Within Temptation

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Within Temptation
Within Temptation at Metalway Guernica, 2006.
Within Temptation at Metalway Guernica, 2006.
Background information
Origin The Netherlands
Genre(s) Symphonic metal
Gothic metal
Years active 1996 – present
Label(s) DSFA Records
GUN Records
Roadrunner Records
Website http://www.within-temptation.com/
Members
Ruud Adrianus Jolie
Jeroen van Veen
Stephen van Haestregt
Sharon den Adel
Martijn Spierenburg
Robert Westerholt

Within Temptation is a band from the Netherlands. Founded by guitarist Robert Westerholt and vocalist Sharon den Adel, their music is variously described as symphonic metal and sometimes by the media as gothic metal, from which they take influence.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Formation

Long-term partners Robert Westerholt (on guitar) and Sharon den Adel (vocals) began the band in 1996, quickly adding Jeroen van Veen on bass guitar, Martijn Westerholt at the keyboard and (following a succession of short-lived drummers), Ivar de Graaf. They were quickly offered a recording contract and signed to DSFA Records later that year, beginning work on their first release.

[edit] Enter (1997)

Enter

Enter, the debut album, was released in 1997. The album was well received and the band embarked on a four gig tour across the country, after which they were asked to perform at the Dynamo Open Air festival in Eindhoven, one of the Netherlands' largest heavy metal festivals. The band rounded out 1997 by embarking on their first international tour, of Germany and Austria.

[edit] The Dance (1998-1999)

The Dance

In 1998 the band continued to tour actively - their profile had elevated them to the main stage at Dynamo for the 1998 event. However, Within Temptation had released no new material (and did not have plans for a second album at this point), to which end they elected to release an EP, The Dance.

Finally taking a break from touring, 1999 was largely a sabbatical year for the band. They took the opportunity to construct their own studio, as well as returning to personal pursuits, with plans to return to the fold the next year.

[edit] Mother Earth (2000-2003)

Mother Earth cover art for its Europe-wide re-release

2000 was an eventful year for the band as they returned to touring, playing three Dutch festivals; Waterpop, Bospop and Lowlands. In addition they went to work on their second album, releasing Mother Earth in the Low Countries on December 1st. The album was a hit, receiving positive reviews across the board and rooted itself in the Dutch charts.

The band first released the single Our Farewell, which never entered the charts. The second single from Mother Earth, Ice Queen, was regarded as the breakthrough release for the band; in 2001 it climbed to number 4[1] in the Netherlands but was their first number one single when it climbed to the top in Belgium. The success rebounded to Mother Earth, which continued to climb in the Dutch album chart, ending the year at number 3.

2001 also saw a number of changes in personnel; Ruud Adrianus Jolie was added as a second guitarist, drummer de Graaf was replaced by Stephen van Haestregt, and Martijn Westerholt (suffering from infectious mononucleosis) was replaced by Martijn Spierenburg. Westerholt later started the band Delain.

The band achieved still wider appeal in 2002 with their first concert in France and even a headline gig in Mexico City. They attained their first major award, the Dutch Silver Harp. They bolstered this by embarking on a major international tour supporting Paradise Lost in 2003 and re-releasing Mother Earth on the GUN Records label across more European countries; it was a particularly large success in Germany, where it went platinum and reached number 7 in the charts; the re-release of Ice Queen also charted well in the top 30. In turn the Benelux regions got a different release, a cover of Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill. The band highlighted music festivals across the Netherlands and their Mother Earth tour DVD claimed the prestigious Edison Award.

[edit] The Silent Force (2004-2006)

The Silent Force

Plans for the band's third album came to fruition in 2004, with the release of The Silent Force on November 15th, 2004 across Europe. Daniel Gibson's production was an instant number 1 in the band's heartland and charted well in many European countries. In support of the release they embarked on another large international tour in 2005, with dates across the continent (including their first major UK concert in London) and a one-off show in Dubai. Stand My Ground and Memories, the first singles from the new album, continued the band's run of chart success, culminating in a second Edison Award. Stand My Ground was promoted on the trailer for the film Blood and Chocolate.

In January 2006, Within Temptation won the Dutch Pop Prize (best Dutch pop contribution) and Dutch Export Prize (best-selling Dutch artist outside The Netherlands), the latter given to them for the third time in a row. The band also reported that they were busy working on their next album, due to be released during the fall, and that they would start playing at festivals starting in April, in addition to going on an international tour at the end of the year [2].

