Simone Simons on Intuition, Epica’s Latest Album, and Being the “Barbie” of Metal
Crimson-haired, velvet-voiced, and eternally enchanting, Simone Simons is more than just Epica’s lead singer — she’s the revered heartbeat of a genre.
Born in Hoensbroek, Netherlands, Simons became the lead singer of symphonic metal’s North Star, Epica, in 2002, revolutionizing the band with her emblematic fusion of strength and grandeur. Under her command, Epica has consistently pushed symphonic metal’s limits, releasing ten dominant studio albums, five live compilations, and forty-four sought-after singles.
In a genre where power and grace habitually collide, Simons stands as a beacon of vocal excellence, spellbinding audiences with every haunting melody she delivers.
Our publisher, Kristin Prim, caught up with Simone ahead of Epica’s three US shows to talk about intuition, Aspiral, and how she feels about being dubbed the “Barbie” of metal.
KP: One of the first things I ever read about you was that you said that you’re called “the metal Barbie, but [you] don’t give a damn. It’s more of a compliment than people realize!”
I found this fascinating for multiple reasons. I think that a lot of women in rock feel the need to come off as more rough or traditionally masculine in order to be taken seriously – which is probably why that Barbie compliment could be meant as an insult – but what I think many don’t realize is that it’s inherently misogynist to conflate masculinity with seriousness, which infers that femininity is a weakness.
I think it’s so cool that you can still be this powerful, feminine super-force in metal. Is that something that you think about often, how to balance your strength and femininity?
Or if you have anything else to comment on this in general, I’d love to hear it. It’s so fascinating.
SS: Well, as a child, I was very into dressing up and putting on makeup. In Holland, we have this carnival that takes place at the end of February, and, for me, that was the first opportunity to put on my mom's makeup and to put on a nice dress. And when I joined Epica, I got to kind of live that dream life, going clothes shopping and doing my own makeup. I even played with hair and makeup on my sister – I think I butchered her hair once badly. [Laughs]. But it was a lot of fun.
It's part of the visual aspect of the music, right? It's a ritual for me, doing all of that, all the preparations right before the show. I rarely work with hair or makeup artists. 99% of the time, I do it myself.
KP: That's very impressive. I could never! [Laughs].
SS: It's calming for me to do that! Everybody has their own way of preparing for a show, but, for me, that's my preparation, this time where I'm in my own bubble. I enjoy it very much. And it calms me down, if I have enough time. If I have to do it under pressure, then it's not so much fun.
But yeah, I know that people have called me “metal Barbie.” It’s mainly just the guys that do that. But I think that everybody should dress the way they want to, because it's also an extension of your personality – how you express yourself and how you feel confident and comfortable.
My style has evolved a lot over the past 20 years. And for me, now, what is very important is that it looks good, but that it's also comfortable… I have worn many very uncomfortable stage outfits.
I like to be classy and sexy at the same time and just be comfortable so that I can move well on the stage. So yeah, I can't wait for the live shows to start again so I can bring out my stage makeup kit and play with that even more.
I’ve gotten so many questions through the years from fans, beauty-related questions, and also a lot of fashion questions, too!
KP: For sure, I could imagine! Because you do such a good job. Like I said, I couldn’t do it! [Laughs]. I started working in fashion when I was 14 years old, but I’ve always had to have a hair and makeup artist when I go to a big event or something. I just can’t get good at it! I’ve really tried.
SS: Well, practice makes perfect, because I do have some old photos of mine from my early days, and I thought, “Oh god, the makeup looks horrible! The outfit is horrible!” But I was just having fun. And I think that's what a lot of people forget about it – that it should be fun. That’s what’s most important to me.
And that's why I started my blog back in the day, SMOONSTYLE, because I also wrote tour diaries on the Epica website, and then I thought to myself, “I could just have a blog and then answer questions from fans, play more with makeup, and combine all of those together.”
