Mother Earth (album)
Encyclopedia
Mother Earth is the second studio album by Dutch
symphonic metal
/rock
band Within Temptation
. Originally released on December 4, 2000 in the Netherlands, and August 21, 2001 in other parts of Europe, it quickly became a success in the band's heartland, reaching platinum status in the Netherlands
and platinum in Belgium
, platinum in Germany
in addition to achieving TMF/MTV Awards in both countries. The album reportedly sold 750,000 copies in Europe
.
The album was licensed to be released in Germany
and neighboring countries through GUN Records
in January 2003 as a special extended edition with four bonus tracks. The same edition reached the UK
through Sanctuary Records
with a release in September 2004. The album was re-released by Roadrunner Records
on September 28, 2007, with bonus live tracks.
On August 5, 2008, Mother Earth along with The Silent Force
was released in the United States on Roadrunner Records.
, the Netherlands. Oscar Holleman was again producer, and one of the sound engineers was Stephen van Haestregt
, future drummer for the band. Sharon recalls that "I had a day for each song, which is still not very much, but you can try out things. We also did some demos before the recordings, so there you can check if you like or dislike parts of a song, and so you have more time when it comes to recording". Ayreon
's Arjen Lucassen provided the guitar solo for the track "Dark Wings".
, which was very Celtic, and that's how our album became very Celtic because we were so in love with the soundtrack of the Braveheart movie. So, inspired by that, the album came out that way...I still love that album very much...it came together in a very natural way. The songs were sometimes written in a day, it did take time to work it out more, the way it sounded in the end, but it was like the ideas and the whole concepts of certain songs were written mostly in one day, the chorus and the verses."
's "elusive and intangible presence", adding "The rise of goth/prog metal seemed to reach a peak at the turn of the century, with an endless supply of bands offering their own spin on the subgenre. Only a handful of these bands seem to have anything interesting or unique to offer... With the release of Mother Earth, there was little doubt that the cream of the crop had indeed risen to the top... A landmark release that set new standards for creativity, musicianship, and taste — not just for goth/prog metal, but for any style of music."
Guest musicians
! style="text-align:center;"|Chart (2011)
! style="text-align:center;"|Peak
position
|-
|align="left"|Austrian Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"|30
|-
|align="left"|Belgian Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|-
|align="left"|Dutch Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|-
|align="left"|Norwegian Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"|11
|}
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
symphonic metal
Symphonic metal
Symphonic metal is a term used to describe heavy metal music that has symphonic elements; that is, elements that are either borrowed from classical music or, as with progressive rock music, create a style reminiscent of it, e.g...
/rock
Symphonic rock
Symphonic rock is a sub-genre of progressive rock. Since early in progressive rock's history, the term has been used sometimes to distinguish more classically influenced progressive rock from the more psychedelic and experimental forms of progressive rock....
band Within Temptation
Within Temptation
Within Temptation is a Dutch symphonic gothic metal/rock band founded in 1996 by vocalist Sharon den Adel and guitarist Robert Westerholt. Their music is described as symphonic metal, although their earlier material, such as Enter, was gothic metal. In an interview, Den Adel said they fell into a...
. Originally released on December 4, 2000 in the Netherlands, and August 21, 2001 in other parts of Europe, it quickly became a success in the band's heartland, reaching platinum status in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and platinum in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, platinum in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in addition to achieving TMF/MTV Awards in both countries. The album reportedly sold 750,000 copies in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
The album was licensed to be released in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and neighboring countries through GUN Records
GUN Records
GUN Records was a record label located in Bochum, Northrhine-Westphalia, Germany and was founded 1992 by Bogdan Kopec and Wolfgang Funk....
in January 2003 as a special extended edition with four bonus tracks. The same edition reached the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
through Sanctuary Records
Sanctuary Records
Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest independent music management company in the world...
with a release in September 2004. The album was re-released by Roadrunner Records
Roadrunner Records
Roadrunner Records is an American record label that concentrates primarily on heavy metal bands. It is currently a subsidiary of Warner Music Group.-History:...
on September 28, 2007, with bonus live tracks.
On August 5, 2008, Mother Earth along with The Silent Force
The Silent Force
The Silent Force is the third studio album by Dutch symphonic metal band Within Temptation, released on November 15, 2004, by GUN Records. This album is the first to feature Ruud Jolie on lead guitar, as well as Martijn Spierenburg on keyboards, after Martijn Westerholt had to leave the band due to...
was released in the United States on Roadrunner Records.
Recording
By 1999 the band had built their own studio and had begun recording demos for the Mother Earth album there. The album itself was recorded in Studio BS29 in WaalwijkWaalwijk
Waalwijk is a municipality and a city in the southern Netherlands.It is a member of the Langstraat.It has a population of around 38,920 and is located near the motorways A59 and N261...
