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Groene Engel, Oss, The NetherlandsJanuary 20th 2006
Epica & Auracle
The song ‘The Green Angel‘ from metal band Autumn is in my head when I walk to the venue. It is a typical cold winter night but inside the long queue with gothic people makes me forget my freezing hands. Tonight there is a special ‘battle’ between two gothic bands: one is already a big name, the other is here to prove that they can be a new Dutch talent: an interesting combination.
Auracle
In the early days Auracle were called Mythica and started as a studio project. Joris van de Kerkhof is the spiritual father of the band. At the moment he is very busy developing their debut album. With the vocal coupling of Bryan and Amelie there is a strong face to the band. In general there is an over abundance of high soprano, female fronted bands in the gothic scene. Luckily, at first sight this band is different, and not only that, they have more: they have their own unique style.
In the early days Auracle were called Mythica and started as a studio project. Joris van de Kerkhof is the spiritual father of the band. At the moment he is very busy developing their debut album. With the vocal coupling of Bryan and Amelie there is a strong face to the band. In general there is an over abundance of high soprano, female fronted bands in the gothic scene. Luckily, at first sight this band is different, and not only that, they have more: they have their own unique style.
Music
Joris (synths) knows how to create clear songs with many elements, without over complicating things. Their first demo has a lot of choir and Arabic elements and still gives enough space for the vocal lines. The songs translate very well on stage. When the band enter the stage it is already pretty busy in the front. A lot of fans came especially to support Auracle today. The intro starts and after some minutes Amelie enters the stage. Dressed in a red skirt with a black top she looks a bit strict. Her voice, on the other hand, is pure and very clear. The duet ‘ Crystal Lies’ is a perfect setting to show what this duo are capable of. The heavy guitar lines are a strong base for the high and energetic voice of Bryan. Suddenly Amelie comes in with some high parts and she gives the song body with her dynamic techniques. Half way through the set there is a long instrumental part where Joris creates a dreamy atmosphere, suddenly broken by the heavy drum parts and a clean guitar. Maybe the silence was a little long because the audience is just showing their energy and with a up-tempo song Auracle could bring the show to a higher level. They soon return with a solo from Bryan and he brings the power back. Amelie comes back and the duet is not sweet, more dynamic, and she adds a dimension to it which makes their sound so special. Soon the heavy head banging part is there with the song ‘Land of the Gods’. After all a well balanced gig with a nice sound (not too loud) and Auracle is musically a powerful machine with enough energy to convince the audience.
Joris (synths) knows how to create clear songs with many elements, without over complicating things. Their first demo has a lot of choir and Arabic elements and still gives enough space for the vocal lines. The songs translate very well on stage. When the band enter the stage it is already pretty busy in the front. A lot of fans came especially to support Auracle today. The intro starts and after some minutes Amelie enters the stage. Dressed in a red skirt with a black top she looks a bit strict. Her voice, on the other hand, is pure and very clear. The duet ‘ Crystal Lies’ is a perfect setting to show what this duo are capable of. The heavy guitar lines are a strong base for the high and energetic voice of Bryan. Suddenly Amelie comes in with some high parts and she gives the song body with her dynamic techniques. Half way through the set there is a long instrumental part where Joris creates a dreamy atmosphere, suddenly broken by the heavy drum parts and a clean guitar. Maybe the silence was a little long because the audience is just showing their energy and with a up-tempo song Auracle could bring the show to a higher level. They soon return with a solo from Bryan and he brings the power back. Amelie comes back and the duet is not sweet, more dynamic, and she adds a dimension to it which makes their sound so special. Soon the heavy head banging part is there with the song ‘Land of the Gods’. After all a well balanced gig with a nice sound (not too loud) and Auracle is musically a powerful machine with enough energy to convince the audience.
Performance
Maybe more important than the music is the performance. For many people who see a band for the first time the movements and attitude on stage are more convincing. Auracle understood this very well from the beginning. The big stage helps the members to show their talent. Joris’ keyboard is moved to the left front side and on the right, guitar player, Nienk has his position. Bass player Fred makes the circle round to stand more in the back besides the Marco’s drums. A good ‘choreography‘ which makes the circle free for the singing couple. Bryan is a singer who has an eye for everything that happens around him. He dares to show his character on stage: running around, hanging on the shoulder of Joris and suddenly he kneels down to look the audience in the eyes. Amelie is more modest in that way. She also moves but she needs more time to feel comfortable on stage. After some songs her hair is no longer tied back, the metal attitude is more obvious. She looks more natural now and believe it or not this couple look like they are have performed together for a long time. Smoothly they fill in each other’s movements and interact in a very natural way. This makes it very interesting to follow the show. Not only because of their strong vocal parts but also the curiosity in the story they have to tell. The emotions are real and not overdone and it grabs you that is for sure! Well the battle is not won, cause Epica simply act on a more professional level, but they surely came very close: A winning combination because Auracle showed to be high qualitated enough to add themselves in the raw talent Goth metal bands in The Netherlands. Close after Epica, After Forever and Autumn.
