EVANESCENCE’s AMY LEE Helps Create Soundtrack For Sci-Fi Short Film ‘Indigo Grey: The Passage’

Amy Lee (EVANESCENCE) and Grammy nominees Dave Eggar and Chuck Palmer, in collaboration with former “Riverdance” stars and fellow Brooklyn artists Hammerstep, have composed an original song for a brand new short film that combines sci-fi, martial arts and neo-Irish dance. “Indigo Grey: The Passage” is a seven-minute audio-visual experience that recently premiered at the 2015 Los Angeles International Short Film Festival and has so far been officially selected to screen at 14 international film festivals.

Written and produced by Hammerstep founders Garrett Coleman and Jason Oremus, “Indigo Grey: The Passage” was directed by award-winning, Brooklyn-based filmmaker Sean Robinson — who describes the short film as being about “taking risks and exploring the lines between fantasy and reality.”

“Indigo Grey: The Passage” was officially released online September 13 and can be seen below. The film is based on Hammerstep’s “Indigo Grey” — a live, immersive show experience, set to open in New York City in 2016. Stay tuned to www.hammerstep.com for more details.

Amy Lee • Evanescence

Interview with Cut Out and Keep

As Evanescene return from a massive world tour, we sit down with singer, songwriter and front-woman Amy to find out how the band got started.

“I’ve always loved music, since before I can remember” explains Amy, who’s haunting vocals has been leading rock band Evanescence for the past twelve years. “My dad was a DJ and radio station program director as well as a musician, so there has always been a lot of music in my life. The moment that I decided that I wanted to make music for a living came when I was about 9, after seeing the movie “Amadeus.” Mozart’s music really inspired me and I wanted to be a composer. And yeah, I have always been creative, I feel best when I’m making something. Anything!”

“I have always been creative, I feel best when I’m making something. Anything!”

The band formed in Little Rock, Arkansas when Amy met former lead guitarist Ben Moody at youth camp. “It’s not a big town, and especially when you’re under age there is not much to do there, so we made our own fun. The bands and music I was most inspired by didn’t usually come through town, so I was listening to it in my room, in my car, and on my headphones at school. Mostly, we made our own music and spent all our free time creating. You can start a band anywhere but I think small towns breed a lot of good music because there are less distractions, so you have to be creative.”

“I think small towns breed a lot of good music because there are less distractions, so you have to be creative.”

Naming Tori Amos, Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode, Michael Jackson, Portishead, Radiohead, Soundgarden, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Bjork, Mozart, Beethoven, Pink Floyd, Danny Elfman, and so many more among her influences, we were curious about her song-writing process. “I dig deep for whatever is going on inside me. When we’re writing a song, lyrics usually start out as stream of consciousness – just random words and syllables as I work on the melodies, and I often find meaningful thoughts that give me a starting point for what the song is about. Musically, I like to just sit at the piano and play until I find something. Also, a lot of the time, I’ll sit in my studio and play with beats and sounds and then build the music on top of that.”

Amy became the American chairperson for Out of the Shadows, the international epilepsy awareness foundation in 2006. “I want to help bring Epilepsy to light. It affects 50 million people worldwide and it’s still very misunderstood. People who have seizures shouldn’t feel like they have to keep it a secret or be afraid of people looking at them differently because they don’t understand. I’ve worked a little with the Epilepsy Foundation to get information out there especially to young people, and that is the goal of the Out of the Shadows campaign.”

Amy Lee

Evanescence Singer Amy Lee Wins Rock Goddess of the Year in the 2012 Loudwire Music Awards

After narrowly losing out to Sharon den Adel of Within Tempation in the 2011 Rock Goddess of the Year competition, Evanescence siren Amy Lee earned the honor in the 2012 Loudwire Music Awards — thanks to overwhelming support from her devoted fans.

Lee took the lead right from the beginning and never trailed throughout the voting process. With 45.76 percent of the vote, the Evanescence singer garnered nearly half of the tens of thousands of votes that were cast in this category.

The race really turned out to be for second place with Halestorm’s Lzzy Hale edging out In This Moment’s Maria Brink and Lacuna Coil’s Cristina Scabbie for the runner-up position.

