After Forever, didn't last forever

After Forever's Biography

After Forever was formed in 1995, their music was mostly death metal orientated with classical influences. When Floor Jansen joined the band (1997), the music got more diverse but always contained metal elements.
After Forever recorded their first album Prison of Desire in 2000. This album was recieved very well in the press and gave the band the oppurtunity to develop.

In 2001 they released Decipher.
After Forever became internationally recognised as one of the best female fronted metal bands.
They toured through Europe and South Amerika with succes, performed in nearly every venue in Holland and recorded the mini album Exordium in 2003.This mini album also contained a mini dvd and gave a glimpse of the new album they would release in 2004:Invisible Circles.

The album is a concept album, this pretty serious concept (about a girl that has to grow up under difficult circumstances) suits the music very well and earned a lot of respect. Invisible Circles even reached 26th place in the Dutch Top 100 album charts and also recieved very good critics in Germany.

In early September 2005, the band released their fourth album Remagine This album is available in two versions, a SACD with three bonus songs and as a 'Special Edition' with a DVD. The DVD contains a photo gallery and a 'making of' documentary.
On March 3, 2006, the band left the Transmission Records label, due to the scarce promotion that the label was providing. Following this, Transmission Records released the Mea Culpa compilation. By October of the same year After Forever had signed to Nuclear Blast Records.

In the end of 2006 the band recorded their 1st album on the Nuclear Blast label, self titled After Forever, it features guest appearances from Annihilator guitarist Jeff Waters and Doro Pesch.

After Forever spilt up

Dutch female-fronted symphonic metallers AFTER FOREVER have issued the following statement:

"After nearly 15 years and with heavy hearts, we have decided to call an end to a great and exciting time as AFTER FOREVER. We are extremely proud of what we have accomplished, and especially of the road we took to get here. AFTER FOREVER has never been a band that repeated itself; we always tried out new things, even though many of them were certainly done at a risk. We think that that has been one of the reasons we've always enjoyed enormous support from all our loyal fans.

"The break we took in 2008 made us appreciate all the more what we'd experienced. Now more than ever, we can look back on so many fantastic moments, something we never would have expected to be part of when we started the band all those years ago. However, that break also made us aware of the fact that we can only continue AFTER FOREVER with the energy, the full 110%, that we have always put into it and we've noticed lately that there is something missing. We have always been musicians who create music with lots of passion, and during the break we built up our own lives again and have been musically active and experimenting in several genres.

"Although AFTER FOREVER is very special to us, we feel that we have reached the point where we need to explore the world of music in each of our own different ways. Thus, we've decided to quit while we're ahead. We are sincerely proud of every CD; each album represents a unique period, and all comes together in our last album 'After Forever', which made all of our dreams possible. We hope AFTER FOREVER will continue to be a source of inspiration for new bands and musicians alike so that our music can live on.

"As band members, but also as friends, we've experienced so very much; highs and lows, good times and bad. We'll keep supporting each other in all of our various individual projects and continue inspiring one another in making music.

"Our MySpace page will be used for updates on all of these projects and, of course, AFTER FOREVER-related news, as well.

"You can be sure that this is not an easy decision for any of us. We'd like to thank all of our fans for their support, also during the break.

"We know that this will be a big disappointment to you, dear fans, and it makes it that much harder for us. You have always given us your all and it was our pledge, in turn, always to give at least as much back to you for as long as we exist. In this moment, that's unfortunately just not possible, so we'd rather leave you all the albums and gigs we achieved with maximum input. We'd also like to thank Nuclear Blast, TEG and MOJO for their patience and enthusiasm, the live crew, the fan club, the fan sites and everybody who's helped in every way possible.

"We'll miss you all."

2010-New Resolutions

Happy New Year 2010 to all of you, guys.Hmm, I hate to say this but I hate new year because I become one year older..But I hope this year will be better than the previous year.Have you yet made a resolution for this year? Hope so,I already finished listed of my resolutions for 2010


And here's my new year resolutions. I tend to get over AMBITIOUS and that makes me don't bothered making a whole long list although it end up not achieving any of 'em.(I hope not for this year) So here's my 2010 list - simple and short(er)...

