Creatively, its stepping in the right direction and I do hope that is outdoes Fallen commercially also. All in all, the album is the greatest material ever produced by the band. However cynical this will make me sound, 'Swimming Home' is just too. Lost In Paradise is too chaotic to be considered in the same slow, enchanting form as the aforementioned two songs. The only thing it misses is a deeply emotional song like My Immortal or Good Enough. Its understandable how some would find 'Evanescence' to be a bland album as it does seem to be an album sat firmly in between Fallen and The Open Door but largely the experimentation and Origin influences stop it from being a complete deadweight. How she plans to replicate the vocals on the album in a live show is anyones guess but her voice is beautiful, powerful and emotive all at once. Vocally, Lee takes it to a new level here. Originally, I thought it was bland and uninteresting but the more I listened to it, the more I started to appreciate the music. It did take a while for the album to 'grow' on me. Its a really great album! Its big, dramatic, epic and carries Evanescence to new heights. There are occasional glimpses of Origin in the album and they experiment with new sounds without straying too far from their trademark 'Evanescence' soul. Amy Lee's stepping back here to somewhere that seems to be between Fallen and the Open Door which is no bad thing. Although The Open Door wasn't a complete failure, it derailed Evanescence's sound a little. This is the album I was expecting Evanescence to make after Fallen became a worldwide hit. Sometimes you just have to go back to go forward.
Beautiful album, beautiful music, welcome back Evanescence! … Expand
This album is a critical show of top notch musicianship and every artist who's "remaking" themselves would do well to take a page from this book.
God knows how she managed to improve her already amazing voice, but she did it. The vocals will blow you away like the didn't in the last 2 albums. If it were possible for Amy Lee to sing any better, she just topped herself with this album. This album has great flavor and really moves the body and soul. Amy Lee and company has proved that their style is positively authentic, powerful, and unwavering. Some artists, as they grow with their music, alter their style and lose their identity. Some artists, as they grow Mature, well written, well-composed are just 3 of the top terms that come to mind when listening to this album. Mature, well written, well-composed are just 3 of the top terms that come to mind when listening to this album.