Song of the Week (V.2 Thread)

[Kazlan]

Lose Control was a little too... much for my high school mind when TOD was first released, and for the longest time I just didn't get the song. It unnerved me a little, and I skipped it quite a lot. Of course, like all of the songs on TOD, I grew a little as a person and suddenly I could hear LC for what it really is: a masterpiece.

LC has luscious backing vocals, like much of TOD, and they really help create the almost eerie atmosphere of the verses. I love that the piano just tinkles its way through the verses. I think that the chorus is perhaps one of the heaviest on TOD, even if it is a brief moment in the song. The way the song ends, however, is what I really love about it. More delicious backing vocals, and such a climactic outro... Often, this song leaves me with shivers from its awesome.

[Psypher]

I love Lose Control! That video of it live was my first Evanescence concert. Such an awesome opener...I can also play this one on the piano.

[RapturedLight]

Aug 7, 2013 21:38:29 GMT -6 Psypher said:

I love Lose Control! That video of it live was my first Evanescence concert. Such an awesome opener...I can also play this one on the piano.

Awesome! I can't believe I forgot how cool that song was as an opener. It'd be cool to see this one on the setlist again with the curtain dropping. Very cool

[Worm Baby]

Oh yay, more people are posting in here! It doesn't feel so lonely now.

Ahhh, you've picked one of my absolute favorite Ev songs ever! "Lose Control" is my 3rd favorite, after "Like You" and "BNM (demo)" respectively. I think it's one of the best songs they've ever made, and by far their most experimental. This song is like the pinnacle of that whole creative and free vibe that Amy had while making TOD. I need them to make more songs like this! I didn't realize I haven't listened to this song in a while, so it was great to reconnect with its awesomeness this week.

I can still so clearly remember my first time listening to this song. All the prior songs on TOD had already blown me away with how amazing and new and creative they all sounded. But when this song came on and especially when the chorus kicked in, I was FLOORED. It was so unexpected! I was amazed that they could still surprise me like that at that point in the album.

Where do I even begin with all the awesomeness of this song? Every single thing about it is seriously perfect to me!

I guess I'll start by saying that I absolutely love how sexy this song is. That quality alone really separates it from almost everything else in Ev's catalog. The groove created by the trip-hop beats and bass really lay the foundation for that sensual mood, and the contrast of the dark, atmospheric sounds and innocent, tinkering piano give that sensuality a whole different twist. Then when the chorus kicks in, it really evokes the sense of letting lose, going wild, losing control. It's like the verses build up to that eventual release. The sliding of the guitar chords and those wailing notes are so surprisingly sexy. I also adore the guitar in the 2nd verse! It kind of mimics the innocent lullaby quality of the piano, but has a dark, sensual touch.

And then there's Amy's vocals! I was shocked by how sexual her vocal performance is in this song! I love those whispery vocals, her growling during the chorus, that perfect vocal filter used in parts, her seductive, ethereal backing vocals throughout the whole song, and those moans during the bridge. She has so much variety in this song, and I love that. There are times in other songs when I think her singing can get a little one-dimensional, but this song is a perfect example of just how versatile she can be with her voice. And oh my gosh, while listening to an instrumental version, I just rediscovered a little giggle thrown in during the 2nd verse! That is so awesome.

I feel like this song is a rarer occurrence of the music and lyrics being a perfect reflection of each other. The reference to the nursery rhyme goes hand in hand with the innocence of the piano. And the chorus perfectly captures that feeling of letting lose that the lyrics describe. My favorite lines are definitely the 2nd verse. I love how playful and clever they are. And very deliciously sinful.

One of my favorite parts of the song is the bridge. That deep, churning beat; the light, rhythmic chiming; Amy's chorus of moans and whispering vocals. It's just such a cool moment. It also immediately reminded me of Bjork. Amy had always talked about Bjork being one of her biggest influences, but this was the first time I could clearly hear it in a song.

So in conclusion, this will probably always be one of the best Ev songs ever to me! I'm so sad that I'll probably never get to see them play it live. Just from watching videos, it looked like this was such a badass, epic opening song, with the curtain drop and lighting. And I'm really sad that we don't at least have a really great quality recording of it. I'll just keep praying that they'll one day remember how amazing this song is and decide to bring it back.

[Ring]

Your essays are always a good read Worm Baby, but now it's time for a new Song of the Week.

