As guitarist, Jansen founded After Forever with Sander Gommans, and was one of the main songwriters for the band's first two albums, Prison of Desire and Decipher.

[5][6] Prior to his departure, he had intended to further explore complex interactions between classical instruments, choruses in Latin and death metal elements in the band's next album,[7][8] while Gommans and the others preferred a more direct and aggressive approach to music, retaining some elements that made the sound of the band recognizable, but expanding it in new and different directions.

[10] After his departure from After Forever, began looking for musicians who would work towards a more classical/symphonic type of music project; this was initially named Sahara Dust.

The band's line-up was completed by guitarist Ad Sluijter, drummer Jeroen Simons, bassist Yves Huts, and keyboard player Coen Janssen.

[17][18][19][20][21] Some songs also have electronic shades, djent transitions and folk metal melodies derived from Middle Eastern, Chinese and Celtic traditions.

[22] Epica is also known for the attention to the vocal lines that, in contrast to the heavy context, weave very catchy, easy to hold, sophisticated and emotional melodies.

[26] MaYaN's lyrical themes include religion, politics, and world events, as well as philosophy, meditation, existence, and inner struggles.