The Open Door Reviews

• Evanescence: The Open Door. A Very Strong Return

  
  By A2UTLJJWNBL4YS on 2006-10-03
  Major success is a tough act to follow. Selling 6 million copies of its first major label studio album, Fallen, and delivering the mega hits "Bring Me to Life" and "My Immortal", Evanescence and front-woman Amy Lee return with the hard charging new album, The Open Door. Despite Ben Moody's acrimonious departure, Terry Balsamo has made a great songwriting pair with Lee. Drawing its strength from hard guitar riffs and Lee's soaring voice, the record offers quite a few nuggets of pure rock bliss, enough to get your head banging and your stereo blasting.
  
  Opening track "Sweet Sacrifice" flat out rocks, its thundering guitars matching perfectly with Amy Lee's towering voice. "Call Me When You're Sober" is an wonderfully angry song with dual guitars trading rhythm and melody lines. "Weight of the World" is a fast paced rocker that isn't too distinctive. "Lithium" is a nice piano ballad with strings showcasing Amy Lee's vocal and lyrical range. "Snow White Queen" is chaotic and disorganized, but the classically influenced "Lachrymosa" is fantastic, a bizarrly fascinating mix of strings, guitar, piano, and choir that just flat out soars. This song would be a perfect addition to any soundtrack.
  
  "Like You", a mid-tempo piano-based track, smartly keeps the guitars in the back of the mix until the crescendo. "Weight of the World" and "Cloud Nine" are solid up-tempo rockers laced with grinding guitar work while "All That I'm Living For" and "Good Enough" are more piano-based emotional tracks. "Lose Control" has a dark piano melody that bursts into crunching guitar on the chorus. "The Only One" is a dark ode that is one of the strongest songs on the album emotionally.
  
  Strongly produced to take full advantage of Lee's towering voice, The Open Door is full of growling guitar riffs and emotive piano melodies. The songwriting is solid, and in some cases, exceptional. The loss of Ben Moody is more than made up by the songwriting team of Lee and Balsaro, and this album is one sure to please Evanescence fans and make some converts with some of the singles. Recommended.
  
  A.G. Corwin
  St.Louis, MO
  
  
  

• Even better than 'Fallen'. 'The Open Door' grabs a spot among the best albums of 2006

  
  By A3I8VWXAU8FWI3 on 2006-10-04
  When Ben Moody went his own way after the release of 'Fallen', there was a lot of skepticism about whether Amy Lee would be able to match on her own the songwriting quality of 'Fallen'. Not only did Evanescence managed to match 'Fallen', but they were also able to exceed it.
  
  Amy Lee's vocals a amazingly good, and the songs are less suicidal but still quite dark. Unlike their previous work 'Fallen', this album sounds less like Linkin Park, and more like a heavier and more haunting version of Meat Loaf.
  
  Along with Muse's 'Blackholes & Revelations' and Stadium Arcadium' from The Red Hot Chili Peppers, 'The Open Door' grabs a spot among the best albums of 2006.
  
  

• Lee Keeps Evanescence Tight as a Drum

  
  By A3O8YT41TDXL0B on 2006-12-04
  Evanescence has been through a lot since its major label debut "Fallen" rocked the charts in 2003. Songwriter/guitarist Ben Moody departed from the band on account of personal and creative differences with lead singer Amy Lee and has since moved on to work with other artists (Avril Lavigne, Kelly Clarkson), and Lee herself has been at the heart of a well-publicized sexual harassment lawsuit. At long last, however, the band's long-anticipated "The Open Door" has arrived, having debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts.
  
  While Lee is flanked by talented musicians, she is now the indisputable centerpiece of the band, which was inevitable from the beginning. She wrote all the tracks either solo or in tandem with the band's new guitarist, Terry Balsamo, and staking a clear assertion of independence. From her impassioned vocals to her forthright lyrics, it is clear to see she has a lot to get off her chest.
  
  Lead single "Call Me When You're Sober" seems at once like yet another Kelly Clarkson radio hit, but this actually works well, striding the line between catchy pop and mainstream rock. Constant airplay has not diluted the song's appeal as it continues to air out Lee's frustrations with Shaun Morgan, her ex-boyfriend and lead singer of rock band Seether. "Lithium," the second single, channels Sarah McLachlan with piano/vocal simplicity before the guitar riffs surge, beckoning the psychiatrist's couch with its deep, dark gloom.
  
  The album's opening track, "Sweet Sacrifice," however, is extremely radio friendly, with a downright awesome hook and sharp lyrics to boot. Meanwhile, the lower-key duo of "Your Star" and "Like You" ruminates with such cryptic observations ("I'd like to be like you/Lie cold in the ground like you") that comparisons to the psyche of Emily Dickinson would be justified.
  
  Elsewhere, "Weight of the World" paves the path for a new future, finding Lee declaring "I won't be held down by who I used to be," while "Snow White Queen" recounts sexual abuse.
  
  "You belong to me/My snow white queen/There's nowhere to run, so lets just get it over/Soon I know you'll see/You're just like me/Don't scream anymore my love, `cause all I want is you."
  
  The album concludes starkly with "Good Enough," finding Lee at her most vulnerable as she puts her guard down, declaring "I've completely lost myself and I don't mind/I can't say no to you."
  
  Listeners who enjoyed "Fallen" will by more than pleased with "The Open Door." The songwriting might not be as refined with Lee steering the ship almost entirely on her own, but she more than compensates for it with ardor and artistic devotion.
  
  

• Read This before You Buy

  
  By A3N5F81JNMRJKL on 2006-10-31
  I've purchased hundreds of CDs from Amazon, and read probably thousands of reviews. I've never written my own. That being said, this album definitely deserves it.
  
  There are times in a band's life where the band must grow - musically, emotionally, politically... it all really depends on the band. Most bands suffer from a poor sophomore release because they've spent their lives working on that first CD, and then get only a year or two to work on the next. Many bands that hit this sophomore wall are great bands that eventually fail, because they can't live up to the success of their first album. Those that survive typically have to grow a little.
  
  With Evanescence, they lost two influential band members. Significantly, their music writer. Ben Moody used to write the music, and then he'd come to Amy Lee, who would then write the vocals. Their inspiration was gothic piano music, which they would then throw heavy drums and guitars all over to create and ethereal, dark, heavy sound. It was amazing.
  
  Ben didn't write the music for this CD. That much is painfully evident. Perhaps their new guitarist from Cold wrote some of it. Other reviews here might lead you to that.
  
  But the simple truth is that this band did not grow - they changed through the acquisition of new band members and the losses of others. This is not the same band that it once was.
  
  You won't see many radio singles from this CD. Because there aren't really any. The list of good tracks on this CD is limited to three or perhaps four, whereas almost every song on Fallen was great. I'll give you my opinion, but please form your own. The good tracks are: Call me When You're Sober (of course), Snow White Queen, and All That I'm Living For.
  
  Remember - fallen was hard rock, or goth rock, or heavy metal or whatever label you'd like to place on it. You've heard it before. The Open Door does not feature the same style of music - at all. Most songs are soft, slow songs, where Any Lee wails loudly or moans over the subdued music.
  
  Those in the gothic world would most compare this to some of the European bands, perhaps Elis or Leaves' Eyes... although Amy has no experience with Ethereal Gothic Rock, and thus can't do those bands justice.
  
  So, if you're going to buy the CD - great. But don't expect it to be Fallen, or even the same Evanescence. It's a completely different band with a completely different sound. I, for one, was greatly disappointed. The album is mediocre at best. It's certainly not a great CD. My music collection is built around metal, goth, rock, and what have you, so I've got a fair bit of experience in the matter.
  
  If you're really and American Evanescence fan looking for some great goth rock or goth metal bands that you haven't heard yet, try Lacuna Coil, Nightwish, or Within Temptation. Those might lead you in the direction you're looking for.
  
  I really hope that Evanescence can return to their roots for their third album. This isn't a horrible CD, as I said - it does have at least three good songs, but it certainly isn't Fallen caliber, and I'd really like to have some new material in that style.
  
  Thanks for listening. I hope you find my review helpful.
  
  

• I'm feeling something: this album pains me

  
  By AZIVZABTAY5TG on 2006-10-11
  1. Sweet sacrifice-4/10 stars
  When you don't real free writing
  Just repeat the same old thing
  When you don't feel like writing
  Just repeat the same old thing
  
  Seriously, choruses are going to be repeated over an over, why not at least give us four different lines of lyric and music? I just get tired of hearing that same line over and over. It's definitely the worst thing about the song. Other than the irritating chorus the song isn't so bad.
  
  2. Call Me When You're Sober-9/10 stars
  I honestly enjoyed this song, despite hearing "you want me come ... find me" in a previous Evanescence song (Anything For You). It rocks hard and is my favorite one on the disc. The song is layered - that is more than just Amy and a piano -- and isn't redundant lyrically, unlike Sweet Sacrifice and Lithium. The giggle at the end seems slightly out of place, and radio stations thankfully cut it.
  
