Evanescence - Anywhere But Home (w/ bonus DVD)
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Free Music Notes for Anywhere But Home (w/ bonus DVD)
Free Music Review: Preserving your memories of Evanescence in concert
Hit: 5 Stars
If you saw Evanescence on tour in 2004 then "Anywhere But Home" will preserve your concert memories. The song lineup was essentially the same (they opened with "Going Under" when I heard them) and I had the same reaction when Amy Lee lets the audience sing the first chorus on "My Immortal" that I did in St. Cloud, which was SHUT UP AND LET THE WOMAN SING THE SONG! I CAME HERE TO HEAR HER DO THIS SONG NOT YOUR PEOPLE! But despite their insistence on signing along when her voice soars on the bridge it still gives me chills.
Basically what you have here in "Fallen" live, which makes sense simply because this is one of the best selling albums of this century. Those who went directly from "Fallen" to "Anywhere But Home" without seeing Evanescence in concert will be surprised because live the group is a lot more Goth than they sounded on the album. To Evanescence's legion of fans this is not news, but I know full well that a lot of people will pick up this album expecting more songs like the piano ballad "My Immortal" when "Bring Me to Life" is more emblematic of the group's sound.
Whoever edited the concert film obviously thinks we have the attention span of fruit flies, because there is constant cutting from one shot to the next as well too many shots of a camera moving over the audience with its raised fists and not enough watching the band play. You get everything from camera shots taken from the back row of the place to a close up of a singer's mouth. Note to future musicians: if you get something tattooed on the back of your neck people with cameras will think that is your good side. I guess if a director wants to get "arty" with all this concert footage
It is strange that "Anywhere But Home" is seen as CD w/bonus DVD because I got it for the DVD. The CD is nice in terms of being able to listen to it in the car, but I rarely think concert's CDs sound as good as the video/DVD. Besides, I still have "Fallen" to listen to and my collection of Evanescence accoustic tracks. However, I totally appreciate having the two in one package, because it gives you both options and if everybody did this with concerts it would be a far better world.
The fourteen songs are the same on the CD and DVD (or DVD and CD) with the DVD including the group's four music videoes: "My Immortal," "Everybody's Fool," "Bring Me to Life," and "Going Under." The behind the scenes stuff on the DVD is actually fun, because we all know Amy Lee can sing, but can she do cartwheels, play ping pong on roller skates, or get through a simply thank you to the fans at the Nordic Music Awards? More importantly, will the Haunted Hotel Prank work on Terry and what insantity will previal on stage the last night of the tour? Just take the words "Evanescene Unleashed" seriously because these kids are serious about having fun on tour.
I know people are waiting for a second album from Evanescence and there is an impulse to castigate them for milking "Fallen" for all it is worth. But given the heightened expectations and the new lineup for the band in terms of song writing, chances are that second album will be a big disappointment. After all, debut albums allow to pick your best material from what is usually two or three albums worth of songs. I can look at bands from Bad Company to Live where the first album were very good to absolutely great and the follow ups were never in the same neighborhood (but let me pull select tracks from the next three albums and I can be headed in that direction). Still, even if the band breaks on the rocks of high expectations Amy Lee's voice is just too good to be sunk by anything short of a massive rock diva meltdowns.
The Easter Egg on this one is the performance of "Bring Me to Life" done in Las Vegas in the neon sign junkyard for the Grammy Awards. To get to it on the main menu go down to "Behind the Scenes" and then click your left arrow button twice. The Evanescene "E" symbol lights up in yellow and then you can hit "Enter."
Free Music Review: Great performance, lots of value
Hit: 5 Stars
I first rented the DVD portion of this thinking it would otherwise be priced like most other concert DVD's at retail, and not really realizing it was part of the same concert CD package that I had so blatantly ignored upon its release. I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered through Amazon that not only does this package include both the CD and DVD, but it's priced like a regular CD.
I'm not normally a fan of concert CD's - the live experience usually doesn't translate, in my opinion, without either the visuals of actually *watching* the performance, or the ambience of the venue (including the energy of the crowd around you). What's left is usually slightly inferior versions of the songs you already know - regardless of the band in question. (There are exceptions; it largely depends on how complex the studio recordings are and how easy to replicate or expand upon them live. But there's more that can be done over several months in a studio than in an hour-long live show.)