But I also love working with costume designers. For the last couple of years, I have worked with a stylist, who was a friend of mine. And I think that it made my style evolve even more. I really learned a lot from that.
I don't think that I would want to work in fashion or become a designer myself, but I am my own Barbie doll – I get to do whatever I want.
KP: Well, it doesn't surprise me that you get so many questions about it, because your look is awesome.
To speak more generally, I think that every female rock musician that we’ve spoken to at Noir has spoken about how much harder they need to work than their male counterparts to be taken seriously, by both audiences and critics alike.
Have you found that to be true? Have you experienced any other disadvantages or negative experiences that have come from being a female in rock?
SS: I guess with women, we are more scrutinized because of our appearance. We’re not only judged, criticized, or loved for our musical talent. With guys, they can look like slobs, and nobody gives a damn! But with women, we're not allowed to age – we're not even allowed to have any facial imperfections. And of course, now with the rise of all the weird apps that deform your face, people start to get insecure about their appearance because they don't look like the filters – that's kind of scary. I'm very worried about the younger generation of women that grew up with social media who are very vulnerable and susceptible to the opinions it brings and all the Instagram likes – girls who measure their value by that. I don't do that. I honestly feel way more happy and fulfilled when somebody speaks about my vocal performance and not my appearance, but it comes with the job.
For women, it's just tougher than it is for the guys. My guys can get gray; they can go bald… it doesn’t matter! But I need to reverse my aging. And this doesn’t only apply to singers – it applies to actresses as well, any female in the public eye.
KP: You’re absolutely right. We carry a lot more with us than the men do.
You’ve said that it’s your goal through Epica to “inspire other people to be themselves, to find their own identity.” Having joined the band so young at just the age of seventeen, what did Epica and its ensuing journey teach you about yourself?
What advice would you lend to women who seek their own identity?
SS: I guess it's a lifelong journey in a way, right? It's a process – you go through different cocoon phases in your life. I think that communication is very important to stay true to yourself and set boundaries for yourself. Because in particular, especially for the singer, there is a lot of pressure that is always on you. Many people are counting on you, and it's a heavy weight that you've got to carry. But you can’t let that make you go crazy. You have to stand up for yourself and just be honest – you have to learn how to communicate with a bunch of guys. It's very different to have a talk with your girlfriends – they understand. But for the guys, it's just different.
And also, as female singers, we are more vulnerable. We need to take better care of our whole body – not just our instrument. You can get new strings for a guitar if they break, but with the vocals, it's such a super powerful instrument, but very fragile at the same time, so you have to take good care of yourself and listen to your inner voice.
I've always been very reliant on my intuition. I have had to learn, all these years, to say no and really set boundaries and to be careful that I don't overstep those boundaries. Because it's a tough lifestyle – it takes a toll on your body.
It’s also hard to stay grounded while being in this lifestyle. I became a mother 11 years ago, and that was a huge cocoon phase for me – a very new experience, a new dimension in my life. But, at the same time, it was very hard to contrast with my life as a musician and having a kid at home.
But yeah, I would just say, go with the flow and listen to your inner voice – literally and figuratively.
KP: Well, women are so intuitive. I think that's a very natural skill for a lot of us, so I think that’s great advice.
Apart from being one of the most world-renowned metal vocalists, you’re also a mother, as you just mentioned. I can’t imagine the balancing act that it takes – you’re all superheroes. What has motherhood taught you? What advice would you give to new moms who may fear the work/life balance?
SS: Yeah, well here, again, the intuition applies. Because becoming a mom, oh, it already starts while being pregnant – you get a lot of unwanted opinions from everybody. But you know what is good for yourself and your family and your situation or your lifestyle.
I don't have a nine-to-five job if I'm on the road. When I'm home, I really try to work in a home office, but I still have the feeling that I'm constantly working. You're always available – you're always in touch with the band, all these people in different time zones. But it's good to also set boundaries there, to just say no and not go crazy thinking too much about trying to do everything perfectly.
And with Epica, we now have five children in the band.
