Interview by Telephone by: Bas Kanij, 13-11-2006
Photo's by: Milou de Zwart

Floor Jansen After Forever Interview

Floor Jansen After Forever Interview

It's been silent for a while where After Forever is concerned. Early in the year, they did a short, three-week tour of some European venues, and after that, according to the band, they played some really cool festivals. But after that, everyone seemed to have disappeared into thin air.
However, behind the scenes, hidden from outside eyes, a lot was taking place. For instance, after a long, difficult process, record label Transmission Records was dismissed, and the search for a new deal began.Meanwhile, they were also working on new songs, and a collaboration with
The Entertainment Group was started.

About the old label:

Jansen: “We're a band that's really into artistic value and we want to show what we represent, we like to do things our way. In the end, everything should be about the music. Transmission had some strange ideas about that. But what's done is done. I'd like to look forward, to the future, now.”

About the new label:

Jansen: “After the split with Transmission, we first reviewed all the offers we got. And we got a lot of them. We're very proud of that, because it does mean we've made a name for ourselves over the years. The labels came for us because of the quality we offer, and because this kind of
music is extremely popular right now. In the end we chose Nuclear Blast, with whom we now have a worldwide licensing deal. That is so cool. Those people have proven themselves internationally, they just know how to take
care of business in a professional way. Also, they have the required experience with female fronted metal. This is a big step ahead for us. Everything's looking really positive at the moment. It's great.”

About The Entertainment Group:

Jansen: “Apart from the deal with Nuclear Blast, we also made a business deal with The Entertainment Group. This is a modern way of cooperating, a so-called 'joint venture', where the roles are divided. This is a pretty unique thing in the music industry. You sort of make a product on an equal
basis, providing each other with input, back and forth. You can't really imagine a better thing. The Entertainment Group does stem from another scene, with artists like Marco Borsato and Trijntje Oosterhuis (Dutch-language pop singers), but they liked the opportunity to unleash
their expertise on our music.”

About the new album

Jansen: “We're working on it at the moment. We started writing again fairly soon and have just finished recording. We worked with Gordon Groothedde, a big name in pop music. He liked the challenge of working with us. I think that counts for something. It was a good time, it was
nice working together and the result is better than expected. Everyone is really satisfied with it. It's become a bit of everything. Don't expect anything weird though, the album is a combination of everything we've done so far, but with more extremes. The heavy songs are really heavy, quiet is quiet, and when it 'grooves', it actually 'grooves'. To sum it up, all the old AF ingredients are back, from melodic to spheric to catchy. It's scheduled to be in stores by the end of March."

About a new tour:

Jansen: “We're deciding where to go at the moment. We've worked with a lot of nice people these last few months and that's opened a lot of doors. At the moment, we're talking to all the world, and we have a few options, like going to South America again. That was really cool the last time. The
people over there show their enthusiasm in a very different way than those over here, they really freak out when you get on stage. It's great to play over there. All the same, we don't want to neglect our fans over here, that's where our base is, after all. Nothing is set. We just need to look at all the possibilities right now. Festivals, too, because at the time the CD is on the shelves, those are about to begin and the club season has ended. But as I said, we're still looking..."

www.afterforever.com