Unforgiving

This is the last album of them before they changed their sound. Better than Hydra but not as good as The Silent Force or The Heart of Everything but it’s still a solid symphonic metal album that has a few good songs on here.

There are the albums that get listened to once or twice, maybe ripped to the player storage, and then sort of disappear. There are the albums that get "put into the rotation" and get played a couple of times (maybe) a month.Then there are albums like this one. Ones that you listen to, and find yourself coming back from a dazed "OMG--what was THAT!?" state. And you turn up the volume another notch, and listen to it again.What's that you say? "Hey, I've listened to Mother Earth, and this doesn't sound like what I heard there." Damn right it doesn't. Mother Earth (which, for the record, I also thoroughly enjoy) is the elegant Bohemian beauty next door, who occasionally shakes the flowers out of her hair and slips on a mini. The Unforgiving is Mother Earth's bad-girl half-sister, dolled up in spike heels and leather for a night of hard partying, and daring you to keep up.Track-by-track reviews don't do much for me, so we won't go here. And, for this album, I don't think it would add much: this whole album is a single wild train ride through the night, lights flashing, bells ringing, and whistle sounding. It slows down a little in a couple of places ("Fire and Ice", "Lost") to let you catch your breath, but don't be fooled: you'll be screaming over the next hill in a couple of minutes. If you want to get off at each stop and stroll around, you should have taken the bus.That said, it's worth mentioning the consistent high quality of the tracks. There are those legendary albums (Thriller, The Dark Side of the Moon, Zoso, etc.) that take a bunch of tracks that can easily be (and frequently were) massive single hits by themselves, and combine them into a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Obviously The Unforgiving won't achieve the legendary status and sales numbers of those blockbusters, but that's because of today's market and WT's place in that market. In the symphonicmetalrock intersection where WT now lives, The Unforgiving sets the bar. Of the 11 music tracks on the CD version, easily 7 could be smash singles.Of the 3 download-only tracks, only "I Don't Wanna" contends for a place on the album; the other two seem more like stand-alone one-offs. "The Last Dance" is a particularly odd duck; if someone had played it for me with the vocal dummied out on piano and asked me to guess who wrote it, I'd have probably said "Loreena McKennitt" (don't worry; that's a good thing).Sharon doesn't quite command the vocal tornado of a legendary rock goddess like, say, Pat Benatar in her prime; in a couple of places, such as toward the end of "Iron", it feels like Sharon is yelling the lyrics at you rather than singing them to you. But overall this is a powerful step up that ladder. On some past efforts (q.v. Mother Earth again), Sharon has had a tendency to get a little thin/reedy/borderline squeaky. Not here; she grabs this material with both hands, steps up with authority, and slams it down your throat. And you like it. You like it a lot. "Thank you, Ma'am; may I have another?"If there's any justice out there, The Unforgiving will do for symphonicmetalrock what Fallen did for gothicmetalrock: make people who hadn't even heard of the genre, much less the artist, sit up and say "Wow--how have I managed to overlook this amazing stuff?"So, if you like symphonic metal, you should by this album. Indeed, if you like rock music of any kind, you should buy this album.Heck, if you have ears that work, you owe it to yourself to listen to this one.