  3. Weight of the World-4/10
  Despite being a little tinker-toy in the background during the verses and having precious few lyrics (11 different lines) it's an ok song. However, it grows old really fast.
  
  4. Lithium-stars chose to go supernova rather than risk being associated with this
  Musically it is boring, lyrically it is repetitive, and some cries of LIIIIIITHIIIIIUM are simply painful. I actually find this song offensive for several reasons.
  A. it perpetrates the ill-conceived notion that mood-stabilizing drugs make it so the person can't feel anything. Anyone on said drug should have the common sense to talk to their doctor about adjusting dosage if they feel it is inhibiting all emotions.
  B. it seems to encourage manic-depressive people to stop taking their stabilizers lest they be "cold" or "locked up inside." Why not just tell cancer patients to stop chemo? I thought I was reading too much into it. But hey, I could just be reading too much into things right? Surely she doesn't believe such things are wrong, right? (Tom Cruise, anyone?)
  C. Then I found the October 2006 Spin Magazine interview. Apparently I translated correctly.
  "I thought about taking antidepressants, but I think that takes your soul away. I remember thinking that if I made that choice, then I wouldn't be an artist anymore, because I wouldn't be able to feel anything."--Amy Lee. "Oh my God. I can't be an artist, I feel nothing, and I have no soul. Pardon my mental condition, Amy." -- Me
  
  5. Cloud Nine-0/10 stars
  The weird ghosty noises definitely didn't work for me, and neither did the over exaggerated vibrato at the beginning of the first use of the prechourus. The vocalizing in the first verses and chorus embodied the worst characteristics of Christina Aguilera (overdramatic, attempting to show of vocal "ability" rather than singing), and the song doesn't seem cohesive. I have a hard time even getting through this one. Lay off the voice effects and sing like you used to, Amy, seriously. This is soulless and irritating.
  
  6. Snow White Queen-5/10
  Like some have already said, it's about Amy having been stalked, which is probably why she seems to put forth more effort on keeping the lyrics from repeating.
  Amy also takes the lower register, and those low notes sound horrid. Musically it is nothing special. Marvelously mediocre.
  
  7. Lacrymosa-7/10
  Simple but enjoyable. More of a chill song than a rock-out song, but hey, sometimes you need your mellow.
  
  8. Like You-0/10
  Simplistic; until the end where the guitars kick in a bit there's nothing much more than Amy singing, a piano, and a creepy effect in the background that sounds like a guitar chord echoing eternally on the same note, creating a repetitive tapping. A lot like Origin and pre-Origin songs such as October, Solitude and every other cookie-cutter slow song Evanescence has done. Why have they regressed?
  
  9. Lose Control-1/10
  Goes from same-as-above to an attempt at clinging to their gothic aspects, complete with whispering right next to the microphone. Yet another song with wavy vocalization in the background to create ambiance during the chorus.
  
  10. The Only One-1/10
  Wow. Another slow song with little but piano, bringing the guitars in at the chorus. I think I've heard this before. NEXT!
  
  11. Your Star-2/10
  Wow. Another slow song with little but piano, but HEY! This one brings guitars in at the second verse! The first three minutes is yet another throwback to most every other slow song they've done. You have to wait until the end for it to pick up, and by then you're asleep.
  
  12. All That I'm Living For-4/10
  Annoying chorus with little variance in notes from line to line. Take out the chorus and the song is half-decent.
  
  13. Good Enough-5/10
  Musically it is lovely. However, the introduction -- which was supposedly written in the hopes of being included in "The Chronicles of Narnia" - does not fit in with the song and is clearly tacked on. Lyrically it goes with previous themes of Anything for You, Anywhere, Bring Me to Life, My Immortal, etc. which glorify the idea of women giving themselves completely over to their partners. Some see it as romantic ... I note that some people take said self-loss so literally as to stay in abusive relationships. I would just like to hear more songs -- like "Call Me When You're Sober" -- that celebrate getting out of a bad relationship as opposed to doing anything for a partner, period.
  
  So I'm not a hater of the band
  Just a slightly bummed long-time fan
  Who more and more the songs appall
  Guess I'm feeling something after all.
  
  
• Honestly not what I was hoping for.
  By A19VMPJ2RKE2OH on 2006-10-18
  I realize that I will probably be shouted down for saying anything disparaging about this album, but I have to be honest. This album was a disappointment for me. Let's talk turkey here. I'll start with the good. Amy has a great voice and it can really get under your skin and stay with you. I loved her voice on Fallen, however here she has stretched herself to a new place and is doing things I think she simply wasn't ready for in the past. The songs are well written and most of them stick in your head and are worthy of repeat listening. If you are an Amy fan then I have no doubt you will not be disappointed.
  
  So, what's my problem with it? First off, what made Fallen so great was the rawness of it. It was unpolished and unapologetic about it. It made the album very in your face and deeply personal to the listener. The songs were held up by Amy's voice and some really cool guitar riffs. The lyrics were dark, haunting and deliciously beautiful. Everything the second album is not (for me). The new album is way too polished and way, way over produced (I have no doubt the record company had everything to do with that). In spite of her much better vocal work (technically) I found a lot of her new techniques kind of cliche and put a lot of distance between her and the listener; much less personal and much more mainstream. The guitar work is, well, kind of boring; not nearly as crunchy and erratic, once again too main-streamish. A powerful tool in music is the ability to use dissonance in your work. It can add a lot of impact to a piece. It is WAY overused here. Too much dissonance and then it becomes overpowering and takes away from the flow of your song. I was simply unhappy with a lot of the songs and the ones I do like just don't have the same "feel" as Fallen and I found my mind wandering when playing the album.
  
  Overall I am unhappy with the new album, especially considering how long I waited for it. It seemed like it took f-o-r-e-v-e-r to finally see the light of day. Now, that it's here I'm sad that the sound of Evanescence has changed so much. Amy kicks serious behind, but I think that 50% of the creative genius of the first album walked out the door. I'm still a fan and I'm not sad that I bought the album, but it will get very limited listening time after spinning it four or five times. Part of my problem is that in getting bored waiting for this album to hit the shelves I stumbled upon a huge untapped market of great metal/gothic/whatever type bands with powerful female vocalists. I got spoiled by some of the HUGE, HUGE talent out there; bands like Within Temptation, Stream of Passion, The Gathering, Beseech, Xandria, Mortal Love, Ambeon to name a few and even some more technical bands like Nightwish, Nemesea and whole slew of others. If you get bored and want some other bands in your repetoire, then I recommend checking some of them out.
  
  Most importantly though, I am in no way saying that The Open Door is a bad album. I am also in no way dissing Amy. I am simply sharing my limited viewpoint and nothing more. So, try to keep the flames down to a minimum. ;)
  
  
• Evanescence: The best grows better.
  By A1ZOY9CD2UGM36 on 2006-10-03
  1. SWEET SACRIFICE 4/5
  A very strong opening track to set off the whole album. Amy takes a deep breath at the begining of the song to somehow say 'here is my soul, my dark and tormented f**king soul.' I love how she toys with the higher notes of her range and the effects on the vocals only add to the severity of the message being conveyed. Not my number one, but as with all the tracks, it grows on me the more I listen to it.
  
  
  2. CALL ME WHEN YOU'RE SOBER 3.5/5
  This song sticks out on the abum as a whole. On it's own, it functions as a very strong and emotioal entity that spawned one of the coolest music videos to come from Evanescence. The styling of the song is totally different from anything else on the album, and I personally think that it puts forth a strange and inaccurate expectation for people about ToD.
  
  That aside, the music itself it quite wonderful. Amy's strong vocals are very well executed while the rock sound offsets an otherwise blusey arrangement. I found the acoustic version on the single better.
  
  
  3. WEIGHT OF THE WORLD 5/5
  This song totally works every major aspect of Evanescence's music that I have loved since 2003. it sarts with a stunning guitar intro that captivates the metal side of my persona and leads us into the creepy sound of the first line. Amy's octive split vocals offset by the metallic xylophne notes meld to make a very effective and VERY creepy sound. This song simply ROCKS. Deffinitely my 2nd favorite track on the album.
  
  
  4. LITHIUM 5/5
  This type of ballad is what I come to expect from Evanescence. The lyrics take on a mind of their own and completely separate themselves from the instrumental track, until BAM the guitar comes in with power never heard before from this troupe. It sets off an amazing series of events that truly makes for a catchy and hard hitting song. Amy's vocals begin to toy around with long and drawn out notes at the end of the 2nd verse that power through on to the next. A song that had to grow on me. At first, the repitition of the word 'Lithium' bothered me, but now I see it as an important part of the vocals that really hit the message deep within.
  
  
  5. CLOUD NINE 5/5
  The vocals at the beginning/end of this track did not appeal to me at first listen because they felt very cliché. I feel less like that now.
  
  This sounds like it would be a good single to me. It has enough pop in it to carry it through to the masses, and enough individuality to make it hard to become annoying.
  
