The Silent Force - Dark Publications

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Editorial Reviews:

Album Description
For this 2004 album Within Temptation used foreign producers and Russian Choirs. Includes the hit single 'Stand My Ground'. Deluxe limited version contains digipak with cardboard sleeve, 26-page songbook, 2 bonus tracks 'A Dangerous Mind' & 'The Silence' plus video clip.

Album Details
This Premium Version Comes in a Digipack Slipcase and Includes Postcards. The Band was Formed in 1996 by Guitarist Robert Westerholt and Singer Sharon Den Adel. Their Single "Ice Queen" Reached the Number One Position in May Charts, Both in the Netherlands and in Belgium in 2002. Their 'mother Earth' Full Length Went Platinum in the Netherlands and the Gold Status in Belgium. Fans of Nightwish, Lacuna Coil Seven Evanescence Will Like this Band.

Customer Reviews: Read 58 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

Within Temptation : "Silent Force" April 15, 2005
41 out of 51 found this review helpful

***** - FIVE STARS
===================

I'll be honest, unlike most fans here, I have a very hard time listening to "Mother Earth". It's just too opera oriented for my Metal taste. Although Within Temptation is a highly talented group of musicians, and "Mother Earth" was a ground breaking release, I found it rather boring most of the time. Maybe it's just me....Oh well, on to "Silent Force"!!!

I simply loved every single minute of "Silent Force". This is a much more enjoyable listen than "Mother Earth" in my opinion. Instead of all the high pitched operatic themes, "Silent Force" has a more straight forward direction, which was a much needed change in my opinion....

I don't really like to compare bands with this much talent, because they each deserve their own place in the music world, but I can't get over how similar "Silent Force" is to "Fallen" from Evanescence. I love the new direction!!!...

The sound, the direction, and the songs all made me feel like I wasn't even listening to Within Temptation at all. It was a wonderful breath of fresh air to these ears after being completely unimpressed with "Mother Earth"...

I think anyone who hears this can't help but be impressed. Regardless of what the critics say, Within Temptation should explode onto the new Metal scene with "Silent Force". This release has certainly raised the bar for Within Temptation, and their future is looking very bright...

This is not a sellout release from Within Temptation, this is simply a MASTERPIECE!!!

5 out of 5 stars

Fabulous!!!! January 31, 2005
25 out of 32 found this review helpful

Within Temptation is a talented band from Holland or Netherlands if you prefer who's lead singer is Sharon den Adel and she's as pretty as her voice is. There's a video of one of the songs on the album and she's a knockout. The music is symphonic metal with orchestral and choir backing. It is highly melodic and enchanting. If you know and like the band Nightwish then this is for you.

Some of the best songs are "See Who I Am", which starts with a huge sound then smartly slows down only to come back with the big catchy chorus, "Jillian (I'd give my Heart)" is just great with it's gigantic intro followed by the choir and Sharon's impeccable voice on the choruses and Stand my Ground" is slick the way it starts out sedately then explodes into a "don't mess with me" warrior mentality with the orchestra and choir. "Angels" is kind of appropriate with a heavenly Angelic sound and what can you say about "Pale"? Has there ever been a prettier melody in a song?

Taken as a whole there isn't much variety since each song does resemble the others but that homogenous sound doesn't bother me. In some ways it reminds me of a fine musical score where a change of style could be jolting.

I am really amazed that there are people that gave this album less than four stars. From beginning to end it's a great album. Is it better than their previous blockbuster, Mother Earth? It's close, I'd say probably not but only by the slimest of margins.

Similar Bands
Nightwish, Edenbridge, Visions of Atlantis, Dreams of Sanity, Enya, Loreena McKinnett

5 out of 5 stars

Silent Force February 21, 2006
9 out of 9 found this review helpful

This is the third full-length album by the Gothic Metal band Within Temptation. Firstly it is very different from their very first album Enter. In Enter, the songs were much slower, longer, Sharon's voice was more wailing, and had male death vocals in. The atmosphere was melancholy and practically gothic doom. Silent force is more up-tempo, Sharon's voice has noticeably improved and there are no death vocals. The songs themselves are very dynamic, from very gothic ("Forsaken") to ballad-like ("Pale").

They enjoy large orchestral symphonic strings, and gothic choral background singers add to the atmosphere. A personal favourite is "Jillian" where Sharon's voice is beautiful and crystal clear, signing to a large ensemble and the choir in the background. (I like Nightwish, but whilst Tarja's voice is overpowering opera singing, Sharon's voice is more classical) Other songs like "Forsaken", "It's The Fear" and "Stand My Ground" (the introduction) all have the memorising but slightly eerie choir singing.

