EVANESCENCE
Evanescence was founded by singer, pianist and songwriter Amy Lee and former lead guitarist and songwriter Ben Moody. The two met at a youth camp in Arkansas, where Moody heard Lee playing "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" by Meat Loaf on the piano. The pair discovered they shared a love of Jimi Hendrix and Björk, and they began to write songs together (the first was "Solitude" by Amy Lee, followed by "Understanding" by Ben Moody, "Give Unto Me" by Amy Lee, and "My Immortal" by Ben Moody). The songs were altered lyrically and musically by Amy Lee, which is the reason for having the names of both of them in the credits for writing them. For some time they were unable to find other musicians to play with, and did not have the funds to pay for professional assistance, thus they were unable to play live shows. However, two songs of theirs, "Understanding" and "Give Unto Me", found their way onto local music charts, and demand for a live show increased. When the band finally made an appearance, they became one of the most popular acts in the area. They went through several names, including Childish Intentions and Stricken, before deciding on the name Evanescence (meaning to fade away or dissipate like vapor). Amy said she loves the name because it is mysterious and dark, and it puts a picture in your mind, which is what she wanted to do. Their first full length demo CD, Origin (released in 2000), is relatively unknown. The band also released two EPs, which are highly sought after by collectors due to their scarcity: the self-titled Evanescence EP (1998) of which about 100 copies were made, and the Sound Asleep EP, also known as the Whisper EP (1999), limited to 50 copies. Not atypically, Origin and the EPs contain demo versions of some of the songs on their debut album Fallen. In fact, the recording of "My Immortal" found on Fallen can also be found on Origin, minus a handful of additional string accompaniments. However, Lee herself does not consider the record to be an actual album; rather, she considers it merely a bundle of demo songs (some of which she says are not done properly) that was sent to record companies. Only 2500 copies of this record were ever made, limiting its availability to the handful lucky enough to obtain one in the early years, or to those who are willing to pay the hundreds of dollars the discs now fetch. In response, Lee encouraged fans to download the band's older songs from the Internet during an interview. Not surprisingly, enterprising bootleggers have been selling fake copies of Origin, usually as a "Russian re-release," for high prices. It is highly encouraged that fans not risk money on a copy of Origin as it is likely not an original copy, nor does it benefit the band any longer Originally considered by many to be part of the Christian rock scene—and for a short time promoted in Christian stores—the band made it clear that they did not want to be considered a Christian rock band, especially after controversy when Moody swore during an interview. Shortly thereafter, Christian stores removed Evanescence from their shelves. Since then Lee has been quoted as saying that they are not a Christian band and would appreciate it if the rumor was terminated. David Hodges (ex-vocalist & keyboards) left the band over the Christianity topic. The band later said that he was pulling the band in more of a Christian direction than the founding members (Lee & Moody) were comfortable with. Their first major album Fallen has been certified 6x Platinum, spent 43 weeks in the Billboard Top 10 and has sold over 14 million[1] copies worldwide. As of April 2005 Fallen is one of only eight albums in the history of the chart to spend a full year (52 weeks) in the Billboard Top 50 (Spice by the Spice Girls, E. 1999 Eternal by Bone Thugs N Harmony, Come on Over by Shania Twain, Falling Into You by Celine Dion, ...Baby One More Time by Britney Spears, Breakaway from Kelly Clarkson and Jagged Little Pill by Alanis Morissette being the others). Evanescence's major label debut single "Bring Me to Life", which features guest vocals from Paul McCoy of 12 Stones, was a global hit for the band and reached #5 on the American Billboard Hot 100. It also provided Evanescence with their first (and so far only) UK #1, where it stayed for five weeks from June-July 2003. The equally popular "My Immortal" peaked at #7 in the U.S. and #9 in the U.K. Their inclusion in the soundtrack for the action movie Daredevil helped propel both songs into widespread popularity and firmly cemented Evanescence within the music scene. "Bring Me to Life" garnered recognition for the band at the Grammy Awards of 2004, where the band was given the Best Hard Rock Performance award. At the same time, Evanescence was awarded Best New Artist. The two other singles off Fallen include "Going Under" (#5 US Modern Rock Tracks, #9 UK Charts) and "Everybody's Fool" (#36 US Modern Rock Tracks, #23 UK Charts), both of which include a music video. The previously unreleased song Breathe No More was featured in the 2005 soundtrack of the movie Elektra. On October 22, 2003, Moody left the band abruptly in the middle of a European tour. The reasons for his departure were reportedly "creative differences." In an interview several months later, Amy Lee said: "We'd gotten to a point that if something didn't change, we wouldn't have been able to make a second record." Since then, Lee has said it was almost a relief that he left because of tensions created within the band. Terry Balsamo from Cold joined the band, replacing Moody. Recently, Moody confessed in an interview that not only does he suffer from bipolar disorder, but that