Evanescence's studio recordings are pretty complex and multi-layered - there's really no way for Amy Lee to sing five different vocal parts at the same time, or to sing her own backing track (she does double up her vocals on Fallen in several cases, which gives them a little different sound). So I think the expectations some people had for this performance are a little unrealistic - you almost have to wonder if some of the negative reviewers here have ever seen a band live. As a veteran of countless live shows in all different genres, and as a former metal singer myself with both studio and live experience, I thought her performance here was pretty amazing, honestly. Her vocal parts are HARD, even on the studio recordings, and she belts them out here with just as much precision as she does on Fallen. The layering might be a bit thin at times vs. Fallen - that's unavoidable, as she's only got one voice - but she hits nearly all of her high notes perfectly, she is totally on-key all night long, and she sings with passion. She does seem to get a little tired near the end, but that's understandable if you've watched up to that point!
Oh, and the rest of the band is pretty good too! The instrumentals sound pretty much the same as they do on Fallen.
I still don't think the CD of this is all that compelling on its own, but luckily Evanescence was smart enough to package the DVD with it and that's the real reason to buy this. It's easier to get over some of the ragged edges of any live performance when you've got those visuals and the feeling of being in the venue with the band. They are fun to watch, especially Amy as she works the crowd. That's the main reason why you go to a live show in the first place; if you just want to listen to them, well, you've got Fallen already. (Though you don't have the "extra" tracks that they perform here...) Some of the cutting is a bit too quick, and the direction gets a little self-indulgent every once in a while - especially near the beginning - but it evens out over the course of the DVD. If I had one real criticism, though, it's that I would have liked some more straightforward editing - I just want to see the band, I don't need 50 different angles in a 5 second span.
The four promotional videos on the DVD are also a must-have. You can even sort of see their progression from the local club act they were right around the time of "Going Under" to the mainstream gothic metal band they became over the next year. One of my favorite moments is seeing Amy singing underwater in "Going Under" - she's down there for a long time! She's gotta be pretty fearless. (She does this in the new "Lithium" video also, though not for quite as long.)
Free Music Review: Evanescence has barely touched the surface of their success
Hit: 5 Stars
Despite other reviews which ridiculed this performance, I loved it! It was very tastefully filmed and edited; it captured the rough-on-the-edges rawness to otherwise well-rounded and powerful music. The effects really brought everything to life. And the big A++++++.... it was filmed in Widescreen! An automatic 10 stars right there for that! Even moreso because they didn't make the mistake of releasing a "Fool Screen" version. In my opinion, any movies or concerts in Full Screen should be burned with utmost haste... it degrades us all.
The renditions were really well done, especially to some of my favorites, "Farther Away", "Bring Me To Life", and the hauntingly beautiful "Haunted". But then again, I have yet to find a song I dislike from Evanescence, which is really amazing and yet again tests their success. Amy Lee has proven herself yet again, this time holding her own in a live performance, and further outdoing herself. Amy has a lot of stage presence, is very interactive with the audience; the band was jamming like there's no tomorrow. The vibe was there...Evanescence was jamming, having a damn good time on stage, and loving every moment of it... a feeling I haven't gotten at all from an artist performing live. The Dolby 5.1 discrete was absolutely amazing!!
In regard to the comment that they need to expand their discography, maybe the reviewer didn't consider "Evanescence EP" (1999), "Sound Asleep EP" (1999), or even "Origin" (2000)? I mean, don't get me wrong, the discography is there. Now, why they don't choose to touch to much on older material, I'm not sure, but it's their choice... some of the older material is very nice, but I don't think it fits the style their trying to achieve, especically since Moody left. For example...listen to "Field Of Innocence" from Origin and the 1997/98 demo "October"...both great, infact awesome, songs, but not the style Evanescence wants.
Always amusing, although a little shocking at moments, yet undeniably hilarious, the Behind The Scenes featurettes were a great addition. We get to experience a little sliver of the personality of Amy Lee, John LeCompt, Rocky Gray, William Boyd, and Terry Balsamo and their experiences while on tour. It's one thing to see Evanescence on stage, and another thing to see them off stage punkin' around. I won't spoil anything for you, since it would very unjust... it's a must see.
A very good move was to incorporate all of the current music videos up to date...it really helps wrap up this DVD into a nice little menagerie of Evanescence's work. And since the only way most people could view these up til now was little , poorly-encoded WMV files on websites...now we get to see them in their full quality! W00t!
The audio CD version was a nice addition, taking away my need to rip the AC3 tracks right from the DVD, which can otherwise be a real pain... now I can jam in the car, rip to mp3, and load to my iPod. Although, it's not quite the same as watching the video feed.
All in all, a wonderful DVD, tastefully produced and executed, showing off the gem that Evanescence is and will be for years to come; escpecially as we await new surprises and directions of Evanescence with the loss of Ben Moody, the gain of independence (most noteably for Amy in the writing process), and the desire to rock even better than before on their upcoming album!
