all of you!" On June 5, 2015 Epica was awarded the Music Export Award at Buma Rocks, which is given to the Dutch act with the most international success in the past year. The band's guitarist/vocalist Mark Jansen thanked band's fans through their official website: "We are honored with this prestigious award, it’s a big achievement after all those years of investing countless hours and much energy into Epica. It shows that everything you do by following your heart will eventually pay off and will get acknowledged. Thanks to all our fans from all over the world!" The Holographic Principle, EPs, first book and Design Your Universe 10th Anniversary (2016–2019) On May 31, 2016 Epica confirmed the title of the band's new album: The Holographic Principle, that was released on September 30, 2016. In an interview with Spark TV the band's singer Simone Simons discussed the complex nature of the album, explaining that the band used more "real, live instruments" than in previous albums and that this album is "one of [the band's] most ambitious offerings to date". The band announced previously that the album would be released as part of their performance at the second edition of Epic Metal Fest, but later revised this, stating it would be released a day earlier. On September 1, 2017, the band released their first EP The Solace System during the second North American leg of the tour. The EP features 6 songs that were planned and recorded but never included in The Holographic Principle. Epica released an EP on December 20, 2017, in Japan titled Epica vs Attack on Titan Songs, featuring covers of songs from the anime Attack on Titan. The EP was released worldwide on July 20, 2018. On July 3, 2019, Epica announced that they would release their first book later that year. This would include a history of the band, interviews and photos. The band announced on July 17, 2019 that a Gold Edition of their album Design Your Universe would come out on 4 October 2019 in support of its tenth anniversary, along with a tour. Omega (2020–present) Simone Simons had stated on February 1, 2020 that pre-production for the next album had been completed. On March 11, 2020, the band had entered the studio to begin recording their new album, while in turn released studio vlogs showing the album making process for their upcoming eighth studio