WITHIN TEMPTATION – The Unforgiving [Special Edition] (2011)

For a band that forged a major international reputation on the basis of sweeping gothic melodrama – all drop-tuned guitar riffs, massive orchestral/choral backgrounds and vocalist Sharon den Adel’s pure, angelic soprano – Within Temptation’s new album “The Unforgiving” is a major step in their departure from that sound.
Some slight changes were already underway in their album ‘The Silent Force’, their first tentative steps from so-called ‘ethereal metal’ to more mainstream rock, and continued into their 2007 release ‘The Heart of Everything’… but they hadn’t made a truly daring creative leap until now.

“The Unforgiving” is their first-ever concept record and the strict comic commitment of the plot with a movie campaign -all the way down to the music itself… which is, to say the least, far different from everything we’ve heard.
Casting aside the refined sound of its predecessors, “The Unforgiving” preserves the bombastic side from ‘Black Symphony’ thanks to musicians from the same Metropole Orchestra. Despite being blurred at times, the symphonic parts score many effective points and allow the album to finally get to that ‘guitar–driven opus’ status we’ve all been waiting for.
This can also be said for the rhythm section, which is new for Within Temptation‘s sound, thanks to a session Swedish musician who took responsibility filling in for the ex-drummer Stephen van Haestregt.

Co-founder/guitarist Robert Westerholt has explained how the band was interested in tapping into the more straight-forward rock styles of the ’80s for inspiration, since that was also the period when their love of music and comics began to intertwine; much of this new stylistic shift is probably based on that musical nostalgia.
It’s also interesting that the band would incorporate more pop-rock rhythms and song structures for this particular album, since the concept spans such an epic supernatural tale of revenge and a centuries-old team of evil-fighters, but weirdly enough it actually works in the story’s favor.

Not that the band completely abandoned the colossal sound that their fans have come to expect: some of the tracks on “The Unforgiving” are as hugely cinematic as anything they’ve turned out in their career – they’re just built more on a traditional hard rock/pop core, all the way down to arena-friendly guitar solos, ballads and danceable beats.
This approach “reflects one of the many musical roots we have,” Westerholt said. “Combined with the modern influences on our new album, it’s like the past and future created the present.”

The storytelling aspect of the album is set up immediately with the brief opening track “Why Not Me,” a dialogue excerpt from the title character of Mother Maiden – the first short film in the series – establishing the connection between the music and the comic book storyline.
The first clear sign of their new sound comes straight-away in the first song “Shot In The Dark,” the first time the band relies on keyboards for rhythm lines and not just sweeping orchestral passages. This song sounds like Roxette on steroids. Weird? No, it actually works.
Not that they don’t hang onto the symphonic elements: in fact, they incorporate a real orchestra on this record, which plays a key role in the massive, high-energy cut “In The Middle Of The Night”. Believe it or not, this is a Heart-like (yes, the Wilson sisters) song, specially in the vocal part.

But when the single “Faster” steps up, the band’s ’80s-era influences really come into play, marking the biggest split from their early sound. This track blatantly rips off Chris Isaac’s ‘Wicked Game’ (but ends up bearing more resemblance to HIM’s abhorrent cover than the original). I don’t like this one.
But the moodier ballad “Fire And Ice” and the mighty guitar riffs & higher-range vocals of “Iron” (great track) still remind you of their roots, and they’re also shining examples of how the band expertly handles epic-scale arrangements.
The mid-tempo “Where Is The Edge?” packs a solid hook and the chorus is nice and melodic.
“Sinéad” is the theme song of the album & comic’s title character – as well as the second single – is significantly different in style and tone with its clubby dance beat, but it’s actually a lot more fun than “Faster.” It also shares a title with the grim & creepy second film in the series – which doesn’t contain the song, but sets up more of the character’s backstory.

“Lost” is an emotionally powerful ballad that showcases Sharon’s vocal range, before the band ventures down a much more sinister path for “Murder” – a dark and complex song with goose-bumpy harmonies and a vast cinematic feel.
“A Demon’s Fate” is a 50/50 split of the band’s older and newer styles, with all the grand-sounding instrumentation & backing vocals of their earlier efforts, plus some of lead guitarist Ruud Jolie’s most interesting work (check the ‘Phantom of the Opera’ tribute chords that close the song).
The melancholy “Stairway To The Skies” ends the album on a dreamlike note, with simple but climactic instrumentation forming the perfect accompaniment to Sharon’s otherworldly voice.
Three bonuses in this ‘special edition’: “I Don’t Wanna” has a very ’80s feel with a poppy aura, “Empty Eyes” is cool and melodious but lacks some punch, while in “The Last Dance” the band experiments with celtic sounds and arrangements.

For a band that helped push female-fronted light symphonic metal into the mainstream (along with Nightwish, Tristania, The Gathering, Epica and dozens more), it’s a daring but ultimately savvy move for Within Temptation to bust free from that model… it took them a little while to get there, but they finally achieved the transition with “The Unforgiving”.
In a way, they’re not only re-defining themselves, but the whole genre as well.

01 – Why Not Me
02 – Shot In The Dark
03 – In The Middle Of The Night
04 – Faster
05 – Fire and Ice
06 – Iron
07 – Where Is The Edge?
08 – Sinead
09 – Lost
10 – Murder
11 – A Demon’s Fate
12 – Stairway To The Skies
13 – I Don’t Wanna (Bonus Track)
14 – Empty Eyes (Bonus Track)
15 – The Last Dance (Bonus Track)

Sharon den Adel (vocals)
Stefan Helleblad (guitar)
Ruud Jolie (acoustic guitar, electric guitar)
Robert Westerholt (electric guitar)
Martijn Spierenburg (keyboards, programming)
Jeroen Van Veen (bass guitar)
Nicka Hellenberg (drums)

www.within-temptation.com
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