Maybe more important than the music is the performance. For many people who see a band for the first time the movements and attitude on stage are more convincing. Auracle understood this very well from the beginning. The big stage helps the members to show their talent. Joris’ keyboard is moved to the left front side and on the right, guitar player, Nienk has his position. Bass player Fred makes the circle round to stand more in the back besides the Marco’s drums. A good ‘choreography‘ which makes the circle free for the singing couple. Bryan is a singer who has an eye for everything that happens around him. He dares to show his character on stage: running around, hanging on the shoulder of Joris and suddenly he kneels down to look the audience in the eyes. Amelie is more modest in that way. She also moves but she needs more time to feel comfortable on stage. After some songs her hair is no longer tied back, the metal attitude is more obvious. She looks more natural now and believe it or not this couple look like they are have performed together for a long time. Smoothly they fill in each other’s movements and interact in a very natural way. This makes it very interesting to follow the show. Not only because of their strong vocal parts but also the curiosity in the story they have to tell. The emotions are real and not overdone and it grabs you that is for sure! Well the battle is not won, cause Epica simply act on a more professional level, but they surely came very close: A winning combination because Auracle showed to be high qualitated enough to add themselves in the raw talent Goth metal bands in The Netherlands. Close after Epica, After Forever and Autumn.
Rating
Music 9
Performance 9
Light 7
Sound 8
Total 9 (8,7)
Music 9
Performance 9
Light 7
Sound 8
Total 9 (8,7)
Epica
The gothic band has something in common with Auracle. They changed their name also from Sahara Dust into the more ‘screamable’ Epica some four years ago. Some weeks ago they were on the road with The Old Dead Tree where they sold out almost all of the shows. The gig today also sells out in the end. The fan base in The Netherlands is still growing and they have a much younger audience.
The gothic band has something in common with Auracle. They changed their name also from Sahara Dust into the more ‘screamable’ Epica some four years ago. Some weeks ago they were on the road with The Old Dead Tree where they sold out almost all of the shows. The gig today also sells out in the end. The fan base in The Netherlands is still growing and they have a much younger audience.
Music
During the change over there is time to reload the batteries. The best thing about this venue is that you can see the stage from every position. Even in the back there is a comfortable view of the band. More kids are coming to the front and luckily there is a DJ to keep the atmosphere relaxing. After a very long break, the backdrop and sound is checked and Epica can make their entrance. The lights go down and the intro from ‘Consign To Oblivion’ sets in. A loud applause starts when drummer Jeroen enters the stage and soon all the guys are there and the show can begin.
During the change over there is time to reload the batteries. The best thing about this venue is that you can see the stage from every position. Even in the back there is a comfortable view of the band. More kids are coming to the front and luckily there is a DJ to keep the atmosphere relaxing. After a very long break, the backdrop and sound is checked and Epica can make their entrance. The lights go down and the intro from ‘Consign To Oblivion’ sets in. A loud applause starts when drummer Jeroen enters the stage and soon all the guys are there and the show can begin.
Simone’s voice is stronger than before and after some minutes it is clear that the energy is there: the whole band sounds perfect. One rather negative thing is that the sound is much too loud. This is a shame because the arrangements are more catchy when the sound is more balanced. The set list has not altered much but it is still a good one. The old ‘hits’ like ‘Seif Al Din’ and ‘ Sensorium’ are mixed with new ones like ‘Dance Of Fate’ and ‘The Last Crusade’. There is a good vibe amongst the band tonight. Epica returns twice for an encore to satisfy the fans. Both sides are giving everything during those last moments. That is what made this evening so special: the energy was there for the whole show and with a rare intensity.
Performance
All the songs are received with a lot of enthusiasm: there was a fan meeting before the gig and that surely helps to bring the show to a higher level. There is a lot of interaction between the band and the audience: people are screaming, making a moshpit and half way through the set Epica is going strong: Mark screams his lungs out with a big smile on his face and Simone is also asking a lot from herself. She moves a lot and the stage is big enough to give more space to the other members. Ad and Yves are running around and that makes it all less static. Coen is head banging during his keyboard parts, singing along and pushing the fans to scream with him. Mark, who half way through the show throws away his shirt (in imitation of Coen, who doesn’t wear a shirt either), looks very metal in his leather trousers. A good interpretation when he starts ‘Crystal Mountain’ from the legendary death metal band Death.
All the songs are received with a lot of enthusiasm: there was a fan meeting before the gig and that surely helps to bring the show to a higher level. There is a lot of interaction between the band and the audience: people are screaming, making a moshpit and half way through the set Epica is going strong: Mark screams his lungs out with a big smile on his face and Simone is also asking a lot from herself. She moves a lot and the stage is big enough to give more space to the other members. Ad and Yves are running around and that makes it all less static. Coen is head banging during his keyboard parts, singing along and pushing the fans to scream with him. Mark, who half way through the show throws away his shirt (in imitation of Coen, who doesn’t wear a shirt either), looks very metal in his leather trousers. A good interpretation when he starts ‘Crystal Mountain’ from the legendary death metal band Death.
Mark explains to the audience: ,,Everyone who loves metal knows that Chuck was such a great musician. I really respect him, so make a huge moshpit now!” It is a risk to choose a song like that but the guitar parts from Ad are unique enough. The grunts from Mark are also more deep and heavy than we hear on the new Epica material. So in that way the metal side of Epica is still very much alive. After that Simone comes in to play some older songs and when the lights go down the audience is sweaty and tired. Keyboard player Coen returns to thank the audience and asks if they want more. He also has a special message for his mother: ,,Mom I am not wearing the leather trousers every day, so don’t worry!”
Rating
Music 9
Performance 9
Light 7
Sound 6
Total 8 (8,4)
Music 9
Performance 9
Light 7
Sound 6
Total 8 (8,4)
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