05.10.2025
After Forever After 18 years
When you're in your late 40s, you probably know that feeling as well as I do: you read about an anniversary of one of your all-time favourite albums and you can hardly believe it's been already 25 or even 30 years! "Am I so old?", you ask yourself in disbelief. But yesterday, I felt surprisingly young (and energized!), going back in time and reliving those "good old days" when After Forever - my very favourite band of the 2000s - was still active, touring and recording new music.
2025 marks the anniversary of their first album "Prison of Desire", which was followed one year later by "Decipher" - one of my all-time favourite records. The band hadn't been active for almost two decades, but yesterday (4 October 2025), reunited to celebrate the release of their debut, they took the stage once again. The place was the small podium at Tilburg's 013 that with its capacity of 700 people, was fully packed. The audience consisted predominantly of fans like myself - middle-aged metal lovers who experienced the band's beginnings, their heyday, their line-up changes, the turbulent and exciting times, and their abrupt end.
Yesterday we could experience all this again. It was fantastic to see After Forever's founding members Mark Jansen and Sander Gommans together on stage again. For those familiar with the band's history this was a truly magical moment. They were joined by the original (and the band's only) bass player Luuk van Gerven, as well as by Bas Maas, who replaced Mark Jansen in 2002 on guitar. Unfortunately, drummer Andre Borgman, who played on all the band's recordings but the debut, could not join his colleagues due to an injury. He was replaced by Epica's drummer Ariën van Weesenbeek. They keyboard player for this occasion was Stream of Passion's Jeffrey Revet.
One of the biggest assets of After Forever was, of course, the powerful and extremely versatile voice of Floor Jansen. This by now already renowned Dutch singer is famous for her seamless and effortless transitions from high operatic notes to strong and dynamic rock belting. I can't deny that her singing was what drew me to the band in the first place. I was introduced to After Forever back in 2000 by my Dutch boyfriend (and now husband), who knew that I had a soft spot for atmospheric music with interesting female vocals. When I heard their debut for the first time, I was struck by the maturity and depth of Floor's voice (she was barely 19 then). The complexity of the songs, their dynamic force, the enigmatic lyrics, the contrasting elements (brutal rage vs profound sadness) and the richness of the vocal elements (diverse female vocals, grunts, screams, Gregorian chants and classical choir) were, of course, also hugely appreciated and duly noted. However, Floor became my heroine, the absolute vocal zenith, and the band's second album "Decipher" only deepened my respect and awe.
It is thus quite curious that when I first heard that Floor Jansen - presently performing solo and with Nightwish - would not be joining her former band members for this reunion show, I was not as saddened as you might expect. The sheer excitement to hear the songs from group's first two albums live again was much bigger than the disappointment with Floor's absence. The Greek singer Angel Wolf-Back, formerly of various metal projects and known for her covers of songs by Nightwish, Within Temptarion and also After Forever, was going to replace Floor. The stakes were high, as well as the expectations. Somehow I had felt that such ever-critical band members like Sander Gommans wouldn't go on with the show knowing that they could not provide the audience with a worthy replacement. Although a tiny little bit less powerful a vocalist than Floor, Angel gave a truly wonderful performance. Her on-stage presence fit the atmosphere of the AF's early albums perfectly. She hit all the high notes beautifully and had great interaction with the rest of the band. It was a great combination of paying a tribute and showing her respect to the performed material and owning it as well. Her modesty made her seem like she was one of us - the enthusiastic audience -but her mastery of the songs made us feel she absolutely deserved to be up there performing them. And partly thanks to her contribution, this evening didn't have the nostalgic value only. Hearing and seeing these songs performed live by Angel, Ariën and Jeffrey, along with Luuk, Bas, Sander and Mark, gave the show an element of freshness. Each song was the recognition of the old and the anticipation of a surprise - something absolutely worth waiting 18 years for!
Marta