Epica: Retrospect (2013) - full transcript

Epica's 10th anniversary concert featuring the extended Ede Reményi Chamber Orchestra and the choir of Miskolc National Theatre.

_________________
* Monopoly On Truth *

At the Zenith of wisdom

No defying myself
(Defying myself)

To the point of reaction

You propose and I dispose

I see what you mean

It's clear, what you say

The truth isn't just a derivative of your views
(Truth is a fiction of your views)

These are my thoughts

No discussion

My righteous plan



Just think it over now

Another point of view

It's time we realize our errs

Where it is leading
to if nobody sees it

There's never an absolute

(Nos)

- Eindhoven!

(docti)

(Sed non semper veridici)

I can be so enchanting

With words beset in gold
(Beset in gold)

Your senseless demanding

You propose and I dispose

I see what you mean



It's clear, what you say

The truth isn't just a derivative of your views
(Truth is a fiction of your views)

This is the way

No discussion

In my life

Just think it over now

Another point of view

It's time we realize our errs

Where it is leading
to if nobody sees it

There's never an absolute

You're in denial

Can we trust all the facts and believe that
the fancied wise are just and needed?

Do we want to rely on the views of
the righteous ones who are succeeding?

If you look all around and you see
All the things that are not meant to be

(Then you know it's time to let them go)

Your fury can no longer stand

This hauteur will come to an end

Looking for leftover
friends is in vain

You'll be alone again

No more refusal

Face it, slow down

It is time for renewal

And expect no miracles
(Expect no miracles when you're in an endless fall)

No regrets if you're leaving

You're a true deceiver
(Accept the here and now or regret will end up)

(Mask of justice, shield of menacing strength
Will not bend, only break)

Can't we respect,
can't we neglect

Those who are
suffering in need of help?

You are the one I would like to become

Carry me slowly
In the depths of your life

Free me from barren fields
And grey thunder lies

Under that grand façade
The truth loves to hide

Can we trust all the facts and believe
that the fancied wise are just and needed?

Do we want to rely on the views
Of the righteous ones who are succeeding?

If you look all around and you see
All the things that are not meant to be

Then you know it's time to let them go

Can we trust all the facts And believe
that the fancied wise are just and needed?

Do we want to rely on the views
Of the righteous ones who are succeeding?

If you look all around and you see
All the things that are not meant to be

Then you know it's
time to let them go

To let them go
(Nos)

(Docti)

(Sed plus Scimus)

(Non spernentes
Quod dicunt alii)

___________
* Sensorium *

- Good evening everybody!

- Welcome all the people
from 50 different countries.

- Here in the Klokgebouw
and on the online screen.

- We love you guys!

Chance doesn't exist

But the path of life is
not totally so predestined

Time and chronology
show us how all should be

In the ways of existence

To find out why we are here

Being consciousness is a torment

The more we learn
is the less we get

No one surveys the whole

focus on things so small

But life's objective is
to make it meaningful

Only searching for this

That which doesn't exist

Although our ability

To relativize remains unclear

Being consciousness is a torment

The more we learn
is the less we get

Every answer contains
a new quest

A quest to non existence, a
journey with no end

I'm not afraid to die
I'm afraid to be alive

without being aware of it

I'm so afraid to, I couldn't stand to

Waste all my energy on things
that do not matter anymore

Our future has already
been written by us alone

But we don't grasp the meaning
Of our programmed course of life

We only fear what comes
And smell death every day

Our future has already
been wasted by us alone

And we just let it happen
and do not worry at all

Our future has already
been written by us alone

But we don't grasp the meaning
Of our programmed course of life

We only fear what comes
And smell death every day

Search for the answers that lie beyond

Being conscious is a torment

The more we learn
is the less we get

Every answer
contains a new quest

A quest to non existence, a
journey with no end

- Thank you so much everybody!

- I'm going to do the announcements in english, because

we have people from 50 different
countries visiting us today.

- And unfortunately I don't know all those 50 languages,
I think english covers it all, so.

Thank you so much! (english)
Muchas gracias! (spanish)
Grazie mille! (italian)

Dank je wel! Welkomst! (dutch)
Merci Beaucoup! (french)

- I hope we going to have an amazing evening.

- We will have 3 hours, so that's going to be a long time.

- You are stuck with us! You can't get out!

- Next song for the evening, this is...

__________
* Unleashed *

Declining, all color fading

Defining, time coming for me

Rescinding, my inspiration

Receding consciousness

Back in the day, I can recall that,
My thoughts were unclouded and sage

There was no black stain
in the walls of my memories

Now there's a haze pushing me sideways
And leaving me nothing to gain

Taking me back, locking
me cold in disparity

Where was I meant to be?

I feel I'm lost in a dream

Long for the day I can be myself

When I'm free

When my sun has set

Released my soul forever

I'll have no regret
To be free

I'll exist again

No more lost endeavors

Nothing to contend
When I'm free

Color declines, all that defines me

Is falling away, far behind

Nothing to keep me with
the time, the here and now

Where am I meant to be?

