You know, after being sent hundreds of CDs from bands who really needed to pack it in after their first rehearsal, I finally get a CD that doesn't immediately bring to mind a festering pile of mule dung.
Who the fuck knew that Little Rock, Arkansas bred anything other than homeless people and death metal bands? I sure as hell didn't and I had the pleasure of spending a weekend in that armpit.
EVANESCENCE emerged from the crop of lousy music plaguing Little Rock, and I'd venture to guess it's largely due to Amy Lee's amazing voice. Not to downplay the talent of Ben Moody's guitar work, or any of the other band members, but without Amy's pipes, these guys would sound like a beefed-up SAVATAGE. Her voice is an amazing contrast to the crunchy, dark rock riffs that the rest of the band is orchestrating. Also, when the band isn't rocking away, Amy is perfectly at home with a solo piano, sounding very Judy Collins-ish at times.
the stand out tracks on this disc are well, first and foremost, "Bring Me To Life" (which is all over MuchMusic and MTV, and featured in the Daredevil movie), and "Haunted", with it's double-kick,programmed beats, and crunchy riffs, sounds most like this band should sound...simply because you've got this band of apes brutalizing you with crunch rock, and then Amy injects her voice along with chamber music. Pretty soon, you're listening to something new. something interesting. something you've never heard...and that's rare in 2003, when record companies tend to mass-produce this pre-packaged rebellion shit to the gullably masses at MTV and rock radio.
I hope that Evanescence can be consistent with this approach to their musc when it comes to write number 2.
