Tons of ink (digital or not) have been poured for the case of Evanescence, who were happy to succeed soon and see their names on the top of the charts, already since their first album was released. Nevertheless, the subsequences of this (live CD and a pretty unsuccessful concert with a pricey ticket here in my country, Greece) made some people rank them among the bush-league bands of metal music, videlicet the bands which are only just appealing, but not qualitative enough for out taste.
Thus, releasing this year’s “The Open Door”, Evanescence are called upon to prove that they have the competence to step up and they are trying to get us know them again and, possibly, judge them again more objectively and leniently. The big sales led to big success – and big success led to big expectations and big demands. Are they able to satisfy them? Let’s find out…
I am going to begin in reverse, analyzing the evolution in the sound of Evanescence. Just writing the words “evolution” and “Evanescence” in the same sentence I am impressed! Wasn’t Evanescence the band that everyone expected to stick to the same, “chart” style and copy itself? Weren’t Evanescence those “ungifted” guys who wrote songs for “little girls”, for the video clips and for the money? No matter what their accusers claim, I never shared these opinions and this year’s “The Open Door” hopefully bears me out. Evanescence managed something important: their success granted them greater artistic freedom and, in combination with the ample amount of money that was placed by the company in order to ensure big sales, they managed to produce a sophomore disc more mature and I daresay better than the celebrated “Fallen”.
The structure of their songs is now adjusted to fit Amy Lee’s voice. The guitars accompany, the piano holds the primacy and all instruments are combined to perfectly match the melodies the voice sings, melodies singularly interesting and addictive. The differences with the past lie in the piano: their songs are clearly written on it and they grant the best of their melodies to Amy Lee’s voice, a voice which may not have any wide register, but surely has a characteristic tone and which in “The Open Door” seems even better wrought, rising to prominence.
In the disc we will not find many “hits”, although I surmise that “Lacrymosa” (incredible work with the accompanying choir), “Call Me When You’re Sober” (the new “big song” of the band), “Lithium” (very emotional and lyrical) and “Sweet Sacrifice” (ideal to open the disc) can get them up to charts again, as they are very beautiful songs, which also have the essential (for the charts) pop gloss.
And, by the chance, having mentioned the word “pop”, “the stormy petrel”, yes, Evanescence do not disavow their pop origins, but I do not care. The disc is full of authentic moments, Amy Lee sings for the sufferings of love and captures you and “The Open Door” is full of moments of intellectual concentration and melancholy. What’s the most important? It grounds all of its success on the beautiful music and not on any marketing ploys. And this is surely an evolutionary step, a step of maturation, a progress I have to admit.
If you still believe that the “borders” between the pop and the metal music are “terra incognita” for you and for your taste, then do not try to listen to this particular disc. Releasing “The Open Door”, Evanescence earned my trust once more, as well as a place in my stereo for a long time. If they keep producing such qualitative music in the future, they may manage to renounce the disparaging label of the “commercial” band. Whoever makes no discriminations between “pop” and “metal” music has to listen to the new Evanescence album and he/she won’t miss!

Call it a case of mistaken identity. Evanescence's hit "Bring Me to Life" doomed the Arkansas group to a life of Linkin Park comparisons, thanks to the song's digital beats, clean metal-guitar riffs, scattered piano lines and all-too-familiar mix of rapping and singing. The gimmick? It's a woman on the mike, and she's on a mission from God. When vocalist Amy Lee croons about lying "in my field of paper flowers" or "pouring crimson regret," she gives Fallen a creepy spiritual tinge that the new-metal boys lack. Sometimes the band even helps her out, adding ghostly echoes and ghoulish industrial noises to the aptly titled "Haunted," or, better yet, leaving her the hell alone. "My Immortal" lets Lee wail about her personal demons over simple piano and some symphonic dressings - it's a power ballad that P.O.D. and Tori Amos fans could both appreciate.

Finally, this much anticipated debut has left the factory. For the past couple of years, music fanatics have had their appetities whetted for this amazing band through a very small run EP release, a song on a compilation or two, and some mp3s. The release of their full-length seemed about as tantalizingly near-but-not-yet as the second coming of Christ.

Now that it's here (in limited numbers, so get your copy soon), does it deliver? Pretty much, yeah, if you fancy a fusion of Garbage electro-goth chick vibes, Chatterbox/Circle of Dust melodic industrial-metal, epic transcendence ala The Gathering, and plenty of piano prog like, maybe, '80s Yes or ELP (but don't quote me on that). In fact, most of the song structures have the fluid classical feel of being written on the piano, then translated through guitars and electronics. Amy Lee is of course the main attraction, her soaring, sad voice accented by ethereal "oohhhhs" and soft whispery overdubs. In the vast space around her, there's usually a lot going on, with layers of keyboards, samples, drum loops, effects, and electric guitars all flowing together into one glowing gothic industro-metal glacier.

Two tracks from the ultra-rare EP reappear, retooled -- "Imaginary" and "Where Will You Go?". The other eight songs range from the solitary, sorrowful piano ballad "My Immortal" to the phenomenal progressive metal song "Lies" where Amy sings cascading scales, Living Sacrifice's Bruce Fitzhugh provides an injection of low end as guest bassist, and male death vocals even pop up.

Really, the only fault on the whole album might be the clean male vocals that come in on "Where Will You Go" and "Anywhere". At best, they're distracting; at worst, they're just plain cheesy ("yeeah, yeaaahhh"...!??) for this kind of music. Thankfully, the mistake is confined to those two tracks.

The lyrics are all first person, either confessional or directed toward others, touching on fears that linger and hold the speaker back, disillusionment with life, love lost and desired, and finally, a hopeful reaching to accept freedom through one with "an open embrace upon a bleeding tree." There's definitely a change in mood at the end, with the songs upping the tempo and energy to match the hope in the lyrics. If there's any justice in this world (which we know there isn't when it comes to music), Evanescence will find a host of appreciative fans and be maturing their music for years to come.

A fabulous work of art combining the magnificent voice of Amy Lee with many different types of music that satisfy every taste. Her and Moddy's excellent composing skills have produced 11 superb songs that provoke deep feelings to the listener. The lyrics encompass a wide range of themes such as love, loneliness, despair, disappointment and hope for the best. It is a must for everyone's collection.