Within Temptation - Birmingham Review

When I was starting to get into heavier music all of those years ago, the Netherlands' Within Temptation were one of the first symphonic metal acts that I started to listen to. Their music is extremely accessible, as it is essentially pop music with a slightly tougher feel and the addition of gothic choirs and orchestral parts. While my tastes have changed somewhat since first discovering Within Temptation, with my symphonic metal listening now being to the heavier, more progressive bands the genre has to offer, I still return to Within Temptation occasionally. Listening to their music is quite nostalgic, and their early works still really entertain. Until 2015 however, I had not managed to see the band live. Their occasional UK tours never matched up with my availability, so it was not until 2015's iteration of Bloodstock Open Air that I finally caught them live. They headlined the festival's Saturday night, so were one of the main reasons I bought a ticket. The weekend's line-up was pretty strong that year, but Within Temptation were one of my most-anticipated sets. Sadly however, their set became memorable for all the wrong reasons - as the band just did not seem to ever get going. Songs from the band's then-new album Hydra dominated the set, and the fact that Hydra is comfortably my least-favourite album that Within Temptation have put out made the setlist a bit of a chore to sit through at times. This, coupled with a rather bland overall performance and some frankly embarrassing technical issues towards the end of the set made for a show that was probably best forgotten as quickly as possible. It seems however that there were some other issues at play behind the scenes around this time, as it was not long after the 2015 BOA appearance that the band seemed to enter an unofficial hiatus and were not heard from for a couple of years. Frontwoman Sharon den Adel has since revealed that she was going through some personal issues, and was also suffering from writers' block - all of which ensured that Within Temptation were put on the back burner for a while. All of this changed last year however, when a run of European shows was announced last November. A few UK shows were included in the run, and I decided that I had to make one of the shows, in an effort to see a much stronger show from the band and put the infamous BOA set to bed. I opted for the Birmingham show, at the O2 Academy, and waited patiently for almost a whole year!

By the time the gig came around, the show was sold out! Hordes of fans filed into the O2 Academy and took their places and waited. Before Within Temptation's set however, the crowd were treated to 45 minutes or so from Brazilian alternative rockers Ego Kill Talent who were more interesting than their frankly awful name implies. While their edgy take on American radio rock was not really my thing, their sound was polished and they played with a real confidence that some support bands lack. The most memorable thing about Ego Kill Talent's set was the fact that many of the band members changed instruments throughout the set, showing that each of the band are talented multi-instrumentalists - something which is always good to see. This also meant that the different members' approaches to their instruments varied throughout, which helped to add interesting twists to the songs which stopped them from becoming to samey. The sort of music that Ego Kill Talent play will never be a favourite of mine, but they were certainly enjoyable during their time on stage. Certain sections seemed to really warm to the band during their set too, something which is always good to see.

Around half an hour after Ego Kill Talent's set, the houselights went down and Within Temptation took the stage to rapturous applause from the sellout crowd. With a new album, entitled Resist, due out next month the band took the opportunity to showcase some of the new songs, with three brand new songs being played right off the bat. The anthemic Raise Your Banner got things off to a fine start, with den Adel appropriately waving a banner throughout and Stefan Helleblad (guitar/vocals) adding some harsh vocals to the choruses. It was probably the toughest the band have sounded for a while, and a treat for the metalheads in the crowd came in the form of a lengthy guitar solo section that allowed for both Helleblad and long-time guitarist Ruud Jolie to solo. New single The Reckoning and another riff-heavy piece Endless War followed, before playing some more familiar material. It is always brave to start with lots of new material that the crowd are not familiar with, but the reaction to the new material great. Despite this however, when Jolie launched into the main riff for In the Middle of the Night and then the orchestrals of Stand My Ground filled the venue the place really erupted. Within Temptation have built up a loyal and dedicated fanbase over the years, and most of the crowd sang every word. Thankfully, den Adel seems to have put her recent troubles behind her and had a huge smile on her face throughout the whole set. While she might not be the most powerful of live vocalists, she is a great presence and likes to interact with the crowd. Highlights for me during the early part of the set were the smooth melodic rock of Shot in the Dark and the lengthy gothic metal epic The Promise which proved to be a real treat for longtime fans. Songs from the band's first two albums are rarely played live these days (with the exception of a couple of standards), so hearing something like The Promise was great. The eight-minute long song sounds very different to how the band sound now, with the dirty crunching guitars and dramatic strings a far cry from the poppy choruses the band are known for now. den Adel even sang the song different, using the more shrill high-pitched delivery that she used to employ. It was one of the best moments of the night for me, and it was fun to see some of the band's newer fans taking it in! Lots of fan favourites made up the ending portion of the set, with the catchy single Faster and the soaring The Heart of Everything really getting everyone going again. Another highlight for me was a gorgeous stripped back version of the ballad Forgiven, which just featured den Adel and Martijn Spierenburg (keyboards). The song sounded so good stripped back to just the vocals and the piano, but it was ruined a little by a few people decided to talk loudly during it! The upbeat Mother Earth brought the main set to a close, and the band left the stage to huge cheers from the adoring crowd. There was of course time for a couple more however, and What Have You Done provided one last chance for everyone to sing along with the band before the soaring ballad Stairway to the Skies brought the evening to a close. The setlist was:

Raise Your Banner
The Reckoning
Endless War
In the Middle of the Night
Stand My Ground
All I Need
Supernova
Shot in the Dark
The Promise
Faster
Mercy Mirror
Paradise (What About Us?)
The Heart of Everything
Forgiven
Mother Earth
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What Have You Done
Stairway to the Skies

It was great to finally catch a full-length set from Within Temptation after all these years, and this certainly a much better performance than the one at BOA three years ago. The setlist was much better suited to my personal taste, and the new songs mostly really impressed. It is great to see that Within Temptation are back firing on all cylinders, and I am looking forward to picking up Resist when it is released next month.