[RapturedLight]

*screams* I LOVE Listen to the Rain! It's so pretty! I'm not a big fan of whispering in choral music, but it's so effective here. There's really nothing I don't like about this song. The lyrics are very nice, and I really love the vocal harmonies; I can definitely see Amy's classical influences here. I find myself switching between the alto and soprano parts when I sing it; both are very beautiful. Right now as I listen, this is the first time I've really paid specific attention to the guys' part (due to many years in choir on different parts, my ears are trained to hear female vocal harmonies), but now I see that their part is lovely as well. But my favorite section of the song: "Hurry, they say for you haven't much time" to the end - just perfection. Warms my heart.

This is a recording of her high school choir, yes? I wonder what it'd sound like with different choirs, different vocal blends... Amy needs to get the sheet music published so Ev fans can beg their directors to let them do it XD

[Worm Baby]

Well, I guess it had to happen at some point. A song that I'm not a fan of! Haha. But I like the challenge of trying to find the positives in it.

For one, I really love the sounds of the rain at the beginning, as I do in "Eternal" as well. It's just such a great effect in general. Maybe that's just because I adore rainy weather so much. But it always sets such a lovely mood.

To be completely honest, before this week, I'd probably only listened to this song all the way through a couple of times. Choir music like this just isn't my cup of tea. But listening to it this week, the piano started standing out to me. So I wanted to see if anyone had made a version with the choir stripped out, like when people remove Amy's vocals from songs. I ended up listening to a fan-made piano cover and it made me realize that this song is actually really beautiful. I could just never get past the choir. But it brought out all the gorgeous melodies in the song that I couldn't hear before. I particularly love those big, dramatic piano notes that start about 13 seconds in. It kinda reminds me of Chopin. Very beautiful. I also listened to some fan vocal covers that were great as well. I guess I'm just not a fan of Ev's recording! But I'm happy to say that after 10 years, I can finally appreciate this song.

[Ring]

New song of the week :D

[LithiumGoingUnder]

Sweet Sacrifice is one of my favorite singles I love everything about this song...the lyrics,the verses,the bridge and the chorus are all amazing.

[acoustic_ev]

I've been missing out on this thread

I absolutely love Sweet Sacrifice. I think it was the perfect choice to open TOD and it opens the record in traditional Ev fashion..."heavier than ususal" would be how I would describe it. Also the video is really rad!

[RapturedLight]

Sweet Sacrifice is fabulous! Loved it right away, and still love it today. The lyrics are fantastic and I love the way Amy conveys the emotion in the chorus. Plus, its video is one of my favorite music videos EVER, and I really liked it live. What's not to love?

[Worm Baby]

"Sweet Sacrifice" is the perfect album opener for TOD. I remember just being speechless on the first listen. I couldn't believe this was the same band! But after you finish listening to the whole album, you realize it's the perfect song to open with. It showed their new direction, while also retaining some of the familiarity of Fallen. I think even the intro kind of recalls the beginning of "Going Under", and certainly the theme of that song, but from a stronger perspective.

I love how it starts off so quietly, with just a simple, muffled guitar riff and Amy's hushed vocals. And then it has that little burst that I think perfectly matches the lyrics at that part: "But it's so clear now that I'm unchained." Everything actually becomes clearer in sound and increases in strength. And it just keeps building up, becoming more free and chaotic before slamming into the chorus.

This song has some really awesome industrial sounds happening all throughout. Absolutely love it! I'm really happy that we got an instrumental of this song so I can hear all the little background noises more clearly. There are also some really nice guitar parts. I love that beautiful melody they play during the pre-chorus and the high, atmospheric guitar sounds that follow. I also love the riffs during the bridge. It took me a long time to really notice it, but it's great and gives this awesome intensity to that part. I also like how prominent the bass is during the second verse and following pre-chorus - it's got a great groove. And the strings during the bridge are so gorgeous! The bridge and pre-chorus are overall my favorite parts of the song.

The lyrics are also fantastic! I love how vengeful and unforgiving they are. I loved seeing Amy be fearless in her writing on this album. And this song has one of the coolest parts ever during the bridge. I absolutely love the whole "I dream in darkness..." lines. Those are amongst my favorite Ev lyrics. It just all sounds so awesome. The combination of the words, the way she speaks them, the drama of the music: it's perfect!

And then of course, this song also has a kickass video! It has such awesome dark and creepy visuals. It really matches the anger and chaos of the song.

This song may not have had much impact or success on radio, but I'm really happy it got some recognition at the Grammy's. Such a nice and very unexpected surprise!

[Ring]

Another old one, and not one I like. Let's see if I'll have anything nice to say about it in the week!

[lostindarkparadise]

Yay, October! I love this song. It reminds me of autumn and it's got such a Halloween-y feel to it. I'm a Christian and this relates to my relationship with God. Honestly, one of my favorite songs by Ev.

[LithiumGoingUnder]

I don't like October so much either.I guess it's because of the chorus but the rest of the song is pretty nice.