I N T E R V I E W

Interview Floor Jansen (by phone)

We are one month before the release of Revamp. The excitement and the desire to introduce the album on stage must come up, isn't it?

Yeah, absolutely! We actually did a try out show yesterday. Even if it's before the album release, we already start to play show, so yesterday, it was our first try out. It was the first show for me in two and a half year, so I was really happy. And yes, the excitement of the release grew even more yesterday!

Why have you called this album as the name of the band?

Because it's the first introduction of the band, it's the first chapter of this new band and music. And all the songs are represent in this title.

The cover of this album is special. We can see you and see a mouth that is screaming. What does it mean to you?

The screaming mouth doesn't really mean anything. But I guess the entire cover, when you see it, is aggressive. But I think it's not cliché. I wanted the controversial values of the music to be recognizable and the pink colour represent more the female vocals. It's the story behind it.

And your logo is an omega, why have you choose this symbol?

Well, on the last After Forever cover, there was already this symbol. But here, it's more our own symbol, which represents energy, and the lyrics of this album, are about that. But, when the band After Forever stopped, I choose to pick up the omega symbol, like a memory to all the good things I had with After Forever. I got a personal bond with it, and I thought, when I was recording the vocals for Revamp, that the logo of ReVamp can also be the omega. The designer created the cover using this symbol getting it as a logo as it is now, and we really like it.

What makes you proud on this album?

Everything. Just the fact that I'm doing it, that it's completely my own initiative this time, even if After Forever is very involve in everything. But it really started with me and I'm extra proud of that, and of everything: the way it looks, the way it sounds, the people I can work with and how everything has been done make me very proud.

Your work with After Forever must have leave indelible trails. How did it influence your work on this album?

I think it had an influence in every move. Not as a copy, but I think my experience during the last twelve years in After Forever has been used in my network, the people I met during my time in the band and help for ReVamp.

The titles of the songs are not really happy. Is it easier for you to write and express dark feelings than happy ones?

No. You know the music isn't happy either, so it never asked for happy lyrics. I think my vocals in After Forever were dark, but these are darker because the music is heavier and darker. I wanted the lyrics to fit with the music. And everything that was negative come to this, and my personal experiences, bad things that I heard about, came alive in my head and I wrote about it. Indeed, it's quite negative. (Laughs)

How did you work with other musicians on this album?

The members of the live band were not part of the writing process of the album as I started it as a solo project. We wrote it in three parts. One, the writing song process ; two, recording and producing the album and three forming a live band. I wrote this album with two other songwriters, Joost van Der Broek from After Forever and Waldemar Sorychta, and they also play on the album, but they can't come with me on tour due to time issues. I told we already looked for band members before I already started to record the album, and so everything has been done, as soon as possible. Now I hope the band is gonna have a cool life and is going to grow more and more as a lot of bands.

On this album, there are three songs which are linked (In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part). Why did you write these three songs?

All three look at the same situation from different angles. They are all about somebody who is very sick and won't recover anymore. "Disgrace" is for instance more about his or her point of view, being so sick that you don't see humanity, living this crazy situation and become like a shadow, loosing yourself. "Disdain" is more about the point of view of the person who is next to the patient, who loves and sees the other person sick and who can't do anything, the frustration of being powerless. And "All Goodbye Are Said" is more the moment you know there is no way you are gonna be better anymore. Your world is only pain and being sick and death is your only salvation and that's what the song is about, when you are coming to bad face, and when you know it's better to go. So that's why they are all connected.

Excepting on "Here's My Hell", "Sweet Curse" and "In Sickness 'Till Death Do Us Part-Disdain", you are the only one singer. Was it so important for you not to share the vocals with anybody?

Yeah. There are growls sometime, so we have three guests. But I don't feel like it needs more singing next to me. It's nice to be, for this part, away from what did After Forever. So now, I don't want to share it with anybody else! (Laughs)

The last song of this album is a ballad. Do you think it's a perfect end for an album?

Yeah. The music is very heavy and this song is the opposite and we were like: "where can we place a song like that?". You know, the whole song is very sad but the conclusion is as in the title I lost my self but I guess everybody went into a moment like that in his or her life and think "Ok. A lot of changes" or you have changed and you ask "where am I? Who am I? What do I want?" and that's what the song is about. And in the end I say "this is who I am, and always be". And I really like this conclusion also for this album. After all that violence, it's a nice end.

We hear some industrial sounds in this album, also oriental ones, choirs... Was it important for you not to do just metal with the guitars, bass and drums?

Joost van der Broek and I are very interest in a lot of music style and it was nice to make a mixture.

On the internet, we can read a lot of things about the band whereas the album is not already release. What inspires you this audience waiting?

You never know what expect even a year back people were supporting me. And in October, I announce the name of the new band and launch the website. And every months, I came up with more news and I noticed that a lot of people know already about ReVamp. It's very heartwarming to see how people don't forget about me. I'm not sure to be able to expect anything, but I do notice the warm from the audience and I hope it's gonna be part of this album.

You have been confirming at Metal Female Voices Festival last year while the organisation didn't know the album. This trust from this festival, is it important for you?

Very. I have to say it again, but it's so heartwarming to feel that support. For me, the end of After Forever was a slap in the face I really had to deal with it. Put myself in working in this new band and to get this support from people, and from a festival like that, it's really helping.

What is the best compliment you had on the album and on the band?

I guess that it's that people say it's not like After Forever, because it's a challenge to make an album in the same style than After Forever and not to do the same thing. We are two songwriters who created sounds that are new and not an After Forever cover back. (Laughs). So that's the biggest compliment for me.

How was your collaboration with Nuclear Blast?

They are also people that stood behind me and trust immediately in what I was doing. They make it real. They worked also with After Forever and it's so nice to see they have the same passion for ReVamp to make it a successful band.

And they say you are a "metal female fronted band". Do you like this kind of classification or you'd prefer a complex one like "heavy gothic dark melodic metal" or something like that?

No, I like the metal female fronted band. I personally never have anything with gothic. And I'm happy it's not in the definition of the band.

What are your wishes for Revamps' future?

That the band will not have any limit! (Laughs). I would say, headline in Wacken, Graspop, and in all the major festivals. Travel around the world and do cool shows and meet as many people as possible. (Laughs)

And about the tour, how will you process to choose the songs you will play?

Well, as we already play our first show yesterday... We want to do as many songs of ReVamp as possible, so we play the whole album. And you know, as we are confirm already as headliner, we will have a longer show. So we make also very cool cover song, and we also play two After Forevers' songs. And from the new album, we play everything. Because, like I said, if you wanna play a hour and a half, you have to do all the songs. If you play a shorter set, then you need to choose, the songs, which are the most suitable for the festival you play.

And how did the audience react yesterday, to the new songs?

They were very positive! I mean, nobody new the songs, but the reactions I get were really positives. They really felt the energy, they like how they are aggressive. I get some compliments about the set-list line, to do a heavy song, then a not so heavy one... So those were very positives feedbacks.

Have you a last word for the people who are waiting this album?

Thank you for your patience, support. I hope you will enjoy ReVamp as you enjoyed After Forever. But listen to it as a new band.

I just have a last question, because, when I listen to you, you speak a lot about the After Forever's fans, but don't you think that people who didn't like After Forever can like ReVamp?

I hope so! You are absolutely right about that and also because ReVamp is heavier, I hope that fans of heavier style of metal will enjoy this album.