From the moment Amy Lee hits the stage for Evanescence’s performance with an orchestra, the audience is taken to a different realm.
I had the pleasure of seeing Evanescence live for the first time in nearly 15 years on Saturday at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands. Evanescence was accompanied by an orchestra and the great Lindsey Stirling co-headlined the show.
The show opened with a performance by Cellogram, an independent project of Dave Eggar and Chuck Palmer. The duo played a handful of songs from “around the world,” with Dave rocking out on his cello while Chuck beat away on the drums. As a nice surprise, Evanescence guitarist Jen Majura joined the duo on stage for a few songs before their set ended.
Following a brief transition, the orchestra took its seats on the stage before Jen, Troy McLawhorn, Tim McCord and Will Hunt took their spots. Moments later, the queen herself, Amy Lee, appeared on staged dressed in a beautiful black gown that not only preserved the band’s usual image, but looked like an elegant dress a queen or princess would wear.
As the audience (especially myself) started cheering when Amy approached the piano, the excitement started to build. Soon, Amy, the band and the orchestra took us on a magical journey into the music.
Amy’s vocals are on another level. It’s one thing to hear them in videos on YouTube, but it’s quite something else to hear them live. Her vocals are powerful and they fill the room with their beauty and passion.
The defining moment during the show came when Bring Me to Life was performed. It was so moving to hear the band’s first single and most well-known song performed live in a new way and to hear the audience singing just as passionately as they would at a rock concert was special.
Another memorable moment was when Lindsey joined Evanescence on stage for her solo on the band’s song Hi-Lo. She showed off some of her incredible moves that served as a tease for her later performance, which left the audience hungry for more.
Evanescence closed its set with the Synthesis single Imperfection that served as a powerful finale of a show that seemed to go by all too quick.
Another short break later and the orchestra returned to the stage, this time with Lindsey as the main act, along with her team of dancers. Having never seen Lindsey before, I had no idea what to expect and boy was I blown away.
Lindsey is electrifying on stage. Her constant movements, timed perfectly to the music, appear seamless and it’s more incredible when you remember she’s playing the violin while doing all of those moves, which include some kicks and jumps.
The most magical moment of Lindsey’s set came when Amy joined Lindsey on stage for the performance of Lindsey’s hit Shatter Me. Amy, I later learned, wore a dress inspired by Evanescence’s live album Anywhere But Home, and a fan gave her the dress before the show.
Amy Lee on stage for Shatter Me. The dress she wore was made by a fan.
Amy and Lindsey together on stage were simply unforgettable. These two music powerhouses rocked out on stage during that song, and they made one incredible duo. What’s so special is that Lindsey has looked up to Amy ever since Evanescence’s beginnings and now she gets to perform with them on this tour.
The love for one another is mutual, as the two ladies gave each other a huge hug after the performance and Lindsey declared, “I adore this woman!” to the cheers of the crowd as Amy dashed behind her, giving her a pat on the back before disappearing backstage again.
Amy Lee and Lindsey Stirling performing Lindsey’s song Shatter Me.
Fans who plan to see Evanescence and Lindsey Stirling in the last couple of shows in their co-headlined tour are in for a real treat.
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