I feel I'm lost in a dream

Yearning again only to be myself

When I'm free

When my sun has set

Released my soul forever

I'll have no regret
To be free

I'll exist again

No more lost endeavors

Nothing to contend
When I'm free

Time is just a concept
And always the first thing to fade

Agony and weakness
Nothing we can ever evade

Years are cruel, they break us
Bringing on decay and despair

Awareness and perception
Something we can never repair

(Freedom for me is all
I'm really wanting, needing)

(Give me power to break out)

(I can't hold on for any longer)

(My time has come to end it all)

No one to blame, fate's only random

It's nothing we'll ever explain
So it remains

Where was I meant to be?

I feel I'm lost in a dream

Long for the day I can be myself

Free

When will I be unleashed?

It's not the way it should be

Yearning again only to be myself

(Unleash my consciousness)
When I'm free

When my sun has set

Released my soul forever

I'll have no regret

To be free

I'll exist again

No more lost endeavors

Nothing to contend

When I'm free

_____________________
* Martyr of the Free Word *

Speaking interpretation

A conversation can take a sudden turn

And reaching a point of violence

Because your silence left
you without a hand to hold

Your past will lead you on to

Making a final judgement

Based on your bias will
never bring you forward

Terror should never guide you

For even the fearful can
take a beating in the end

Suspicion gets you nowhere

Those who denounce a way of life

Will stand alone
Left to atone their social blunders

If you gun down the messenger

You guarantee that he will be made

Into a saint
A martyr of the free word

I will say, I will say
What I think, what I think

I will do, I will do
What I say, what I say

When liberty seems out of reach
We'll fight for our freedom of speech

(Requiem aeternam)

(dona eis domine)

(et lux perpetua)

(luceat eis)

Missing a simple context

A mental weakness can
throw you out of balance

Listen, respect each other

Then you'll discover

It mustn't always end in hate

It's not too late for mercy

Those who denounce a way of life

Will stand alone
Left to atone their social blunders

If you gun down the messenger

You guarantee that he will be made

Into a saint
A martyr of the free word

I will say, I will say
What I think, what I think

I will do, I will do
What I say, what I say

When tolerance seems out of sight
We will fight

When liberty seems out of reach
We'll fight for our freedom of speech

- Thank you!

- Thank you so much!

- I think somebody needs to pinch me,
because I think we're still rehearsing and ...

- ... it's not real!
Can you please let me know that this is real!

- Ten years ago we were all little babies,
dreaming of the life of a rock star.

- Now, ten years later
we've traveled around the world, several times!

- Still countries, that need to be EPICA-fied!

- But in those ten years if I recall correctly
five years we spent on airports!

- All over the world!

- What do you do?
A lot of waiting, five years.

- Some of us read books...
some of us eat burgers...

- some of us go shopping...

- And some of us watch movies.
I mean everybody has a laptop nowadays

- iPod, iPhone, mp3 player...
everything is digital.

- I love to watch movies.

- One of my main inspiration source is...
is "From Hell"

- Where Johnny Depp has been secretly

__________________
* Chasing the Dragon *

Free my mind
Heal my scars

Erase the past

Dark days to forget

And memories to last
In my heart

Free me now

Make me forget
And forgive

There's no use

To go on and live

Show me a way
To the sun

Heal my scars

Nothing will be forever gone

Memories will stay and find their way

What goes around will come around

Don’t deny your fears

So let them go and fade into light

Give up the fight here

Let my eyes take in

The beauty that's here

That’s left on this earth

My ears long to hear
A melody

Give me sight

Nothing will be forever gone

Memories will stay and find their way

What goes around will come around

Don’t deny your fears

So let them go and fade into light

Give up the fight here

Poison is slowly seeping through my veins

Stealing the only dignity in me

I pick them up and let them fall

To cause your pain and hit them all

One more life to live is what I want

I’ll take the joy away from them

See to it, they will all be damned

One more chance to heal what I have harmed

The dragon is wreaking havoc in my brain

Plays my emotion, a never ending game

Nothing will be forever gone

Memories will stay and find their way

What goes around will come around

Don’t deny your fears

So let them go and fade into light

Give up the fight

One more life to live for me

I want the night just to colour the day

The morning to chase all my nightmares away

Don’t you deny that we're all human beings

We all have our flaws that
can make ourself obscene

Obscene...

Give me what I want
Give me what I need right now

That’s what I want
That’s what I need, get it!

(Dolendo novit mortalis vitam)

Tell me what I want
Tell me what I need right now

That’s what I want
That’s all I need, cure me

(Dolendo discit mori mortalis)
Losers

- Eindhoven, Friends!
Show your hands! Everybody!

Nothing will be forever gone

Memories will stay and find their way

What goes around will come around

Don’t deny your fears

So let them go and fade into light

Give up the fight

- Thank you so much!

- Thank you!

- Reményi Orchestra, all way from Hungary!

