Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Line of Thoughts [Instrumental]
2. Beneath
3. My Choice
4. Glorifying Means
5. Evil That Men Do
6. One Day I'll Fly Away

Disc 2:

1. My Choice [*][Multimedia Track]
2. Making of...My Choice [*][Multimedia Track]
3. Studio Recordings [*][Multimedia Track]
4. Slide Show [*][Multimedia Track]
5. Artwork [*][Multimedia Track]

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #602159 in Music
• Released on: 2003-12-02
• Number of discs: 2
• Formats: Enhanced, EP, Import

Album Description
2003 mini album from the Dutch metal act features 6 audio tracks, 'Line Of Thoughts' (Instrumental), 'Beneath', 'My Choice', 'Glorifying Means', 'The Evil That Men Do' & 'One Day I'll Fly Away', plus a DVD (all regions/Pal) with 'My Choice' (video clip), making of...'My Choice', studio recordings, slide show & artwork. Limited book version with song lyrics & photos. Transmission.

Customer Reviews

Doesn't shine as brightly as Decipher
Decipher, the CD After Forever released a couple of years ago, blew me away from the first notes. To say that Floor Jansen's voice is outstanding is to understate the matter. She is stunning. And the songwriting on Decipher is equally as captivating, with a few of the songs giving me the chills.

On Exordium, however, Floor doesn't seem to have the same vocal range. She doesn't hit the stratosphere with a few notes like she did on Decipher. Plus her voice seems strained somehow, like she's trying to sing over the music but having a harder time doing so than she did on Decipher.

That's most noticable on one track -- the cover of Iron Maiden's "Evil that Men Do." There, the music is a spot-on copy of the Maiden classic but Floor sounds like a singer in a local bar band rather than the awesome vocalist that she is. To my ears, she just doesn't have the oomph that Bruce Dickinson has -- which is odd because on Decipher Floor's voice had all the range and power needed to pull off the Maiden vocal.

The other cover -- Nicole Kidman's "One Day I'll Fly Away" from Moulin Rouge -- is equally as disappointing. One would think Floor could have bested Nicole, who admittedly isn't a singer at all, but I don't think she does. The track just doesn't sparkle as it should.

Frankly, Exordium as a whole doesn't shine as brightly as Decipher did. I'm not really sure why. Maybe Exordium isn't representative of the CD to come, Invisible Circles (which I don't yet own because it's extremely hard to find in the States). Or maybe I'm not listening to it correctly. I don't know.

The bonus DVD, on the other hand, is interesting. It's a music video for "My Choice," but it's also a behind-the-scenes peek at the making of the music on Exordium. Even though the musicians speak in Dutch, just seeing the members of After Forever laughing, interacting and working on their respective musical tracks is fascinating.

I briefly considered giving Exordium three stars but I couldn't make myself do it. Even on their mediocre days, After Forever is still superior to virtually any other contemporary band one cares to name.

If you're a fan of After Forever from their previous two CDs, you might want to wait until the full album (Invisible Circles) is released in the states to see what the band is up to these days. If you're new to After Forever, I'd strongly recommend starting with Decipher (if you can find it).

After Forever is a stunning band, but I can only marginally recommend Exordium.

After Forever Is Out To Impress
Closing in on the bands that are fronted by female vocalists comes After Forever. Singer Floor Jansen is aiming to make fans of the Finnish band Nightwish and Within Temptation her own with her dynamic style and vocal prowess. On this EP you will find some solid Melodic Dark Metal for not only does it feature Floor's amazing voice but is also includes the darker vocals of Sanders Gommans. The group has grown musically from their last work with departed guitarist Mark Jansen (who is not related to Floor in case you wondered) and began the groundwork on this CD which best serves as an introduction to the coming album "Invisible Circles". Of the 6 tracks four are original compositions and two are cover renditions. There is a great instrumental piece in "Line Of Thoughts" and the single for the CD "My Choice" is a wonderful number that might give Nightwish a run for its money if it gets any airplay in areas that feature this stuff. Floor is a classically trained Soprano and she belts out the notes on the CD with apparent ease. The included covers were interesting as a great version of Iron Maiden's "The Evil That Men Do" is delivered with finesse. It was also nice to see a non-expected Maiden tune be used rather than the standards that everyone does. On "One Day I'll Fly Away" we see an R&B track get the Symphonic Metal treatment and sounds pretty good considering. This tune was sung by Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge and I think I will stick with Floor on this one. Joining Sanders and Floor in the group, the members are rounded out by Lando Van Gils, Andre Borgman, Bas Maas, & Luk Van Gerven. I think we are going to see some great things from this band and if you are fans of Metal fronted by the powerful female presence this is right up your alley.

This EP length CD comes with a bonus DVD and it offers you a little more insight into the group along with a video and a making of. There is a good clip that shows various stages of the band and a lot of artwork to enjoy. I would have liked to see some live footage since the CD itself was so short, but the chance to observe a little more was nice.

Unbelievable gothic metal that puts Evanescence to shame!
The After Forever EP "Exordium" is more of an intermission between "Decipher" and "Invisible Circles" which can be best described as a transition between the two. Rather then the fantasy-type metal of the previous two albums, After Forever have edged more towards a straight-forward metal album.

An intro instrumental type track leads into "Believe," with soaring female vocals from Floor Jensen like we've heard before. "My Choice" is one of the greatest rock ballads I've ever listened to. Floor's voice is full of power and emotion, and makes Amy Lee of Evanescence look like an amateur. "Glorifying Means" is a growler track that probably would've been best if left off, although it gives an interesting yin to the yang of "My Choice." The EP finishes with "The Evil That Men Do" and "One Day I'll Fly Away," more excellent work that shouldn't be ignored.

The EP also features a bonus DVD which includes the music video to "My Choice," as well as the making of it and some interviews. Though it's not the best music video I've seen, it suits the meaning of the song very well.

If this EP isn't enough for you and you're begging for more, purchase this with their latest, "Invisible Circles." You won't regret it.