“You drain the life out of me ’til I don’t know myself.“
There are very few acts left in the alternative, emo and metal adjacent scene who are as iconic as Evanescence. Their debut record Fallen put them in the global spotlight. Those who were plugged in at the time will no doubt remember their appearance on the UK’s Top Of The Pops and regular radio plays across the air waves, and perhaps even been among those who purchased the CD at the record shops. There is a sense that much of Evanescence‘s appeal is tied up with a nostalgia of this time, when the emo/alternative genre and aesthetic was breaking through. Yet upon revisiting Fallen, and the follow-up in the gothic leaning The Open Door, still hold up remarkably well for records that are now two decades on since their initial release.
Since then, it’s been somewhat murky waters for the iconic band. A self-titled that led into a hiatus, plus two records experimenting in hard-rock and alternative metal which failed to make any noteworthy impression. Yet a trickle of activity began to allow Evanescence to become a true force again. Exchanges of compliments between Amy Lee and Courtney LaPante of Spiritbox lead to much speculation that the teased feature on Eternal Blue would be Lee herself, yet was ultimately filled by Sam Carter on “Yellowjacket“. This alongside the popularity of Poppy, who has experimented with every metal and rock sound possible, seemingly sparked something with Amy Lee and Evanescence. That collaboration, “End Of You“, is one of the greatest PR pieces within the genre, the concept of which does make the skin crawl. It’s difficult not to see Evanescence reinvigorating their original sound as they have on Sanctuary without it. And while there are evident issues across the record with songwriting and production, we now see Evanescence in their strongest position since 2006.
As was shown with lead single, “Who Will Follow You“, the course correction becomes immediately evident on “Beautiful Lie“. The grandiose chorus and backing keys are the Evanescence of old, digging in the hooks early on of “I don’t want to live a lie, living on a beautiful lie“. There are more moments where the songwriting and Lee‘s vocal ability come together that allow Evanescence to shine as bright as they have before. On the title track, there is power in Lee as she takes a pointed stance on the current state of things, akin to what Lamb of God did earlier this year. When the track “Self-Destruct” kicks in, the full force of Lee‘s vocal ability feels like a throwback to the potency of the likes of “Going Under“. Lee remains one of the most impressive vocalists present in the alternative space. As the strings enter on the latter half “Self-Destruct“, it brings a return to otherworldly sense that Evanescence could conjure – surely it will be one that the old heads will come to adore.
As one could expect, there are a fair few moments that simply don’t work. The earliest example of this is “Rapture“, leaning into the electronic and pop-esque world that many bands have taken root with. The synths and the glitchy electronic just feel completely obtuse, and while it’s not the first time they have experimented with such things, it takes it down a route that disrupts the flow of Sanctuary. The absolute dregs of this, not to use that lightly, comes on “About Us“. The line of “Daddy’s got a gun“, followed by a gun shot sample, is possibly one of the worst sounding things conceived this year. The fact that this moment was not immediately cut is astonishing, given the fact the rest of “About Us” is a perfectly solid track. It’s another song that does bring the songwriting in scope, as does the following track “Calm Down” which slows down the record again for more electronics.
Book-ending these comes “How Do I Deal” and “Forever Without You“, two tracks that invoke the infamous style of “Immortal“. These are tracks where Amy Lee is pictured in isolation and her ability as a pianist is still untouchable. The journalistic manner of these tracks gives them heart which was perhaps missing on other tracks. Lee‘s ability to hit the operatic notes and her expansive style always be something to behold. It’s a grandiose atmosphere will always be something that only Evanescence can do. The pacing and stark variation of styles does make these two tracks somewhat feel out of tempo, despite their quality.
There isn’t one single thread that seems to weave Sanctuary together. One moment there’s booming synths, in the next it’s strings and epic choruses, and then come isolated vocals and piano keys. Taken outside of Sanctuary, all of these tracks may impress in some way, yet the ideas do feel to scattered and do not make for a coherent album.
Then there is the elephant in the room among this, now that has Evanescence has collaborated with the increasingly controversial Jordan Fish. After his work on the aforementioned Poppy‘s record, Empty Hands, Fish is under more scrutiny than ever. Truthfully, it’s difficult not to see this collaboration as a misstep. Given the gem that is Amy Lee on vocals, the instrumentals are often too loud, not giving prominence to her vocal ability. Much of what made Evanescence special was the sense of the tracks being haunted. However, the emotional unease that was present in the likes of “Hello” is just lost by the cinematic atmosphere that Sanctuary‘s production brings.
Ultimately, Sanctuary feels like a foray into a new world that without managing to write along its dotted lines. There are some grand moments here in the likes of “Self-Destruct“, “How Do I Heal” and “Beautiful Lie” that will stand as the best work in this new era of Evanescence. Yet for each of the grand moments, there’s an obtuse electronic track, or incoherence to Sanctuary that disrupts its flow. Despite this, it’s warming to see Evanescence looking to return to this sound and territory. Fixes around songwriting and, ultimately, who produces the record, could next time see Evanescence a record that rivals Fallen after all these years.
