Epica

Epica is a Dutch symphonic metal band formed in the Netherlands in the early 2000s by guitarist Mark Jansen after he left After Forever. He recruited mezzo-soprano vocalist Simone Simons, whose operatic voice became the band's defining feature, alongside a lineup built around orchestral arrangements, choirs and heavy guitar work.

The band's 2003 debut, The Phantom Agony, established their sound: a dense fusion of extreme metal riffing, symphonic orchestration and Simons's soaring vocals, often layered against Jansen's harsh growls for contrast. Singles like «Cry for the Moon» and the title track became genre staples. Later albums such as The Divine Conspiracy and Design Your Universe, released after the band moved to Nuclear Blast, expanded their ambition with conceptual storytelling and larger-scale production, cementing Epica among the leading acts of symphonic and gothic metal alongside peers like Nightwish and Within Temptation.

Over the years the lineup evolved, with guitarist Isaac Delahaye and drummer Ariën van Weesenbeek joining, while Simons and Jansen remained the creative core. Tracks like «Storm the Sorrow» and «Unleashed» show the band balancing accessibility with technical complexity, and Epica has continued to tour and record extensively, maintaining a strong following among fans of orchestral and progressive metal.