1. Make a change in my lifeBecome a better person and more religious
2. Change my appearanceThis you'll see(I didn't mean goth)
3. Lost 10KGsI'm dead serious about this.I think I'm fat
4. Find a better jobI'm tried become unemployed..God,help me.I want to become a ...
5. My priority is my familyI love 'em very very much. Without them I'm just nothing
6. Make sure my love towards him never fade and our relationship goes stronger....,Love you so much..You belong with me

7. Have a kind heart with everyoneA good relations with everyone ensure the better kind of life
8. Become a 100% veganI'm an animal lover
9. Stop smoking.It hazardousI already quit smoking for more than a month

10. Be more matured. Don't act like a kidHaha,must be more matured
11. Friends is important. Make lots of friendsFriendship is all about sharing, that's why we need friends
12. Become more intelligent than beforeHave to read lots of books to gain knowledge
13. Save more2010 is the year of all the price is raising up, so have to be smart.haha
14. Smile a lots and become more talkative(didn't mean talk rubbish)I'm a kind of person who don't like to smile and didn't talk much..I hope I make a change in 2010
15. Become a good person in every other wayI believe in myself that I can achieve success in everything that I do..Confident and self-assured

The Nightmare before Christmas

In the story, Jack Skellington is the Pumpkin King of Halloweentown, a realm of reality where the inhabitants make it their life's work to scare humans on Halloween. He's good at his work, and is very popular around town, but it all bores him. In a funk one day, he wanders into a wood where every tree is the doorway to realms serving one or another human holiday, and falls through the doorway into Christmas. There, he sees scenes of such glee and good will that he is overwhelmed. He returns to Halloweentown with the inspiration to persuade his fellow citizens to kidnap Santa and do Christmas in their own Halloweentown way -- complete with snakes and shrunken heads. Despite strong arguments against this project by Jack's otherwise loyal girlfriend, Sally,Santa is duly captured, and the townspeople prepare a very special Christmas for everyone. Jack is excited about the new plan, and at first doesn't notice that Sally isn't around much anymore. Meanwhile, Oogie Boogie, a sinister opponent of Jack's, has re-kidnapped Santa and has captured Sally as well. Since Sally is the true love of Jack's life and (he eventually realizes) the only one who can be relied upon to tell him the truth in every circumstance, a confrontation with Oogie Boogie becomes inevitable. In addition to being a monumental work of animation (it took over 120 animators and many more technicians more than two years to film it), this show features ten very appropriate musical numbers by composer Danny Elfman, who also supplies Jack's singing voice. In October 2006, fans of the innovative animated classic got to experience The Nightmare Before Christmas in a whole new dimension when the film was re-released into theaters in Disney Digital 3-D -- a process developed to add remarkable new depth to films that were originally released in standard 2-D.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to everyone...and this festive season should ideally be celebrated with family members...Likewise, I'm returning home to be with my family and friends.

I'm taking this picture before I went back to Ipoh

One day after Christmas one of ex-classmate, Aren will get married..I had a chance to meet the others of ex-classmate and made a small reunion.Yeepee...

Taking picture with the bride

Although, I didn't attended any Christmas party this year, it still a memorable Christmas moments to me.It is because to celebrate Christmas we should be with our family members and friends.

Epica- Artist of the Month(DECEMBER)

Band Members Info
* Simone Simons (Vocals)
* Mark Jansen (Guitars, grunts & screams)
* Isaac Delahaye (Guitars)
* Coen Janssen (Synths and Piano)
* Yves Huts (Bass guitar)
* Ariën van Weesenbeek (Drums)



Biography

Travelling around the world and meeting other cultures; those are in short the major sources of inspiration for singer, songwriter, composer and guitarist Mark Jansen, both as a person and a musician. The latest proof of his unlimited interest in the world around him is the album The Phantom Agony, the colourful debut album of the recently founded Dutch band Epica. Mark Jansen and his fellow musicians harbour a great interest in other cultures, especially Arab ones. The warmth with which people treat one anotherthere, but also the music from that part of the world. The varied sound of Epica reflects all that. Also influences from other parts of the world, including South-America found their way to the songs that figure on the debut alum. The band also intends to do a lot of touring in order to add as much as possible to the gamut of experiences and impressions.

