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Post by ginjaninja3716 on Nov 12, 2017 17:09:35 GMT -5
Lol, I'm gay and I can't stand Taylor Swift. My best friend is a pop music enthusiast, though does like some Evanescence here and there. On release day, he went to a store and bought both Taylor Swift's new album and Synthesis. He and I then had the following conversation, inspired by a tweet someone (wish I could remember who) wrote integrating T. Swift lyrics into our Synthesis excitement: Me: So have you listened to Synthesis yet? Him: Not yet, just Taylor so far. Me: AHEM. Him: Rachel, I'm gay. Me: I get that. But we were not junior captains. We were on the bleachers. AND KIDS ON THE BLEACHERS LISTEN TO EVANESCENCE. But anyway he seemed to like Synthesis. He was really pleased that Amy didn't overhype this kind of project and we got exactly what she said we'd get: Part classical, part electronic reworkings.
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Post by mydnyghtamethyst on Nov 12, 2017 17:11:53 GMT -5
Favorites so far are Imaginary (my favorite on Fallen for a long time) and Your Star (my least favorite when TOD first came out. Took me a long time to get into it)
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TDS
Baron/Baroness of EvThreads
Posts: 319
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Post by TDS on Nov 12, 2017 17:27:59 GMT -5
I think what surprised me the most is the vocals. There is much less of that intricate, background work that I've come to expect from Amy for many of the songs - and you do get that feeling as someone has said above that it's been recorded almost to reflect a true, live vocal. For just this one project, I think it was an interesting choice. In Lithium, there are interesting (lovely) background vocals. I understand the interest of raw vocals, but it didn't work for me on My Immortal. She did some live performances that were better than what they recorded. Also, sometimes her pronounciation is a little bit weird to my ears. Overall I like the album and was really surprised with how beautiful the arrangements are. Maybe the negative point, imo, is when you listen to it from beginning to end, the songs are all slower and it feel like everything is "dragging" (for lack of a better word). Imperfection breaks it at the end, but I think more dynamics in terms of pace would have been great.
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Post by RapturedLight on Nov 12, 2017 18:02:36 GMT -5
Lol, I'm gay and I can't stand Taylor Swift. She was one of the artists he pretended not to like when he was still trying to put on a straight persona because she's pretty girly. XD That's why he put it that way. To me, she's one of those people I don't mind but the hype annoys the crap out of me for some reason. From a sales perspective though, I think Synthesis is doing pretty damn well. I mean, it's really awesome when Evanescence performs well on the charts because they're a female-fronted rock band and not a Top 40 cliche. But... this is a highly experimental electronic/classical mashup. This is so anti-Top 40 and it isn't even rock, which is the usual anti-Top 40 comparison. I didn't realize that so many rock and metal fans outside of the core fanbase would be on board, but they actually seem to understand and appreciate it. Even my pop-loving BFF likes it well enough. I really wish that record labels *cough*like Wind-up*cough* will look at this and take some notes. Creative risks are worth it.
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Post by ginjaninja3716 on Nov 12, 2017 19:19:20 GMT -5
Haha, I got ya. I just get tired of seeing how Taylor Swift or Demi Lovato or Carly Rae Jepsen or Selena Gomez as some sort of "Gay Messiah" and, while I'll admit that some of their music is OK, I don't think they're all THAT great. I honestly feel that every time Taylor Swift is mentioned in a headline it's a personal attack on me. Lol, I'm gay and I can't stand Taylor Swift. She was one of the artists he pretended not to like when he was still trying to put on a straight persona because she's pretty girly. XD That's why he put it that way. To me, she's one of those people I don't mind but the hype annoys the crap out of me for some reason. From a sales perspective though, I think Synthesis is doing pretty damn well. I mean, it's really awesome when Evanescence performs well on the charts because they're a female-fronted rock band and not a Top 40 cliche. But... this is a highly experimental electronic/classical mashup. This is so anti-Top 40 and it isn't even rock, which is the usual anti-Top 40 comparison. I didn't realize that so many rock and metal fans outside of the core fanbase would be on board, but they actually seem to understand and appreciate it. Even my pop-loving BFF likes it well enough. I really wish that record labels *cough*like Wind-up*cough* will look at this and take some notes. Creative risks are worth it.
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The Reaper
Baron/Baroness of EvThreads
Old School Evboarder, Evthreader, Fan since 2002.
