"...I think in a lot of ways, being a female, I’ve used it to work to my advantage..."
Recently nominated for an MTV EMA in the ‘Best World Stage’ category, Grammy award winning band Evanescence have sold over 23 million records worldwide, and with their last single clocking up more than 8.5 million views on YouTube, it’s clear to see that this kick-ass quintet who epitomise rock success despite being a band with blurred lines around their genre, are still very much speaking to their millions of fans worldwide. Having spent the summer playing European shows to sold out crowds, Evanescence are also set to play a UK Arena tour, which will mark their first visit since the success of their self titled Billboard number one album Evanescence back in November 2011. Renowned for their pure and orchestral rock arrangements, as well as the hauntingly beautiful vocal component from their lead singer, they truly are deserving of their cult following and lasting respect from the industry as a whole. As designed by nature, AltSounds had the opportunity to speak with the perpetually beautiful and equally captivating lead singer, Amy Lee... AltSounds: Amongst others, you cite artists such as Björk, Tori Amos, plumb and Danny Elfman as your musical influences, but then also Mozart… Amy Lee: To me it’s just about getting a feeling across. I mean when I hear Björk's music its very symphonic and passionate as well, I hear a lot of similarities. You know, for me it’s not too much of a stretch to what our music is. AltSounds: You’re a classically trained pianist by design, when did you make the decision to convert and use your love of music in such an alternative and demonstrative way? Amy Lee: It wasn’t so much a decision. Ever since I can remember; I have been overflowing with love for music. I love music. I’m into all types of art, I love animation and film and paintings and music and food and all types of things, but it’s music for me more than anything, it’s just my passion. And I remember, when I was very young I saw the movie Amadeus and got so inspired. It was sort of a big moment from me where I felt I saw my life’s path. In some type of way, I knew I wanted to make music and as one of my first few inspirations – because it was so epic and full of passion and drama. I think that it makes a lot of sense in many ways that this was the direction we went in. we went to a very passionate, epic, almost symphonic place because of that original Mozart inspiration. Later on, you know my inspirations? It’s like I love classical and I took classical but just because I loved it and I wanted to get inside it. But then I fell in love with grunge.
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Want to know more about Evanescence's bass play Tim McCord? Tim sat down to answer some of your questions and tell you more about his music! Read on to see what he has to say then check out the tour dates HERE to see when you can see him rocking in a town near you. Also, make sure to follow Tim on Twitter HERE. 1. What's your favorite song to play on stage? 'The Change.' It has my favorite groove out of the Evanescence records. It's always really fun for me. 2. When and how did you get your first bass? I was 14, so that was around 1993. I had saved up a few hundred dollars to buy a bass and my dad matched me dollar for dollar since he was also a musician and encouraged my creativity. With his help, I was able to get a 1973 Sunburst Fender Precision Bass. It was the bass I wanted because it's the same model and color that Sting plays, who at the time was my favorite bass player (and is still near the top of the list). 3. What other instruments do you play? I also play guitar, some keyboards, and in most bands I've been in I sang backup vocals. 4. What are your favorite places to travel and anywhere you haven't been that you want to visit? Wow, we've been to so many amazing places it's hard to choose favorites. I'll have to say Japan, Australia, South America. Brazil especially, the Netherlands, Prague, Athens, the UK. I've still never been to Thailand or India and would very much love to see those places. 5. Who first inspired you to be a musician? I grew up in a household where my dad was a guitarist/bassist and my brother was a drummer. Some of my earliest memories are of them having family jam sessions in our garage on weekends. I suppose it's years and years of this that got me interested in playing. READ MORE on Evanescence.com Thanks to AmyLeeBrasil