We’d like to congratulate Amy Lee on her victory and officially name her Rock Goddess of the Year! See the full results below and click the red button for the next winner:

Read More: Evanescence Singer Amy Lee Wins Rock Goddess of the Year in the 2012 Loudwire Music Awards | https://loudwire.com/evanescence-singer-amy-lee-rock-goddess-of-the-year-2012-loudwire-music-awards/?utm_source=tsmclip&utm_medium=referral

Amy Lee

Get to know Amy Lee!

Want to know more about Evanescence’s leading lady Amy Lee? Amy sat down to answer some of your questions and tell you more about her music. Read on to see what she has to say then check out the tour dates HERE to see when you can see Amy Lee in a town near you. Also, make sure to follow Amy on Twitter HERE.

1. Who do you consider to be your greatest musical influences? Michael Jackson, Bjork, Nine Inch Nails, Mozart, Beethoven, Danny Elfman, Smashing Pumpkins, Depeche Mode, Janis Joplin, Alanis Morrisette, Radiohead, Garbage, Soundgarden, Massive Attack, Nirvana, Neil Young, Portishead, Tori Amos. I could keep going but I’ll stop 😉

2. Why did you pick piano and how did you get started playing? I saw the movie Amadeus when I was 8 or 9 years old and was completely enthralled. I knew I wanted desperately to make music, for a living, for life, for sure. I begged for piano lessons and took pride in being able to play more and more advanced pieces. It’s funny, at first I was kind of frustrated and hard on myself because it wasn’t sounding like it did in the movie- I wasn’t a crazy genius who could just pick a whole song out by ear after hearing it only once and I don’t have perfect pitch like Mozart- WTF! It actually takes WORK?? Haha. So I worked. It was worth it.

3. What’s your latest art or fashion project? I guess my latest art project is my new stage outfit that I designed for this tour. It’s a skirt made of flags, representing all of the countries we’ve been so honored to play in the last year on tour. I was flying home from Europe a few months ago and thinking about how every night on stage in other countries, it’s so emotional when we bring out the country’s flag. It means so much to them and to us, that we’ve made it so far. So I thought, what if I could have ALL of the countries represented at once, and show them how much we appreciate and love them all on this last part of the tour? It’s my way of showing my gratitude.

4. What are your must haves from home when you are out on the road? Vicks Vapo-Rub, GLITTER, one perfect pair of all-purpose boots, throat coat tea bags, my lucky Michael Jackson T-shirt, and Beth Wilson!

5. What song do you wish you had written? Without You’ by Pete Ham and Tom Evans. Not only is it one of my favorite songs (especially the Mariah Carey version!), it’s been covered by 180 artists and has touched an infinite number of people. Such soul.

Evanescence

“My Immortal” on So You Think You Can Dance’s finale TONIGHT!

Hey guys – we have some pretty exciting news for you! On tonight’s finale of FOX’s “So You Think You Can Dance”, our song, “My Immortal” will play! Tune in on FOX at 8/7c!

Evanescence

Carnival of Madness wrap-up + Upcoming South America tour!

We spent the last couple months performing in the Carnival of Madness Tour with fellow rockers Chevelle, Hailstorm, and New Medicine! The tour traveled to over 24 cities, hitting up Boston, Atlanta, El Paso, Chicago, and Milwaukee, just to name a few. The tour kicked off on July 31st, and just wrapped up last week!

And after all that, we only have a couple weeks to rest up, because the Evanescence South American headlining tour begins on October 4th in Porto Algegre, Brazil! If you haven’t already, head over to the

Evanescence

Evanescence Didn’t “Disappear Like a Vapor” After All

With a name that means “disappearing like a vapor,” Evanescence, it seems, almost begged to enact its name and fade into the night, especially after the heavy, consistent dosage of drama that plagued the band from almost day one. Five years have passed since the last Evanescence record came out, which gave fans, media, and critics plenty of time to create a cloud of rumors about break-ups and solo projects, but the band is more “truly a band now than ever before,” frontwoman Amy Lee proclaims. The band’s new album, simply self-titled, “Evanescence,” will hit stores in the U.S. October 11, 2011.