  Amy sounds kinda Christina Agulera to me at the chorus, which is NOT a bad thing (I kinda like her style), and it's interesting to hear that style mixed with good music and hard hitting lyrics. It gives me the chills.
  
  
  6. SNOW WHITE QUEEN 4/5
  I mut say that I really didn't like SWQ at first listen. It was very strange and bizarre. It grew on me a lot after it got stuck in my head.
  
  The cool chord progression crrates a very aurally satisfying song. The funky instrumental effects throughout it remind me of Fallen's 'Haunted,' retaining an eery vibe that sorta lingers with you on through to the next song.
  
  
  7. LACRYMOSA 4.5/5
  I had this song WAY before I heard the rest of the tracks (like almost a whole week) and it gave me time to listen to it individually a lot. As with CMWYS, it stands alone very well because of it's epic sound. The strings from mozart's piece of the same name are fun and playful and lend themselves beautifully to Amy's sassy vocals. Terry's guitar solo towards the end will forever be one of my favorite moments in Evanescence's music.
  
  When put in with the album as a whole, it stands out to me, almost disrupting the flow, though not nearly as bad as CMWYS. Maybe this will disipate as time goes by, but I somehow doubt it.
  
  
  8. LIKE YOU 5/5
  Disturbing. Plain and simple, this song is miraculously disturbing. The simple guitar part mixed with the piano subtly accentuate Amy's amazing voice. A simple rythm bit mixed in every once in a while satisfy the needed structure to the complex melody.
  
  Truly impressive Vocals from amy. She performs with such emotion that it's impossible not to be moved.
  
  
  9. LOSE CONTROL 29,000/5
  My absolute favorite evanescence song ever, though probably the strangest decision to fade in from the previous track to. The two songs have such different meanings, but the musical simmilarities make for a very pleasing transition.
  
  This sexy track makes for a good soundtrack for some hot love makin'.
  
  Intense music rght here. I can understand why some don't like it for it's unique approach to the lyrics. Though the subject matter stands out like a sore thumb, musically, it fits perfectly on this album.
  
  
  10. THE ONLY ONE 4/5
  I rate this 4/5 because...I have to rate it something...an it isn't my number one favorite song, but I still really enjoy it.
  
  Amazing vocal work from Amy. Hard hitting chord progressions and musical ideas. A true pearl on the album.
  
  
  11. YOUR STAR 5/5
  A very strong track. Makes a very amazing point and lyrically flows the best out of any song on ToD. Starts off light and desolate, but when it explodes, IT EXPLODES with power and eery encouragement. The lines of the chorus are perfectly executed and give me such a chill down my spine.
  
  Another favorite of mine.
  
  
  12. ALL THAT I'M LIVING FOR 4.5/5
  Crazy good song. Maybe one of the poppier songs, I can see it also being a single. It has a certian hard powerful body that just makes me want to hear it on the radio. It fits well with the rest of the album, but would stand on it's own perfectly.
  
  Kudos to John Lecompt for writing such a great song! I always love his work.
  
  
  13. GOOD ENOUGH 4/5
  The intro is AMAZING with the complex and classical string/piano arrangement that flows as easy as a light Brahms lullaby. It leads us into a very positive, and somewhat jazzy song. Though the lyrics are supposed to be happy, it still sounds rips at your heart like a spear.
  
  The subject of the lyrics is makes it a logical end to the album, but it needs...a long outro or something to serve as a satisfying musical conclusion for an album, but the more I listen, the more I get used to it. I guess I was expecting 'Whisper' and got something better and didn't even know it.
  
  
  
  The album deffinitely hits hard at my soul, personally, and I just love the music and the people involved.
  
  Deffinitely not my OH MY GOD NUMBER ONE FAVORITE ALBUM OF ALL TIMEEEE ('Fallen' fills that space very nicely), but pretty high up there. Deffinitely top 10, and gaining strength every time I listen to it...
  
  
• Hopefuly the door will soon close for Evanescence
  By A3UYTW8GXC5EGO on 2006-10-09
  2003 was a breakout year for Evanescence, who saw their major label debut album Fallen sell ridiculous amounts of copies. Everyone from soccer moms and their children to homies in lowriders cruising on 22 inch rims thought that "Bring Me To Life" was the jam, and "My Immortal" became the soundtrack to the "emotional and touching" scenes of many films and TV shows. Certainly the band was ubiquitous, with their videos receiving incessant rotation on MTV and VH1 (probably even BET for "Bring Me To Life") and all the licensing. But does that make the band any good?
  
  Let's shed some light on Evanescence, shall we? Evanescence is a "band" in the loosest sense of the word. On Fallen, singer/pianist/co-songwriter Amy Lee was always front and center, in the videos, photography, and on record - the other members were seldom ever allowed to solo or provide anything other than a background for Lee - musical wallpaper, if you will. Essentially, Evanescence could more accurately be described as Princess Amy Lee and her faceless white male friends.
  
  Now let's look at the multi-platinum sound of Evanescence. So often the music has been tagged with the "goth" label, which is perhaps the most grossly misused genre label in music other than punk. For starters, goth is supposed to be bleak, dark and nihilistic - these adjectives lie in stark contrast to Evanescence's status as a Christian Rock band. You can't have it both ways. If they went out there and sang "I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever" or "Shout To The Lord" or other CCM staples, they would be more convincing. The components of the Evanescence sound is instead one part Linkin Park (sterile guitar riffs Pro-Tooled to death), one part Kelly Clarkson (extremely simple poppy hooks, similar vocal range), and one part Sarah McLachlan (piano melodies and attempts in vain to sound ethereal) - combine that with trite lyrics that had to be pulled from a depressed 8 year old's notebook, puree for 10 seconds and you're good to go. Evanescence only gets the goth tag because of Lee's fashion sense (a lot of Hot Topic shopping, also erroneously labeled as a goth shop) and the settings in their videos, including the very cheesy clip where she "falls" out of a building which people ate up for whatever reason. For real goth music, check out Joy Division, Fields Of The Nephilim, Sisters Of Mercy and Bauhaus, which all make Evanescence look like the hacks that they are.
  
  The release of Evanescence's latest album, The Open Door, came about three and a half years after the release of Fallen. You're probably asking yourself what happened in that lengthy time period. Well, former guitarist/co-songwriter Ben Moody left the band to go work with pop stars like Kelly Clarkson and Lindsay Lohan (what else would you expect from a member of a slick corporate pop group like Evanescence?), and was replaced by Terry Balsamo, formerly of the band Cold. Tim McCord became the band's new bassist. Amy Lee sued her former manager, alleging sexual harassment. Finally, it's clearly evident that Amy Lee has wolfed down thousands of bacon cheeseburgers in that time span. She really let herself go, kind of like Ann Wilson of Heart, a band who was much more of an influence on Evanescence than any goth band out there - and I'm talking about the Heart that did "These Dreams" and "Alone", not the Heart that did "Barracuda" and "Crazy On You" ... the Heart that did lots of overblown cheesy, melodramatic power ballads. While we're making comparisons based on cheese, grandiosity and girth, one to Meat Loaf isn't far off either - only the songs aren't nearly as strong, structured and performed as well from both a vocal and music standpoint.
  
  Despite the personnel changes, The Open Door sounds quite similar to Fallen, with several attempts to duplicate the success of previous singles. "Call Me When You're Sober" (which begins and closes with passages that sound eerily like manufactured divas like Christina Aguilera) is almost a note-for-note re-write of "Bring Me To Life" , only without the rapper who I guess went back to whatever Bible Belt 'hood he came from. Witness these brilliant lyrics: "Don't cry to me / If you loved me / You would be here with me / You want me / Come find me / Make up your mind ... You never call me when you're sober / You only want it 'cause it's over". Sorry, but I much prefer cryptic lyrics with depth to literal plainspeak like this. That's the single, folks, and it doesn't get any better from there. I also can't help but point out the attempt at cheap publicity, as Amy Lee has openly stated that the song was written about her relationship with Shaun Morgan of the band Seether. Maybe it will start a war of words and they can take shots back and forth - hey Amy, who cooked this up, you or your record label?
  
  In summary: Instead of living up to the hype, Evanescence once again proved that they are not worthy. Glossy, overproduced, and just plain dumb, The Open Door is nothing worth listening to at all - but I guess it could sell millions in the country that made Paris Hilton famous, right? If a Linkin Park / Kelly Clarkson / Sarah McLachlan hybrid with an extra thick layer of cheese on top sounds good to you, then meet your new favorite album. However, those looking for goth rock or music that wasn't written under the supervision of a record label executive would be well advised to look elsewhere.
  
  
• you used to be all right; what happened? did the cat get your tongue? did your string come undone?
  By A2Q39U0GGI81FY on 2006-10-11
  I think this album is the biggest disappointment I've yet heard. To begin with, it's overproduced; this means several things. For starters, it's COMPRESSED. Whoever mixed this album took all the life out of Amy Lee's voice. It's not clear, crisp, or open at all. It doesn't soar like it used to; it sounds like she's singing from behind a veil. The guitars are the same; they're just this slicked down, standard distorted garbage. Their tone is completely boring. They just drone on. The sad thing is, I'm pretty sure they're playing on Mesa units, which can sound so much more soulful than this. Then, for the overal consideration, there's little to no instrument separation, it's recorded fairly hot like all new recordings, and you can tell all the peaks have just been squashed to compensate (basically, high frequencies sound like they were chopped off so as not to bother people's ears). It's even a little sibilant here and there.
  
