In a new interview with with Paltrocast host Darren Paltrowitz, EPICA vocalist Simone Simons was asked if it was a “difficult” process making the band’s upcoming album, album, “Aspiral”. She responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “It didn’t feel difficult. It was definitely more intense because we had scheduled more writing camps where we would get together to spin off each other’s brains or spawn ideas back and forth, also together with our producer. And I think compared to how we did it back in the day, let’s say before [2021’s] ‘Omega’, we were often writing, recording while still being on the road. And that, I think, is more difficult. And we learned from that mistake by making more time, clearing our schedule to really focus on the writing and recording of the album, to stay in the flow and to keep a better balance. We toured a lot in our whole career, but for us it’s also important that we get to put the right amount of energy and focus into creating new music because that definitely has the priority. Without music, we cannot tour. Of course, we have a lot of albums now, but still it’s a new way how we roll nowadays.”
To celebrate the “Aspiral” release, EPICA will play three exclusive shows in the United States in early May: in New York City, Atlanta, and Los Angeles. Tickets and VIP upgrades will go on sale this Friday, February 28 at 10 a.m. local time.
The “Aspiral” LP title is derived from the eponymous bronze sculpture made by Polish sculptor and painter Stanisław Szukalski back in 1965 and stands for renewal and inspiration — key words that define EPICA in 2025. In Szukalski‘s work every detail is a piece of art in its own right, and there’s always more to the story than you initially think. The band saw this as the perfect analogy for the creation of this ninth album: each song stands on its own with a distinctive vibe and meaning, while together they enforce each other into a monumental effort.
The album, featuring stunning cover artwork by Hedi Xandt (RAMMSTEIN, GHOST, PARKWAY DRIVE),is now available for pre-order. The special editions even include the Blu-ray and audio recordings of the full monumental “Symphonic Synergy” performance in Amsterdam that the band recorded in 2024 with an orchestra and choir.
Recorded once again at Sandlane Studios and expertly mixed and produced by Joost Van Den Broek, “Aspiral” boasts 11 new tracks:
01. Cross The Divide
02. Arcana
03. Darkness Dies In Light – A New Age Dawns Part VII
04. Obsidian Heart
05. Fight to Survive – The Overview Effect
06. Metanoia – A New Age Dawns Part VIII
07. T.I.M.E.
08. Apparition
09. Eye Of The Storm
10. The Grand Saga Of Existence – A New Age Dawns Part IX
11. Aspiral
The band’s music video for the uptempo anthem “Cross The Divide”, directed by Kunststoff, can be seen below.
In a recent interview with Mexico’s Euphonico, Simons stated about the inspiration for the LP’s first single, “Arcana”, she said: “Well, it was kind of a lot of things coming together. Rob [Van Der Loo, EPICA bassist] and I are, besides colleagues, we’re also really good friends. And he had a deck of tarot cards with him. And I thought, ‘Just for the fun of it, let’s do a session. Let me draw some cards and then you explain to me what they mean.’ And it was a very enlightening experience, I guess. The song, the music was also written by Rob. And then I came up with the idea, like, ‘What if I write a song that’s kind of inspired by the meaning of the tarot cards and the session that I had with him and what I think it meant for me at that time in my life and where I am now?’ So, yeah, it’s a very — how do you say? — soul-searching kind of topic, and that’s something EPICA has been writing about for quite a while, but so far we haven’t touched on the tarot subject. So I thought this could be a cool topic to integrate in the new album, which is all about reinventing yourself, like a rebirth, renewing yourself. So it kind of a cool thing to draw inspiration from.”
Elaborating on the writing and recording process for EPICA‘s upcoming album, Simone said: “I think ‘Arcana’ was one of the songs that came together quite quickly. We had many writing camp sessions in Holland. We rented a house where we were meeting a couple times for, like, a week in a row, and we were all just sitting together. And Rob had also kind of a clear view of what he wanted vocal-wise, and then he just let me do my thing. And it went very naturally to write the lyrics.