KP: Oh, wow.
SS: Yeah, Mark became a father himself now, so we’ve learned how to have a better work-life balance. But in the past, before they had kids and I just had a kid, we were still touring a lot. And I really struggled to find enough time being at home in between the tours. You come back from a tour completely shattered and jet-lagged, and you need to recover, but once you come back home, you're a mom again. You immediately need to switch to a different routine.
KP: Right. There's no downtime. That's so hard.
SS: Exactly! But the beauty of modern technology now is that we can stay in touch much easier than many years ago – that definitely makes it more bearable.
But yeah, I have a couple of female singers who also have kids and took them on the road. I decided to leave my son at home to have his own routine, to not bring him on tour. But it's nice to also talk to my friends in the business who are moms. If I talk to my other friends who have kids who aren’t in the business, they have a different lifestyle, so they cannot relate somehow.
KP: Yeah, it's so different, right? I could imagine. Especially when it comes to touring, so few people can relate to that.
Aside from being an incredible singer, you’re also an incredible photographer, your favorite being portraits. What originally got you into photography? Do you have a favorite photograph that you’ve ever taken? Do you have any advice for women who want to start taking their own photographs?
SS: Oh yes, my favorite photograph that I ever took is on my table – I made a huge print of a portrait of my son. He's much younger in the photo – it's a beautiful black-and-white image.
My father actually always had cameras lying around when I was young, so I liked photography already in the early days of Epica. And of course, before we had mobile phones that had a camera – that makes me sound really old – but I always had a little compact camera and took photos. I just thought that it was really beautiful to be able to capture a moment.
But I didn't really become interested in portrait photography until my son was born. I started taking more photos of him to really freeze the time – babies grow like weeds; they grow so quickly!
And of course, when I had my blog – that was before my son was born – I had already invested in a more expensive camera to take better photos – travel photos, and beauty makeup shots.
Another favorite photo of mine – it's on my website, my photography website – it's a profile portrait of my great uncle, who sadly has now passed away. But I love that photo. It's so powerful. I think it just shows how meaningful it can be, the value of taking photos of your dear ones, because you never know when they are going to leave you. Photos are great memory revivers – they take you back to that time. Same with video as well.
I try to take little interviews with my son every once in a while, every couple of years, where I ask him some silly children’s questions. It's really lovely to go back and look at them, because in that moment, they're still small.
KP: That's so cute! I think about that a lot. I mean, I'm 31, so even when I was growing up, we just had analog. We only had camcorders or film cameras back then. But these kids that are growing up now, they're going to have so much more than we ever had to look back on. They're going to have so many images and videos. It’s really cool.
Epica’s latest album, Aspiral, is out on April 11th. Can you walk us through a little bit of its writing and production? What was your favorite part of working on the album?
SS: Oh, it was a very intense process. We started by booking a house three times a week – we had writing camps. We got together with our producer and spent 24/7 together, working on the songs. And before we actually went into these writing camps, we had many talks just deeply discussing what we could do for this next record. And I think the starting point was actually with Omega – we did the writing camp for that album, and we enjoyed it very much. All of the band members live in four different countries, so in between our extensive touring, it's hard for us with the families that we have at home to travel even more in order to meet up for these writing sessions. So with Omega, we did that already for like one week. We loved it very much. So this time we met for Aspiral for three weeks.
But with The Alchemy Project, that's where musically we started to experiment a little bit more – we worked with other artists, friends in the music scene, and the feedback was very positive on all of those songs. So we thought, “Okay, for Aspiral, we can experiment even more – try new things and just renew ourselves.”
And that's what “aspiral” stands for – this statue by Szukalski. I actually got to see some of his art in real life when I was in LA a couple of years ago, which was amazing. The statue stands for coming from absolute destruction to try to renew yourself, to be reborn out of the ashes. Musically, we added a couple more synths. It definitely has a more modern vibe to it. We really wanted to incorporate some old-school Epica vibes, but also a couple of sounds that would feel kind of new and exciting for us, to see if we could turn it into Epica. I think that we succeeded with that.
