Latest Evanescence Biography:

The massive success that Evanescence has enjoyed so far is, in the words of co-founder and lead singer Amy Lee, "really bizarre when you think about it. Obiviously I always thought we were good enough - I love our music and I love our band - but I never thought it would happen on this scale. I look at my face on the album cover sometimes and wonder if it's really me."

Indeed it is. Lee's passionate vocals, combined with the band's aggressive muscularity, have helped debut album 'Fallen' sell over 12 million copies worldwide, spawning the hits 'Bring Me To Life' (Number 1 in several countries), 'Going Under', 'My Immortal' and most recently 'Everybody's Fool'. A slew of awards have followed, including two Grammys in 2003: Best New Artist and, for 'Bring Me To Life', Best Hard Rock Performance.

The inherent drama in Evanescence's musical approach - a kind of widescreen goth that can turn on a dime from piano-led introspection to hammering guitar riff-a-rama - obviously hit hard with audiences worldwide.

"We love what we do, and I think that comes through; we definately try to put that into our music," Lee explains. "It's real, honest and genuine. We're not just trying to sell records, it comes from the heart. Of all of us."

The story becomes even more amazing whn one considers the group's humble beginnings: Lee and co-founder Ben Moody started writing and recording together at each other's parents' houses, and only hired musicians to perform live a couple of times a year.

"It was weird going out on our first tour," she recals. "No one had any expectations, and we were doing a couple of shows in skating rinks for, like, 10 people - it was pretty hilarious. But by the end of the week there would be a huge difference every time, and by the end of the month we were playing to hundreds of people - and by last summer we were playing in foront of 50,000 people in Germany."

The inclusion of 'Bring Me To Life' on the Daredevil soundtrack (along with 'My Immortal') helped get the ball rolling. As the airplay grew, the request lines started lighting up. "That's how it spread around the country, and around the world," Lee enthuses. "That's my favourite part of the story - it happened not because we were being shoved down people's throats, but people were finding the band pretty much on their own. Who would we be without the fans? Nobody."

Evanescence has repaid that debt with an unrelenting touring schedule. "To see some of the stuff we've had the opportunity to see has been amazing... Though sometimes you feel that 'so close and yet so far' thing," Lee laughs. "We were in New Zealand and thought we'd get to see the rainforest, but we had the show to do. Sometimes we've just seen a lot of really beautiful hotel rooms."

Now Lee and her bandmates are turning their attention to writing for Fallen's follow-up.

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Older Bio:

Although the band's name may suggest a sudden vanishing, the music of Evanescence is poised for longevity. Fallen, the Wind-up Records debut of this talented quartet from Little Rock, Arkansas, is an emotional, ethereal work of undeniable potency guided by the heavenly vocals of Amy Lee. "We're definitely a rock band," says Lee. "But the twist is that the band's music is epic, dramatic, dark rock."

Co-founders Lee and guitarist/songwriter Ben Moody (who has now since left the band) met while in their early teens. "We were at a youth camp," Moody recalls. "During some sort of recreational period held in a gymnasium, I heard Amy playing Meat Loaf's 'I'd Do Anything for Love' at the piano. So I went over to meet her, and she started singing for me. I was pretty much blown away, so I suckered her into joining a band with me." Since that day, the musical relationship has remained dependably loyal. "We have the same exact vision regarding what we love about music," Moody says. "When it comes to songwriting, we finish each other's thoughts."

Evanescence first took shape in Little Rock at the end of the '90s. Predictably, the band didn't quite fit the mold of most others lingering around the Midwestern state. "It's typically death metal or really soft, older-people music there," says Lee. "I don't even know of any local bands that have female singers."

Influenced by a wide-ranging collection of artists such as Björk, Danny Elfman and Tori Amos, the band started releasing EPs of its material. Even without the benefit of live performances, Evanescence began to establish a reputation.

"A lot of it developed by being elusive," Moody remembers. "The second song we ever wrote was this seven-minute, ridiculous Goth anthem called 'Understanding.' And for some reason, the local rock station decided to play it a lot. We gained this popularity around town, even though no one knew who we were or where to find us. It was because we could never afford to play a show -- it was just Amy and I -- and we couldn't pay any musicians."

Fallen was tracked in Los Angeles with producer Dave Fortman (BOYSETSFIRE, Superjoint Ritual). The album successfully finds that intangible balance between lush beauty and primal heaviness. Typical of the record is the first single, "Bring Me To Life," a piano ballad-turned-riff-driven barnburner. Highlighted by a guest vocal from Paul McCoy of 12 Stones, the song is featured prominently in the Daredevil film and soundtrack.

Live, Evanescence functions as a quartet with John LeCompt (guitar) and Rocky Gray (drums) rounding out the line-up. "As a four-piece, we are able to carry out the intricate harmonies and orchestrations of the memorable material on Fallen," Moody emphasizes. "We're very sincere about what we do. There's so much pre-packaged teen angst these days in music. That's not us. We're not trying to sell an angle, we're just here writing from our heart."

Lyrically, Evanescence explores dark, introspective themes of love, desperation, and despair. But the group insists its fundamental message is a positive one. "The point of this whole record and band is to let people know that they're not alone in dealing with bad feelings or pain or anything that they go through," says Lee, who pens most of the words. "That's life and that's human. They're not alone, and we're going through it, too."

"'Bring Me To Life' is about discovering something or someone that awakens a feeling inside them that they've never had before," says Moody. He continued, "You discover there is a world that is bigger than just your safe bubble." Also significant is the vibrant anthem "Tourniquet" and the eerie "Haunted," with its pummeling beats and jarring melodies (augmented by chamber choir arrangements courtesy of Lee). Of the latter, Moody asserts, "It's the song that is the most 'us'. That best sums up what we strive to sound like."

"We're taking it very slowly," she says. "Fallen was a good piece of art but we don't want to make the same record again - what's the point? We want it to be inventive and original, like the first one was. We write seperately, and will come together soon and start to work together."

Joining Lee, bassist William Boyd, drummer Rocky Gray, and guitarist John LeCompt is new guitarist Terry Balsamo, formerly of alternative metal band Cold, who replaced co-founder Ben Moody after the his exit in October 2003.