- The Choir National Theatre of Miskolc.

- And the Conductor is called Zsolt Regős!

_______
* Presto *

taken from "The Four Seasons",

a set of four violin concertos
composed by Antonio Vivaldi in 1923.

Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 8,
RV 315, "L'estate" (Summer) 3. Presto

The Four Seasons is Vivaldi's best-known work.

- Tamás Kriston!
(Artistic director)

- So are you guys having a good time there?!

- Oh, yeah! That sounds good!

- This is... never, never,

_____________
* Never Enough *

Can't you hear me screaming, once again?
Voices you can't hear

Because you are consumed and incontent
With everlasting greed

Don't you see me on my hands and knees?
Begging and bleeding

You're smiling as you bite the hand that feeds
But will you never see?

Always wanting what your eyes can't see
(needing what your arms can’t reach)

Thinking you are still in need

Always hearing what your ears can't hear
(feeling what your hands can't touch)

Thinking you are incomplete

(Enough)
It was never enough that I gave to you

All of the horror that you've put me through
(Never enough)

How can I make up my mind this time?

This is where I will draw the line

Sacrificed my life to be with you

Why did you leave me?

There's nothing more from me you can consume

Cause you are incomplete

Always wanting what your eyes can't see
(needing what your arms can’t reach)

Thinking you are in need

Always hearing what your ears can't hear
(feeling what your hands can't touch)

Thinking you are incomplete

(Enough)
It was never enough that I gave to you

All of the horror that you've put me through
(Never enough)

How can I make up my mind this time?

This is where I will draw the line

Everlasting need

Would you please?

Answer me and
Make me complete

Everlasting greed

Would you please?

Set me free

Fulfill all my needs and make complete

(Enough)
It was never enough that I gave to you

All of the horror that you've put me through
(Never enough)

How can I make up my mind this time?

This is where I will draw the line

Never again will I be with you

No promise eternal carrying us through

I finally made up my mind this time

This is the end, I've drawn the line

Never enough to devour your greed

- Thank you very much everybody!

- We'd like to invite a special
guest on stage with me.

- Floor Jansen!
Give it up for Floor!

- Thank you!
Look at that!

____________________
* Stabat Mater Dolorosa *

Stabat Mater is a musical setting
of the Stabat Mater sequence,

composed by Giovanni
Battista Pergolesi in 1736.

The Stabat Mater is one of
Pergolesi's most celebrated sacred works.

Stabat mater dolorosa

Iuxta crucem lacrimosa

Iuxta crucem lacrimosa

Dum pendebat filius

Dum pendebat filius

Stabat mater dolorosa

Iuxta crucem lacrimosa

Dum pendebat

Dum pendebat filius

Dolorosa

Lacrimosa

Dum pendebat filius

- Thank you Floor!

- Thank you!

- That was lovely, wasn't it?!

- Next song is one of the highlights.

- Stabat mater was on of my personal highlights.

- I love the song,
I love the Choir and Orchestra.

- Köszönöm szépen, Reményi!

- But the next song we going to playin' for you tonight...

... is a first ever.

- Let's see if you guys recognise this one...

... from the latest record.

____________
* Twin Flames *

You're eternal my love

For me you're all there ever was

Every limit overcome

As we are entangled we are one

Words are left unsaid burning in my head

Now I only wish I could hold you again

Being there with you I feel at ease

Being there with you is all I ever need

My one belief

We share a common energy

I’ve flown afar beyond the sea,

To find the other side of me

I’ve waited long and patiently,

To find the one to balance me

To live without dubiety

This is my covenant to thee

Life feels empty, my love,

It pains me so to give you up

Sentiments untold never to unfold

Now I only wish I could hold you again

Being there with you I am whole again

Being there with you is all I ever need,

My one belief,

We share a common energy

I’ve flown afar beyond the sea,

To find the other side of me

I’ve waited long and patiently,

To find the one to balance me

To live without dubiety

This is my covenant to thee

Ever need

My one belief

You’re all I need, my one belief

The winds of time will carry me

To live without dubiety

Don’t let this ever end

(We flown afar beyond the sea,
to find each other finally)

(We’ve waited long and patiently
to build a bridge between dualities)

- Thank you very much!

- It's time for something more heavy!

- The next song I would like to dedicate

to a dear friend of us,
who passed away last year.

- He worked on several albums with us.
His name was Simon Oberender.

- We still think about him a lot, and...

... this one is for you!

_________________________
* Serenade of Self-destruction *

Never could we see
What lies deeper

Seeming that our view
Can't be changed

Deciding where to go
And believe in your disaster

Deleting a future untold

This is the final deceiver

This is the devil in me

Expecting deeds in the making

Will show no final relief

Ever would we dance with the reaper

Seething in a monstrous cage

Ideas meant to placate
When meeting your disaster

Are only for a desperate fool

Destructive thoughts to mislead us

Can come from deep underground

Believing sources unbroken

Will tear the legion apart

Will we be forever free as we
unchain our souls From life forever

- You are just a slave to the dust
- Another time

where you and me will be freed
with one more last endeavour

You will never find your way out

No!

