Evanescence through the years

For 18, nearly 19 years, Evanescence has been a staple in my life.

I was introduced to the band in the spring of 2003 and would later see the band perform live that fall; it would be 15 years before I would see them live again. Next week, I’ll head to Fort Worth for an Evanescence show where I will be a VIP, which I’ve long wanted to do.

Each of the band’s albums corresponds to a time in my life, which is why I’ve remained a fan all these years later. Here’s a look back at the albums and how they’ve corresponded to my life.

Fallen (2003-2004)

Ironically, I was annoyed when I first heard Evanescence. One night in the spring of 2003, I was trying to sleep. In the room next door, my Dad had Bring Me to Life playing on repeat. I was annoyed not by the content of the song, but from hearing it so many times when I was trying to drift off to sleep.

Sometime later, I asked Dad what the song was and he introduced it to me. As I listened to it while fully awake, I started to enjoy it more and more. I soon became hooked on the song and later convinced Dad to buy a copy of Fallen.

On September 6, that year, Dad and I headed up to Hutchinson to the Kansas State Fair, where we saw Evanescence perform. Being as young as I was (9-years-old), it was my first concert. I remember rocking out when Bring Me to Life and Going Under were performed (they were the band’s first two singles), while I politely listened to the rest of the set list, not yet a fan of all of the rest of the songs.

Evanescence frontwoman Amy Lee performs at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson, Kansas on Sept. 6, 2003 as part of the Nintendo Fusion Four.

Evanescence performs at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson, Kansas on Sept. 6, 2003 as part of the Nintendo Fusion Tour.

In 2003, I turned 9 and was just getting my start in life. Likewise, Evanescence was getting its start at the time and quickly rose in the rock world.

These were the tickets my Dad bought for us to see Evanescence live at the Kansas State Fair on Sept. 6, 2003. At the time, I had no idea that Evanescence co-founder Ben Moody would leave the band just about six weeks later.

The Open Door (2006-2007)

 Evanescence’s second album came out in the fall of my seventh grade year. I remember that time being a weird transition time. Everyone is starting to go through puberty during that age (12/13 years old) and it’s generally just an unpleasant time for everyone.

When The Open Door came out, I quickly lost myself in the music. The Open Door could easily be called the album where Evanescence took the most risks, doing things with music some would call unconventional. I was certainly unconventional when I was the angsty middle schooler when the album came out.

While others in my grade would start “dating” (if you can call in that in middle school) and trying to fit in with the popular crowd, my attitude was “Screw that!” and I was all about to sticking to who I was. I think I have Amy Lee to thank for having that kind of attitude as everyone around me was starting to conform to expectations.

Unfortunately I missed an opportunity to see Evanescence during this time. Evanescence performed in Wichita during a show when I was out of the city on a family trip. For many years after, I still had the newspaper clipping advertising the show. I so wish I could have seen them at the time.

Evanescence (2011-2012)

When I heard Evanescence was heading to the studio (this being the second time), I was pumped. It had been five years since The Open Door’s release, and I was starving for new music.

As soon as school was let out on the day the self-titled album came out, I raced across town to buy my copy of it. I listened to the album in full and straight away was hooked.

The self-titled album quickly became the album of my senior year of high school. I listened to the album at least once a day after it came out, and I loved every song on it (and the songs on the deluxe edition).

Once again, I was unable to see Evanescence live, though I know I absolutely would have loved to see them live, as the self-titled album was (and remains to this day) my favorite album of all time. This was the first Evanescence where there wasn’t a stop in my hometown. The closest tour stops would have been in either Kansas City or Oklahoma City and with how involved I was with school in those days, I couldn’t exactly afford to miss any of my activities.

Synthesis (2017-2018)

Synthesis released during a transition part of my life. I was in between jobs and had left my career of news and I had no clue what was next. It only seems right that an Evanescence album would come out during this time in my life.

I think of Synthesis as a transition album, on between the era of the self-titled album and The Bitter Truth. In my own life, this album came out during the transition from my last career into my current one.

Just a month after Synthesis came out, I would uplift my entire life and move to Texas to start at my current job. I never anticipated making such a drastic change in my life, but it was for the better.

Because I had this new life, it made perfect sense that I would get to see Evanescence perform live during the Synthesis era. I attended a show during the second leg of the Synthesis Tour, seeing the band perform with Lindsey Stirling. I traveled to Houston for the show and sang my heart out during the show, feeling hopeful that I would soon get to see Evanescence again.

Evanescence after the end of their set with orchestra at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands, Texas, August 25, 2018.

The Bitter Truth (2020-Present)

 The first songs on The Bitter Truth would, of course, release during one of the strangest moments in my life and indeed a strange moment for the world. Hearing new Evanescence music during the COVID lockdown of the spring of 2020 was much-needed therapy.

I was surprised and delighted to see Evanescence make a call to action with the release of Use my Voice. That song has become my personal anthem for voting; twice now when driving to my polling location, I’ve had that song play on repeat.

The Bitter Truth is all about accepting the bitter truths of life; it may not always be pretty but the truth is always better than a comfortable fiction. The album came out in a point in my life where a lot of change is happening (I’ve gotten more work responsibilities, I’m becoming an uncle in December, I bought a new car) and me remembering to embrace the bitter truth and let all the broken pieces shine.

I’m so excited to do the VIP thing at the Fort Worth show next week. It’s been a long time coming, and I know I’ll be singing my heart out during the show. It’s going to be one hell of a time