Within Temptation’s “The Silent Force” Without Attention

Sometimes a reviewer just has to go above and beyond the normal call of duty. Sometimes it is a reviewer’s job to save lives. Or at least save some time in people’s lives.

Let’s face it; we live in fast-paced times. If I can spare you good PREX readers 40 minutes +/-, that you will never get back again, I feel it is my duty to do so. With that in mind, I say to you all, run! RUN FROM WITHIN TEMPTATION AND NEVER LOOK BACK!!

Within Temptation is Sharon Den Adel wanting to do Amy Lee’s Vocals, Robert Westerholt and Ruud Jolie on Cap’t Crunch Guitars, Jeron Van Veet on Bass, Stephen Van Haestregt on less than challenging Drums and finally supplying far too many layers of Keyboards and most of them choirs, Martijn Spierenburg.

At the urging of Mr. Princeton Record Exchange Webmaster, I took it upon myself to review a disc given to me by a friend (possibly former friend after this). So I gave this disc a couple of listens, over a period of time (I try not to over-ingest an album if I have expectation to review it).

This is from the bands website about the album, The Silent Force:

Returning to the studio in 2004, Within Temptation were set to record their third and most successful record to date, The Silent Force, with producer Daniel Gibson. Fuelled by the massive international radio hit Stand My Ground, the album went to #1 in the Netherlands and Finland, #5 in Germany, Top 10 in Belgium, Portugal and Spain, Top 20 in Austria and Switzerland and Top 30 in Greece, France, Turkey, Sweden and Norway. A myriad of Gold and Platinum certifications followed.

This is what I think about it: Are you people kidding me? No, seriously, this has to be one of the most uneventful albums with the concept of much production about nothing.

Claiming to be in existence since 1996, they purport to precede Amy Lee and Evanescence (or however you spell it). I remain neutral, as I just don’t care. I make this comparison, as the two bands are remarkably similar, with the possibility that Evanescence makes Goth music seem less pretentious. Or should that be more? Oh, those whacky Goths!!!

What we are dealing with here is a more overproduced, overindulgent, more obtuse version of Evanescence. So if you could imagine that, you have a good idea of what Within Temptation is all about.

The songs all sound the same. Long, choir-laden-layered keyboards, with a somewhat crunchy rhythm section, but it kinda sounds like Yanni with a Dutch version of, you guessed it, an-highly operatic Amy Lee.

Don’t you forget, forget the Dutch.

For the most part you probably never heard of Within Temptation. I know I didn’t, but ever since a friend turned me on to King Crimson many years ago, I attempt to keep an open mind when it comes to letting new music into my realm. My attempt in this blog site will be to turn you good readers on to new music that you can most likely find through PREX.

But there lies a very good chance that the goods I present here for review may be new to you, and the things that I review may not necessarily represent what I listen to personally. Like Within Temptation. Sorry, but you won’t find me with any of their recordings, other than the one I reviewed in my collection. At least they are big over in their native land, several areas in and around Europe. But I just can’t see Joe Everyguy getting into this. The average short-attention-spanned American would much rather Lee’s familiar, commercially oriented Opera-Rock.

To any possible Within Temptation fans out there whom I may have offended, I want you to know it certainly was not my intent. I gave it the old college try, I try to be receptive to all kinds of new music.

But I just don’t get this.