EPICA Keyboardist: 'The General Appreciation Of Music As An Art Form Has Decreased'

October 18, 2013

Raymond Westland of Ghost Cult Magazine recently conducted an interview with keyboardist Coen Janssen of Dutch female-fronted symphonic metallers EPICA. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Ghost Cult Magazine: Can you start by telling us how the whole "Retrospect" project came to life?

Coen: It all started with the notion that we wanted to do something special because of our 10th anniversary as a band. We always celebrated special occasions with EPICA, so this was another good excuse to do something special. [laughs] The idea was to come up with our most elaborate stage show to date in order to celebrate our 10th anniversary with our fans. We had a lot of things going on, so it took quite some time to actually get the whole "Retrospect" project off the ground. We finally made it happen in March this year.

Ghost Cult Magazine: From what I've heard it was basically Isaac [Delahaye, guitar] and yourself who did most of the work. Can you elaborate on this?

Coen: Well, EPICA is a band consisting of six persons who all have their own specific roles to play. With the "Retrospect" project, I kind of took the role as project manager, if you will. It may sound a little pretentious, but I coordinated and oversaw the whole process. I acted as the nexus between the band, the technicians, management and everyone else who were involved. Isaac took care of the PR and he did a lot of the design work for the stage props we used during the show. Everyone involved worked incredibly hard to turn "Retrospect" into a stunning experience for our fans. Putting the setlist together was a true group effort and it came together relatively easy. We were pretty much on the same page as far as the picking the songs we wanted to play went.

Ghost Cult Magazine: You've been a member of the band since its inception. What are the things you really witness changing, be it for better or for worse?

Coen: The music industry has changed completely and not always for the better. The rising importance of social media is another poignant development. Sometimes I jokingly say that EPICA is one of the last Dutch metal bands that can actually pull off a spectacle like "Retrospect". It's sad, really. The general appreciation of music as an art form has decreased as well. Because of the Internet, people can discover new music much faster. That's a great thing, but it does take a lot of the mysticism away. It seems that people's attention span has grown shorter and they don't value new music as much anymore, not as they used to. It's becoming harder and harder for new bands to reach a certain level so that they can sustain themselves. As a band we've been very fortunate in that regard.

Ghost Cult Magazine: EPICA are one of the most successful Dutch metal bands, especially abroad. What are your thoughts on that?

Coen: I see it as a form of recognition for a decade of hard work and dedication. It's very fulfilling to see a band you've built growing. At the same time I realise that we're a relatively small player, especially compared to some of the major Dutch acts, like KANE, BLOF and MARCO BORSATO. WITHIN TEMPTATION is a big deal in the Netherlands and abroad. But then again, a lot of the bands I just mentioned are only big in the Netherlands and nobody has heard of them once you're past the Dutch border. Popularity is a very relative and fleeting thing. [laughs] I count myself lucky that we can play all over the world. It's quite surreal when you're leaving a plane after a long flight and you find yourself in China. It's those things that make me love my job.

Read the entire interview at Ghost Cult Magazine.

Find more on Epica
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).