Title: Consign To Oblivion Year: 2005 Genre: Power Metal Bitrate: 320 kbps Booklet + Lyrics Included TRACKLIST 01. Hunab K’u: ”A New Age Dawns” ~ Prologue 02. Dance of Fate 03. The Last Crusade: “A New Age Dawns” Part I 04. Solitary Ground 05. Blank Infinity 06. Force of the Shore 07. Quietus 08. Mother of Light: ”A New Age Dawns” Part II 09. Trois Vierges 10. Another Me “In Lack’ech” 11. Consign to Oblivion: ”A New Age Dawns” Part III REVIEW Epica's newest release, Consign to Oblivion, is a KILLER album. You're probably thinking that the use of killer to describe a Symphonic Metal album is a little peculiar but I'm sorry, the usual adjectives like magnificent or remarkable fall short here. This is surely the best Symphonic Metal album to be released since Therion`s, double masterpiece Lemuria/Sirius B, amazed everyone in May of last year. But that was last year and this year Epica has taken the torch from the likes of After Forever, Sirenia, Tristania and Penumbra and ran away with it. I would say that Consign to Oblivion is their `Magnum Opus', except I wouldn't be surprised to see them top it. This is only their second album and I thought their first, The Phantom Agony, was fabulous and wrote so with my March 4, 2004 review. Far be it, for me to put a limit on Epica's potential. Epica's creative founder, lead guitar player, Mark Jansen, is a former member of Holland's After Forever. He left them a couple years ago, citing the usual, artistic differences. From my perspective, it looks Mark was right, Epica is soaring, while After Forever is foundering after three mediocre albums. Epica's lead singer, Simone Simons, an attractive woman with long flaming red hair is competition to Cristina Scabbia for the most attractive Femme Metal singer but singing wise, she is no Floor Jansen, the exquisite singer for After Forever. Then again, who is? Nevertheless, Simone really isn't bad. In fact she's pretty good and has done a commendable job on Consign to Oblivion. The remaining members of Epica's nuclear family are Ad Sluijter - guitars, Coen Janssen - synths, Yves Huts - bass and Jeroen Simons - Drums and percussion.