Posts: 117
Gender: Male
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Post by The Reaper on Nov 12, 2017 19:28:35 GMT -5
Never Go Back, Lacrymosa and End of the Dream are currently my favourites on Synthesis. My neighbours are probably getting really annoyed with me singing "Blame it on meeeeee!" every few seconds. I really like what they've done with My Heart is Broken. It was one of my favourites when self-titled was released back in 2011, but since then it's gotten a bit boring. The new version has reinvigorated it for me. The bridge is much better now with just the piano and no vocals. But Taylor DID sit on the bleachers! I am going back in forth from Synthesis and reputation.
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Post by fatality789 on Nov 12, 2017 19:43:08 GMT -5
Lol, I'm gay and I can't stand Taylor Swift. She was one of the artists he pretended not to like when he was still trying to put on a straight persona because she's pretty girly. XD That's why he put it that way. To me, she's one of those people I don't mind but the hype annoys the crap out of me for some reason. From a sales perspective though, I think Synthesis is doing pretty damn well. I mean, it's really awesome when Evanescence performs well on the charts because they're a female-fronted rock band and not a Top 40 cliche. But... this is a highly experimental electronic/classical mashup. This is so anti-Top 40 and it isn't even rock, which is the usual anti-Top 40 comparison. I didn't realize that so many rock and metal fans outside of the core fanbase would be on board, but they actually seem to understand and appreciate it. Even my pop-loving BFF likes it well enough. I really wish that record labels *cough*like Wind-up*cough* will look at this and take some notes. Creative risks are worth it. I just checked the German iTunes and it's on #5, which is a very nice surprise! #1 is Tay Tay of course.
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The Reaper
Baron/Baroness of EvThreads
Old School Evboarder, Evthreader, Fan since 2002.
Posts: 117
Gender: Male
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Post by The Reaper on Nov 12, 2017 19:45:14 GMT -5
I haven't gotten the physical copy yet...can someone tell me if there is a booklet? Anyone have scans ?
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Post by kinginthenorth on Nov 12, 2017 20:00:17 GMT -5
Lol, I'm gay and I can't stand Taylor Swift. She was one of the artists he pretended not to like when he was still trying to put on a straight persona because she's pretty girly. XD That's why he put it that way. To me, she's one of those people I don't mind but the hype annoys the crap out of me for some reason. From a sales perspective though, I think Synthesis is doing pretty damn well. I mean, it's really awesome when Evanescence performs well on the charts because they're a female-fronted rock band and not a Top 40 cliche. But... this is a highly experimental electronic/classical mashup. This is so anti-Top 40 and it isn't even rock, which is the usual anti-Top 40 comparison. I didn't realize that so many rock and metal fans outside of the core fanbase would be on board, but they actually seem to understand and appreciate it. Even my pop-loving BFF likes it well enough. I really wish that record labels *cough*like Wind-up*cough* will look at this and take some notes. Creative risks are worth it. The problem is that record companies, like all companies, exist to make money. Investors are more likely to invest in a company that has a guaranteed way to make money than a company whose money-making plan hinges on a creative risk that may or not make money. The only time they are likely to approve a creative risk is if they think that the creative risk is likely to make much more money than the risk-free route. We're seeing the same kind of risk-averse perspective in other areas of culture and media like cinema and video-games now. Mainstream creations backed by large companies are likely to have been based on earlier creations that made lots of money. Creatives that are passionate about their art and want to try something different are more likely to go independent and raise their own funding, which has led to the increased use of crowdfunding over the last few years. Personally, I think this has led to the homogenisation of popular culture over the last decade or so. Also, I'm gay and don't like Taylor Swift, probably because I've read articles trying to make out that she's some LGBT and feminist spokeperson. I love some Britney (circa 2003 - 2007) though.
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dekker87
Baron/Baroness of EvThreads
Posts: 109
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Post by dekker87 on Nov 12, 2017 20:04:34 GMT -5
Amy has always been my "Britney"/"Demi"/"Taylor". But I can appreciate all music. All my friends are so surprised that a gay guy prefers rock music. EV3 threw them all for a loop when they got in my car.
