Within Temptation

Within Temptation were formed in 1996 and have taken their brand of operatic symphonic rock to audiences far from their native Netherlands.

The band was formed by partners Robert Westerholt (guitar) and Sharon den Adel (vocals), who enlisted the bass-playing talents of Jeroen van Veen, Michiel Papenhove (guitar), Martijn Westerholt (keyboards) and Ivar de Graaf (drums). Their debut album Enter was released in Europe in 1997 and was particularly well received in the Netherlands, Germany and Austria.

They released the EP The Dance in 1998, and after a short sabbatical they released Mother Earth to the Dutch market and received positive critical comments. There were a number of personnel changes in 2001 preceding the release of Mother Earth to a wider European audience. A third album The Silent Force was released in 2004 which cemented their growing success in Europe.

In 2007 The Heart of Everything was released to their existing European fanbase and, for the first time, to America. Their growing popularity in the US led them to sign with Roadrunner Records and resulted in the American re-release of their earlier albums during 2007.