Mother Earth

I love this CD, I first saw this group on a U-Tube video for Ice Queen and fell in love with them. Great CD, Great Group!!

This CD is full of songs that hit your soul. They have so much meaning to them that it goes beyond the lyrics of their songs.

This may not mean much to those who have only gotten the US releases. But to those of us who used to buy imports just so we could listen to the fantastic band known as Within Temptation before they came stateside, this particular album may have had a black sheep reputation.

When this album was available by import only, there used to be an annoying copy protection. This made it so the only way we could listen to this album on our computer or MP3 players was to install an unwanted player (having been stung myself by Sony's infamous rootkit virus fiasco, I'm hesitant to install any such thing from cd's anymore). Even then, what we got on the computer were inferior digital copies of the songs.

That problem has been fixed with this US reissued/remastered cd. Now, not only can I finally listen to this cd on my computer and MP3 player, the audio itself is much crisper and fuller than on the import I spent twice as much for.

I always did like this album. The songs, as with any Within Temptation album, are fantastic. I have nothing but praise for Sharon den Adel and the rest of the band. She can be soft and melodic (In Perfect Harmony). She can be fierce and aggressive (Caged). And she can be anywhere in between.

I don't spend import prices for just anyone. I certainly don't buy an album twice if the songs aren't really worth it. But this mastery that Adel has over her art makes Within Temptation worth it.

Within Temptation has had four albums released (five if you count The Dance EP). This and Silent Force have long been my top two. If you've never heard Within Temptation before, these are the two to start with. If you have, then these two should already be a part of your collection.

I love this CD! I've been waiting for months for it to come out here in the U.S. The live tracks sound amazing.

Mother Earth by Within Temptation is a excellent album. The only reason why I did not give it 5 stars was because of the live bonus track in this 2008 US release. It just doesn't flow well and sometimes I can barely tell the differences between the live tracks from the studio tracks due to the use of playback during those live performances. Instead, I would've prefered the b-sides Bittersweet or Restless from the Euro version. However, everyone should pick this album up because it has some amazing songs that will blow you away.