[edit] The Heart of Everything (2007-present)

The new album The Heart of Everything from Within Temptation has been released on the 9th of March in the Netherlands and 24th of July in the United States. The release dates for multiple countries are found on their official Myspace page. The song "What Have You Done" will be the first single from the new album. Its music video was recorded on the 12th, 13th, and 14th of December in 2006 in London, Windsor and a studio for CGI, and features Keith Caputo's guest vocals. Fans were allowed to participate in the making of the video, and will appear in it. Shortly after, a completely new video for the song was made, and it is this version that can currently be seen on their MySpace page. Two more tracks, "The Howling" and "The Sound of Freedom", have been recorded as promotion material for the video game The Chronicles of Spellborn, and the first of these will be included on the album. The full track listing was revealed on the 10th of January.[3] The band will embark on their first North American tour with Lacuna Coil in May.

[edit] Current line-up

Den Adel, Westerholt and van Veen perform in the music video for Memories.
Den Adel, Westerholt and van Veen perform in the music video for Memories.

[edit] Former members

  • Ivar de Graaf – drums (1996-1998, 1999-2001)
  • Martijn Westerholt – keyboards (1996-2001)
  • Michiel Papenhove – guitar (1996-2001)
  • Jelle Bakker – guitar (2001)
  • Ciro Palma – drums (1998-1999)
  • Dennis Leeflang – drums (1996)
  • Richard Willemse – drums (1996)

[edit] Discography

[edit] Studio albums

Album Cover Album Title
Enter
Mother Earth
The Silent Force
The Heart of Everything
  • Released: March 12, 2007
  • Chart Positions: #38 UK, #26 FRA, #23 SPA, #5 POR, #5 GER, #8 SWI, #12 AUS, #48 ITA, #22 POL, #12 CZE, #4 SWE, #2 FIN, #24 NOR, #32 DEN, #1 NET, #3 BEL.
  • Sales: ? (worldwide)
  • Label(s): Roadrunner Records, GUN Records (Europe)
  • Singles: What Have You Done

[edit] Charted songs

All charted songs and their chart positions in the United World Chart (UWC), U.S. Billboard Hot 100 (U.S. Hot 100), Pop 100 (U.S. Pop 100), Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks (U.S. AC), Finland (FIN), Sweden (SWE), Germany (GER), Netherlands (NET), Norwain (NOR), Austria (AUT), Switzerland (SWI), Europe (EU), Australia (AUS).

Note: Only the biggest world music markets are listed.

Year Title Album Chart positions
UWC U.S.
Hot 100		 U.S.
Pop 100		 U.S.
AC		 FIN SWE GER NET NOR AUT SWI EU AUS
2002 "Restless" Enter - - - - - - - - - - - - -
2003 "Our Farewell" Mother Earth - - - - - - - - - - - - -
2003 "Ice Queen" Mother Earth - - - - - - - 2 - - - - -
2004 "Mother Earth" Mother Earth - - - - - - - 15 - - - - -
2004 "Running Up That Hill" Mother Earth - - - - - - - 7 - - 83 - -
2004 "Stand My Ground" The Silent Force - - - - 4 21 - 5 20 - 67 161 -
2005 "Memories" The Silent Force - - - - 19 - - 18 - - 45 - -
2005 "Angels" The Silent Force - - - - 9 - - 8 - - - - -
2006 "What Have You Done" The Heart Of Everything - - - - 4 - 42 7 - - 36 146 -
UWC U.S.
Hot 100		 U.S.
Pop 100		 U.S.
AC		 CAN SWE GER NET NOR AUT SWI EU FIN
Number one hits - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Top ten hits - - - - 3 - - 6 - - - - -

[edit] EPs

Album Cover Album Title
The Dance
  • Released: 1998
  • Chart Positions: ?
  • U.S. Sales: ?
  • Europe Sales: ?
  • Label(s): DSFA Records
  • Singles: ?


[edit] DVDs

[edit] External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Within Temptation
Ruud Jolie | Jeroen van Veen | Stephen van Haestregt | Sharon den Adel | Martijn Spierenburg | Robert Westerholt
Discography
Enter (1997) | The Dance (1998) | Mother Earth (2001) | The Silent Force (2004) | The Heart of Everything (2007)
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