"Stand My Ground" by Within Temptation from The Silent Force

"I can see when you stay low nothing happens. Does it feel right?" asks Sharon Den Adel in "Stand My Ground".

Like all of The Silent Force, the music has a synthetic though not quite tinny quality in its orchestra. The minor key makes the rock beat more comfortable than most rock songs for people affected by it, and the multiple layers to the music flow naturally together. Sharon Den Adel sticks in her high register that is wide enough to astonish in itself, even for those who don't know how expansive her voice actually is. (How many singers can sing from alto through immensely high soprano, or control their voice enough to sound like a different person at will?)

So "Stand My Ground" is the usual accomplishment from Within Temptation, a band whose goal is to make beautiful music. The lyrics, though, are not the band's best. True, they're as clean as always. True, they as usual have a nice little story. But something about the song's story strikes me as off.

The narrator must stand her ground against a nebulous enemy that will probably kill her, but another will stand her ground in her place once she dies. I believe the problem might be all the emphasis on "I will always stand my ground". Okay, so you're standing your ground, but against what? Why? For whom? Nothing of import is hinted. The story is shortchanged from the overemphasis on the character's emotions. A balance even slightly tipped more in favor of telling the story would have produced a much stronger song.

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Lyrics: 4/5
Music: 5/5
Vocal(s): 5/5
Overall: 8/10

"Angels" by Within Temptation from The Silent Force

"There's no escape" from the band Within Temptation once you hear them. Okay, so if you don't like minor key tonality or detest mild rock, you probably won't like them. But Sharon Den Adel's angellic voice is well worth giving a try as the narrator laments her (dark) angel who betrayed her even as she turns him in.

How many songs can you listen to 100 times—paying attention for most of them—in a week and still not be sick of it? Not many. "Angels" is one of them, as are all the songs on The Silent Force.

Though Dutch, Sharon Den Adel's accent doesn't really appear when she's in the upper elements of her supremely wide vocal range. The lyrics of "Angels" are completely clean despite the implied abuse in the song, the narrator remembering "the smile when you tore me apart." You'll likely find yourself trying to sing along to the catchy chorus with Sharon Den Adel as well as you can in your own register.

The style of music is remeniscent of the Lord of the Rings' soundtracks, especially songs like "The Bridge of Khazud-Dûm." Definitely gothic, "Angels" also has a bit of a synthetic tone that I still enjoy. It's more than just the beat of much modern rock, with multiple layers interweaving in the music.

Some people won't like the song "Angels" or the band Within Temptation in general, but often people find them pretty before they know what they're listening to. Gothic is a technical artistic term, not "please shoot me I'm so pathetic" whining, which is really emo ("emotionally-driven"). Anyway, I advise you to at least give the song a shot.

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Lyrics: 5/5
Music: 5/5
Vocal(s): 5/5
Overall: 9/10