Within Temptation are my own personal favourite female fronted metal band - Nightwish and their operatic vocals have leave me cold; Epica who hit the spot sometimes and After Forever never seemed to make a big impression. Vocalist Sharon den Edel has the ability to soar when needed but avoid hitting the shrill operatic tones found in some other bands. The album is a concept one based on a comic book written by Stephen O'Connell specially created for the album.

There has been a four year gap between studio albums and in the interim they have come back with a, dare I say it, poppier sound. The single 'Faster' is sure to pick-up mainstream music fans and it is damn catchy. 'A Demon's Tale' is another fast paced, very catchy tune with the strings set to max and guitars used to complement the orchestrations, rather than drown them out.

'Iron' tips a nod back to their last album where they added a Celtic lilt to thir musical mix. This song features masses of keyboards and symphonic touches, a perfect example of a symphonic metal/rock song. 'Fire And Ice' is one of those big production sweeping ballads the band do so well, you can almost see the dry ice from here!

Within Temptation are one of the metal scene's leading lights and this new album will not only please fans but should see them pick up a whole host of new fans who wouldn't normally listen to a band like this. Adding that slight pop edge to their sound has certainly paid off big time as can be heard throughout this album.

****½

Review by Jason Ritchie