  Onto the more important stuff, that most of you will get and be interested in: the album is just so unbearably boring. By the end of it, I just found myself a little bit glad it was over. That's the first album by a band I already liked that was like that for me, ever. (I've had this experience once or twice before; the last I remember was Pearl Jam's new album, but I'm not a fan of theirs to begin with, so it was okay). There isn't a single song that jumps out at me as one I'd like to listen to over and over, or heck, even again once or twice. Lachrymosa is all right, but it's not great, and I doubt I'll even listen to it much; if I do, it'll probably be more to justify this purchase rather than because I'm dying to hear it again. The lyrics aren't anything special either. For a basic summary, here's what it sounds like, to me: it sounds like the band forgot their own identity. It sounds like at some point betweeen 2003 and now, they forgot who they were, and had someone ELSE remind them. It sounds like they made an album based on what other people thought Evanescence was supposed to be, instead of whatever they actually wanted to be. Maybe that's the problem: maybe they didn't want anything to begin with. Maybe they didn't even want to make this album. It has no identity. It has no general characteristic. It doesn't smell of ANYTHING. It's an amorphous mass of boring, uninspiring dark rock. It sounds like Evanesence ripped off themselves and failed. My best guess is it's just that Amy Lee can't do it without Ben. I mean, hell, the two of them WERE the band. When I listenened to Origin and even some parts of Fallen, and saw the popularity that Fallen garnered, I thought to myself that Evanescence was capable of changing the face of popular rock. If The Open Door is where rock is going, let me off this train; I want no part of it. I think I'll go listen to "Anywhere" and pretend this isn't the same band; because really, it isn't.
  
  
• What happened?
  By AGY1NIU46YIGV on 2006-10-13
  Who could forget about their debut album?
  Smash hits like "My Immortal" and "Bring Me To Life" were brought to the light by the Daredevil movie. From then on, the hits kepts on coming with the likes of Going Under and Holding My Last Breath... in short, "Fallen" was excellent.
  
  "The Open Door" doesn't even compare. Long gone are the power melodies and soul touching lyrics. The songs are just plain and bland. The only songs that I thought were fairly decent were "Lithium" and "Like You". If I had to rate the other songs out of 10, none would score over a 5.
  
  It strikes me deep to say that "The Open Door" was a disappointment.
  
  
• HOW CAN IT BE THIS BAD!??!! READ FIRST!!!
  By A2FP2W8V3MSGCL on 2006-10-15
  This album is lame, bland, and the production is horrible. First off this isn't Evanescence. It's a whole new band with Amy singing. This is like a David Lee Roth solo album after Van Halen. Or worse a Scott Stap solo album without Creed. Yeah it's that bad. Every single melody is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo stretched out. So boring. New guitar player was in Limp Bisket, that should tell you how much he sucks. The band blows, songs are horrible,and its' just a waste of money. Why else is it selling for $9 ? lol. THEY ARE DONE!
  
  
• Boring, safe pop/rock for soccer moms and teenyboppers
  By on 2007-01-07
  Evanescence is one of those bands that the radio and MTV love to play incessantly, at any opportunity, on pretty much any format you can think of. There's something for the soft rock stations, something that passes as Alternative, something with a little hip-hop for the Urban stations - even a few cheesy ballads that have a vague Country air about them.
  
  But does this make for good music? Absolutely not. It's all just unimaginative shallow pop pablum being served up to the masses. The label most often connected to Evanescence is "Gothic". Last time I checked, most bands that I think of as Goth don't play cheesy soft rock that could have been recorded by Celine Dion, and they don't have singers that sound like they're auditioning for some over the top Broadway show. It's only good if you think elevator music is where it's at.
  
  Maybe the lyrics make up for their musical shortcomings? No, not at all. Glance at the song titles and right there you'll know that the songs are trite ("The Only One", "Like You"). "Lithium" features its title repeated seemingly 1000 times, and Amy Lee whines about not being loved, a recurrent theme throughout the entire album. Finally, check out the horrible lyrics in the chorus of the big single "Call Me When You're Sober" - "Don't cry to me, If you loved me, You would be here with me". That sounds like something out of a Hilary Duff song, and Lee sings like one of these generic pop divas, like a Christina Aguilera for instance. Don't believe the hype: Critics can make The Open Door sound like the nectar of the gods and the media can play these songs repeatedly, but that does not make this a good album - just a heavily publicized belly flop. Amy Lee is nothing more than Britney Spears with pretensions to artistry.
  
  In closing: Observe if you will many of the profiles of the posters who sing the praises of Evanescence. Note that most of them only have one review to their credit. Hmmmm... perhaps the people that think Evanescence are so fantastic are saying so because they work for Wind-Up Records and want to boost sales any way they can? Some food for thought there. Don't trust them ... you would be better off going for an unbiased opinion instead. Evanescence is no different from the majority of mainstream pop today - it may be dressed up and marketed a different way, but it's every bit as shallow and safe as everything else out there. Look elsewhere for better music - The Decemberists, Mew, TV On The Radio and Silversun Pickups are bands with depth and substance.
  
  
• Heart 2006?
  By A3KKM0T1KY42HA on 2006-10-04
  Hands-down Amy Lee has the best, most listenable, captivating female voice in Rock today. And she convincingly proves that on The Open Door.
  
  As I write, Fallen, Evanescence's debut CD, has gone 6-times Platinum, and The Open Door is #1 on the charts. Perhaps deservedly so. But who's buying Evanescence's CDs? Who should be buying Evanescence's CDs? I think that the answer to both questions is Pop Rock radio fans, and--ready for the controversial statement?--mostly girls. Hey, Rock is a sexist business and I'm just calling it as I see it.
  
  Is Evanescence Hard Rock or are they indeed Pop Rock. Well, they have some Hard Rock songs, but is this a disk for Hard Rockers?
  
  The Open Door is full of very listenable music. Hard at times, "Poppy" at times and ballady at times. The first three tracks are very good Hard Rockers...but I found myself thinking that it sounded like music that should be in a film behind the scene where the lead female character is "making a stand" on something...I know...more sexism...sorry.
  
  The thing about Hard Rock is that for a lot of guys it's all about the music. When most guys listen to their favorite Hard Rock, it's about feel-good, foot-stomping, fist-pumping, rock-out your aggression release. With Evanescence there's an added factor that probably doesn't come to mind for most guys when they listen to Disturbed, Tool or Avenged Sevenfold. The added factor being the thought of sex, which, for a guy, is hard to not think of as Amy Lee sings. Oh, the controversy!
  
  Evanescence reminds me of Heart. Ann Wilson established Heart with a powerful female sound; Amy Lee established Evanescence with a powerful female sound. Heart had a big breakout hit with Barracuda and we also know them for "that other song"; Evanescence had a big breakout hit with Bring Me To Life and we also know them for "that other song". Heart had a revolving door of band members; Evanescence has a revolving door of band members. Ann Wilson would have been wise to pursue a solo career; Amy Lee would be wise to pursue a solo career.
  
  The Open Door is also missing something. It's missing that big breakout Rock hit that Evanescence had on Fallen with Bring Me To Life. Just like Heart where they never really had a big Rock hit after Barracuda; it was Heart's ballady stuff that grabbed the attention.
  
  Amy Lee needs to attach her name more to her music. Whether you're Pop or Rock, you didn't buy The Open Door for the band....You bought it for Amy Lee's powerful vocals.
  
  So this is my Hard Rocker (sexist, honest, both???) perspective. The Open Door is not a disk that I will listen to a lot. I will burn the first three songs to my hard drive, and they will play every now and then when my music is shuffling. Hard Rockers (umm...guys), The Open Door doesn't really work for me. However, Pop Rock/Radio Rockers (umm...girls) should enjoy this disk thoroughly and add it to their cart.
  
  
  
  
  
• I'm not ashamed to say it.......Ben please come back!
  By A9BFW5ZBW168O on 2006-10-13
  For those who haven't bought the album yet and are reading these reviews to help you decide, here's some advice. Don't buy this album with the mindset that you are purchasing a follow up album to Fallen. You're not. Infact if I were you I wouldn't walk into the store with the mindset that you're buying Evanescence's new cd, because although it may say Evanescence on the cover, this is not Evanescence. This is a new band with the same lead singer that still carries the same old band name.
  
