This is one of the releases that fans were long waiting for anxiously. Apart from the fact it’s been four years since their top hit album “The Heart Of Everything”, the band made sure to constantly remind us their new album is on the way. The title was revealed early enough as well as the cover art and we have also listened to some samples, concerning the acoustic part of “The Unforgiving”.
I would like to share with you that I was a bit worried about the final outcome, based on the promotion so far. Within Temptation had already changed their logo; the new one was pointing to a more… mainstream image, the artwork was pointing to a comic book (although the artwork is very nice), the album would be a concept one (that sounds nice yet risky), whilst the album first single, “Faster”, had many things to listen, however it featured a rather pop chorus. Many new elements that the band hadn’t prepared us for.
Finally, after listening to “The Unforgiving” lots of times, I can consider it as equal to their three previous albums; it surely is one step forward for the band, these songs will be whispered and sung when walking down the road, believeme.
Being perfectly constructed (perfect compositions, no weak spots, start and finish in simpler language), the album maintains its interesting vibe for 53 minutes, the total of its duration. The sound of “The Unforgiving” is less… polished than its predecessor, it’s closer to a metal color shadow(sic!), whilst a certain aggressiveness comes out, probably connected with the story of the album, a story you can read over the official website of Within Temptation and/or the comic book they released for that purpose. The band appears rather renewed, establishing their own trademark, when it comes to the way a big band should move, preserving all those elements that made them big in the first place. Sharon Den Adel also seems to be in great shape; she was pregnant when recording her parts; it brings out the great come back feeling.
I would underline, as the best moments of “The Unforgiving”, the songs “Shot In The Dark”, “Sinead”, the amazing ballad “Lost” and “In The Middle Of The Night”; not that there is any weak song in there anyway.
The album has also been released in double vinyl (those of you interested must buy it now, because in a few weeks…) and a deluxe digipack edition, with an extra DVD, featuring the video clips of “Faster”, “Sinead”, “Shot In The Dark”, “Utopia”, the cinema version of “Where Is The Edge” and the well-known twenty minutes long “The making of”…. The stories ahead of the video clips are rather interesting but I’m not going to reveal any of them. This is a release you should invest in.
In conclusion, I’d have to refer to the band’s gesture to mention, one by one, the names (as mentioned on Facebook) of all the fans that participated in a contest, a few months ago, in the back of the deluxe edition poster; as you can understand, I’m talking about a few thousand names here!
I would also like to wish Sharon and Robert the best for the birth of Logan!