Want to know more about Evanescence's guitarist Terry Balsamo? Terry has been in Evanescence since 2003, going all the way back to the 'Fallen' tour. Now he has sat down to answer some of your questions and give you the scoop from the road with Evanescence! Read on to see what he has to say then check out the tour dates HERE to see when you can see him in a town near you. 1. What's your favorite song to play on stage? 'The Other Side,' but 'Disappear' has been really fun lately. 2. What one song do you wish you had written? 'Breathe/On The Run' by Pink Floyd because it's so dark and beautiful together and it's a timeless song, and lately the song 'Survival' by Muse is one that i envy just as much. That song is out of this world. There are also several by the Deftones of course, but this could change on any day, lol. 3. Are there any pre-show rituals you do before every show? Any kind of music that inspires me has always been my thing to get me pumped along with plenty of cigarettes. 4. Is there any amount of money you would shave your head for? LOL, Hmm, I'd probably start taking bids at a half million. 5. Who first inspired you to be a guitarist? Ace Frehley, then Angus Young. READ MORE on Evanescence.com Want to know more about Evanescence's guitarist Troy McLawhorn? Troy sat down to answer some of your questions and give you the scoop! Read on to see what he has to say then check out the tour dates HERE to see when you can see him rocking in a town near you. 1. What's your favorite song to play on stage? Right now it would be "The Change" or "Disappear". I have always liked "The Change" because it's a very dynamic song live and you can see the fans getting off on it when it kicks in and then feeling the groove when it breaks back down. "Disappear" is a new one in the set and we put a little work into it so its different live from the way it is arranged on the record. We have a lot of fun with it live and it is energetic. 2. When and how did you get your first guitar? The first guitar that I started to learn to play on was my Moms classical nylon stringed acoustic guitar. My Dad bought it for her but she never really played it, so I confiscated it for myself. It was pretty hard to play rock songs on because the necks on those guitars are really wide so I found a guitar at the local music store that I started bugging my parents to buy for me. It was a "Lotus" and it had the explorer body shape but it was huge. I still have it but I had to scavenge parts off of it years ago so it hasn't been playable for years. 3. If you hadn't joined a band, what do you think you would be doing now? Well, that is a hard question. I have always been the most comfortable and happy at the beach or around the water. If I hadn't committed to being a musician I would probably be making surf boards in a surf shop or something. Or renting jet ski's somewhere. 4. Who first inspired you to be a musician? I think it was my family. My Mom was a music fan and she educated me on good music as far back as I can remember. She was a rocker and her favorite band was The Beatles. My Dad was a rocker early on. They said I used to love to listen to "Iron Man" by Black Sabbath when my Dad would play it in the car on his 8 track. I was very young which is funny because my son loved that song when he was around 4 and he still loves it. I remember my Dad loving country music, though. Stuff like Willy Nelson, The Oak Ridge Boys, Johnny Cash and so on. His Dad was a guitar player. I remember him playing guitar when I was very young. My other grandfather was in a gospel group with his family and they recorded an album and I thought that was amazing! I couldn't figure out how they got their voices onto that plastic disk or how the radio in the car worked. I thought there were little people in the dash playing the music when I was young, haha. I was always interested in music for some reason. Kiss was a big influence when I was young and I thought I wanted to play drums like Peter Criss but drums are big and expensive and I wasn't getting a drum kit from Mom and Dad, and my best friend had been playing drums since he was 4 or 5. But the first time I heard Van Halen I knew that I wanted to be a guitar player. Eddie Van Halen is the guy that really flipped the switch for me. 5. Are there any places you haven't traveled to yet that you want to visit, whether on tour or vacation? FIJI!!!!!!!!!! I want to go there so bad and stay in one of those little huts out on the water. Just wake up in the morning and fall out of bed into the ocean. Go scuba diving and snorkeling and eat seafood. Like I said, I am a water person. Maybe I could be a swim instructor in Fiji! READ MORE on Evanescence.com Ever wondered what the story behind the man on the drums is? Get to know Will Hunt, your favorite drummer! Will sat down to answer some of your questions. Read on to see what he has to say then check out the tour dates HERE to see when you can see him on the kit in a town near you.