Rock on Evanescence!! We love you!
Free Music Review: A live CD with a bonus DVD, and all for one great price!
Hit: 5 Stars
It's without question. This is something all Evanescence fans need in their collection! I notice this to be something a lot of artists are doing these days, and it probably is just a ploy to cash in, but I personally enjoy live CDs, and especially DVDs, so you can relive the experience or merely feed your curiosity if you missed one of your favorite groups in concert. I haven't seen Evanescence in person yet but after watching the DVD portion of 'Anywhere But Home', which was taped at a sold-out venue in Paris, I definitely think it would be worth it to try sometime. Amy Lee looks innocent yet deadly, her haunting vocals are in healthy form and the band sounds better than ever whilst they perform their greatest hits...which is basically everything since their melodies are all so unforgettable....
Many people claim Amy doesn't sing as well in concert as she does on her studio recordings and though they may be right, take into consideration the fact that she obviously gets really into the songs and because she jumps around so much, which equals exhaustion and breathlessness, I felt she did a pretty damn good job at controlling the words and pacing. You'll notice during the songs she sings while sitting at the piano, like on the wonderful Korn cover of "Thoughtless", the stunningly emotional "Breathe No More", and of course the infamous "My Immortal" she sounds quite better. Also, during a live event if you mess up there's no turning back so be grateful she doesn't lip synch like countless other acts around. And I'm so sick of people dissing this group simply because they had a lucky break and hit it big thanks to the 'Daredevil' soundtrack. I'm not saying Evanescence is better than similar groups who get far less recognition (or at least in the states) like Lacuna Coil, 'cause they're not, but they've also been around a while now so their fame didn't exactly happen over night.
Bottom line is they've got undeniable talent and they are, in my opinion, a blessing to mainstream music which is mostly full of crap. But back to the CD/DVD combo...
Closing the set is the new, or rather recycled track "Missing" (originally found on their hard-to-find 'Origins' CD) and it's a beautiful orchestral ballad, however it's the DVD that's truly spectacular! Aside from the concert it also features a lot of bonus material, and it isn't just filler either. The behind the scenes is great because you get to see a little of how they are in real life and it's not at all boring. It also includes all their videos to date, which are some of the most inventive I've seen in a long time ("Everybody's Fool" is without a doubt my favorite). And for the most part the concepts actually relate to the lyrics.
I predict Evanescence will be around for many years to come and I can't wait to hear their new album set for release sometime next year.
Free Music Review: Unbeliveably numerous bad reviews
Hit: 5 Stars
okay, those who says Amy sounded so bad live and/or she can't sing has no energy driving behind her voice etc are all just SO. IGNORANT about singing. I was a chorus singer, and BELIEVE ME, you people who don't sing just have ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA just how exhasting and energy-draining singing is, especially opera-like songs by using chess-voice. I remember whenever I haven't had a good-enough meal and/or was hungery when I sang, lots of time I almost fainted after my session(I was a Soprano so it's especially energy-draining). And my voice cracked if I sang for too long, and that's just singing while standing, I can't even imagine what it will be like while doing all that jumping and movement. Singing is VERY tiring, it takes alot of energy to sing the songs that are like Evanescence's (which all have that opera choir-like sounds/singing). Alot of singers, in order to survive live concerts, do LOTS exercise to build-up strength.
So basically, after I saw Evanescence live, I was just SO IMPRESSED with Amy who can actually hold her note, and make her voice not cracking 90% of time while doing SUCH intense movements(makes me love her more). Though I would've perferred her movement not as intense, if she just waves a little, walk around a little and taps her feet or something I would've liked it just fine.
And on a side-note, alot of other rock/metal bands use "screaming-singing" instead of "singing-singing" so not even to mention opera-singing, find me another rock-band that uses opera-singing, I can guarrantee you there are VERY few. Alot of bands, since they use "screaming", they won't tire out as quickly. This is percisley because screaming is not as energy-draining as singing.
As for the editing, I would like it better if it doesn't flash too much, but it's still not THAT bad. I totally enjoy it, and it's also short enough for me not to get tired of it.
Amy's voice is just absolutely stunning, the preclude of "Bring Me To Life" is enough for any fans to get this album. I was not disappointed. And plus, you get four new songs, though I didn't like Thoughtless as much, mainly because it's not their song and that it's weird to hear Amy cussing (which is one of the main problem I have with majority of other rock bands- they just CUSS WAAAAAAY too much), but of course I liked it much better than Korn's version, and it's still a pretty good song.