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Epica - Design Your Universe

SKU NB2345-2
The beauty and the beast wars are over and Epica has won. Until Floor Jansen comes through with her new project we have to consider Simone Simons the last woman standing. This is the band's fifth studio album and probably their most bombastic. Stunning female vocals mixed with death growls and a wall of synthesized orchestrations and power chords. You all know the drill by now. These guys are the masters of the genre.
  • Style:Gothic Metal
  • Record Label:Nuclear Blast
Your Price $12.00
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Customer Reviews

Average Rating

Won't spend too many calories here since the guys below captured the sheer brilliance of this album quite well. Highest recommendation. Leyth
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Though it’s still symphonic gothic power metal, Design Your Universe is quite a departure from Epica’s previous discs and they’ve really stretched themselves on this one; it is much more ambitious and less accessible than anything they’ve done before and it took me quite a few listens to even begin to absorb what they are doing, though the second half settles down more into the highly accessible melodic style that pervades The Divine Conspiracy. In a word, the arrangements are mostly epic, fast and often bombastic heavily layered lightly complex percussion with their signature sweeping majestic keys; the melodies, however, are driven mostly by Simone’s vocals and the choir, which is the main departure from their earlier discs. Simone sounds even better than she has before and that’s saying a lot – she is surely in the same class now as Floor Jansen (though she’s not the live front-woman Floor is by far). I can’t say at this point that I like this more than The Divine Conspiracy but I can say it’s competing heavily with Whyzdom / From the Brink of Infinity for my number one CD of 2009. Chris Mitchell
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This is the Epica album I have been waiting for. I always felt that their previous albums lacked something in their production, like they could of sounding bigger & heavier. Design Your Universe holds the perfect production. With the addition of two members of God Dethroned, the music is even heavier & the riffs have more "marbles" :) The sound is big, big BIG ... some of the orchestrations and voices remind me Therion's Secret Of The Ruins. Simone has never sounded better and the extent of her voice comes across throughout the album. Mark sounds meaner than ever!!!!!!!! This is EPICA at their best !!! - J.Boj
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