ReVamp (album)
Encyclopedia
ReVamp is the self-titled 2010 debut by Dutch
symphonic metal
act ReVamp. The album was released in Sweden
and Finland
on 26 May 2010, in Germany
, Austria
, Switzerland
, The Netherlands, Belgium
, Italy
and Spain
on the 28 May 2010, and the rest of Europe
on 31 May 2010; it is set to be released in USA on 27 July 2010.
The album is the first release by lead singer Floor Jansen
since her previous band After Forever
's self-titled album
of 2007.
act After Forever
went on a hiatus, and the band officially disbanded in February 2009. Lead singer Floor Jansen
posted on her website that while After Forever was on hold (and since then disbanded), she would use this opportunity to start writing music with Jorn Viggo Lofstad (Pagan's Mind
, Jørn Lande
) for a new musical project. On 16 June 2009, Floor announced through her Myspace site that she has started a new metal band, which has put her project with Jorn Viggo from Pagan's Mind (called Sinh) on hold. On 17 October 2009, Floor Jansen announced via myspace that the name of her new band was ReVamp. ReVamp contains former After Forever keyboardist Joost van den Broek
and guitarist Waldemar Sorychta
of Grip Inc.
, Voodoocult
, and Eyes of Eden
fame as songwriters and producers. She soon started looking for members to form her new live band, and asked visitors of her website to send in applications for the parts of drummer, guitarist, bassist and keyboard player.
In February 2010, Jansen had signed up for an album deal with Nuclear Blast Records, leading to the release of the self-titled debut album that summer.
noted on the album: "[t]he music is heavier than some of you might expect. Bombastic; but with heavy riffing. Complex and pounding drums mixed with melancholic strings. Crazy synth-sounds mixed with a beautiful choir. A wall of sound, yet transparent and versatile". Jansen also told fan website FlooRocks.com in an interview that "opera is still in it, but not as much" (referencing the famed opera-grunt-duality of After Forever)
Guest members:
Dutch people
The Dutch people are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in Suriname, Chile, Brazil, Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and the United...
symphonic metal
Symphonic metal
Symphonic metal is a term used to describe heavy metal music that has symphonic elements; that is, elements that are either borrowed from classical music or, as with progressive rock music, create a style reminiscent of it, e.g...
act ReVamp. The album was released in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
on 26 May 2010, in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, The Netherlands, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
on the 28 May 2010, and the rest of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
on 31 May 2010; it is set to be released in USA on 27 July 2010.
The album is the first release by lead singer Floor Jansen
Floor Jansen
Floor Jansen is a Dutch singer, who was the lead singer of the symphonic metal band After Forever which disbanded in 2009, and is the current singer for ReVamp.-After Forever:...
since her previous band After Forever
After Forever
After Forever was a Dutch symphonic metal band with strong progressive metal influences. The band relied on the use of both soprano vocals and death grunts. In February 2009, it was announced that After Forever had disbanded.-Biography:...
's self-titled album
After Forever (album)
After Forever is the eponymous fifth and final album by Dutch symphonic metal band, After Forever. It was released in the United States on September 28, 2007. The bonus track "Lonely" appears on the digipack edition. The album reached position No. 6 on the Dutch album charts.-Track listing:All...
of 2007.
Production
In 2008, symphonic metalSymphonic metal
Symphonic metal is a term used to describe heavy metal music that has symphonic elements; that is, elements that are either borrowed from classical music or, as with progressive rock music, create a style reminiscent of it, e.g...
act After Forever
After Forever
After Forever was a Dutch symphonic metal band with strong progressive metal influences. The band relied on the use of both soprano vocals and death grunts. In February 2009, it was announced that After Forever had disbanded.-Biography:...
went on a hiatus, and the band officially disbanded in February 2009. Lead singer Floor Jansen
Floor Jansen
Floor Jansen is a Dutch singer, who was the lead singer of the symphonic metal band After Forever which disbanded in 2009, and is the current singer for ReVamp.-After Forever:...
posted on her website that while After Forever was on hold (and since then disbanded), she would use this opportunity to start writing music with Jorn Viggo Lofstad (Pagan's Mind
Pagan's Mind
-Biography:Founded in 2000 from the band Silverspoon by Nils K. Rue, Thorstein Aaby, and Stian Kristoffersen. Pagan's Mind released their first album, Infinity Divine, that same year. The following album, Celestial Entrance, was released in 2002 and was a relatively big success even outside of...
, Jørn Lande
Jørn Lande
Jørn Lande is a Norwegian hard rock and heavy metal singer who has sold over 2 million records worldwide. He is probably best known for being the lead singer of the power metal band Masterplan.-Biography:...
) for a new musical project. On 16 June 2009, Floor announced through her Myspace site that she has started a new metal band, which has put her project with Jorn Viggo from Pagan's Mind (called Sinh) on hold. On 17 October 2009, Floor Jansen announced via myspace that the name of her new band was ReVamp. ReVamp contains former After Forever keyboardist Joost van den Broek
Joost van den Broek
Joost van den Broek was a keyboardist in the metal band After Forever. On the album After Forever, Joost had the opportunity to collaborate on the composition and production of the album alongside other band members. Van den Broek will appear on the Sinbreed album When Worlds Collide...
and guitarist Waldemar Sorychta
Waldemar Sorychta
Waldemar Sorychta , is a German heavy metal musician, songwriter, producer and artist who lives in Dortmund Germany since 1982.- Career :He initially worked with the German thrash metal band Despair, founded in 1986....
of Grip Inc.