Q. What's your favorite song to play on stage? A. Currently, "The Other Side" is my fave, although we just put "Disappear" in the show and that's a lot of fun. I like playing anything that's got a heavy groove and that I can see the crowd getting off on. Q. What was your first kit and how did you get it? A. My first kit was something my Dad got me that didn't even have a name and was probably comprised of several different brands. It was literally held together by shoe string and duct tape- I'm not even exaggerating! But! It worked and made me love playing. The 1st real kit I got was a CB700 kit (an offshoot entry level brand of Pearl that I don't think is around any more) that I mowed lawns in the scorching Florida summer for. I earned that damn thing!! It was awesome- red wine finish, four toms, one floor tom, kick drum, snare........it was like a mini Peter Criss drumkit and I felt on top of the world. Let's just say it continued to feed the sickness!!Lol! Q. What's your must have food on the road? A. Catering, because it's free!! Sometimes it's low level public school lunchroom food, bet hey, that's part of the adventure isn't it??! Q. Have you passed on your rock music love to your daughter or what does she like to listen to? A. Laila loves music in general. She's into everything from Skrillex, to One Direction, to of course Justin Bieber. Yes, that's right, Justin Bieber........as are most 11 year old girls!lol! I personally don't care what she jams to as long as she's jammin'! One of her faves that we both really enjoy and love watching and listening to is Michael Jackson. She's been a fan ever since I showed her the Thriller video around Halloween 5 or 6 years ago. I love turning her onto stuff like that and watching her smile......coolest ever!! Q. Who first inspired you to be a drummer? A. My dad, he's a great guitar player and encouraged me to play something. There was always music playing in my house, all kinds. As far as drummers, Peter Criss of Kiss, Ringo Starr of the Beatles, and John Bonham. Then I got into My hero Tommy Lee.......still to me the greatest rock drummer on the planet. Sure, there's guys that are more technically adept, or faster, or whatever, but that's not what I love listening to. READ MORE on Evanescence.com [EN] Evanescence's Amy Lee: 'I'd like to do something not driven by loud guitars' (NME.com)20/9/2012 The singer speaks about her hopes for making music outside of Evanescence
Evanescence singer Amy Lee has spoken about her ambition to make music outside of the band, revealing that she'd like to do something "not driven by loud guitars" and that she is actively writing folk songs. The Arkansas rockers released their self-titled third studio album in October last year and Lee told NME yesterday that they will be taking a lengthy break after their UK arena tour in November. Then asked if she had any musical ambitions outside of the band, Lee confirmed that she did and also revealed that she went through a phase of wanting to make dance music in the vein of Portishead and Massive Attack. She said of this: "I like all types of music. I feel like Evanescence is a great outlet for what I love, I've never felt like I had to hold myself back. I have written with other people before and come up with ideas that don't work for Evanescence, I realize that now. There's more to me than what's in Evanescence." Singer tells NME that the Arkansas rockers are planning another long break after their UK tour
Evanescence singer Amy Lee has said that the band are planning to take an extended break after they complete their UK arena tour in November. The Arkansas rockers released their self-titled third studio album in October last year, a full five years after their second album 'The Open Door' and Lee has told NME that she hasn't ruled out being away for that long again. Asked if the band were thinking about writing a fourth album, Lee said: "I'm always playing the piano and harp because I like to, but I haven't been purposeful in my playing. I haven't been sitting down to write." She continued: "I'm thinking we'll take a break first. I'm really not sure what I'll do next. At the end of any really long tour you need to get your head in order. I think at the end of the run we'll go on a break for a while and figure things out." It’s been a rough and rewarding road for singer-pianist Amy Lee. As co-founder and frontwoman of Evanescence, a pop band that’s as comfortable with hard rock as with ballads, she’s seen a balance of ups and downs. The band made a huge first album, “Fallen”; won a couple of Grammys; and developed a large and loyal fan base. But Lee’s cofounder, Ben Moody, walked out on the band almost a decade ago, and the remaining original members eventually quit or were fired.
Yet Lee rocks on. She leads the current version of Evanescence. Calling from a tour stop in Atlanta, Lee spoke of life on the road, her early thoughts of a career in music, the responsibilities of heading up a band, and the origin of her name. “Pure Prairie League, ‘Amie,’ that’s my song,” she said, meaning that’s the song she’s named after. Lee comes from a musical family. She casually mentioned that her dad, John Lee, won “The Gong Show” in 1979 by singing “Desperado.” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGzyXdqi8Tc) And that she’s loved music for as long as she can remember. |
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