“Don't change yourself or your opinions to ever please others. Please yourself first.”
KP: Yeah, I think that you definitely did.
You released “Arcana” as a lead single for the record, asking us to let it “guide us through life’s universal stages of spiritual evolution. It leads the way to a higher consciousness and spiritual self-awareness.” Again, we’re being led to a higher spirituality – one could say once again, destroying in order to renew.
I read that it was written after Rob [van der Loo], your bassist, let you draw some tarot cards. Is that true? Can you tell us the story?
SS: Yes, that's true! We were on tour in 2023, and Rob told me that he had all of these tarot cards. And I thought, “Okay, maybe that’s interesting. I would like to do a session with him.” I drew three cards, and he started to explain to me a little bit about what they mean. And I thought, “Oh my God, these cards!”
I'm not usually into it. I don't want to sound dismissive, like hocus pocus, black magic, or any of that – I do consider myself a spiritual person. I am definitely guided in life through my intuition, my gut feeling, but sometimes my mind gets in the way. So I thought, “Well, why not? Let's just do it.” And I ended up drawing three cards that were very fitting to the situation that I was in at that time.
And I know that from all the cards, you can draw inspiration. It’s not that they should tell you what to do; they should only guide you, in a way. And for me, searching for inspiration for the lyrics, I thought this could be a really cool topic to tap into. And the fans have loved it. I think a lot of people expect me to be the tarot expert. [Laughs]. But that would be wrong.
KP: Right. Well, you have the look! [Laughs].
SS: Yeah! I actually did think of buying my own deck to tap a little more into it. But so far, I’ve had no time.
KP: It's very, very interesting. I started getting my cards read by professional readers when I was just seventeen. I think that there's this common misconception that it kind of tells you the future, that it's like ESP, in a sense, but it's really like you said – it's just supposed to help guide you. So I think it can be really cool if people believe in it. And they can bend it and use it to help them.
SS: Yeah, exactly. It should be like a tool and not like a religion or some rules to live by.
KP: Yeah, absolutely.
The other lead single off of Aspiral was “Cross The Divide,” a track that explores themes of transcendence, time, and destiny.
What can you share about writing or recording “Cross The Divide?” What does it mean to you?
SS: Well, the song is written by Rob, and the lyrics came from my brain. The main source of inspiration for me was a movie, Interstellar, where, I don't know, have you seen the movie?
KP: I've never seen it, no, but I know about it.
SS: You've really never seen it?
KP: No, I haven't seen anything. I’ve never even seen Titanic. I’m one of those. [Laughs].
SS: Are you more into books than movies?
KP: I watch a lot of documentaries, so if I were to watch something, I'm always watching a documentary. I'm one of those people – it's very boring of me. [Laughs].
SS: No, no! Everybody has their own thing. But Interstellar, yeah, how do I describe the movie? It's basically about a man traveling in space and finding loopholes. The father has two kids – he leaves the kids behind in order to save the Earth, searching for a different planet. He finds a loophole in the space-time dimension and kind of travels to the time in which the movie is. So, for example, there's a scene where the girl thinks there's a ghost in the house, and she calls her dad, but later on in the movie, it turns out that it was him. He traveled through time but came, in a way, from the future back to the present in order to send a message that he should not go – that he should stay.
But the song itself is also about going back in time, maybe personally or even on a bigger scale, to bigger events in history. What if we made a different decision? What would the future look like? So that’s basically what it's about – that you would maybe want to have a second chance at certain things. Or, you know, how would the present now look if back then, all of these people made different decisions? That's basically what it's about.
KP: I love that. It's a very fascinating concept.
What do you feel makes a provocative woman?
SS: Somebody that speaks her mind, because a lot of guys can't handle it when a woman has a strong opinion. And sticking to that opinion. Don't change yourself or your opinions to ever please others. Please yourself first.
–
Photography: Tim Tronckoe