Try me, don't deny me
Please embrace me in your peace

I want to fly into the bright

Would you please guide my last goodbye

Why won't you lie with me

my light's ending on
a night when I find

I'll take my final flight

Now come and see divinity where night turns day
So far away from heaven

You will never earn my trust
Provoke the need, give word to deed,
And dive into another God-like atmosphere

You cannot escape your fate now

No!

Try me, don't deny me
Please embrace me in your peace

I want to fly into the bright

Would you please
guide my last goodbye

Why won't you lie with me

my light's ending on a night when I find,
I'll take my final flight

I'd rather die
Than breathe in my shame

They'll know my name
All hell in flames

(For our faith we proudly die)
For it we would die

(For our sovereign all hell will arise)
Hell will surely rise

(We'll serve our cause in earning reward)
Earning our reward

(Collision of skies the ocean wept dry)
Every ocean dry

Another's desperation
flying through the emptiness

As my degradation throws me out of line

- Eindhoven!

- Are you ready?

Try me, don't deny me
Please embrace me in your peace

I want to fly into the bright
Would you please guide my last goodbye

Why won't you lie with me

my light's ending on a night
when I find, I'll take my final flight

Take the final flight into the
serenade forever lost in time

_________________
* Orchestral Medley *

______
* Feint *

__________________
* Fools of Damnation *

Bow to me, go for it, just do it
Die for the supremacy

Kneel for me, go for it, just do it
Die for the divinity

______________
* Mother of Light *

We consciously sign
our own sentence of death

How can you go on, did you forget

What we have learnt from the past?

We can't go on killing ourselves

And with us all the rest

Why can't you see,
don't you regret?

__________________
* Kingdom of Heaven *

Non intellegens nil explicas
Videre nolens nil capies

Non intellegens nil explicas
Incognita non vides

_____________
* Run for a Fall *

__________________
* Deep Water Horizon *

____________________
* The Divine Conspiracy *

Quaestio nostra est aeterna

Ultima requies fons vitae

Sed eam ut novam ducemus

We will never know all possibilities
to predict what is to come

And so we have illusions to think freely

Once we had been
Rich from within

Did not try to reach
What we couldn’t achieve

Because once we had been
Able to win

From the need to succeed

We need to be innocent to live
the life we've lived for so long

We need to be blind enough to live
the life we live right now

Who possesses your time
also possesses your mind

Once we had been
Rich from within

Did not try to reach
What we couldn’t achieve

Because once we had been
Able to win

From the need to succeed

We need to be innocent to live
the life we've lived for so long

We need to be deaf enough to live
the life we live right now

Who possesses your time
also possesses your mind

Reach out, touch infinity

Life is just a memory

Time is not the entity

Like it used to be

The Divine Conspiracy

Opens up the reality

Time is not the entity

Like it claims to be

Desperately we all

Clutch at the last straw

We stumble and fall

Countdown to die

To heal it all

Who possesses your time
also possesses your mind

Who possesses your time
(Mislead us all, we are not in control)

Also possesses your mind
(There is no trace that will lead to this place)

Reach out, touch infinity

Life is just a memory

Time is not the entity

Like it used to be

The Divine Conspiracy

Opens up reality

Time is not the entity

Like it claims to be

Time is not the entity
Like it claims to be

- Thank you so much!

- Tonight is like a dream come true...

... although it does really feel like I'm still dreaming.

- Reality can be beautiful sometimes, you know!

- But life has its dark side as well.

- This next song is about
the depths of despair.

_________
* Delirium *

Black was the night when I did surrender

I did give in to my weakening sight

Now that I'm empty my dreams once were many

Soul's bitter cry to unleash the divine

When you think there's no way out

And all you see collides

Hope will in the end chase all your fears away

Fighting the source was not recommended

Trails of a wish were the hope to survive

Skins full ablazing release crystal gazing

All of it led to a deeper demise

When you think there's no way out

And no one comprehends

Hope will show your smile again

What I left behind

Another night
Of weary dreams

What's been left behind

Another time
Where days of late are far away

Far away

Losing my reasons,
No lies to believe in

Left the obscure to the means of escape

Core has been shaken,

There is no more pain to break me

Time has commenced and I long to awake

When you think there's no way out

Leave everything behind

You can live your life

What I left behind

Another night
Of weary dreams

What's been left behind

Another time
Where days of late are far away

Far away

Dark days behind me
Won't ever break me now

- My fellow EPICAns! Show me your hands!

All that I left behind

Another night
Of weary dreams

What's been left behind

Another time
Where days of late are far away

Far away

Just another night
In another time

- Simone Simons!!!

- And on keys Mr. Coen Janssen!!!

- Give it up for Coen!

_____________
* Blank Infinity *

Trying to keep myself
afloat upon this stream

But a thought is pulling me down

Pulling me all the way down

We are wandering towards a blank infinity

And extinguishing will now be the only way
To diminish your sins

This vortex can't be filled up again
A hole in space and time

Do you cry to the heaven's high
When you're confined in here?