“The vocal recordings [for the new EPICA album] took place in the summertime, which is a good time to do so because autumn [and] winter is a time when everybody gets sick,” she explained. “So, for me, it’s great if I’m in the summer in the studio, so I’m in a good shape or not running a risk of getting a cold and that it affects the voice, because I did have to record albums back in the day where I did get sick. And luckily you can’t hear it. I know which songs are the ones. But it was a very smooth process. We worked together with the same producer, Joost Van Den Broek, who became a little bit like the seventh EPICA bandmember. And it’s great working with him. Yeah, we were diving into all the little details and we were really concentrated on making the songs as a band together.
“I think people that don’t know EPICA, they don’t know that we don’t live in the same village,” Simone added. “We live, actually, in four different countries. So for us to get together and really work on the songs is tricky. And we started doing that already for ‘Omega’, and we really liked that, to clear our touring schedule, because we tour a lot and to really be there together and not everybody at home in their home studios. You get a total different result if everybody’s there in the same room; you feed off each other’s creativity, and that’s very beneficiary for the songs.”
Asked if there is a main songwriter in EPICA or if everybody contributes to the songwriting process, Simone said: “Everybody gets to write songs. And some songs, I think the guys did write demo songs on their own, because we all have our home studios, and when we were together in the writing camp, then we were sparring off ideas and sending each other the files, and then everybody was working on a random song at the same time. There was a funny moment where, I think, Coen [Janssen, EPICA keyboardist], Ariën [Van Weesenbeek, EPICA drummer], Rob and I were sitting in the living room area, but kind of far apart from each other, and Coen was working on a song and he thought he had his headphones plugged in, but it was running out of the speakers. And then we said, ‘Oh, cool. That sounds great. Which song are you working on?’ And he was, like, ‘Oh shit, you guys could hear what I was working on.’ So it was everybody in different rooms. Isaac [Delahaye, EPICA guitarist] was in the attic playing the guitar, and I had to wait until very late before I could go sleep ’cause he went on writing music, recording guitars until almost one o’clock in the morning. But it was a really lovely experience. And everybody gets to write songs and everybody gets to work on those songs. So, we all put our little own salsa on the songs. [Laughs]”
“Arcana” marked EPICA‘s first new release since “Omega” and the collaboration EP “The Alchemy Project”.
The single is now available on all streaming platforms. It also includes “The Ghost In Me (Danse Macabre)”, EPICA‘s recently released collaboration with Europe’s second-most visited theme park, Netherlands’s magical De Efteling, and their much-anticipated new attraction, Danse Macabre.
The previously released music video for “Arcana”, directed by Remko Tielemans, can be seen below.
In a recent interview with Spain’s Mariskal Rock, Simone stated about EPICA‘s upcoming album: “I’m so happy with the songs, I’m so proud how everything turned out and it’s gonna be another amazing EPICA album. We added a couple of new elements, but also went back to the roots, the old EPICA. And yeah, I just can’t wait for people to hear this.
“I loved ‘Omega’ and we toured so much with ‘Omega’ and had wonderful experiences, but then when you reach the end of a touring cycle, you start to get itchy and feel, ‘Okay, now it’s time to do the new album. Can we do it as good or maybe even better than the last album?’ That’s always the thing we strive for, ways to renew ourselves a little bit. And we feel a very strong spiritual connection also that it’s our ninth album. So there’s gonna be themes around the symbolic meaning of nine, the number nine.”
Elaborating on the musical direction of EPICA‘s next album, Simone said: “The songs are heavy. There’s a beautiful ballad, a very cinematic song, very uptempo, very doomy, melancholic and amazing, amazing power riffs. It’s the most epic EPICA, I think, so far. Yeah, I think so. I mean, I’m feeling it. I’m very happy with it. I’m proud of it.”
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