Review Summary: The odd one out, in a good way
Here's your second Christmas review: another alt/vaguely symphonic metal album from 2011! And just like "The Unforgiving", it's not their best but definitely a pretty fun one.
Evanescence's self-titled album is the odd one out in their discography. It's still the kind of dark and angsty alt metal you'd expect from Evanescence, but it has a fun, breezy vibe. From the upbeat drums and riffs of the opening track, and its "Do what you, what you want" hook, you know it's not the Evanescence of 2003. That's even more obvious on the last track, the trippy, synth-y ballad "Swimming Home". There's almost an 80s pop/rock influence, kind of like what Visions of Atlantis would do with "Ethera", but better. It's an album to rock out to, let out all your frustration and have fun with your new life to. Much more than "The Open Door", it's the album where they close the door on their painful past, and finally feel free to have fun.
Again, it's obviously not the kind of album anyone expects from Evanescence. It's very light, and therefore not very memorable. Tracks like "The Change" and "Made of Stone" are just generic rock songs. But they are pretty catchy, and "Change" has a catchy vocal hook while "Stone" has a simple but nice riff. They are still more entertaining that "My Heart is Broken", which is more typical of the Eva formula, and feels absolutely generic and repetitive, complete with clichés lyrics like "my heart is broken, sweet sleep my dark angel".
Instead, the more interesting tracks are the ones that try something different, though not completely. For example, "The Other Side" is a catchy, soaring song about the narrator wanting to die, or maybe just to travel across dimensions to join her lover. It's a common theme in Evanescence songs, but here, it's presented in such an upbeat and uplifting way. Similarly, "End of the Dream" seems to be about escaping a dangerous or complicated situation, but it also feels uplifting, almost empowering, with its soaring chorus.
Among these upbeat tracks, there is still a sense of darkness, but just enough not to feel overwhelming or overdramatic. "Erase This" is fairly catchy for a song about feeling ashamed of your mistakes, but the truly interesting songs are "Oceans", "Sick" and "Never Go Back". "Oceans" has a heavier, frantic feel, and the kind of mysterious lyrics I really like. They seem to be about the narrator being ashamed of her mistakes, but it's presented in a much darker and gripping way, with cryptic but slightly creepy lines like "In the end you can never wash the blood from your hands". "Sick" is a simple, direct and angry song about being "Sick of it all", as its catchy chorus says. I also like its short but interesting industrial intro. "Never Go Back" is one of their most symphonic metal song, with a heavy riff, fast-paced verses and a grand, epic feel.
Then, there are the bonus track, which are a mix of all types of songs in the album. For darker songs, there's the heavy and desperate "Disappear", with its crunchy guitars and powerful vocals. Or "A New Way to Bleed", with its darker sound, melancholic vocals and mix of anger and despair. "Say You Will" is a catchy, fun song like "What You Want", nice but not indispensable. Then the album closes with one of its best ballads, aside from the beautiful and sad "Lost in Paradise": "Secret Door", a sweet song entirely played on the harp by Amy Lee. Give it up for harp players. Amy's writing without Ben tends to be all over the place, sometimes it's bad and sometimes it's pretty good, or at least interesting because of its versatility.
I've had a lot of fun with this album, both listening to it and writing about it. Sure, it's not their greatest. A lot of you will be surprised by the very idea of Evanescence going 80s. Again, they set themselves up for comparison to similar acts and they can't hold a candle to them. But in terms of poppy albums by symphonic metal-adjacent bands of the early 2010s, I think this is one of the best. It's aged a lot better than I'd expect, and it's probably a lot better written than many others. I'd even say that while Within Temptation tends to make better music overall, this album is a lot more consistent in quality than "The Unforgiving". These two albums may not be considered their best, but I'll always enjoy "The Unforgiving" for its catchiness and ambitious storytelling, and "Evanescence" for its "releasing your frustration and finally having fun" vibe.