Do you not ever wonder why
These leaden tears will never dry?

They'll leave behind so
many shadows in my mind

High in the sky, all of
the clouds are passing by

Wait for the storm, wait for the rain
Wait for the tears to fall down on me

We are wandering towards a blank infinity

And extinguishing will now be the only way
To diminish your sins

This vortex can't be filled up again
A hole in space and time

Do you cry to the heaven's high
When you're confined in here?

Do you not ever wonder why
These leaden tears will never dry?

They'll leave behind so many shadows

Living in me, living in all the memories in my life
(Do you wonder why these tears never dry?)

Time forced into life (in my life)
Living in my mind

Can we ever find a way in this labyrinth
without end? (Labyrinth has no end)

Which turn should I take?
Left or right?

Should I stay?
Should I be the one?

Do you cry to the heaven's high
When you're confined in here?

Do you not ever wonder why
These leaden tears will never dry?

They'll leave behind so many shadows

The substance in time forced into life
Still exists because it's here

Living in me, living in
all the memories in my life

Lost inside blank infinity

- Klokgebouw, let me hear you!

- You guys are not tired yet, right?!
- NO!!!

- So its time for something more heavy now!

- Before we gonna play this,
we wanna hear how loud you can be!

- We're gonna split you guys
into right half and the left half.

- First we wanna hear you guys at the right half.
Come on!

- Left side!

- Right side!

- Left side!

- Right, left, right, left, right, left, right, left.

- Everybody!!!

- This is...

_____________________
* The Obsessive Devotion *

Don't you ever blind me

- Don't be a foolish thief
- Am I?

Don't you ever bring yourself to grief

Don't you ever blind me

- Don't ever trick my mind
- Did I?

- Don't you think that you can lie to me
- Did I...

...Lie
(Fortuna exprimitur)

(Artibus falsis)

(Et mendacem memorem)

(Esse oportet)

If he is your moon, I will be your earth
To which you can return, safely or injured.

I feel only misery for myself when I
Look through the eyes of someone else.

Don't you choke and bind me

- Don't be a bleeding heart
- Am I?

Fold then walk away or play your cards

Let us play!
(Fortuna exprimitur)

(Artibus falsis)

(Et mendacem memorem)

(Esse oportet)

If he is your moon, I will be your earth
To which you can return, safely or injured.

I feel only misery for myself when I
Look through the eyes of someone else

I can't even recognize the path
which has to be taken to enter infinity.

- I dare you
- Don't you dare me? Don't you care about me?

- I care about you
- Don't you touch me! Liar!

(Fortuna exprimitur)

(Artibus falsis)

(Et mendacem memorem)

(Esse oportet)

(Adoratio permanebit
Quotiens me eges, adero)

I prefer to be unhappy with you,
rather than being depressed without you.

I belong to someone, I'm dedicated to
Nothing lasts forever but you, you do...

I prefer to be a lair just like you
To fulfill my deepest desires

I belong to someone, I'm dedicated to
But all that I desire is you

One thoughtless moment
passes in slow motion

As I lie down, I realise that...

All I wish is to get rid of
this Obsessive Devotion

(Venia ad vitam aeternam)

(Non mibi, non tibi, sed nobis)

Hit me as you can
Beat me as you wish

Liar!
(Fortuna mutual coniuncti)

(Per tota saecula futura)

I have raised myself for you
But now I regret

(Venia ad vitam aeternam)

This is the end

- Thank you so much!

- We have prepared several surprises
for you guys tonight!

- One of them is about come right now.

- As a 'Thank you' for these wonderful 10 years.

- We wrote a song especially for tonight,
for you guys.

- In this song we look back on the
10 wonderful years we had.

- We are thankful for the past,
we are living in the present,

and we are hoping for a better future.

- This is...

___________
* Retrospect *

Tick-tock goes the clock
as time is passing by

Don't you know this moment
will exist and fade to black

When you look back upon mistake

We try to find the way

Never let the sticks and stones
break bones and beat us through

I remember the light

Turn the world upside down

Reflecting on the many years
that passed us by

Once in every now and again hard inside

To grasp reality and let
our light shine through

We welcome to end raids of rising tides

And the darkness that
surrounds us turns to light

Burn up there we'll always
say that ballast will remain

Find the key of might to open doors

and this engaged

When we all enterprise

find the key to survive

Unlock the secrets of
the heart and memories

Once in every now
and again hard inside

To grasp reality and let
our light shine through

We welcome to end raids of rising tides

And the darkness that
surrounds us turns to light

Mindless will show you now

And never reside

There is a different way

Inflame your energy

This hurting

Believing

Your preaching

Said all been paid

Once in every now
and again hard inside

To grasp reality and let
our light shine through

We welcome to end raids of rising tides

And the darkness that
surrounds us turns to light

Take it for the anniversary era

Out of our sight

- Thank you so much!

