Astonishing singer-songwriter CHARLOTTE WESSELS (ex-DELAIN) has joined forces with Simone Simons of Epica for her mesmerizing new single entitled “Dopamine”. This track is part of Wessels’ first traditional full-length, full-band solo album, The Obsession, set to be released on September 20, 2024 via Napalm Records. Promising a deeply immersive and evocative experience, the two Dutch symphonic metal legends guide listeners through the emotional landscape of SSRI-induced numbness. The Obsessionshowcases WESSELS‘ most mature work to date, blending progressive and heavier soundscapes with catchy elements.
Supported by her former Delain bandmates, who contribute to the album’s heavier sound, CHARLOTTE WESSELS is set to bring The Obsession to the stage this year. The journey begins with a release show on October 4, 2024 at Utrecht’s TivoliVredenburg, followed by a special guest appearance with label mates Kamelot and Ad Infinitum in Drachten on October 11, 2024. After these shows, Wessels will join VOLA on their Friend of Phantom EU Tour 2024, kicking off on November 1.
CHARLOTTE WESSELS on “Dopamine”:
“Lyrically, ´Dopamine´ deals with SSRI induced numbness that I experienced a few years ago when I was on Sertraline, a type of antidepressant. While the medication was really helpful, there were so many side effects that I’d never heard of. This song deals with some of them, and while it feels vulnerable to expose the experience, I hope it helps in breaking down the shame and taboo around the topic.
Simone reached out to me as I was first opening up about this in an interview, and when the first version of ´Dopamine´ dropped on Patreon (because of course we’re each other’s patrons) she texted how much she liked the song. So when we were working on the album version it only made sense to ask if she’d sing along on the track. I am so happy she agreed and after all of the shared introspection, it was great fun to let loose wearing pink wigs in ball pits and marshmallow pools for the video recordings. Musically, out of the entire new album, ´Dopamine´ went through the biggest transformation. What started out as an EDM demo for a collaboration with a dance duo that never happened, became an acoustic Song Of The Month on Patreon, which then had a massive overhaul when rearranging it with Timo. The new band version is an absolute banger, and the beautiful guest vocals by Simone complete the song.”
While still writing and producing the first incarnations of her songs in her Six Feet Under basement home studio and sharing them with patrons, now CHARLOTTE WESSELS is taking the songs off her new album The Obsession to the next level with a band of her fellow ex-DELAIN cohorts Timo Somers (guitars, additional arrangements), Otto Schimmelpenninck van der Oije (bass) and Joey Marin de Boer (drums) as well as Sophia Vernikov (piano/hammond), contributing to the new heavier sound. The album also features arrangements by Vikram Shankar (Silent Skies, Pain of Salvation), cello by Elianne Anemaat, was mixed by Guido Aalbers (Muse, Coldplay, The Gathering) and mastered by Andy VanDette (Porcupine Tree, VOLA, Dream Theater).
CHARLOTTE WESSELS about the new album:
“On the one hand, this album tells a very personal story – through its unintended theme of fear, obsessive thoughts and the escapes from them – and at the same time it represents the joy of finding the song’s true forms with everyone involved in the making of this record. That’s why I chose The Obsession as a title. It refers to my personal challenges with OCD that inspired many of the songs – but I’ve also started referring to the band as The Obsession – because there were moments in the studio with them that truly reminded me of why I’m obsessed with making music in the first place.”
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