Evanescence’s self-titled album disappoints

On Oct. 11, five years after the widely successful The Open Door, Evanescence released its highly anticipated, self-titled third album.

“With all the growth and experimentation, we didn’t betray what the fans want,” singer Amy Lee said in an interview with Reuters. “It’s still an Evanescence record.” 

Though that might be true — fans will recognize stylistically similar songs and Lee’s still-stunningly bright vocals placed over dark guitar riffs — Evanescence just isn’t quite up to par with Fallen or The Open Door.

The new 16-track record opens with the band’s recent single “What You Want,” which landed on the Billboard Hot 100 chart upon release. Though it got fans excited about the upcoming album, “What You Want” has not been the same sort of hit as “Bring Me to Life” or “Call Me When You’re Sober.” It’s unfortunate, then, that this fist-pumping, you-can’t-control-me single is one of the highest points of the album.

Die-hard Evanescence fans will notice that unlike the band’s former albums, which feature everything from hard-hitting tracks with heavy lyrics to gentle instrumentals, Evanescence’s tracks tend to sound the same. Many of the songs on the album seem to follow a specific formula: a drum-and-guitar intro for four to eight measures, followed by Lee singing verses composed of lower notes and moving into a higher register for the chorus. This repetitive pattern will likely leave listeners wondering, “Didn’t I hear this one already?”

There are exceptions to this pattern. “Lost in Paradise” is one of the few tracks that breaks the mold, highlighting a lilting piano introduction and sweet vocals from Lee. “Sick,” similar in attitude to the “What You Want” anthem, is redeemed by a previously-unheard chorus melody despite suffering from the predictability of several other songs on the album.

And though it’s not great melodically, “End of the Dream” marks a return to the brooding lyrics of classic Evanescence, with Lee singing I found a bird closing her eyes one last time / and I wonder if she dreamed like me.

Among the selection of unmemorable up-tempo tracks, fans will find songs that mimic former hits. “Oceans,” the 10th track on the album, opens with a vocal line similar to that of “Call Me When You’re Sober.” The note sequence and rhythm of the two opening lines are nearly identical, as though Evanescence were regurgitating melodies from previous songs.

On the other hand, “Swimming Home,” the softest track on the album, is reminiscent of “Good Enough” and “My Immortal” with gentle pianos and harps, yet it has its own distinctive flavor with a tender percussion track. The song is not merely a copy of an early, successful Evanescence song like other tracks on the album are.

The only problem with the throwback tracks is they don’t bring anything new to the table. They don’t innovate or build upon past accomplishments and instead end up sounding like imitations. It simply doesn’t seem to do anything new.

There is, however, one redeeming quality about these songs: Lee seems to have grown up a little and mixed in some self-confidence with her self-loathing lyricism.

In “Made of Stone,” Lee sings Speak your mind / like I care, self-assuredly laughing at a lover for whom she has no respect. This and songs such as “Sick” and “What You Want” have a new swagger to them. It shows that as a lyricist, Lee no longer simply plays the victim.

That being said, Lee’s bolder persona has led her to lose some subtlety in her lyrics. In one of the more musically memorable tracks, “My Heart is Broken,” Lee simply wails “My heart is broken” — her voice is pretty, but a bit dull. What happened to the more complex lyrics that implied broken-heartedness such as I’ve held your hand through all of these years / But you still have all of me, from 2003’s “My Immortal”?

Though every inch of Lee’s lyrics don’t exhibit this trend, the in-your-face lyrics are still, for better or worse, heavily embedded in the new album’s sound.

Evanescence is not awful, but it’s not excellent, either — and it’s certainly not the “new-and-improved” sound fans were expecting. It seems that Lee, insecure about the band’s new lineup, decided to spend 16 tracks trying to convince us Evanescence was still the band fans had fallen in love with years ago.

The ironic thing is, no one would have questioned her if her new songs had demonstrated some of the risk and innovation of her former hits.