  I remember reading articles about how Amy Lee had always wanted to make the music harder and how Ben Moody wanted to make it listenable, a bit more mainstream, something that EVERYONE not just the die hard heavy rock fans could enjoy. And TOGETHER they did that. They balanced each other out. Fallen was a rock album with FANTASTIC melodies that everyone could enjoy. The Open Door is not. What this album does is it appeals more to the people who didn't like Evanescence before because they thought they were too "Poppy" or their music was too "Commercial". Since when did making an album that is actually pleasing to the ears and doesn't cause migraines automatically make it poppy and commercial? Infact the only songs on the entire album I really remotely enjoyed were the first two, Sweet Sacrifice and Call Me When You're Sober. I like the music to Sweet Sacrifice, however the lyrics leave quite a bit to be desired. Its literally the same what 2 maybe 3 versus repeated over and over again? Call Me When You're Sober is good enough but it just doesn't hold up to the same standards as anything on Fallen. As for Lacrymosa, it's ok but unfortunately to me it doesn't sound as good as it seemed to in the Open Door advertisement. The what is it 10? 15 seconds of song that plays in the background of the advertisement is THE BEST PART of the entire song. Kind of like when you see a really good preview for a movie so you think the movie is going to be good so you shell out the 10 bucks to go see it ONLY to find out that the best parts of the movie were in the previews and the movie as a whole really isn't as good as the preview portrayed. That's Lacrymosa in a nutshell for me.
  
  With that said and with the fact that I have just admitted to moderately liking only 3 songs on the entire album, I still have to say that even those three songs don't even REMOTELY stand up to ANY of the songs on Fallen. Not one. Infact this album is terrible in comparison. Fallen had the best of everything, the great hooks and melodies that stuck in your head, the beautiful thought prevoking (non repetitive) lyrics, the gorgeous blend of guitar riffs and piano all perfectly woven together with Amy Lee's voice carrying it home.
  
  These songs, this entire album with the exception of the 3 above mentioned are nothing like that. These songs are for the most part either hard, angry and extremely painful to the ears to listen too OR in the case of the ballady numbers lacking of any true melody and just plain bland. Not to mention repetitive. It is just amazing to me that a new guitarist and writing partner can make such an ENORMOUS difference. Infact the very fact that this album carries the name Evanescence on it is extremely misleading because although ONE of the TWO prominent members, yes I did say TWO prominent is still in the band from the original group (as well as what? two of the original musicians) the sound is so different it shouldn't even be called Evanescence anymore, because although you can still tell its Amy Lee singing, the music sounds completely different. Infact even Amy's voice sounds different. She sounds hard and on some songs (songs that are so awful that I can't even remember the names because I couldn't listen to them in their entirety) just plain terrible. Yes people Amy actually manages to sound terrible on this album. Where as on Fallen, she sounds like an angel. In Fallen everything fit together perfectly. The music complimented her voice and vice versa. These songs in all honesty do nothing for her and they certainly don't do anything for me. I mean her voice gets so low at some points that she kind of sounds like a croaking man. Amy come on!! How could you do this to us? We know what you're capable of and its far better than this or should I say you used to be capable of far better than this.
  
  I hate to keep harping on this subject here but in all honesty, this new writing partnership just doesn't sound as good as the old. I mean listen to the difference in these two albums. It's like light and darkness. Sure Ben wasn't the best quitar player out there, but the guy could create some beautiful music. Some music that with the partnership of Amy Lee was truly a joy to listen to.
  
  Now I know I'm gonna tick some people off when I say this but to be quite honest, if The Open Door had been the first cd to come out and the band as it is TODAY, had been what arrived on the scene instead of Fallen and the Evanescence of old, I truly believe they'd still be floating around in the underground. There's just no way they'd have had any of the success that they carry with them now. Success that was earned before this group became who and what it is right now. Sure the band WAS successful but that was Ben and Amy. They earned that success together. Only time will tell if this "new" Evanescence can be as equally successful. One thing is for sure, there are going to be some very interesting times ahead.
  
  
• Evanescence Delivers a Good Sophomore Effort
  By on 2006-11-08
  3 1/2 half years, and Ben Moody-less later, Evanescence delivers the follow up to their debut "Fallen." "The Open Door" sees the band adapting a few new sounds, but staying firmly rooted in the sound that brought them to worldwide fame. Amy Lee has always been Evanescence, but with Moody gone, she really takes over. She's definitely the driving force behind The Open Door, and that makes for a record that is her vision. At first I considered the Open Door a sophomore slump, as the first few times through there were only a handful of songs I liked, and none of them grabbed me like say Bring Me To Life, or My Immortal. But thankfully repeat listens did wonders for me and the album, and I now feel it is even better on an overall level then Fallen. The album has some misses, but it has mostly hits. I think it has somewhat of a subtle feel to it, in that the quality of many of the songs doesn't unravel until you give a lot of attention to them. Overall I think Evanescence delivers a solid sophomore set. If you like the band for Fallen, give this a chance and you shouldn't have much to complain about.
  
  Song reviews:
  1. Sweet Sacrifice-The best comes first. This is my favorite off of the Open Door. It was one of the only songs I immediately liked on first listen, and repeat listens just made it better. Catchy guitars, hooks, and melancholy lyrics add together to make one of the overall best songs the band has, not to mention a surefire future hit single. 10/10
  
  2. Call Me When You're Sober-The first single, and a song that deals with Amy's ex boyfriend, Shaun Morgan of Seether, and his drug/alcohol problems. A decent song, but a FAR stretch from the first single off Fallen, Bring Me to Life. Something like Lithium or Sweet Sacrifice would have been much better first singles. Unlike the majority of the songs on The Open Door this one has a very short appeal, and it won't take long to get tired of it. 7.5/10
  
  3. Weight of the World-This song has catchy verses, while delivering a chorus that is mediocre at best. The first time I listened I was expecting it to dive into some big catchy chorus similar to Going Under from Fallen, but then it totally underperforms with a snooze fest chorus that contains similar lyrics to CMWYS' chorus. Just decent. 7/10
  
  4. Lithium-The second single from the album, and my 3rd favorite. The song is one of the best songs on the album, and it really has great lasting appeal. The song seems to be about Amy's struggle with being happy, and her voice really soars here. This will be a huge hit. 10/10
  
  5. Cloud Nine- Evanescence gives us their "Haunted" for this album, with a spooky and gothic feel that grabs you and doesn't let go. It's a song that I can't seem to get out of my head. Love the verses, and bridge especially. 9/10
  
  6. Snow White Queen-Here's where some of those new sounds I referred to come in. Some where between goth rock and tecno, Snow White Queen is a tale about a stalker and his victim. Creepy and weird, my initial reaction was that I hated it, but repeat listens have made me think different. The song has its own unique flair, and I appreciate the band for experimenting. 7.5/10
  
  7. Lacrymosa-Borrowing from the classic Mozart song, but adding plenty of their own flare, Lacrymosa is another one that shines on The Open Door. The song is one that really demands you listen to it as soon as it starts. Haunting, beautiful, melodic, and soaring vocals make this song so great. 9.5/10
  
  8. Like You-Similar to Hello from Fallen, in that it's about Amy's deceased sister. The lyrics are heartfelt, but I would have to put this as one of the misses on the album. It's very boring as a song, and just won't grow on me. 6/10
  
  9. Lose Control-Probably my least favorite. Despite some clever lyrics, the song drags, and is too forgettable. 5.5/10
  
  10. The Only One-Another one that's just OK. It's starting to grow on me, but it just seems like a filler track. 6/10
  
  11. All That I'm Living For-This would have been right at home on Fallen. Great all around song, and I could see it as a future single. 8.5/10
  
  12. Your Star- This has to be the most underrated song on the album. Pretty much every review I've read of the Open Door seems to just kind of ignore this song. That's a shame, because I think if you give this song a chance it's one of the band's best. For me it is the only song that gives Sweet Sacrifice competition for best song of the album. The verse starts off slow, building into a chorus that is a lot better then you first realize. The song is very deep as well. Even though I doubt it will ever happen, I would love to see this as a future single, just for the exposure. 10/10
  
  13. Good Enough- Amy had already hyped this song awhile back, and called it the big ballad, only this time it was a happy ballad. So I kind of drew expectations that this would be the big OMG!, My Immortal song of the album. So when I first heard it I was extremely disappointed that it clearly wasn't. I quickly wrote it off, and didn't listen for awhile. Thankfully I came back, and like many songs on the album it took repeat listens for me to appreciate it. Although it is far from My Immortal, or far from the best song on the album, it is still a good song. Amy's vocals again steal the show, and a happy song is something that's nice to hear from Amy. Good closer. 7.5/10
  
  
• An Album That Far Surpasses Their Debut
  By A2A8PN3Q5QVNR6 on 2007-05-22
  I want to preface this by saying a few things: The only reason I ever checked out Fallen and Evanescence is because I was mesmerized by Amy Lee's voice. She is perhaps the finest young singer out there today, and probably my favorite. Her tone, control, and inflections are just riveting and endlessly dramatic. However, as much as I loved Lee's voice, Fallen - on the whole - was a VERY mediocre album. That statement alone will send 5000 Evanescence fans crying foul with "this review wasn't helpful" votes, but hear me out:
  
  As good as Lee's voice is, the majority of the music on Fallen was mostly just plain bad. Too much of it sounded like a bland Linkin Park ripoff (as if they weren't bland enough). The sole exception being a really good drummer - the guitars and bass on Fallen were just terrible. I say this coming from a music lover's background. Someone who feels actual music makes music good as opposed to catchiness or a good voice or lyrics. Fallen had great vocal performances in spades, and My Immortal is in my pantheon of all-time great songs. But the rest was just sub-par from a song-writing and musical standpoint.
  