Evanescence Boots Steve Lillywhite

This new body of work comes only after a long, personal journey for the band, especially Amy Lee. She told SPIN back in 2008 that she was trying to break into movie scoring and that she was writing new music on her own that was “nothing [she] would categorize as Evanescence.” As of March 2010, Lee remarked that she had realized that “Evanescence is who I am,” and the band was supposedly headed in an “electro-pop” direction with producer Steve Lillywhite (U2, Dave Matthews, Rolling Stones) for the new record—a pretty risky change for a band that built global fame with gothic hard rock. Some rumors assert that Wind-Up Records, the band’s label, rejected the Lillywhite recordings with a request for the band to produce music more akin to their signature sound, while other rumors attribute the split with Lillywhite to financial issues for Wind-Up and the producer’s inability to pull the record together in a timely fashion.

An article from Billboard magazine indicated that going back to square one in recording this record was Lee’s decision, though the remarks the magazine quotes from the label’s president are a bit more ambiguous: “One thing we do at Wind-up is, we’re patient. It [sic] it’s not right, it’s not coming out,” Wind-Up Records president Ed Vetri states. “If it takes a year or four years, [we’re] going to take the time it needs to write the right record.” (http://www.billboard.com/#/news/amy-lee-new-evanescence-album-is-much-more-1005230332.story)

Lee commented officially to Rolling Stone: “I’ve come to realize now I was making like a solo record, and if it was going to be an Evanescence record, we needed to come together and make it like a band.” Even though interviews back in March of 2010 indicated she had really found herself in the sessions with Lillywhite and with producer/programmer Will “Science” Hunt—not the same Will Hunt as is currently the drummer, by the way—Lee says things are panning out in a more cohesive way now: “That was a hard time for me. I thought I knew what I wanted and it sort of didn’t happen like I wanted it to…But I have to say I feel so strong about what we’re doing now…We still have some of the same songs from those sessions but we’ve made them about the band.” Continue reading

Amy Lee • Evanescence

Evanescence Reveal Details of Risky New Album

It’s been four years since Evanescence have released a record, during which time the band has been plagued by in-fighting and lineup changes, with original members John LeCompy, Rocky Gray, and Ben Moody all leaving.

But Amy Lee is getting back on track and the new lineup is set to release an album later this fall, with U2 and Rolling Stones producer Steve Lillywhite at the helm.

In an interview with Radio Metal (via Blabbermouth), drummer Will Hunt said Lee is taking “real big risks” with the new material. “Honestly, I think it’s amazing,” he said.

Still, Hunt said the new album won’t stray too far from the band’s dark, dramatic goth-rock sound. “It’s always going to sound like Evanescence, ’cause it’s Amy Lee singing, but the vehicle for that voice can be different and still be Evanescence,” he said.

Hunt added that the band has experimented with electronic textures. “There are new colors in the pattern,” he said. “There’s a lot of cool new things going on, both electronically and futuristically. I think she’s doing something that’s very special and hasn’t been done before. I’m a supporter. I think it’s killer.”

Back in March, SPIN caught up with Lee to talk about the early stages of the record, where the singer revealed that the new songs “are a rainbow of sounds.” “There are moments that are amazingly heavy,” Lee said. “But then there are moments that are completely stripped down.” Check out the interview here.

Evanescence

Evanescence Drummer Says New Songs Are ‘Amazing’

Radio Metal recently conducted an interview with EVANESCENCE/BLACK LABEL SOCIETY drummer Will Hunt. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Radio Metal: You may have followed attentively the tensions between [EVANESCENCE singer] Amy Lee and [former EVANESCENCE and current WE ARE THE FALLEN guitarist] Ben Moody. I imagine you’ve read Ben Moody’s recent press release explaining his feelings about the creation of WE ARE THE FALLEN and his departure from EVANESCENCE. What do you think of it?