Within Temptation is one of those bands, with every album created you don't know how it's possible they could get any better, and yet they surprise you. This is definitely my favorite CD of theirs up to date.For this album, Within Temptation decided to base the songs around a comic, which they created. Pretty similar to what Coheed and Cambria did (although Within Temptation's is in my opinion a thousand times better). The basis of the story (as far as I have discovered), begins with an elderly woman, known to us as "Mother Maiden". She has been blessed with the supernatural gift of overcoming death. As a result, she is immortal. She's also set in using her gift to make a difference for good in the world. Who does she bring back to life? Not the righteous, who have lived good, noble lives, and have merited eternal happiness. Not the wicked, who are damned, and very deserving of their fate. She brings back those who were good deep down in their heart, but who did something awful for which they need redemption. And she leads them to bring down justice upon the wicked.The main character is named Sinead Harkin. She was murdered in 1967, for protecting a friend of her's (who's name is Opal), from her abusive husband. Mother Maiden finds her in the morgue, and brings her back from the grave, so she can atone for a grievous sin she committed only year earlier. It was back then, she was a drug addict. Her daughter had been taken from her custody, and placed in the care of her father. She broke in to her father's home, to steal enough to buy another hit. It's also apparent she wanted to see her daughter. Her father walks in on her. He tells her she needs to get help, get her life in order, and finally be a mother to her daughter. She says she can't, that she needs the money (obviously not in her right mind), and ends up pulling a gun and shooting him. She never does get convicted, but she bares the guilt of her father's murder pretty deeply over the next year. Mother Maiden gives her the opportunity to find penance.Another character we are introduced to is named "Triplets". His father was a war hero. Fought in three wars, saved a lot of people. And like most war heroes, the wars he fought him really messed him up. He would drink all the time, and in his drunkenness, he would abuse his son. It leads his son to develop a three-way split personality disorder. There's a good side, a darker side, and the soul struggling in between. The darker side of him convinces him that something has to be done. The boy reluctantly agrees. He steals one of his dad's old grenades, and when his dad comes into his room late at night, he blows the both of them up. Once again, patricide. It's one of the most terrible sins, yet it was committed by someone not inherently wicked. Mother Maiden finds him, and brings him back to life. Only this time, all three personalities are given separate entities. So there are now three of them, bent on righting the wrongs of the world.The story also follows two detectives, who are sent to investigate a string of strange murders in the area. There is also a priest (of which we do not know many of the details), who we witness performing a satanic ritual, in order to strike a deal with the devil, probably to summon him or one of his angels.I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS ALBUM. The CD would be incredible on it's own, but I feel purchasing the DVD and comic is a MUST.

Ottimo album, curatissimo nel sound, la voce di Sharon si adatta a tutto. Questo album apre il decennio con una svolta, non ci sono più il coro e il growl degli album precedenti, qui abbiamo un rock-metal più puro, più energico ed orecchiabile ( penso a brani come "shot in the dark" oppure "Sinead")

Although I am not the biggest fan of metal, I have a soft spot for the female fronted stuff.Lacuna Coil are without a doubt my favourite band of all time (although my interest has waned of late). Nightwish have impressed me enough to purchase all of there full-length albums (with "Once", "Century Child" and even "Dark Passion Play" being particular favourites).But the first female fronted metal band I ever heard (if you forget about a certain mega-selling rock outfit from Little Rock, Arkansas) was Within Temptation, and without them I very likely never would have paid any attention to the aforementioned acts.Unlike Lacuna Coil, I have to admit right now that Within Temptation are not one of my favourite bands, because I always find the music they play gets old pretty fast. But that isn't to say they do not write great music. "Mother Earth" contained various musical gems, such as "Caged", "Ice Queen" and a few others, whilst the better produced "The Silent Force" and the companion DVD release took my breath away constantly over many, many spins. On the other hand, "The Heart Of Everything" didn't grab me quite as much, but it was still a very, very good album ("The Cross" is such a magnificent tune).But four years on from their last official album, I haven't been paying to much attention to these Dutch legends. Shame on me, but I just do not have time to adore every single band I love as much as I would like (because I adore loads of very diverse albums across a whole rainbow of musical genres, not just one).Its also of interest to mention that this music has proven to be universally attractive: my father is 71 years old, my mother nearly 60, and the music they like doesn't exert itself very far beyond the odd ABBA album or The Shadows. But they both LOVE Within Temptation, so much so I purchased "The Unforgiving" more with them in mind than for myself (right now I am digging Jimmy Eat World's "Invented" and Thrice's "Vheissu", so you can imagine I wasn't really eagerly awaiting this release as much as they may have been).Boy am I glad I made this purchase, because this is stunning, no matter what sort of music you listen too. Its every thing I ever came to love them for and a whole lot more.Cheesy, bombastic choruses? Check.Epic, mesmerising vocals? Check.Soaring symphonic elements? Check.Frequently pompous symphonic breakdowns and tiresome musical histrionics ala "The Heart Of Everything"? Um...nope...Catchy, and overwhelmingly so (and let's face it, when the music is this good, who is going to complain?), the last album with a female fronted vocalist that made me really sit up and take notice was Lacuna Coil's majestic "Karmacode", which is my most played album of all time. I am not saying it is quite in that albums league (I know a lot of fans abhor that release, but I consider it to be a masterpiece), but its definitely leagues ahead of 2007's "The Heart Of Everything", which was a very good release, falling short of the mark more because of its tiresome length and occasional lapses in quality (I didn't really like the slower ballads, such as "All I Need" at all).However, from start to finish this album flows incredibly well with a darker, pulsating energy that is simply irresistible to these ears. Sharon den Adel's vocals hit the stratosphere, and whilst her trademark higher pitched tones do not take precedence on this one particular release, I think she has never sounded better than she does on tracks such as "Shot In The Dark", "Where Is The Edge?" or the wonderfully anthemic lead single "Faster", which bears a strong resemblence to HIM's version of the Chris Isaak classic "Wicked Game". Fortunately, the all round heavier and, as previously mentioned, darker tone these songs present simply would not have benefited from the angelic, innocent tones den Adel displayed on quieter classics like "Angels", or "Somewhere". Instead, the lyrics and music cry out for a stronger, more aggressive vocal performance, and Sharon supplies the goods in abundance, sounding far more like the rockstar she so obviously is than ever before. At the same time, though, she doesn't compromise her knack for a good melody for raw energy, and her voice never strains under the weight of a big tune.Emphasis on guitars over a symphony orchestra also adds to the magic. They simply do not need to tone down their instruments, (which they have been doing significantly over the last few albums, particularly "The Silent Force") because they are phenomenal musicians. Listen to the band closely as they play on the Iron Maiden influenced "In The Middle Of The Night" or the explosive and fiery "Iron". The symphonic elements haven't disappeared in any way (thank goodness), but they have honed their songwriting craft to the point where the orchestra is used more as a compliment for the song, and less as an excuse to show off.Compare the subtle use of symphony on a track like "Faster" to the way it dominated an older song like "Hand Of Sorrow". Integrated seamlessly, it sounds effortless, and for the listener its easier to digest, whilst allowing the songs to attain a certain accessibility not heard in this bands music since about 2004. All in all, musically speaking, this is the groups most accomplished LP to date, and if they can again improve on their latest accomplishments in future, as they have done with every new album since their inception, the next release from this quintet may well blow every other femme metal band out of the water once and for all, and I am not kidding!Lyrically, the band do not stray too far from where they have previously gone before. Older songs such as "The Howling" or even "Jane Doe" appear to have set the template for the style the band have pushed with this release.It should also be noted that this is the groups first concept album, and this is emphasised considerably more on the lavish Deluxe CD/DVD Edition. An okay idea, but in all honesty any trace of story or character comes second to music this powerful. If you are interested though, the DVD is a must, and there is a series of comic books detailing the events of the story available from their website. For everybody else, just Google it.Being far more cohesive an album than the patchy (though often powerful) Nightwish album "Dark Passion Play", and far more accomplished emotionally and musically than the last Lacuna Coil release, "Shallow Life" (which worked perfectly as an alternative pop album, though it was less than inspiring compared to the best of Lacuna), "The Unforgiving" sees a wonderful band making a terrific comeback.(And for the record, "Sinead" is one of the finest '80's rock anthems to be released since, well, 1989!)Re-invigorated and re-energised after years of fascinating experimentation, Within Temptation have pulled off their finest album in years, and without a doubt this could very well be the one to beat at the end of the year when the lists of great female fronted (or, indeed, any form of music) metal albums of 2011 are compiled.Where the next Lacuna Coil and Nightwish albums shall stand next to this one will be intriguing (and Evanescence could very well prove "The Fallen" was no fluke by releasing a slightly above average album this year, though I won't hold my breath), but all in all its an impressive effort that deserves to extend this already massive band towards the higher echelons of mainstream success.So to finish, well done to all involved, and thank you so much for the epic guitar solo on "Lost". For that moment alone this deserves five stars.I honestly believe it is going to be a while before I get bored with this album...