  With all of that out of the way, I get to The Open Door. Boy, did Lee and co. surprise me with this album. I will simply say that everything is vastly improved. It's denser and much more complex than Fallen, without losing an ounce of what made Fallen a success. That being outstanding vocal performances, and the right combination of catchy hooks and darkness. I honestly didn't expect an album like this from Evanescence so soon - an album that will seperate the Evanescence fanboys and fangirls from those who genuinely enjoy music as art.
  
  Amy's voice has actually grown in leaps and bounds since Fallen. She has learned how and when to mix her haunting, wispy vocals with her towering, belting vocals. Besides that, we have a whole new lot of inflections from Amy, including a dark and almost menacing low register. All of this is combined with perfect control and a highly dramatic delivery that brings to mind opera without being over the top. Speaking of leaps and bounds, the guitars on this album are exactly that. Gone is the puking tone from Fallen's Ben Moody, and here is a tight, "dialed in just right" metal tone from the much more competant Terry Balsamo. Besides the tone, the interplay between the guitarists is actually pretty good. Nothing on the level of Iron Maiden or Judas Priest, but still darn good for a mainstream band. On the whole, the guitars go from what was an annoyance on Fallen to genuinely enjoyable on The Open Door. The drums and bass also provide a solid backbone and a driving momentum for most of the songs. While perhaps a bit forgettable compared to the rest of the album, they're by no means bad.
  
  In terms of song-writing we hear an artist learning to write multi-faceted and well structured songs that actually go somewhere. Sweet Sacrifice and Call Me When You're Sober rock as hard as anything on Fallen, but both are exceedingly better structured with some - surprisingly - good, interlocking guitar work. The dark, haunting numbers are equally as accomplished. Lithium builds perfectly into a momentous finale with Lee's voice looming large over the hulking guitars. Like You is as bleak as anything they've done. With disturbing lyrics that match the somberness of the music.
  
  Elsewhere, the multitude of experimentation works much more often than it doesn't. Snow White Queen starts out as a brooding piece before bursting into one of the best choruses on the album. Lacrymosa might be THE highlight of the album. Sampling a piece from Mozart's Requiem we hear a near brilliant fusion of dire classical and gravely gothic metal. This piece builds from just the strings of Mozart's piece into a colossal finale with grinding, churning guitars and Amy's soaring voice mixing with the Lacrimosa chorus creating a truly dramatic ending. Your Star begins with a eerie piano bit, before Lee enters with a ghostly like vocal. The song again builds into an excellent finale with an intricate dual piano/guitar melody.
  
  The last half of the album is just as rewarding as the first. This is another differing point from Fallen - which fell apart near the end. The Only One and All That I'm Living For actually match the power of the lead singles, and are perhaps even more satisfying with repeat listens. The album closes with its answer to My Immortal in Good Enough. This is a simple gem of a song. It's not as immediately striking and memorable as My Immortal, but it's equally as stellar. Featuring Amy Lee at her most confessional and restrained, this is a sobering and haunting song. Sounding little like Evanescence's usual goth-metal-pop mix, this song bears more resemblence to R&B. In truth, this is as soulful a song as I've heard in a long time, and as good a vocal performance as I've ever heard.
  
  The Open Door is not all premium material though, with a few generic numbers. Weight of the World just can't match the power of the opening songs. Cloud Nine and Lose Control are also rather drab and one dimensional. This would've likely been a stronger album if those songs were cut, trimming the album from 13 to 10 songs. These few minor grievances cannot detract from what is still a marvelous album. Compared to Fallen, I was surprised by how much better this album got with repeated listens, which is likely due to it being much more subtle and intricately structured. Another highlight is the outstanding production that allows the details (and Amy's voice) to shine. This album sounds absolutely magnificant on my high end audio system, and is one of my favorites to listen to because of it.
  
  Now, compared to bands like The Gathering and Lacuna Coil, Evanescence still has a ways to go. But as a mainstream band trying to fuse pop and gothic metal, they succeed admirably. What we end up with is an album that fulfills the potential shown on their debut, while still hinting that perhaps even better things are to come. I will say that this is an album that uber-fans of Fallen might not easily get into and like (as shown by the polarizing reviews on Amazon). But I extremely respect Amy Lee for delivering a truely dark, confessional album with many musical highlights rather than a banal remake of Fallen. If I only enjoyed Fallen because of Lee's vocals, I truly enjoy every aspect of The Open Door - from the vocals to the music and arrangements to the production. And that's as high a compliment as I can give this album.
  
  
• No Moody = No Melody
  By A1DIFL0333QPEB on 2006-10-04
  Well, this new album goes to show that Ben Moody was the lifeblood of Evenescence. Moody provided the melodies, and Amy Lee wrote the lyrics and sang with excellence. Not so anymore. No Moody, no more magic.
  
  This album is a messy collection of dull, non-melodic songs, that fail to capture my interest in any way, shape, or form. The debut album was captivating--this is mundane. Lee's lyrics are just as good as ever, but the music is lacking something fierce. The band couldn't fill the void that Moody's absence left, unfortunately.
  
  I have been looking forward to this album for years, and I'm extremely disappointed to say that it does VERY little for me. Great single, "Call Me When You're Sober", but other than that, the album doesn't have all that much to offer. For whatever reason, the band was able to scrap together a melodic hit song, but placed it on an album full of songs that go nowhere. I'm greatly disappointed I have to write such a review, but this is the truth about the album. Nevermind what you read on here from hyped up fans, who would like their music even if it was the worst it could possibly be. The truth is here, folks. This album is shaky, at best.
  
  
• Silencing the doubters...
  By AVIH1UYOMQS65 on 2006-10-07
  As much as I love Evanescence, I was kind of worried about their sophomore effort The Open Door, as were many fans. The obvious reason is the fact that Ben Moody left, and he was supposed to be the "commercial" half of Ev, the one that made their music listenable. This had me concerned that Amy's songwriting and musical direction would carry the band too far from the one I had become obsessed with after hearing Fallen. I now feel foolish for ever doubting her.
  
  The Open Door is a complete masterpiece, although it took me more than a few listens to realize this. The first time I listened to it I was a little disappointed at how different the sound was from their first release. I probably thought five songs were great right away, and the rest were good or okay. But the more listens, the more I got used to their new sound and it is just fantastic. Amy takes more chances vocally on this album, hitting high notes and stretching her voice more often. It is also in a lower tone for many songs, which goes along well with the dark mood trying to be set. Since her incomparable voice is why I became fascinated with Ev in the first place, this is my main reason why I prefer this album over Fallen.
  
  Also, TOD is less commercial and more experimental. Amy managed to set each song apart from the next and give each it's own identity, but still maintained the same sound we're used to hearing. Terry's guitar work is better than Ben's IMO- more intricate and less repetetive. The lyrics are more straight-forward and less imaginative than the last album, but I don't really mind it. They all circle around Amy's relationship troubles and the problems she has gone through the last few years. Despite that, this album kind of has a positive vibe going on to me, moreso than previous efforts anyway.
  
  Sweet Sacrifice, Weight of the World, Snow White Queen, and All That I'm Living For are probably the ones most will associate with their previous sound(heavy, more mainstream rock). Lithium is comparable to My Immortal, only stronger and deeper. Like You is comparable to Hello in that it is a very personal song concerning Amy's sister-guitars kick in half-way to really drive the song home. Call Me When You're Sober is the most popish song and was a good choice for the first single. The Only One gives me the most positive vibe, and therefore is a tough choice as my fav song for now-a heavy and inspiring anthem. Lacrymosa is heavy, epic, and just amazing. Lose Control and Your Star are very experimental and a totally different sound for the band. Cloud Nine is the one that best shows off Amy's amazing vocal talent. Good Enough is the only song that doesn't have guitars-it's a heartfelt ballad and is nice to hear just Amy's voice standing alone with piano.
  
  Obviously not all fans will like this new CD, but if you're a fan of Amy and her amazing voice and were looking forward to something different from Origin and Fallen, pick this up and give it several good listens-you shouldn't be disappointed!
  
  
• Heavy Metal Enya - "Grunge New Age" music
  By A3SWWXWV1WDZ68 on 2006-10-08
  I've just listened to this album all day at work for the last two days. I was interested in it, however, I have to say that I do not like this album and I am mystified by it. What is one supposed to do with this album? One cannot dance to it. The lyrics don't contain any deep insights into the human condition. The music isn't relaxing to listen to. The voice of the singer becomes tedious very quickly. The actual instrumental music sounds like dated Dinosaur Rock from the 1970s.
  