After a brief and stormy period as one of the creative king pins of the successful Dutch band After Forever, Mark Jansen felt compelled to start all over again recently. He didn’t tarry for a second. On the day it dawned on him he no longer had a future in his old band, the plan matured for new challenge. Contacts were made, auditions were carried out and a name for the band was thought up. Initially Sahara Dust was picked as the name of the band, but in the first weeks of 2003 this name was definitely changed into Epica. In the embryonic stage the band worked with the Norwegian singer Helena Michaelsen of Trail of Tears. However, a definitive choice was made for the young Dutch singing talent Simone Simons. The line-up was further stabilised with Coen Jansen (keyboards), Ad Sluijter (guitar), Jeroen Simons (drums) – both from Cassiopeia, and Yves Huts (bass) from Axamenta.

The debut album was recorded in the Gate Studio in Wolfsburg, Germany; under the expert guidance of the renowned producer and technician Sacha Paeth (a.o. Aina, Rhapsody, Kamelot, Angra). The variation in the material appears from the very first track on the CD. Ádyta’ is a classically tinted intro, sung in Latin. The band works with a classically trained choir, whereas extra colour is added to the music thanks to eight strings: 3 violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos and a double bass. The red thread is mezzo-soprano Simone Simons, who with the style of a classically trained opera singer stays on top of the material. Epica is a band that is fond of contrasts. Solid guitars versus flawless choral singing and strings. The sublime singing of Simone Simons versus the excruciating grunts of Mark Jansen. One of the songs in which all these aspects constitute a fascinating unity is ‘Sensorium’. The combination of classic and extreme has seldom sounded so convincingly.

While making The Phantom Agony the band was particularly inspired by scores. It is the ambition of Epica to pack up emotions in lyrics and sounds and subsequently pass this on to the listener. What the band really wants is giving goose flesh to the audience, the more the better. The title track is a piece of work in which the six band members aimed for that effect. It is up to the individual listener to interpret the lyrics in his or her own way. Yet The Phantom Agony makes clear that Epica doesn’t turn a blind eye to everyday reality. ‘’Façade Of Reality’ is about the world before and after the attacks in the United States on 11 September, and all that changed during that period. For that reason it is a song that means a great deal to the band too.

Finally the name of the band. For the band it initially had two special meanings. First of all it is a tribute to the band Kamelot, of which the band members are all great fans. Epica is the title of one of their CDs. In addition to this Epica is a place in the universe where all the answers to vital questions are to be found. A meaning that fits perfectly with the tenor of the lyrics. Recently another meaning was added. Not so long ago Epica was giving a concert in Belgium. Everything went great. At a certain point of time something happened between the stage and the audience. At the end of the concert the audience was chanting the name of the band: ‘E-pi-ca’, ‘E-pi-ca’. It sounded excellently. There and then the band decided that Epica had been the right choice.

My Convocation

10 Dec 2009- Today is my convocation day...The day that I've been waiting for so long. After about 4 years study in MSU finally I received my transcript.I also had a chance to met my friends that I didnt see them for about a year. I can saw my mom was so happy and she's smilling all that time..All that I can said all my achivement is because of you...thank you mummy.

Twilight Saga: New Moon

Plot Summary

The supernatural tale of star-crossed lovers continues as the Cullen family flees Forks in order to protect Bella (Kristen Stewart), and the heartbroken high-school senior discovers that vampires aren't the only creatures in town. Realizing that Bella will never be safe as long as he's around, Edward (Robert Pattinson) makes the difficult decision to leave his beloved behind shortly after her 18th birthday. Reeling from her loss, Bella embraces self-destruction after being comforted by Edward's image during a moment of mortal peril. But as heavy-hearted as Bella may be, her old friend Jacob (Taylor Lautner) distracts her from her sorrows by helping her renovate a weather-beaten motorbike. When Bella encounters a former adversary with a sizable grudge, she's rescued from harm at the last second by pack of enormous, ferocious wolves. Subsequently delving into the history of the Quileutes, Bella discovers the secrets of Jacob's tribe while looking forward to a reunion with Edward that may have deadly consequences.