he's kicked a drug and alcohol habit that he was entrenched in during the strife within Evanescence. He's also said that the song he wrote about his abrupt departure, titled "10/22," was originally penned with him essentially pointing out Lee's flaws. However, Moody says that introspection later revealed he was speaking about himself, not her. Released in 2004, Evanescence's new lineup released a DVD/CD compilation entitled "Anywhere But Home". The DVD is their live-from-Paris show with several behind-the-scenes features, including shots of the band backstage, signing autographs, and warming up. The CD included contains a song entitled "Missing" which was previously unreleased. Also on the CD are the songs "Breathe No More" (from the Elektra movie soundtrack) and "Farther Away". They also included their cover of Korn's "Thoughtless" which they have played at several live shows. Evanescence is currently working on their second album, titled The Open Door, due for release in the USA on October 3, 2006 (see press release) and in Australia on September 30, 2006 (see Sony BMG Australia news article) The album will feature 13 tracks, including first single Call Me When You're Sober, and 'Good Enough'. Lee reported that 'Good Enough' is not like any other ballad she has written before as its background is more happy. Others tracks listed on The Open Door are'Weight Of The World' and a cover of Lacrimosa from Mozart's Requiem The album has progressed slowly for a number of reasons, but perhaps chiefly because of Amy Lee's desire to allow the creative process to fully take its course and not rush production. Besides that, other distractions have included other band members' side projects, health problems concerning guitarist Terry Balsamo and the controversy revolving around the dismissal of their former manager. Lee stated on EvBoard that Evanescence's new album will be wrapping up in March 2006. The release was pushed to October, allegedly because "Wind-Up [the band's current record label] wants to make a few changes to the upcoming single 'Call Me When You're Sober' The Evanescence website was also updated after a long period of stasis to reflect the aforementioned press release. Amy Lee has confirmed that she wrote a song for the 2005 film version of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe released by Disney, but it was rejected by producers due to it being "too dark and epic." However, Amy Lee said it was just more great material for the upcoming album The Open Door. The tour for The Open Door began on October 5, 2006 in Toronto and included locations in Canada, the U.S. and Europe during that year. This first tour continued on January 5, 2007 and included stops in Canada (alongside band Stone Sour), Japan and Australia (alongside band Shihad) and will return to the US for a second tour (alongside bands Chevelle and Finger Eleven). As part of their tour, Evanescence performed on April 15, 2007 on the Argentinan festival Quilmes Rock 07 along with Aerosmith, Velvet Revolver and other famous local bands. Also, they will co-headline on the Family Values Tour 2007 along with Korn and other bands. On October 22, 2003, Moody left the band during the European tour for Fallen, reportedly because of creative differences. In an interview several months later, Amy Lee said: "...we'd gotten to a point that if something didn't change, we wouldn't have been able to make a second record." This became a point of confusion for some people, as Moody and Lee stated on the Fallen album cover that they were best friends. Since then, Lee has said it was almost a relief that he left because of tensions created within the band. Moody was replaced by Terry Balsamo from Cold. On July 14, 2006, it was confirmed by a spokesperson for the band's label that bassist Will Boyd had left the band for "not wanting to do another big tour" and wanting "to be close to his family." Amy Lee originally broke the news to the fans in a post on an unofficial Evanescence site, EvBoard.com. In an interview with MTV, posted on their website on August 10, 2006, Lee announced that Tim McCord, former Revolution Smile guitarist, would switch instruments and play bass for the band. On May 4, 2007, John LeCompt announced that he had been fired from Evanescence, and also stated that drummer Rocky Gray had decided to quit as well. Both musicians posted on their personal MySpace pages to confirm the news report, however, neither elaborated about the circumstances surrounding their departures. A statement has been posted on the Evanescence website on May 6, 2007 by the band to confirm the split of the two band members. On his MySpace blog, LeCompt stated that Lee called his cellphone to fire him, and that no warning had previously been given nor were any negotiations made available. Gray later released a statement on his MySpace stating that he was served a gag order by label Wind-up which prevents him from discussing the reasons for his departure from the band. On the band's official website, Lee wrote that the band was still alive and that no tour events had been canceled or changed. On May 17, 2007, Wind-up issued a press release stating that two Dark New Day members, drummer Will Hunt and guitarist Troy McLawhorn, would be joining the band to replace LeCompt and Gray. However, Lee wrote on the EvThreads.com message board that "We're just borrowing Will and Troy for awhile" and that they would not be leaving Dark New Day. Hunt and McLawhorn will tour with Evanescence until at least September 2007 to finish the Family Values tour, though it is unknown if they will remain with the band beyond that time.
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