____________________________________
* Star Wars Medley (John Williams cover) *

___________________
* Battle of the Heroes *

Battle of the Heroes is a musical theme from the
movie Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.

It was written by John Williams for the duel
between Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi

on the volcanic planet Mustafar.

__________________
* The Imperial March *

The Imperial March (Darth Vader's Theme),
also known as the "Imperial Death March",

is a musical theme present in the Star Wars franchise.

It was composed by John Williams for the film
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.

- Thank you so much!

- We brought some old friends with us tonight.

- What would an anniversary show be
without these guys!?

- You know who I am talking about?!

- Give it a warm welcome!
Ad Sluijter, Jeroen Simons and Yves Huts.

- Please put your hands up in the air!
Oh, yeah!

- Keep them up!

- Also in the back, everybody!

- Hey, hey, hey ...

_________
* Quietus *

- Are you ready?!

The culprit, you act before thinking

Caught in your ignorant sin

And lying to your own reflection

You thought you could hide

Deprived of my own innocence, denied

The infinity of recurring torment
is your comeuppance

See, hear the torture inside
Devouring what was left of my pride

You thought it's not going to happen,
You thought you could hide

Deprived of my own innocence, denied

The infinity of recurring torment
is your comeuppance

Dwelling in a mind, mixed up and
your regret has spread over the sea

- Hey, give it up for Ad, Yves and Jeroen.

Deprived of my own innocence, denied

The infinity of recurring torment
is your comeuppance

Dwelling in a mind, mixed up and
your regret has spread over the sea

- Ad Sluijter, Yves Huts and Jeroen Simons!!!

- That was a long time ago.

___________________
* The Phantom Agony *

I can't see you

- I can't hear you Eindhoven.
SCREAM!!!

- It's good to be alive!

I can't feel you, I can't touch you,
Do you exist?

The Phantom Agony

I can't taste you, I can't think of you,
Do we exist at all?

(The future doesn't pass)

(And the past won't
overtake the present)

(All that remains is an obsolete illusion)

We are afraid of all the
things that could not be

A phantom agony

Do we dream at night
Or do we share the same old fantasy?

I am a silhouette of the person
wandering in my dreams

We are afraid of all the
things that could not be

A phantom agony

Tears of unprecedented beauty reveal

the truth of existence

We're all sadists

The age-old development of consciousness
Drives us away from the essence of life

We meditate too much, so that our instincts
will fade away, they fade away

What's the point of life And what's
the meaning if we all die in the end?

Does it make sense to learn
or do we forget everything?

We are afraid of all the
things that could not be

A phantom agony

Tears of unprecedented beauty reveal

the truth of existence

We're all pessimists

The age-old development of consciousness
Drives us away from the essence of life

We meditate too much, so that our instincts
will fade away, they fade away

Teach me how to see
and free the disbelief in me

What we get is what we see

the Phantom Agony

(A te spiritus noster)

(Devoratur et nostra)

(Anima capitur)

- Thank you guys from
the bottom of our hearts!

________________
* Cry for the Moon *

- Thank you!

Follow your common sense

You cannot hide yourself
behind a fairytale forever and ever

Only by revealing the
hole truth can we disclose

The soul of this sick bulwark forever and ever
Forever and ever

Indoctrinated minds

So very often contain sick thoughts

And commit most of the evil they preach against

- Eindhoven, let me hear you scream!

Don't try to convince me

With messages from God

You accuse us of sins
committed by yourselves

It's easy to condemn
without looking in the mirror

Behind the scenes

Behind the scenes opens reality

Eternal silence cries out for justice

Forgiveness is not for sale
Nor is the will to forget

Follow your common sense

You cannot hide yourself
behind a fairytale forever and ever

Only by revealing the hole truth can we disclose

The soul of this sick bulwark forever and ever

Virginity has been
stolen at very young ages

And the extinguisher
loses its immunity

Morbid abuse of power in the
garden of Eden, where the apple

Where the apple gets a youthful

A youthful face

Eternal silence cries out for justice

Forgiveness is not for sale
Nor is the will to forget

Follow your common sense

You cannot hide yourself
behind a fairytale forever and ever

Only by revealing the hole truth can we disclose

The soul of this sick bulwark forever and ever
Forever and ever

- Eindhoven, are you ready to sing with me?

Follow your common sense

You cannot hide yourself
behind a fairytale forever and ever

Only by revealing the hole truth can we disclose

The soul of this sick bulwark forever and ever

Follow your common sense

You cannot hide yourself
behind a fairytale forever and ever

Only by revealing the hole truth can we disclose

The soul of this sick bulwark forever and ever
Forever and ever

Eternal silence cries out for justice

Forgiveness is not for sale
Nor is the will to forget

You can't go on hiding yourself

Behind old fashioned fairytales

And keep washing
your hands in innocence

- AriŽn van Weesenbeek on drums!

- Give it up for the beast!!!

- I swear to you I think that AriŽn has a
couple of batteries up his ass!

