Not many of you may have heard of a symphonic rock band Within Temptation from the Netherlands as they are relatively quiet outside the European and Australian charts. Nevertheless, if you enjoy listening to Evanescence, Within Temptation may offer you a much better alternative in terms of consistent song delivery, richness of rock and metal sound supported by a good symphonic ambiance, and the voice of Sharon den Adel is much better than Amy Lee from Evanescence. Within Temptation may also be more accessible to general audience as compares to one of their “competitors” from the same country, After Forever. The new album from After Forever is inspiring though the sound is more leaning towards metal while the fourth album from Within Temptation sounds pretty much like their previous one “The Silent Force”. In fact, both Cynthia and I think that the tunes are more catchy in “The Silent Force”, which brings out the question: is their new album “The Heart Of Everything” worth checking out?
I have to admit that over these 10 years of music creation, Within Temptation – though only have four albums – has become more sophisticated in terms of sound and melody. And with such a progress, I was slightly taken aback when I first heard of this album’s first single “What Have You Done feat. Keith Caputo” that has such as strong resemblance to Evanescence’s debut single “Bring Me To Life” (two vocalists – male and female). Perhaps it is Within Temptation‘s strategy to break into the global market. Nevertheless, “What Have You Done feat. Keith Caputo” is a great song and I have included its music video below. If you like that song, don’t miss another of their single “Frozen”.
If you buy the original CD, it comes with an “Opendisc” technology that enables you to view and listen to the exclusive contents streamed to your computer via the Internet. It has a couple of live recordings (four in total) as well as 11 video clips from their previous albums. I value bands with vocalists who can sing live well and the lead vocalist of Within Temptation, Sharon den Adel, truly shines when she is out at stage.
I personally do enjoy listening to this new album “The Heart Of Everything”. Content-wise, the band draws some of the concepts from the Christian Theology. There are songs of constant conflict and sorrow, sin and forgiveness. suffering and hope. My favorite track of the album is “Hand Of Sorrow” that contains a stunningly memorable chorus with the following lyrics:
So many dreams were broken and so much was sacrificed.
Was it worth the ones we loved and had to leave behind?
So many years have past, who are the noble and the wise?
Will all our sins be justified.
Talking about powerful tune of the chorus using the symphonic sound, the band even throws in a few Latin words inside “Our Solemn Hour”.
Sanctus Espiritus, redeem us from our solemn hour.
Sanctus Espiritus, insanity is all around us.
Sanctus Espiritus, is this what we deserve.
Can we break free from chains of never-ending agony?
Within Temptation does not belong to the genre that appeals to the general public. But if you are, you will probably add this group into your music collection by now. And don’t forget to check out their previous album “The Silence Force”. It contains great songs such as “Memories”, “Stand My Ground”, and “Angels”. The video of “Angels” is just beautiful, with a strong reference to good and evil.
Okay, I better put a stop in this blog. Or else I will keep on writing. Such a strong urge to do a write-up on their previous album.
Two weeks later after first drafting this blog: Okay, I cannot resist the temptation of sharing one of my favorite songs from their previous album. The song “Memories” is just beautiful. The video is beautifully filmed and the singer is beautiful in the video. If you find the song above too noisy for your liking, you may like this one better.