Friday, April 8, 2011

Within Temptation - The Unforgiving (2011)




The Dutch gothic band Within Temptation is finally back with a
new album, “The Unforgiving.” A lot of you were wondering
which direction the band was going to go after coming out with their
amazing 2007 album entitled “The Heart Of Everything.” Well, this new
album is based off of a comic story created by the band. They’ve released
the album as a CD/DVD collection, where you can watch some of the story
lines and the music videos that go with it. The stories are great. I would
definitely suggest checking the DVD out.

The band chose to start off the album with a short introduction, with the
narrator of the story explaining herself. Normally I wouldn’t have a
problem with this, however, it throws you off at first because
she starts talking almost in mid-sentence. They could have
chosen a better line for the album to start with, or they should have
just started off with a song. After the 36 second intro, the song “Shot
In The Dark” fades in as track 2 on the album. Lead singer Sharon
Den Adel has one of the most beautiful and unique voices I have
ever heard. The song starts out with her voice layered softly over a dark
synthesizer, kicking off the first verse. As the chorus drops, distorted
guitars fly into action which produce a catchy riff and a catchy
melody that’ll have you singing along with the lyrics in no time. I
personally really enjoyed the lyrics to this song. Especially after
seeing the short story video.

The first single released off of the album is track 4, “Faster” which
starts with heavy guitar riffs. No doubt about it, this song
definitely has radio potential all over it. However, Within Temptation
is usually known for making “radio hits.” The verses consist of basic
chords and catchy lyrics while the chorus provides overwhelming vocals
but includes simple lyrics. For instance, the word “Faster” is
repeated multiple times. Like I said, not really their usual work
but definitely offers a lot of catchy melodies ready to be stuck in
your head.

Songs like “In The Middle Of The Night,” “ Lost,” and “A Demon’s
Fate” show off a little more of the epic gothic work that we all know
and love them for. Orchestrated instruments soaring over distorted
guitars chugging away, while Adel hits the high melodic notes in the
chorus and verses. Now that’s what I’m talking about. Great song
structure and dirty guitar solos.

Overall, the album provides a little bit of everything, from fast paced
guitars to soft and canorous piano keys. “The Unforgiving” definitely
deserves a listen to. For a deeper understandingn and meaning, check
out the short story videos as well!

8/10

Official Site - http://www.within-temptation.com/
Myspace - http://www.myspace.com/withintemptation

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