als Within Temptation Fan der ersten Stunde ist ja heute fast ein Festtag. Habe mir hier auf Amazon die Vinyl-Variante (auf die ich später noch eingehen werde), bestellt. Leider kam die heute noch nicht an (hatte aber einen Zettel im Briefkasten - Amazon liefert mal wieder pünktlich. Danke AMAZON ;-)Habe alle Alben von denen und liebe die "Acoustic night at the theatre" und "Black Symphony" (habe auch davon die Vinyl-Variante und die Blue-Ray). Wieviele 100'te male habe ich diese Alben gehört. Wunderbare Musik ist das einfach nur. Vielleicht sollte ich noch anmerken das ich auch sehr viel Nightwish höre (Made in Hongkong ist ein unfassbar schönes Album).Zur Sache. Da ich diese Art Musik auch gerne beim Sport höre habe ich mir die Download-Movie Variante heute Abend runtergeladen. Gerade habe ich das Album durchgehört und spontan 4 Sterne nach dem ersten entspannten durchhören gegeben. Ich will nicht wie die anderen Rezensionen mit dem Schwerpunkt die einzelnen Lieder zu bewerten. Ganz klar sticht finde ich nur 08. Sinèad ein wirklich episch grandioses Lied. Es beginnt sehr ruhig Das ist aus meiner Sicht das absolute Highlight. Auch Shot in the Dark das 2.Lied beginnt direkt nach der Eröffnung (spitze!) sehr stark. Aber das sind nur subjektive Meinungen. Geschmäcker sind ja bekanntlich verschieden, das kann ich unmöglich für einen anderen Menschen bewerten, das versuche ich erst garnicht.Mir persönlich ist der Sound einfach einen Hauch zu "Casual". Ein Themenalbum, da haben sich schon einige andere Bands "verhoben". Within Temptation passiert das hier aber nicht. Aber es ist doch ein sehr angepasster Sound wenn man mal ehrlich ist. "Casual" hält mittlerweile überall Einzug (Jaja die Verkaufszahlen). Was nur bedauerlich ist, ich persönlich finde das die Stimme von Sharon einfach besser zum alten Sound als dem "weiterentwickelten" passte. Das wunderschöne Stimmwunder, was nie eine professionelle Gesangsausbildung genossen hat kommt bei mir in diesem Album nicht so gut weg. Ich liebe diese Stimme, aber irgendwie ist es auf dem Album was anders (Nur meine rein persönliche Meinung, andere werden es mit Recht auch anders sehen.) Das Album ist ohne Zweifel sehr gut, aber irgendwas fehlt doch ein wenig.Zusammengefasst ein wirklich gelungenes Album was ich bedenkenlos empfehlen kann. Sehr sehr ansprechende und tiefsinnige Musik. Die Vocals sind wirklich TOP. Das ist Musik mit Verstand!Fazit:Subjektiv 4/5 Sternen, aber ich verstehe auch Leute die 5/5 geben. Da ich die Band aber sehr mag und nicht das Haar in der Suppe suchen möchte, gibt es 5/5.Jeder der Within Temptation mag wird mit dem Album sicherlich keinen Fehlkauf machen. "Within Temptation" bleibt nunmal "Within Temptation". Eine wahre Versuchung ;-)Nachtrag nach gefühlten 40 mal "reinhören":Ich habe die Bewertung nun doch auf 4/5 reduziert. Das Album ist im Gegensatz zu "Mother Earth", "The Silent Force" etc einfach zu sehr Poplastig.Die Stimme passt einfach nicht zum neuen Sound. Das Album startet echt gut mit den ersten beiden Titeln und die letzen 3 (A Demon's Fate/Stairway to the Skies I don't Wanna) sind auch TOP. Der Titel Faster ist einfach für mich, nunja....das führe ich besser nicht weiter aus (Sorry, an die Leute die mir dann aus "Fantum" ne negative Bewertung reindrücken! Ich setze mich nunmal objektiv mit Dingen auseinander!)Zur Vinyl:Technisch:Was die Oberwellen betrifft, sehr sehr gute Höhen sowie sehr weich weil Top Clipping (zumindest wohl am Limit dessen was der Plattenspieler leisten kann. Die Kompression und der Druck in den niedrigen Frequenzen ist geradezu phänomenal. Also die Aufzeichnung ist wirklich nicht zu vergleichen mit dem was mein I-Phone über die selbe Anlage so "ausspuckt". Kaum Grundrauschen zu hören. "Rumpelt" quasi 0! Verarbeitung ist gut.Hülle und Plattenoptik:Ist eine Standartvinylscheibe mit ansprechendem Drachenlogo als Grifffläche. Das wirklich sehr schöne Albumcover kommt auf der Hülle aufgrund der Größe, wirklich super schön detailliert daher.Die Innenseiten enthalten gut lesbar das Songbook/-Text. Da ich nur die Downloadvariante der Movie Version von I-Tunes und die Vinyl besitze kann ich nicht sagen ob dies auf bei der