Hunt: I try not to get involved with that stuff. A very good friend of mine I played with in Tommy Lee’s band, Marty O’Brien, plays in WE ARE THE FALLEN. When we talk to each other, we don’t even talk about EVANESCENCE or WE ARE THE FALLEN. We talk about other things. On one hand, I have to agree with the fact that EVANESCENCE is EVANESCENCE, Amy Lee is Amy Lee, and it’s always gonna be that way. The other thing that I agree with is that Ben was a huge part in creating that sound with Amy. He said something in this statement that I agree with: people can accuse him of ripping EVANESCENCE off, but when they do that, they’re accusing him of ripping himself off, because he was a huge part of that. I don’t know if I fully agree with him saying that he didn’t put WE ARE THE FALLEN together to be in direct competition with EVANESCENCE. If he didn’t, I don’t think he would’ve ended up with a singer that looks and sounds like Amy Lee. But I’m not here to judge either camp. I love Amy to death, she’s a great person, and I only know about that. I don’t pass judgment on anybody.

Radio Metal: What is your actual role in EVANESCENCE? At the beginning, you only played drums during gigs. What’s your role in the band now?

Hunt: I’m the drummer, and I can write songs as well. We’ve been in the studio, and I’ve brought in a couple of guitar riffs that have become songs. Lately, in the last few months, there’s been a real band dynamics. It’s kind of a band situation right now.

Radio Metal: Do you have any new information about the release of the album?

Hunt: All I can say is that Amy’s a very hard worker. She’s very critical of herself. It’s important to her that the album is up to her expectations first and foremost. She’s gonna take as long as she wants to take doing it. As a fan and a bandmember, I wish things were a little quicker, but at the end of the day, I totally respect how she wants to do this. And I understand, because it’s a very important and critical album for EVANESCENCE, so it has to be exactly right. I know why she’s taking her time on it. It will be ready when it’s ready.

Radio Metal: Do you share Amy’s extreme enthusiasm for the new compositions? She describes them as “the best EVANESCENCE compositions since the beginning of the band.” What do you think of the new songs?

Hunt: Honestly, I think it’s amazing. I think she’s taken some real big risks. As artists, I think it’s important that we challenge ourselves to find new ground. If you look at any band in history who’s done really well, they continue to reinvent themselves and be relevant. It’s always going to sound like EVANESCENCE, ’cause it’s Amy Lee singing, but the vehicle for that voice can be different and still be EVANESCENCE. I think people are gonna be pleasantly surprised, because all the really cool elements, the things people love about the EVANESCENCE of the past are still there. But there are new colors in the pattern. There’s a lot of cool new things going on, both electronically and futuristically. I think she’s doing something that’s very special and hasn’t been done before. I’m a supporter, I think it’s killer. It’s really good.

Read the entire interview from Radio Metal

Source RoadRunnerRecords.com

Evanescence

Evanescence is Back Artist Direct Interview

Evanescence will be taking over 2010 with their highly anticipated third studio album due for late August/early September release date. Front woman, Amy Lee confirmed that Evanescence will be entering the studio this week to begin work on their third album with Grammy Award Winning producer Steve Lillywhite.

One of the coolest things I ever saw at a Disney event was when Lee took the stage at Nightmare Before X-Mas 3-D at Hollywood’s El Capitan theater two Halloweens ago for an entrancing, engaging and endlessly awesome rendition of “Sally’s Song” from Nightmare Revisited. She’s grown immensely as a vocalist, and this new album promises to be one of the most important rock records of the year.

“I can’t expain how excited I am to make this record,” said Amy Lee. “Over the past year and a half these songs have become the center of my life, and I can’t wait to hear what they grow into in the studio. I think our sound is evolving into something that will surprise people, in a very good way. I feel, as always, that growth can be an incredible, limitless thing if you let it. I never want to make the same album twice.”

The band, famous for hits like “Bring Me to Life”, “My Immortal,” “Going Under” and “Call Me When You’re Sober”, promises to stay true to the core Evanescence sound while integrating additional new sounds to create “another world.” The music’s core, which ranges from whisper- soft to painfully aggressive spans sounds of rock, goth and classical, led by Lee’s passionate vocals.

Evanescence is founder Amy Lee on vocals, piano, keyboards and harp; Terry Balsamo on guitar; Tim McCord on bass; Will Hunt on drums; and new collaborator Will “Science”, who will provide programming and drums, as well as additional production.

Evanescence has sold nearly 20 million records worldwide, more than 8 million in the U.S. alone, and won two Grammys® with their major-label debut Fallen, and a Grammy® nomination with their second album, The Open Door. READ MORE