as “Beautality.” In 2019, the band released their second full-length album, Live to Tell the Story (Sliptrick Records). Fans of Epica, Nightwish, Battle Beast, and Delain, but also more extreme styles will love this band. Check out this vocal-sing-through of their track by Talia Hoit, here at Ghost Cult!
It should come as a surprise to no-one that Omega (Nuclear Blast), the eighth full-length studio release from Dutch symphonic metal act Epica, is another concept-driven album. Formed in 2002, the band are widely known for their ambitious ideas and themes, covering everything from the Mayan civilization to religion, nature, quantum physics and the possibility that the universe is actually digitally created hologram. You know, simple stuff.
Epica has released a new music video for their song “Freedom – The Wolves Within”. The track comes from the upcoming new album Omega, due out on February 26th 2021 via Nuclear Blast Records. Omega is the band’s first studio album in five years. Last month, Epica also revealed the first single and video clip from the album, titled “Abyss Of Time,” which was viewed on YouTube over a million times within its first week. Watch the video here: Continue reading
A duo comprising Czechian vocalist Viktorie Surmøvá (Bohemian Metal Rhapsody) and Týr guitarist Heri Joensen, symphonic metal act Surma was formed in 2018 but spent the following year writing and arranging the music for their debut release.
First Row Talent boss John Finberg is the gatekeeper of some of the biggest touring bands in the Rock and Metal World concert touring the world: Nightwish, Epica, Amorphis, Warbringer, Suffocation, Immolation, Sonata Arctica, Overkill, and The Agonist, are among his current and past clients. To say he is enormously powerful and influential is an understatement. In an expose from Metalsucks.net today with many people alleging sexual harassment, bullying, racism, misogyny, and threats of violence from Finberg for many years. The article has case of after case of people and bands with run-ins with him, and all of it sounds appalling. Many former victims, bands, and music journalists took to social media to rant about him and comment on the story. Finberg has made no comment at press time, and it is unclear if Metalsucks attempted to reach him for comment before running the story. Typically in the case of sex assault allegations, you change the names of the victims for protection, which they did, and often don’t get a comment first from the accused so they don’t further endanger their victims with more threats. You can read the story at the link on their site. TW for sexual harassment and threats of violence.
Ghost Cult scribe Lorraine Lysen caught up with the great Arjen Lucassen of Ayreon for a wide-ranging interview a few months ago. They chatted about The Electric Castle Live project, the visuals of Ayreon Universe live, working with John de Lancie, rock operas, concept albums, Vin Diesel, Star Trek TNG, upcoming new music, and much more.
Continue reading
