A Fun Detour Into Synthpop Trauma.
243 days till W:O:A 2023.
(Reality slipping.)
Coming straight from Deicide and Defleshed into Delain’s glossy synthscape was–a cultural whiplash.
It took a couple of stubborn days to open up enough to endure this very different brand of metal long enough to hear what was going on.
Spoiler: Symphonic metal and I are not exactly destined for a great romance.
But in the name of genre tourism—and checking off names from the W:O:A 2023 lineup—I gave Delain’s Apocalypse & Chill a fair shot.
First impression?
"Sounds like Within Temptation."
Because, of course it does—Delain was founded in 2002 by Martijn Westerholt, ex-keyboardist of Within Temptation and brother to Robert Westerholt, one of their founding members.
If you were a teenager in the early 2000s, Ice Queen was inescapable.
And if you were me? You hated every frosty, saccharine second of it.
So.
The Within Temptation flashbacks weren’t exactly a promising start.
But credit where it’s due: Delain are no lesser imitators—they absolutely know what they’re doing.
Symphonic Metal: A Genre Built for Film Scores and Existential Crises
Symphonic metal isn’t a formal genre—it's more of a vibe classification.
You get it when metal bands throw in full orchestras, choirs, dramatic keyboards, and sometimes operatic vocals to add "cinematic atmosphere."
Symphonic black metal? Dimmu Borgir.
Symphonic metal? Nightwish.
Symphonic everything else? Pretty much everyone else with a synthesizer and a dream.
In general:
- Symphonic instruments and vocals dominate.
- Bass, drums, and guitars are often politely shoved into the background.
- Big on mood.
- Big on accessibility.
- Perfect if you want your existential dread scored like a Disney villain’s entrance.
Pop Hooks, Gothic Feels, and a Metric Ton of Keyboards
Apocalypse & Chill leans hard into the synth side of things.
Charlotte Wessels’ vocals and the lush keyboard arrangements are absolutely the stars here—the guitars and drums dutifully keep time somewhere in the back like bored stagehands.
First track One Second sets the tone immediately:
Catchy, bright, outrageously sticky.
You hear it once and it's embedded in your brain like a cursed ringtone.
Throughout the album, Wessels' strong but pop-tinged vocals bounce off Timo Somers' clean (and occasionally screaming) backing vocals, riding a wave of 80s-flavoured synths and radio-friendly grooves.
Is it heavy?
No.
Is it annoyingly well-constructed?
Absolutely.
Standout Tracks: Disco, Goth Nostalgia, and Growers
Chemical Redemption
The third track and my personal highlight.
It opens with some pure 80s electro-disco nonsense layered over stomping guitars—sounding like the soundtrack to a very metal prom scene.
Somehow, it works.
The keyboards reminded me of my teenage Gothic years (The Birthday Massacre, good times!), sending me spiralling back into a synth-soaked nostalgia hole.
We Had Everything
Second track, maximum pop influence.
It's basically synths singing to themselves while guitars wave sadly from the sidelines.
Initially, I hated it.
But it’s a grower—pure serotonin if you stop resisting the synth onslaught.
Final Verdict: Less Mosh Pit, More Mood Lighting
There’s a lot going on in Apocalypse & Chill—layers of synths, vocal harmonies, occasional heavy guitar flashes, and more catchy choruses than a Eurovision final.
The album isn’t particularly heavy or aggressive, but it nails exactly what it’s aiming for:
Big, accessible, cinematic metal that doesn’t ask much more of you than showing up and nodding along.
It's polished, catchy, and clearly great at what it does.
Just not my battlefield.