- Because nobody has so much
energy... as that guy over there ...

- This next song. We go back to
The Divine Conspiracy.

- To a land, we all believe, is very very sacred.
Or maybe not.

- This is ...

... Sancta

_____________
* Sancta Terra *

- Give it up for Floor!

A place which I have searched a thousand times

To finally free myself

Forever wasn't ever long enough

I will refrain

I feel a passion washing over me

To shed the skin

This evolution will empower me

Now truth begins

And you will not find me
(I am safe in here)

I'm where I want to be

It's a place where a wish will be granted
Come, you'll see I'm right

It's a force that will live on within you
Dark as day is light

It's a place where your dreams will be slanted
And will always be

It's a force that was sent out to win you
Just you wait and see

Take one step closer to the borderline

Where night and day unite

This mortal coil I've gone and left behind
On holy soil

And you will not find me
(I am safe in here)

I'm where I want to be

It's a place where a wish will be granted
Come, you'll see I'm right

It's a force that will live on within you
Dark as day is light

It's a place where your dreams
will be slanted and will always be

It's a force that was sent out to win you
Just you wait and see

You will not find me
I am safe in here

I am where I want to be
So leave me now in peace

And you will not find me
(I am safe in here)

I'm where I want to be

It's a place where a wish will be granted
Come, you'll see I'm right

It's a force that will live on within you
Dark as day is light

It's a place where your dreams
will be slanted And will always be

It's a force that was sent out to win you
Just you wait and see

(It's a place where a wish will be
granted Come, you'll see I'm right)

(It's a force that will live on
within you Dark as day is light)

(It's a place where your dreams
will be slanted And will always be)

(It's a force that was sent out
to win you Just you wait and see)

- Floor Jansen!!!

- Dank je wel Floor!
you kick ass!

- Thank you, and you too give it up for
EPICA!!!

- Yeah, you want some more?!

YEAH!!!

- Sure?

YEAH!!!

- All right!

- The next one is of realizing your dreams,
creating your own universe...

... because that's what we can do!
Let wishes come true!

- This is ...

____________________
* Design Your Universe *

We're blind and eager
Avarice will set us back to blank

Those who wager all will have to name a reason

If you can't let go, you will end up empty handed

If you can't control, you'll live your life in vain

Who decides about my time to come?

Who is able to break through the circle of life and doom?

Don't look back
Keep on track to break the curse

Take the chance
Design your universe

We can't undo what we have done
So show us now what we've become

Confront us with our viciousness
And our weakness

We can't evade our destiny
So show responsibility

For we all surely have a sense
Of our consciousness

To take for taking's sake
Will leave a path of loss and strain

And endless breaking of faith
can warrant acts of treason

If you can't let go, you will end up empty handed

If you can't control, you'll live your life in vain

Who decides about what's true or false?

Who is able to sift through the treasures from the flukes?

Don't look back
Keep on track to break the curse

Take the chance
Design your universe

We can't undo what we have done
So show us now what we've become

Confront us with our viciousness
And our weakness

We can't evade our destiny
So show responsibility

For we all surely have a sense
Of our consciousness

The time has come, we have to see
That total wisdom is in reach

The time has come to colour in the lines
We must identify the signs

So many people are full of hate
While love and light are in their reach

So many people will harm themselves
But life can be so beautiful

So many people will idolize
While their own success is in their reach

Don't forget you're able to
Design your own universe

Find your balance, sink into rumination

Ipsum te reperies

(Potire mundorum)

(Potire omnis mundi)

We can't undo what we have done
So show us now what we've become

Confront us with our viciousness
And our weakness

We can't evade our destiny
So show responsibility

For we all surely have a sense
Of our consciousness

Of our consciousness

- Come on everybody!

- Wave goodbye to EPICA!

- Thank you so much!

- We love you guys!

Can't evade...
Show us now...

Confront us...
... with our weakness

Can't evade...
Show us now...

We have a sense
Of our consciousness

- Eindhoven!
What's up?!

- Or should I say...
World what's up?!

- I see all these flags...
Brazil, Mexico, Finland, Uruguay, Colombia,

Izrael, Chile...
- Is there a dutch flag in the venue?

- Italia.

- You know guys, thank You so much for
coming tonight from all over the world!

- This has been the best show
for us, since our beginning.

- Thank you all for joining us at Restrospect!

- This cheer is for you guys!

- I think you can do
louder! Can you do louder?!

- What would EPICA be without the loyal fans,
which you are?! Thank you very much!

- And of course everybody at home,
watching the stream.

- Thank you too, I hope you enjoyed it!

- I don't know where you are, somewhere in the world.

- I think it's about like 25 different countries,
or 45-50, whatever... doesn't matter! Haha...

- I would like to say thank you to everybody
involved in this project, ...

... light, sound, cameras.
you know why we have cameras, don't you?!

- Not only because of the stream, but also because
we gonna release this show on a DVD.

- Hell yeah!