  Imagine Enya or Sarah Brightman joining Spinal Tap or Van Halen, got the picture? Testosterone driven guitar music with a female singer with vocal pretensions, that is how I would describe Evanescence.
  
  
  The songs all sound rather similar and whenever the guitars come in I can imagine Queen's smoke bombs and light show. The voice sounds overwrought and slightly hysterical - a real P.M.S. vocal technique.
  
  The be fair, Evanescence is better than a lot of the junk that passes for commercial Pop/Rock music these days [if you want to hear real junk listen to Jet's latest album!], but this disc is not one I could ever imagine wanting to hear ever again. It does exhibit the limits of guitar-based music and the inability of guitar bands to really come up with anything musically new or fresh.
  
  
  
  
• Ethereal vocals..
  By AEQG4TJGGZWRE on 2006-10-14
  Amy Lee's voice is like a siren song in the midst of a dream. This album is an emotional epic sweeping through a stormy landscape of theatrical lyrics and thundering guitars.
  
  
• Second Verse Same as the First
  By A3OMPSEVL59ZDK on 2006-10-16
  Amy Lee is this band. I mean can anyone actually name those other guys behind her strumming the guitars and banging on the drums? Evanescence is quite easily one of the most over rated bands on this planet and yet some times its justified but most of the time its not. Amy Lee is fantastic and her voice is like a drug. No matter how generic the music I find myself intoxicated with the emotional pull of her dramatic vocals. Its moody, its atmospheric and when your in the right mood it works.
  
  Unfortunately all fairy tales must come to an end and you can only ignore the generic compositions for so long until you want to just bang your ahead against the wall if you hear another boring Drop D guitar riff.
  
  Honestly...see those things called strings? Yes their are alot of notes on that guitar...USE THEM! Its obvious this band is a one trick pony because they simply cannot compose music for the life of them. Its the same sound and every track is saved by the entrancing Amy Lee. Its the Amy Lee band + 3 and if you don't see that you really need to wake up and smell the corporate coffee.
  
  Origin was a great record and Fallen was redundant but still good, The Open Door is more of the same but not enough of Origin and way too much Fallen. Its COMPOSITION that makes you legendary and its obviously something the other band members simply cannot do.
  
  For every beautifully written piano goth ballad we get a generic nu-metal rock tune right next to it. I don't know what can save this band but Amy needs to get a whole new band to back up her talent because sooner or later her magic will wear off and the only thing left will be those three duds behind her making the same noise on every damn record.
  
  
• A Good (But Not Great) Return from Evanescence.
  By A2LEHZ6KNQFRV5 on 2006-10-04
  And it saddens me to have to say that. Evanescence are by far one the best female-led bands, in the music business. Their first album (Origin) was magnificent. Their followup (Fallen) was brilliant.
  
  But their third effort (The Open Door) is sadly, only average.
  
  The album for the most part, is constructed quite well. With songs ranging from melodic, to dark, to outright experimental. But somehow, it's missing something. Something that the previous 2 albums had, that "The Open Door", does not.
  
  Perhaps Ben Moody? I think not!
  
  The previous 2 albums, were heavily melodic. I enjoyed this about both the albums, and Evanescence. However "The Open Door", seems to consider melody, a second priority. Whereas it seemed to be put at the top of the priorities list, on the previous 2 albums. "The Open Door", mostly revolves around Amy's brilliant lyrics. But even this, is somewhat of a problem, because her lyrics have gotten kind of repetative, on this release.
  
  I'm not saying they've gotten bland. Infact, far from it. They're still as beautifully written as ever. Even without Moody onboard. However, she seems to be bickering on about the same subjects over and over, on this release. Making the entire cd (nearly) seem like a single-subject concept album. Alot of the songs lyrics seem to be relationship-based. While this is okay on a few songs, it gets kind of repetative after awhile, to be perfectly honest.
  
  But repetativeness set aside, "The Open Door", is a pretty good return from Amy and co. of Evanescence. And adding Terry Balsamo (formerly of the band COLD - another one of my personal favorite bands) to replace Ben Moody, only made the guitar-work seem better, and less traditional.
  
  The overall sound of "The Open Door" is experimental. Some songs are melodic. Some songs are heavy. And some have newly-explored sounds, to them.
  
  One track in particular (Snow White Queen) seems to be a half Rock, half Industrial song. Thus, we could call this Industrial-Rock. A new sound for Evanescence, quite possibly drawning influence from the Industrial-God himself, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails. (Yes. You heard me right. The track "Snow White Queen" is very NIN-esque!) This track in particular, I like alot. Because it's very experimental, and sounds as if it draws inspiration from Trent Reznor (my Idol), in one way or another.
  
  I'm not going to review each and every song. Every review does this, so i'm going to choose not to. However, I will mention some of the better songs on the album.
  
  They are:
  
  01 - Snow White Queen (Great song. Creepy. Melodic chorus.)
  02 - Lacrymosa (Chilling. Beautiful. Great buildup.)
  03 - Lithium (Beautiful song. Great lyricism. Awesome chorus.)
  
  If you're a fan of Evanescence, a dedicated one I mean, and have an open mind, you just may thuroughally enjoy "The Open Door". Despite the fact that Ben Moody is gone, and that the overall existence of melody has been toned down a bit, and replaced with experimentation.
  
  But if you're not. Consider getting this album anyway. Just to hear what all the fuss is about, with Evanescence. Amy's writing is still brilliant. The songs are still well constructed. And the overall performance deserves atleast an "A-".
  
  Lack of melody, and repetative lyricism made me knock off a star. But overall, i'm satisfied with my purchase of "The Open Door". I went into it with an open mind, and found myself enjoying it.
  
  You'll like it. However, you may not love it.
  But don't let that stop you from buying it.
  
  4/5 stars.
  Not perfect. But a good return from Amy and co.
  
  Can't wait to hear this stuff, played live.
  
  
• Very sad by this follow up...
  By A2DVOTY20CQDSD on 2006-10-05
  I'm saddened to say, as a huge fan of Evanescence's last album, this one was a horrible follow up. The music is ok (and when I say music is ok, I usually do not bother buying the cd), but the production was just horrible. The singing and guitar work are totally off note from each other in the majority of the songs, and the beats mixed with vocals just do not work. Instead of sounding "goth" rock, or darker, they just sound shrill and whiney. Aside from some "ok" songs like "Lacrymosa" and "Like You", which have an essence of the old Evanescence, the rest of the album just made me sit there angry because it was so horrible. Now don't get me wrong, as I said, I loved "Fallen", but this is a far cry from what I enjoyed off of the last album. Some fans that are new to this band may enjoy this cd, but I cannot for the life of me see how any one who enjoyed "Fallen" can even compare these two albums. What I find on "The open door" is Amy Lee with an extremely whiney voice, compiled with completely average guitar and instrumental work. I hate to say it, but I think this band now lives up to their last album, they have "Fallen" in my eyes.
  
  
  
• It grows on you, trust me.
  By A60PVKEW6SGMT on 2006-10-05
  Okay, I am like many reviewers, sick of seeing those reviews put up five minutes after someone listened to the first thirty seconds of each song and said to themselves "it doesn't sound like "fallen", oh no! I shall complain and cry to myself!" Yeah. Well, if they listened to each song, while reading the lyrics as the song played, like I did to Fallen the first night I bought it, then they would adore each and every one of these songs like they did to Fallen.
  
  Now, enough with complaints and onward to the review. Here's a basic song by song review, but before I continue: I have read every review here for fun, and in every opinion, there is a different OPINION, which is the point of an opinion. One review said they loved this song yet hated that song, then the next two reviewers hated the first person's loved song and loved the hated song; compare all the reviews, everyone likes and hates different styles of music, and luckily Evanescence has a great many song styles, for everyone to love!
  
  1. Sweet Sacrifice - A catchy tune to have to hear first off the bat. I put it in my CD player in my car and it was hardcore and catchy, a good decision to start off the CD. As I listened to the others later on, I realized it wasn't the best, but it wasn't designed to be the best, it was an attention grabber, and it works. 9/10
  
  2. Call Me When You're Sober - Ah, the beloved "single", which most reviewers argued was overrated. Well, it is like all the other songs, different from Fallen, so get used to it. If you can't deal with this song, you'll have to deal with all the others, as they are all different, which is good. The music video is amazing, by the way. Nice blend in this song, it differs vocally throughout the song, all the way to the end, not being the same like many songs by ANY artist nowadays, just using the same chorus over and over again. 9/10
  
  3. Weight of the World - Didn't care for it at first, but it has grown on me like the others. This is why I am writing the second night after I bought it, I cannot write right after I buy something, it is too prejudice an opinion with so little information. Good heavy song, catchy vocals if you can understand Amy Lee, since she seems to blend words more in this album, perhaps singing too fast, I dunno. 8/10
  
  4. Lithium - One of my favs. I loved the beginning where it appeared to be a piano solo, then suddenly BOOOOOM the rock starts and I was headbanging already. It has acoustics, piano, heavy music, good vocals, and is my seconds favorite song on the CD. It has it all. 11/10
  
