After Forever

Originating in Holland, After Forever represent a distinctly new-millennium breed of heavy metal band -- one rooted in familiar styles such as doom, Gothic and power metal, but utilizing the seemingly contradictory element of a sweet, female voice to offset the music's reigning aggression. In their case, this vocalist is operatically trained soprano Floor Jansen, whose contributions bring bands like the Gathering, Tristania, and Nightwish to mind. Alongside guitarists Sander Gommans and Mark Jansen, bassist Luuk van Gerven, keyboardist Jack Driessen, and drummer Joep Beckers, ...