CD-Variante auch enthalten ist. Sollte es so sein, dann leidet mit Sicherheit die Lesbarkeit ;-) Eine sehr gelungene Comiczeichnung rundet den sehr guten Eindruck ab.Die Rückseite stellt auch einen sehr gelungenen Abschluss dar. Meiner besten Freundin gefällt es übrigens hervorragend. Kein Frauenabend mehr wo es rauf und runter laufen soll, da kommt man aus dem Plattenlegen ja garnicht mehr raus.Aber jeder der Vinyl liebt, liebt das Platten drehen bzw. tauschen ja sowieso, darum kein Problem. Was ich nur damit sagen will ist, es gefällt fast jedem das neue Album.Also was die Vinyl an sich angeht 5/5 Punkte! Und dennoch bekommt dieses Album nur 4. Ich verstehe auch Leute die 3 oder 5 für das Album insgesamt nur geben, aber es geht hier immer noch "nur" um Musik.Danke WITHIN TEMPTATION für ein weiteres sehr schönes Album und die vielen Jahre voll wunderschöner Musik.

This was the WT album waiting to happen. Moving slowly from the roots and sound of their first album to the more commercial vibe of Heart of Everything, it was only a matter of time before WT embraced an even more commercial sound. And that they do, but have tempered it with some of, perhaps even the most heaviest songs to date. A real album of light and shade.After a 34 second 'scene setter' the band launch into Shot in the dark - a stripped back electronic backing to Sharon's soothing voice that rips into the first of many jewel encustrusted hooks. Each song has a hook the size of...er...Holland, that sticks into your mind and drags you along.After a commercial American sounding start we return to a more European sound for the blistering Middle of the Night. Those of you who have heard the samples and sneak previews of the album will not be prepared for one of the heaviest songs WT have attempted. A few minutes in, and the orchestra and choir gallop in taking the songs to new levels of the grandiose style they do so well. The drumming sounds straight out of Dream Theater or Dragon Force.Onto Faster, and one of the most commercial songs they have done, but what a chorus. Sharon begs for 'faster and faster' before a monumental chorus that will have the crowd bouncing to a frenzy in concert. Exhilerating stuff.The band get their breath back for fire and ice, the lighter waving ballad on the album. Gentle strings lead into a soothing verse before yet another gem of a chorus. In other bands hands, sweet and sickly. WT make it emotional and powerful. Feel the hairs on your neck rise.A heavy guitar riff leads us into the furious romp that is Iron, surely a great title as it is WT's most 'metallic' song to date. You've guessed it, another instantly hummable chorus battles with Epic orchestration, with only a brief spoken intelude to progess the story before we launch into a barrage of chorus that leave the listener breathless. Sharon belts the words with gusto and obvious real enjoyment. A classicWhere is the edge, antother 'leaked song' a mid tempo number with a lower almost growled vocals by Sharon bookended by (surprise!) another glorius chorus.Some interesting 'treatment' to Sharons voice on this one.And now we go disco...yes really...in a Madonna styled disco workout. Sinead shimmers with a band so confident in their abilities they dont care this is not their style. If you were waiting for Mother Earth 2 - you may be a tad disappointed. Get your dancing shoes on guys!Lost returns us to more familiar WT territory. Another ballad in the All I Need mould - all quivering emotional vocals and sympathetic strings. Safer ground for those shocked by the twists and turns of the albumMurder chugs along menacingly with Sharon sounding a little Alanis Morrisette in the verses before orchestra kicks in and hey presto another sing along (if a little Eurovision) chorusA demons fate is next up, unusual cyclic vocals draw you in, before a more familiar WT verse, and yet another European chorus that will have you wondering how WT lost the plot (if you didnt like the change of style of the last few albums) or wondering how this lot are not selling out stadiums across the world. There is some great drumming across all the songs. I am not sure if the guy who bashes the skins