  5. Cloud Nine - Sort of haunted vocals and background music and chorus....I didn't like it to begin with and still am iffy about it. I just can't get as used to the anger she sings with in this song, you can feel it in her voice. Not one of the strongest vocal performances at the beginning, but the good part starts after the first minute of haunting music. Just that haunting part takes off a point for me. 7/10
  
  6. Snow White Queen - Most do not know what to think, but I listened to it repeatedly since I love it to death. I always have a rule where I rank my top three favorite songs, and then the rest tie for fourth place since they are so awesome...well, if I DIDN'T do that, this would BE fourth place, it is such a good song. Catchy, especially at the end, and it uses a different sort of tone for the song. 10/10
  
  7. Lacrymosa - My favorite of all! Mix of classical music (violins, woot!) and vocals propell this song. Chorus comes on strong and backs Amy up a lot, which I loved. Then it gets a tad bit hardcore toward the latter half of the song, which I adored totally. Reminded me sort of like Fallen's material, easy to catch the tune and recognize a hit. 12/10
  
  8. Like You - Sort of soft for me. I heard several say it was their favorite, but I didn't think the second half of the CD after Lacrymosa had as good lyrics (and the song titles make me sick, like THIS one). The lyrics are not up to par, in my opinion. 7/10
  
  9. Lose Control - The same ones that said "Like You" was their favorite hated this song. I was one of those that was the opposite, instead favoring this haunting song. It is virtually the same throughout except at the end it picks up, only to end....but there are enough hardcore songs, so it's alright for this one to not rock as hardcore. 9/10
  
  10. The Only One - My absolute third favorite song. This one is as good as the other two favs of mine. It reminds me of my old favorite Ev song, "Missing", where Amy HAD to of recorded herself multiple times to get her voice doing what it does (either that or a backup vocalist sounds like her). Perfect mix of rock, and it SOUNDS EXACTLY like it belongs on Fallen, it has even MORE Fallen quality than Lacrymosa did! - 11/10
  
  11. Your Star - Starts out rather bland, but picks up rapidly, but even though I hate the title, the lyrics are better than a couple of the latter half of the CD's songs. I'll get used to it, but mostly I agree with other reviewers: not up to par with other material on this CD. 7/10
  
  12. All That I'm Living For - Mr. John LeCompt himself wrote this one and helped majorly, and it shows. He rocks the entire song out, and I loved it! It reminded me of Sweet Sacrifice since it begins strong and remains strong throughout, and it would have been a nice opener as well. Even though it's not the last song, I myself like to think Evanescence began with a rocking song and ended with one, since Amy Lee probably just added the last song for the heck of it, since it is so simple. 10/10
  
  13. Good Enough - 10/10 up front. Just another perfect piano piece with miss Lee herself, great vocals, but nothing compares to My Immortal and Breathe No More, in my opinion, but this comes third in the list of Piano solos (actually I think there are only three, but meh it still rocks). 10/10
  
  Buy the CD, it will not disappoint you unless you are already expecting disappointment. Give it a few days to sink it, it's not a clone of Fallen, think of it as a new band's debut CD, if you want to not feel prejudiced over it. Thanks for reading, hope you buy the CD and enjoy it.
  
  
• Total Trash!
  By A1MQA1KV75N8LF on 2006-10-06
  This cd is nothing like Fallen, with the exception of maybe 2 songs. The rest of it just feels like it drags on and is just one extremely long song. If you liked Fallen, don't get this cd!
  
  
• Solid album, though slicker & tamer than its predecessor
  By A1BJJVV2B5VLUQ on 2006-10-06
  THE BAND: Amy Lee (lead vocals, piano), Terry Balsamo (guitars), John LaCompt (guitars), Will Boyd (bass), Rocky Gray (drums & percussion).
  
  THE DISC: 13 tracks clocking in at just over 54 minutes. Included with the disc is a 22-page booklet with song titles/credits, song lyrics, color band photos, and thank you's. All songs and choral arrangements written by Amy Lee and/or Terry Balsamo (except "All That I'm Living For" by Lee and LaCompt). Recorded at Record Plant Studios, Los Angeles, CA. Label - Wind-Up Records.
  
  COMMENTS: "The Open Door" picks up for the most part where "Fallen" left off. However, the band's suffered a major facelift. Gone is writer/guitarist Ben Moody, keyboardist David Hodges, bassist Francesco DiCosmo, and drummer Josh Freese... all from the "Fallen" (2003) debut. You'll find the same Amy Lee soaring vocals; the same producer (Dave Fortman), the same crunchy guitars, and the same Millenium Choir out of Los Angeles. New band members include ex-Cold guitarist Balsamo. Evanescence is certainly a breath of fresh air in the world of rock/metal music. Melody is the main ingredient... with songs taking you on an extensive voyage... hitting both North and South poles - hard and crunchy verses soft and smooth. Where "Fallen" might have seemed raw and edgy, "The Open Door" is slick, polished and professional. Songs are varied, musicianship top notch and vocals beautifully unique. The first 3 tracks start off heavy (perhaps the best songs on the album... including the first hit released from the disc "Call Me When You're Sober"), followed by the best of several power ballads on the disc, "Lithium". "Cloud Nine" has a heavy beat and a chorus that's hauntingly perfect for Halloween. The 2nd half of the disc is much softer than I expected. Where the majority of "Fallen" was pretty heavy, almost half of the tracks on "The Open Door" are fairly slow - showcasing Lee's vocals and piano playing. No sophomore slump here. This is a great rock album and an instant favorite of mine in 2006 (4.5 stars).
  
  
• Huge Disappointment.
  By AOVDV6L35DQM5 on 2006-10-09
  Let me first say that I am an Evanescence fan. So it truly pains me to write this review.
  
  I can't believe this album took 3 years to make. I also cannot believe Evanescence actually wrote this album. All the songs are generic and bland. Listen, I have all the bootleg albums. I have their demo tracks. I know that even at their worst, they can do a billion times better than what we're presented with here. I get the distinct impression that this is nothing but a blob of corporate sputum branded with a name we love just to fulfil some inane contractual obligation. There is no soul. It is hollow. An abomination. I highly suggest you save your money. But, hey, if you like bland and generic, then you'll probably love this album.
  
  
• Thank you Amy...
  By A3Q1FVRV0CRYTH on 2006-10-12
  Evanescence have finally delivered a follow-up to their hugely successful debut album `Fallen'...so the question remains...'how does it stack up?' `Sweet Sacrifice' opens the album off with a bang, crushing guitars and pounding drums coupled with Amy's brilliant vocals let us all know that this is exactly what we've been waiting for. `Call Me When You're Sober' is actually a really good song, as much as I hate the title. The song is about her struggle through her relationship with Seether frontman. `Weight of the World' is a great commanding track, heavy and Amy shines here, but it can't even hold a candle to `Lithium' which is by far my favorite track here. Starting with piano and building into one of the most engaging ballads I've ever heard, Evanescence goes all out with this one. `Cloud Nine' stands out to me, starting with those great background chants that sound like they belong in a horror movie and bursting forward with crushing guitars and harsh lyrics. `Snow White Queen' is pretty decent...the versus are much better than the chorus which falls a little generic. `Lacrymosa' is another brilliant song which opens very subtle and almost eerie and then just gets better, playing on the best assets of this band and creating a mood with a masterpiece. `Like You' is a beautiful ballad that really shows off Amy's beautiful voice. `Lose Control' is one of my favorites where Amy gets a little freaky and very edgy. It's a good sound for her. `The Only One' and `Your Star' are great general Evanescence tracks, as is `All That I'm Living For' but it's the closer `Good Enough' that really gets to me. It's just so subtle and elegant, stripped down and raw and oozing forth with utter brilliance. Sophomore slump this is not, for Evanescence have returned with just as much energy and creativity they made good for on their debut. Can't wait for the next installment.
  
  
• Disappointing
  By A1L0F0ZB96Z3C7 on 2006-10-13
  I waited patiently for years and finally they put out a new album. I was a huge fan of these guys because i believed "Fallen" was a great album. When their guitarist left i thought it was a big deal because his lyrics and musical contribution itself was a big part of this band. But the guitarist of Cold, another fav band of mine, took his place. So i thought at least they found a good replacement. But when i heard the new single i was somewhat disappointed, it was okay but it still wasnt even as good as the worst song off of "Fallen". This new album is different from the last one and you can feel the emptiness in the music without the old guitarist. Even the new lyrics are somewhat repetitive. I thought about giving this album 1 star but at least it had 4 or 5 decent songs.
  
  
• Sucks, only one GOOd song!!
  By A1MF5TGUJ8M00L on 2006-10-15
  Well I hate to say it, this CD stinks it feels like one long song.
  I had really high hopes for this CD, I tried liking it but couldn't.
  
  Hmm maybe next time they'll get it right.
  
  Try Papa Roach's "The Paramour Sessions", that's an amazing album.
  
  Peace!!
  
  

• Fallen
• Anywhere But Home (w/ bonus DVD)
• Use Me
• Karmacode
• Lithium Pt. 2