Hailing from the small Dutch village of Reuvel, symphonic metal band Epica was founded in 2002 by guitarist and vocalist Mark Jansen, a former member of After Forever. He joined forces with Ad Sluijter (guitar), Ivan Hendrickx (drums), Coen Janssen (keyboards) and Yves Huts (bass), and was soon joined by singer Helena Michaelsen, soon replaced by 17-year-old mezzo-soprano Simone Simons. Just two weeks before the recording of their first demo, a further change in personnel took place, with drummer Ivan Hendrickx being replaced by Jeroen Simons. Finally launched, the band entered the studio to record their first opus, The Phantom Agony, released in 2003. It was followed two years later by Consign to Oblivion, and the same year by the soundtrack to the film Joyride, entitled The Score - An Epic Journey. In 2007, The Divine Conspiracy confirmed the arrival of a new drummer, Ariën van Weesenbeek. The band also welcomed a new guitarist, Isaac Delahaye, on 2009's Design Your Universe, and a new bassist, Rob van der Loo, on 2012's Requiem for the Indifferent. Still operating in a symphonic metal register with classical and operatic influences, Epica followed up with The Quantum Enigma in 2014, which the band announced was harder and more modern than its predecessors. The more complex The Holographic Principle followed in 2017, reaching number four in the Dutch charts, while its successor Omega, preceded by the single "Abyss of Time - Countdown to Singularity", was not released until 2021. This was followed in 2022 by The Alchemy Project EP, featuring different guests for each of the seven tracks, including Charlotte Wessels and members of Fleshgod Apocalypse, God Dethroned, Wintersun, Mayan, Aborted, Insomnium and Powerwolf. After an orchestral tour called The Symphonic Synergy, Epica return to the studio to record their ninth album, Aspiral (2025), which reached No. 2 in the Dutch charts.