, the Netherlands. Oscar Holleman was again producer, and one of the sound engineers was Stephen van Haestregt
Stephen van Haestregt
Stephen van Haestregt is a Dutch drummer, best known as the drummer of the Dutch symphonic metal band Within Temptation....
, future drummer for the band. Sharon recalls that "I had a day for each song, which is still not very much, but you can try out things. We also did some demos before the recordings, so there you can check if you like or dislike parts of a song, and so you have more time when it comes to recording". Ayreon
Ayreon
Ayreon is a project by Dutch composer and musician Arjen Anthony Lucassen.Ayreon's musical style derives mostly from heavy metal and progressive rock, but combines them with genres like folk, classical and electronica...
's Arjen Lucassen provided the guitar solo for the track "Dark Wings".
Style
The sound of Mother Earth was a departure for the band. In a 2008 interview with Faceculture, Sharon states that Mother Earth was "a little bit older, a little bit more knowledgeable about how we wanted to sound, even then, of course you grow, so we had a better picture of how we wanted to sound. We didn't want to have the grunt vocals anymore. We felt like everyone was using that as a gimmick, and we didn't want to have it in our music anymore because of that...and also we were very much enthralled by a movie at that time, BraveheartBraveheart
Braveheart is a 1995 epic historical drama war film directed by and starring Mel Gibson. The film was written for the screen and then novelized by Randall Wallace...
, which was very Celtic, and that's how our album became very Celtic because we were so in love with the soundtrack of the Braveheart movie. So, inspired by that, the album came out that way...I still love that album very much...it came together in a very natural way. The songs were sometimes written in a day, it did take time to work it out more, the way it sounded in the end, but it was like the ideas and the whole concepts of certain songs were written mostly in one day, the chorus and the verses."
Reception
Allmusic rated the album 4 and a half stars, the reviewer calling it "easily one of the best releases of 2001", and praising it for its "mature and confident sound" and Sharon den AdelSharon den Adel
Sharon Janny den Adel is a Dutch singer and composer, best known as the lead vocalist and one of the main songwriters in the Dutch symphonic metal/rock band Within Temptation...
's "elusive and intangible presence", adding "The rise of goth/prog metal seemed to reach a peak at the turn of the century, with an endless supply of bands offering their own spin on the subgenre. Only a handful of these bands seem to have anything interesting or unique to offer... With the release of Mother Earth, there was little doubt that the cream of the crop had indeed risen to the top... A landmark release that set new standards for creativity, musicianship, and taste — not just for goth/prog metal, but for any style of music."
Track listing
Bonus tracks
Music videos
- "Ice Queen" (first video as well known by "German version")
- "Mother Earth"
- "Ice Queen" (second video; official version)
- "Never-Ending Story" (promo video for the DVD "Mother Earth Tour")
Credits
- Sharon den AdelSharon den AdelSharon Janny den Adel is a Dutch singer and composer, best known as the lead vocalist and one of the main songwriters in the Dutch symphonic metal/rock band Within Temptation...
– vocals - Robert WesterholtRobert WesterholtRobert Westerholt is a Dutch musician, known as the guitarist, backing vocalist and co-founder of the symphonic metal band Within Temptation. He also writes music for the band, along with the band's vocalist, and his partner, Sharon den Adel...
– guitar - Michiel Papenhove – guitar
- Martijn WesterholtMartijn WesterholtDavid Martijn Westerholt is the founder along with Charlotte Wessels, the keyboardist and the main songwriter of the Dutch symphonic metal band Delain...
- keyboards - Jeroen van VeenJeroen van Veen (bassist)Jeroen van Veen is the bassist in the symphonic metal band Within Temptation. Jeroen has been a member of Within Temptation since the band's inception in 1996. Although he is the bassist of the band, Jeroen can also play the drums. He also played in the Grey Foxes an Amsterdam Funk Group...
– bass - Ivar de GraafIvar de GraafIvar de Graaf is the founder and drummer of the Dutch progressive metal band Kingfisher Sky, but best known as the former drummer of successful the Dutch rock/metal band Within Temptation.-Early career:...
– drums
Guest musicians
- Guus Eikens – synthesizer
- Arjen Lucassen - guitar solo (on the track "Dark Wings")
- Rene Dissel - fretless bass guitar (on the track "Never-Ending Story")
Album Charts
|-! style="text-align:center;"|Chart (2011)
! style="text-align:center;"|Peak
position
|-
|align="left"|Austrian Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"|30
|-
|align="left"|Belgian Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|-
|align="left"|Dutch Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|-
|align="left"|Norwegian Albums Chart
| style="text-align:center;"|11
|}
Sales and certifications
| Country | Certification Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|
| Belgium Belgium Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many... |
Gold |
| Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
Gold |
| Netherlands Netherlands The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders... |
Platinum |