Apocalypse & Chill

Apocalypse & Chill is the sixth studio album by Dutch symphonic metal band Delain. It was released on 7 February 2020 via Napalm Records.

It is the final studio album to feature vocalist Charlotte Wessels, guitarist Timo Somers and bassist Otto Schimmelpenninck van der Oije, as well as the only studio album to feature drummer Joey de Boer on all tracks before his departure with the other members.

Songwriting
The album focuses on themes such as the climate crisis and the way people react to it, with Martijn Westerholt stating:

"It's really the contrast that you see when you turn on the TV – You see Australia in flames and then you turn to Instagram and see people with awesome pictures of their garden or themselves. The perfect life. The same world but such a contrast. It's what comes across on the album in the music and in the lyrics. We are a band of contrast with the heavy guitars but with some pop and synth elements so it all comes back to that."

Reception
Writing for Kerrang!, Steve Beebee stated that it was Delain's best album to date and rated it a 4/5.

Metal Injection gave the album an 8/10, stating that "symphonic metal typically sticks to familiar ground—with only marginal variation and experimentation from time to time—and Delain undoubtedly still do it better than most of their peers."

Blabbermouth also gave the album an 8/10, adding that "Delain have upped their game in every department, eschewing cynical acts of musical shark-jumping in favor of aiming for the best and most powerful manifestation of a simple idea."

Personnel
All information from the album booklet.

Delain
 * Charlotte Wessels – lead vocals
 * Martijn Westerholt – keyboards, backing vocals
 * Timo Somers – guitars, co-lead vocals on "One Second", backing vocals
 * Otto Schimmelpenninck van der Oije – bass
 * Joey de Boer – drums

Guest/session musicians
 * Guus Eikens – backing vocals, songwriting
 * Yannis Papadopoulos – guest vocals on "Vengeance"
 * Shir-Ran Yinon – violin on "Ghost House Heart" and "The Greatest Escape"
 * Mikko P. Mustonen – orchestrations

Production
 * Martijn Westerholt – songwriting, production, orchestrations
 * Charlotte Wessels – songwriting, lyrics
 * Timo Somers – songwriting, lyrics
 * Jacob Hansen – mixing
 * Svante Forsbäck – mastering
 * Bas Trumpie – drum engineering
 * Imre Beerends – drum engineering
 * Tim Tronckoe – band photography
 * Maxim Getman – cover art
 * Marnix de Klerk – artwork
 * Nina Mathijsen – artwork
 * Oliver Phillips – additional arrangements on "To Live Is to Die" and "The Greatest Escape"