Talking with the Epic Voice of Epica Interview with Simone Simons
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Talking with the Epic Voice of Epica Interview with Simone Simons As Epica continues to spread their music worldwide and grow in popularity so does their vocalist, mezzo-soprano Simone Simons. No matter where she goes or whom she sings for, the audience not only reacts to her powerful, on-stage presence, but to her stunning voice as well. It is hard to imagine Epica without her, and yet, she was not the first chosen vocalist, but, without a doubt, the right choice. Among the many ties Epica has with other bands, probably the strongest one is with Kamelot, after all, they took their name from Kamelot's epic album, Epica. However, these ties do not end there given that Simone Simons has made several guest appearances on Kamelot's The Black Halo, Ghost Opera and their latest album, Poetry for the Poisoned, as well as her sentimental relationship with Kamelot’s keyboard player Oliver Palotai. This relationship has also led her to be the female vocalist for Oliver's other band, Sons of Seasons. Given Simone’s close relationship to Kamelot, it was no surprise to find her touring and guest starring in Kamelot’s 2011 Pandemonium Over Europe tour. This finally gave me the chance to sit down with the voice behind Epica, Simone Simons. When facing Simone, her powerful on-stage presence disappear, the diva becomes a kind, soft spoken, delicate flower with a lovely sense of humor. As we speak in the privacy of the tour bus, she allows me insight into her thoughts about Epica, Kamelot, as well as many other aspects of her professional and personal life. Nerissa: Here we are with Simone Simons from Epica. Simone: Hello. Nerissa: First of all, I know you've worked a little with Kamelot. Simone: A little? (Laughs softly) A lot. Nerissa: True. Compare what it is like to work with each one of them, Epica and Kamelot. Simone: Well, Epica is my band, of course, and with Kamelot I'm a guest musician. But I've known Kamelot as long as I've known Epica, basically from the start. Epica was also involved with Kamelot, so, it's a little bit like a second band, and, I've toured so many years with Kamelot, I sing in four or five songs in the last three records and I'm always honored that they ask me again. So, I must be doing a good job, I think (laughs softly), plus, my boyfriend has been the keyboarder for the past six years. So, basically, it's like I'm a band member of Epica and, like, part-time member of Kamelot as well. And bands, the music, sounds completely different, but I like both bands. I already loved Kamelot before Epica was there, so, it's a nice chain of events. Nerissa: Epica is a spin-off of After Forever. Simone: Yes, Mark was originally part of After Forever and then he quit and his new band was called Epica. And Epica is the same as Kamelot's album, Epica. We were called Sahara's Dessert before, for like only two or three months. We were recording in the same studio as Kamelot, in Germany, they were recording Epica, the record, and we really loved the name and also the meaning of Epica, it's the place in the universe where you can find all the answers to the questions of life, which is like the main topic of our lyrics. So, it was all meant to be epic. (Laughs softly) Nerissa: So, after defining the meaning of Epica, describe what Epica means to you personally. After all, those of us who listen to Epica have our own perception. Simone: Yeah, I guess for me it's totally different to the people who listen to our music. To me, it's a lifestyle, it's a huge part of my life. It's not a job, it's really, you know, who you are as a musician. You never work from nine to five, you're always working, you're always having creative ideas. And, Epica has been in my life for eight years, travelling all around the world, I know the guys so well, we've been through some hard times and some good times. And we are all pretty fortunate to be in a successful band, part of it is thanks, we can thank ourselves because we are hard workers, but it is also luck and having a great fan base which has supported us through the years. So, for me Epica is like, yeah, a huge part of my life. Nerissa: OK, describing Epica as a huge part of your life, how would you say, if any, has this affected your personal life? Simone: Oh, sure, a lack of privacy (laughs). You lose a lot of your privacy and that's something I find very difficult to cope with because I am a very private person and I like my privacy. But you can forget about that once the band becomes bigger, more people want to talk to you, have photos with you, autographs, and a lot of people kind of could become stalkers and stalk you, follow you to your hotel, when you are having breakfast and they call you in your hotel room and, even stand in front of your hotel room, which can sometimes be pretty scary. And, yeah, it's not a nine to five job, basically you have to be available all the time and sometimes it can become a little too much. I'm only one person and everyday hundreds of people at the venue want to talk to me, have photos with me. I don't have enough time and I also have to be careful with my health because I have quite a history of health problems so I try to be extra careful when encountering too many people. I had MRSA for three years. I had to take it easy because my immune system was low for so many years that the contact with a lot of fans or a lot of people in general, made me ill. I was very vulnerable for bacteria and stuff, I had to be careful. But I'm 100% healthy now, but, still, in the back of your mind you always think, ok, health is the most important thing and I've jeopardized my health too many times. Now I think, ok, my health comes first, I need to rest a lot, in the past I didn't rest a lot. You have a very irregular lifestyle so I try to sleep a lot, and, indeed, wash my hands as often as I can, do sports, eat healthy, I don't party, I don't smoke, my only vice is candy. Nerissa: Oh, mine's chocolate. Simone: Oh, I love chocolate! Nerissa: Most personal song. Simone: (Thoughtful pause) All my lyrics are basically, come from my point of view, put into a different, what am I trying to say? A different code, a different jacket. But, uhm, I can't just name one because they are all dear to my heart, the ones I wrote. I write half of the lyrics, Mark writes the other half. So, I think the last one which is dear to my heart would be Touch of Time, it's about the circle of life, new life also means that somebody has to die and, yeah, kind of a tear jerker (laughs heartily). Nerissa: The creative process, where do you get your ideas for the songs, how do they come to be? Simone: Well, I'm not the one who writes the music. I write half of the lyrics and a big part of my vocal lines. Mark is the main composer in the band, we have the bass player Yves and the keyboard player Coen and Issac will also contribute to the writing process. But as far as I know, one of Mark's idols or inspirations, he loves movie scores, you can hear them in our music, it's very epic, very, you know, soundtrackish (hearty laugh). I think he likes Chopin, he likes Opeth, he was a big Guns n' Roses fan in his younger years although I don't think you can hear Guns n' Roses in our music (laughs). Everything in there lyric wise, Markus reading all those books on quantum physics, the Mayan culture, near death experiences, he likes to write about political issues, extremes within religions, that was actually what we had encountered in The Divine Conspiracy which we both co-wrote the lyrics about extremes within religions. We are not saying that religions are false or, I actually do believe in the strength of religion although I am not religious. But, it can take different shapes and dangerous directions. I think everybody should be free to believe whatever they want without trying to indoctrinate everybody or judge people for thinking otherwise. I think we are all free to be whatever we want as long as we leave each other at peace. Nerissa: Anything you'd like to add? Simone: Well, we are writing our new record right now, we're doing a couple of summer festivals. Then, at the end of the summer we'll hit the studios again and at the beginning of 2012 there will be a new Epica record! Until then I am also touring with Mayan and Sons of Seasons. Nerissa: Let's talk about Sons of Seasons, what can you tell me about the band? Simone: Well, I'm Oliver's first baby, so, the Seasons is his second baby (laughter).