- This is so awesome!
But ...

EPICA, EPICA, EPICA!!!

- It's not only EPICA this time, we have
this great orchestra behind us and choir.

- Please give it up for Orchestra and
National Theatre of Miskolc Hungary!

- So you know what?
We are gonna play some more!

- Do you wanna hear more?!

- So let's scream very loud,
'til the band comes up again.

- I don't know where they are actually,
so... Just scream a little bit, okay?!

- You know what?
I love You all, each and every one of You!

- Also on the balcony, also in front,
also behind the cameras, everywhere.

I love you! Thank you very much!

________________
* Storm the Sorrow *

Along the way I find myself
To be confined within me

No place for any other's mind to interfere

To grasp the meaning of it all
To overcome my limits

And dance away from
any void and empty tones

Just tell me why

Just tell me how
I can survive this time

Believe yourself and look away
From all that's right within you

Leave all your worries
at the door and drift away

I've tried to peer into the core
But could not storm the sorrow

My hollow heart has bled
me dry, left me to stray

Another time without a trace
Condemn me now

Send me to hell
For I'm already failing

Intertwine the lines
That swim beneath the dark

Realize the pain we live in
Demonize the need we reel in, no

In my memories I'll dig deep enough to know
Centuries of dreams unending

Another me that yielded tears
when someone had betrayed

No time should ever go to waste
It's not that complicated

You're free to live your life at ease
No more restraint

No heed for shadows on your way
That try to steal your laughter

Your light will drive them all away
Be confident

Will I refrain?
Can I repent?

Will you be there?

Erase the page
For I'm alone and ailing

Intertwine the lines
That swim beneath the dark

Realize the pain we live in
Demonize the need we reel in, no

In my memories I'll dig deep enough to know
Centuries of dreams unending

Another me that yielded tears
when someone had betrayed

So, this is my life
And it can't break me down

Go, I will decide
Who can come in and heal my disease

Burn it in flames
Kill it and maim

Why can't you see that
you need to be freed?

Intertwine the lines beneath the dark
Every bit of pain we're feeling

Every other solemn life, no
In the memories you will find somehow

There used to be a dream unending
No more need to be alone

Intertwine the lines
That swim beneath the dark

Realize the pain we live in
Demonize the need we reel in, no

In my memories I'll dig deep enough to know
Centuries of dreams unending

Another me that yielded tears
when someone had betrayed

Someone had betrayed

- Thank you so much!

- This evening will be one we will never forget

- For us this is amazing

- We've seen all your faces, and we are very
glad we could share this wonderful anniversary...

...together with you...

...*(without you) we wouldn't be
here anymore. So thank you so much!

- This last song is for all of you.
May you all get home safe.

- And I heard there's
also an afterparty, so...

- Don't drink and drive!

- Enjoy!

__________________
* Consign to Oblivion *

- Are you ready for the last rumble?!

- Put your horns up in the air!!!

- Howl, howl, howl!

- Go!

How can we let this happen and
Just keep our eyes closed 'til the end

The only thing that counts
is the prosperity of today

Most important to
us is that our bills get paid

Our good intentions
have always been delayed

How can we let this happen and
Just keep our eyes closed 'till the end

When we will stand in front of
heaven's gate It will be too late!

Try to unlearn all that you've learnt
Try to listen to your heart

No, we can't understand the universe
By just using our minds

We are so afraid of all the things unknown

A must we appease
is the lust to get laid

Nothing really matters,
just devouring our prey

Our good intentions have
always been delayed so

Our generous acts have always come too late

How can we let this happen and
Just keep our eyes closed 'till the end

When we will stand in front of heaven's gate
It will be too late!

Try to unlearn all that you've learnt
Try to listen to your heart

No, we can't understand the universe
By just using our minds

We are so afraid of all the things unknown

We just flee into a dream
that never comes true

Low, low, low to the ground we feel safe

Low, low, low to the ground we feel brave

(Oblivisci tempta quod didicisti)

Open your eyes, we're not in paradise

How can't you see
this stress is killing me?

Fulfil your dreams, life
is not what is seems to be

We have captured time

So time made us all hostages without mercy
(Seemingly generous fooling ourselves)

(Selfishly venomous time tells)

Too much thinking goes
at the cost of all our intuition

Our thoughts create reality,
but we neglect to be!

So we're already slaves
of our artificial world

We shouldn't try to control life
But listen to the laws of nature

Open your eyes, we're not in paradise

How can't you see
this stress is killing me?

Fulfil your dreams, life
is not what is seems to be

We have captured time
So time made us all hostages without mercy

- Hands up everybody!!!

Low, low, low to the ground we feel safe

Low, low, low to the ground we feel brave

We all think we're generous
But we only fool ourselves

The only thing that matters is
Our way and our vision

Selfishly we're venomous
But you know the time tells us

There is more to life

Than our higher positions,
race for perfection, better, faster

We must return to the laws of the nature
Free ourselves from madness

- Thank you all so very much!
We will never forget this.