People don't like "Stand My Ground" for some reason: maybe because of it's mainstream popularity but I find it to be quite endearing. There is large introduction before the actual song starts. Lot of the songs have a really big huge introductions, including "Jillian" and "See Who I Am."

The slower songs "Pale", "Somewhere" and "The Swan Song" don't feature any guitars at all. All of them attribute a very gentle beat, so gentle it's barely noticeable: yet you couldn't imagine the song without it. There's a deep bass in the songs and lots of strings. "The Swan Song" has a viola in it, making it almost Celtic like.

The two songs that aren't very fast and heavy, but not as slow as the above three songs are "Angels" and "Memories." The guitars though are quite heavy. "Memories" is very pretty, with the pianos, violas and strings and whispering near the end.

This is a brilliant album, with lots of atmosphere. I think it is the strings and pianos, which give it the most atmosphere and depth.

5 out of 5 stars

Awesome.... December 13, 2004
8 out of 8 found this review helpful

I haven't been a fan of Within Temptation for very long. I first heard their song "Our Farewell" on a Celtic Music compilation "Celtic Circle" (which also featured "Sleeping Sun" by Nightwish). I was completely blown away and so I was able to hear pieces of the "Mother Earth" CD. It was good, but it was a little different from what I listen to. This CD is so damn good, it hasn't left my CD player since I got it.

Really stand-out songs are:

2. "See Who I Am" - Sharon Den Adel's voice is beautifully crystal clear in this piece. The loud guitars work so well with the Russian Choirs and the Orchestra.

3. "Jillian (I'd Give My Heart)" - The choirs are most wonderful in here. Sharon's voice hits those high notes so beautifully. This song is enough to make anyone a fan!

4. "Stand My Ground" - There is a lot of bitching about how this song is too mainstream. Give it a rest, I say. This song is good, but most of the songs on here are much better. This beats Evanescence hands-down (I'm a fan of Evanescence as well, Sharon's voice is still so much better though).

7. "Angels" - Sharon really get's the sound right in here. Her voice is just so angelic in here.

8. "Memories" - by far my favorite. This song kicks off with some melancholically beautiful violin work and pianos in the background. As it progresses it just changes the atmosphere.

9. "Aquarius" - is a great song. It really reflects more of the work on "Mother Earth".

10. "It's the Fear" - again a beautiful mixture of orchestral and metal sounds. Just awesome..

11. "Somewhere" - is so beautiful.

12. "A Dangerous Mind" - Essential Within Temptation

13. "The Swan Song" - some more use of Celtic instruments. Brilliant

Overall this album is probably the best one of I've ever heard from this group. The extra money for this import with tracks 12 and 13 is so worth it!! I couldn't live without hearing these last two songs.

3 out of 5 stars

I really wanted to give this 1 star January 24, 2005
8 out of 15 found this review helpful

I cannot possibly review Silent Force without mentioning Within Temptation's last album, Mother Earth.

I heard the song Mother Earth while driving one night, as a clip played into the Drudge Report. Words could not express what I was hearing - I knew it couldn't be popular. When Drudge came on he said how quite a few listeners ask about that song, which he came across while in Europe, by a band called Within Temptation.

As a little history, Within Temptation started as a very different band, with the 'Beauty and Beast' element of female vocals, with male growls. It was unfortunate that such beautiful music could only be found with the accompaning growls, until Mother Earth. This album was evolutionary. Talented Eurometal for those who squirm at the unappealing vocals, and better yet - this singer didn't seem so overly sure of herself, it was like unreleased potential.

That's how I saw the band, with the potential to become one of the greatest talents in symphonic metal, but with the inevitable possibility of digressing further from their origin.

It's unfortunate that success is the bane for so many hopeful bands that are met with unprecedented glory. Within Temptation weren't called sell-outs before, but after they released their Stand My Ground single, a lot of us American fans who grew to appreciate European bands like Nightwish and After Forever were disgusted. Who did they write this music for? Not their old fans. But I cannot give this 1 star - this album will have a fandom that appreciates the electronic crap in the background that compliments so nicely Sharon den Adel's synthetically enhanced vocals that are fittingly void of any real emotion.

I only hope that those who do enjoy this album can come to appreciate Within Temptation's previous music, and who knows, maybe learn to enjoy the B & B elements of European metal as well.

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