Grip Inc.
Grip Inc. is a groove metal band and a side project of drummer Dave Lombardo. The band was formed in 1993, and they are currently signed to SPV Records...
, Voodoocult
Voodoocult
Voodoocult was an international thrash metal band formed in 1994 by Phillip Boa, vocalist of the alternative band Phillip Boa & The Voodooclub. The project was especially notable for the reputation of the participating musicians, such as Chuck Schuldiner , Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo, and Mille...
, and Eyes of Eden
Eyes of Eden
Eyes of Eden is a German symphonic metal band founded in 2005 by multi-instrumentalist and record producer Waldemar Sorychta. Sorychta initially chose Sandra Schleret as the singer, but she became ill and could not finish the recordings for the first studio album. She was replaced by the...
fame as songwriters and producers. She soon started looking for members to form her new live band, and asked visitors of her website to send in applications for the parts of drummer, guitarist, bassist and keyboard player.
In February 2010, Jansen had signed up for an album deal with Nuclear Blast Records, leading to the release of the self-titled debut album that summer.
Reception
Infernal Masquerade Webzine calls ReVamp "a very impressive first release [...] Something that we completely expected from Floor Jansen, and we hope this band continues to improve in the future". The Metal Forge gives ReVamp nine out of ten stars and claims "Floor's new creation has a different kind of vibe [from After Forever] that makes her stand out above the rest, and ReVamp is on a one way train to success, never to go back. [...] [The album] offers Floor's convicting vocals, lots of symphonic passages from the keyboards and crunching guitars and drumming that border extreme melodic metal. It may sound a little generic at time, but no one can doubt the power behind the music." Meanwhile, Lord K Philipson of website Global Domination is in his review of ReVamp's debut extremely critical especially to lead singer Floor Jansen, claiming that "her vocals are flat, she’s not even carrying a pleasant tone.", and that she is "backed up by some piss-poor half-metal with cheap keyboard sounds alongside very tiring song arrangements. It’s like they didn’t even try".Music description
Lead singer Floor JansenFloor Jansen
Floor Jansen is a Dutch singer, who was the lead singer of the symphonic metal band After Forever which disbanded in 2009, and is the current singer for ReVamp.-After Forever:...
noted on the album: "[t]he music is heavier than some of you might expect. Bombastic; but with heavy riffing. Complex and pounding drums mixed with melancholic strings. Crazy synth-sounds mixed with a beautiful choir. A wall of sound, yet transparent and versatile". Jansen also told fan website FlooRocks.com in an interview that "opera is still in it, but not as much" (referencing the famed opera-grunt-duality of After Forever)
Track listing
- "Here's My Hell" (feat. George Oosthoek) - 5:12
- "Head Up High" - 3:32
- "Sweet Curse" (feat. Russell AllenRussell AllenRussell Allen is the singer of the American progressive metal band Symphony X.-Biography:Before working with a rock band, he was a jouster at a Medieval Times Dinner Theater. He was introduced to the band Symphony X by former singer Rod Tyler...
of Symphony XSymphony XSymphony X is an American progressive metal band from Middletown, New Jersey.Founded in 1994 by guitarist Michael Romeo, their albums The Divine Wings of Tragedy and V: The New Mythology Suite have given the band considerable attention within the progressive metal community...
) - 4:16 - "Million" - 4:20
- "In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part 1: All Goodbyes Are Said" - 3:32
- "Break" - 4:06
- "In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part 2: Disdain" (feat. Björn "Speed" Strid of SoilworkSoilworkSoilwork is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Helsingborg. They are currently signed to Nuclear Blast. Formed in late 1995 by Björn Strid and Peter Wichers, originally under the name Inferior Breed, the band changed their name in late 1996 to Soilwork .Their sound is a fusion of the classic...
) - 3:32 - "In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part 3: Disgraced" - 3:28
- "Kill Me with Silence" - 3:56
- "Fast Forward" - 3:57
- "The Trial of Monsters" - 4:20
- "Under My Skin" - 4:07
- "I Lost Myself" - 3:30
- "No Honey for the Damned" (bonus track) - 3:56
Personnel
- Floor JansenFloor JansenFloor Jansen is a Dutch singer, who was the lead singer of the symphonic metal band After Forever which disbanded in 2009, and is the current singer for ReVamp.-After Forever:...
- Vocals - Waldemar SorychtaWaldemar SorychtaWaldemar Sorychta , is a German heavy metal musician, songwriter, producer and artist who lives in Dortmund Germany since 1982.- Career :He initially worked with the German thrash metal band Despair, founded in 1986....
- Guitars, Bass - Koen Herfst - Drums
- Joost van den BroekJoost van den BroekJoost van den Broek was a keyboardist in the metal band After Forever. On the album After Forever, Joost had the opportunity to collaborate on the composition and production of the album alongside other band members. Van den Broek will appear on the Sinbreed album When Worlds Collide...
- Keyboards
Guest members:
- George Oosthoek - Vocals, on Here's My Hell
- Russell AllenRussell AllenRussell Allen is the singer of the American progressive metal band Symphony X.-Biography:Before working with a rock band, he was a jouster at a Medieval Times Dinner Theater. He was introduced to the band Symphony X by former singer Rod Tyler...
- Vocals, on Sweet Curse - Björn "Speed" Strid - Vocals, on In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us, Pt. 2: Disdain