was a session player or new member but his style is more intense, more rock that the previous stool man, and this adds a harder dimension to the sound. Not better, not worse, just differentWe close with Stairway to the Skies, an uplifting epic that ebbs and flows before allowing the orchestra to take the lead, cycling a riff higher and higher until fade out...As you may tell, I was (am) blown away by this album. Class A songs all the way through, no weakspots, just pure class from one of the best bands out there. If you lamented the loss of the 'old sound' this isnt gonna pull you back, but if you can appreciate a talented band, enjoying their craft and producing some great tunes, you dig inEnjoy

Je suis un amateur (que dis-je, un fan absolu) des deux premiers albums du groupe que je considère toujours comme les meilleurs albums du genre.  The Silent Force  même un peu en dessous était encore un grand album. En revanche, j'ai bien moins aimé  The Heart Of Everything . Bref, tout ça n'allant pas franchement dans le bon sens à mon goût, je me demandais à quoi allait ressembler la suite.Comme d'habitude, les hollandais nous ont bien fait poireauter (4 ans depuis le dernier album studio, ce qui semble être finalement leur rythme de croisière).Within Temptation se lance cette fois-ci dans le concept album, d'où cette pochette assez surprenante pour le groupe. Je ne suis pas assez anglophile pour vous raconter de quoi parle cette histoire mais on sent que Within a sacrément travaillé le concept. Une BD a l'air d'avoir été faite sur cette histoire (les dessins du livret et de la pochette en sont issus - et une partie est consultable sur le DVD de l'édition limitée).A l'écoute de ce nouvel album, aucun doute : Within temptation ne réécrira jamais un album de la trempe de  Mother Earth  et encore moins celle de  Enter . Le virage pop est de plus en plus prononcé. Le côté symphonique n'est plus que très peu présent. Les mélodies sont très facilement assimilables et il faut bien le dire, pas désagréables du tout. Sharon Den Adel chante toujours aussi bien. Quelques sonorités me défrisent un peu ("Sinead" presque electro, ce n'est pas ma tasse de thé). Quelques refrains sont assez similaires. Mais malgré tout, ça passe auprès du Metalleux que je suis. On n'est pas noyé par les ballades (deux sur 12 titres, ça reste tout à fait honnête). On retrouve tout de même quelques moments du Within "à l'ancienne" comme ce "Iron" qui pète bien (de loin, mon titre préféré de l'album). Bon point aussi pour "In the middle of the night", titre au rythme assez rapide. Le single "Faster" est sympa également.Within Temptation suit donc sa route vers des horizons "easy-listening", c'est son choix. Certains le regretteront, d'autres trouveront cette démarche logique dans l'évolution du groupe. Disons que Within Temptation a de moins en moins sa place dans un festival de Metal, coincé entre un Immortal et un Judas Priest. Mais est-ce important ?Within Temptation soigne ses albums et celui-ci ne fait pas exception à la règle. On y trouvera des choses réjouissantes mais personnellement, je n'y trouve plus le frisson que j'éprouve toujours à l'écoute des premiers albums.Cela en fait un album plaisant, c'est certain. Mais pas un incontournable. Résistera-t-il au temps comme les fabuleux "Mother earth" et "Enter", l'avenir le dira. Moi, je ne crois pas.Un mot sur l'édition limitée proposant un poster de la pochette de l'album ainsi qu'un DVD. Celui-ci inclut 5 vidéos (et un making-of de 20 minutes). Les vidéos du nouvel album débutent avec de longues intro pour nous mettre dans l'ambiance du concept. Mais à part cette mise en bouche en forme de courts métrages, le groupe ne s'est pas franchement foulé. Ben oui, pourquoi ne pas avoir continué les vidéos dans le même esprit que le début ? Within a déjà fait des vidéos plus intéressantes (sur "where is the edge", le groupe n'apparaît pas du tout). On remarquera au passage que Sharon a laissé tomber ses incroyables robes pour des tenues bien plus classiques.Une page est tournée, c'est sûr. La tournerez-vous en compagnie du groupe, là est la question. The Silent ForceThe Heart Of EverythingMother EarthEnter