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Post by Grimella Blackrose on Nov 12, 2017 20:16:44 GMT -5
Okay, I've been holding off discussing this album in detail because it's a lot to take in (and I still think it's going to take at least a dozen more listens to fully 'get it'). For those who don't know, I made the decision early on not to listen to any leaks, spoilers, or live videos until the album was not only released, but I had it in my hands. I also steered clear of looking at the tracklist beforehand and refused to look at this until I had listened to it all of the way through once. I did achieve this somehow and I'm still not entirely sure how I managed, especially with you bloody lot going nuts about how good it is and having a great time at concerts So, here goes. As you can imagine, I was incredibly nervous. Evanescence has been my favourite band for over half of my lifetime and I had mixed feelings about some of the lead tracks (especially Imperfection), but I needn't have been worried. It really is a beautiful album in so many ways. Conceptually and musically. I love how everything weaves together, the false builds, crescendoes, dynamic and nostalgia. Listening to it without having any idea of the track order or even necessarily which tracks were going to be on it (with the obvious exceptions of BMTL, Imperfection and Lacrymosa and a few I'd picked up just from being a part of the community) was exciting. The intros often give little away about what's coming next and the interludes dip into familiar passages before fading out into a completely different Evanescence era. It really is a rollercoaster ride and by the time Imperfection finished, I was physically exhausted. My stand out tracks were End of the Dream (it just gets better and better and bigger and bigger, I thought my car speakers were going to explode at one point, and those vocals are incredibly haunting, may have cried a little - don't judge me ), Hi-Lo (the way Amy sings those verses and that piano/violin duel, wow!), Lithium (although the light percussion in the last verse seemed not only superfluous, but a little annoying considering how beautiful the instrumentation is, although this is less of an issue if your sound system masks this particular frequency) and, actually, Lost In Paradise. This last one is a weird one for me. You're probably all going to hate me for saying this, but I was never that bothered with that track on Ev3. It just felt too "Ev by numbers" as far as Evanescence ballads go. It was so predictable. Amy/piano intro, generic guitar chords and drums in second half of song, piano/Amy outro; because of this, I wasn't expecting to be that taken by it on Synthesis. How wrong I was. It really comes into its own in the electro/orchestral style. It almost feels "cinematic" at points and I can imagine this being played alongside sweeping landscape shots at the start of a film. It sounds huge! Honestly, there weren't any tracks I disliked (even Imperfection, I'll admit it's growing on me even without the video). Your Star felt a little bit like filler, but I suspected it would do because those guitar riffs are so integral to the feel of that song, and actually, it being filler kind of works. They've almost embraced that quality and made it feel low-tempo and almost trip-hoppy in places, which I actually like. It's almost like they've realised how bombastic tracks like EOTD are and gone "okay we need some dynamic here, let's strip back some of the others". Same goes for Imaginary. After hearing the first half of the album, I was fully expecting Imaginary to sound huge! But it actually fell into a really funky electro-world groove which really took me by surprise, but again in a good way, and again it added dynamic. I quite like that it's nothing like the original, even if I do miss that instrumental in the Fallen bridge, why do it twice if it's already on tape? I feel like this album was very much made to be listened to as an album and the placement and feel of each track is so important to the dynamic of the album as a whole. I could also write an essay on how immersive the artwork is for this era, but I've probably already done it. All I can say is that if you have a chance to get your hands on the vinyl, do it. I've spent an hour this morning already just marvelling at it and following every detail. It really is stunning. They've done it again, guys. They've only gone and blown my mind again :') Just how "immersive" is the artwork? Even more than The Open Door? <3
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carolexodus
Viscount/Viscountess of EvThreads
Posts: 900
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Post by carolexodus on Nov 12, 2017 21:01:50 GMT -5
I suck at detailed step by step reviews so I am going to put random thoughts out there as usual. Secret Door sounds much better to me in this version, love the harp. Should have always been this way, as a whole it feels easier to listen to than the original, more entertaining, less repetitive. I don't care that much for EotD as a whole but that part from 3:30 to 4:03 really took me by surprise when I first heard it, I loved it. MHIB was never one of my faves, but I like this version, it's nice, the harp sounds really nice here. Imaginary sounds so Origin, I love it. Amy's voice sounds different here, more light although the song is so dark. Overture, Unraveling and The In-between are all awesome, they're so cinematic, I feel they deserve a space in a movie soundtrack, Amy really embracing that part of herself. Love the way Overture mergers into NGb, they've always been so good at merging songs. Hi-Lo is absolutely jawdropping. I love that the two new songs are so different, I can't really pick one over the other, they have different moods to me, Imperfection sounds badass, Hi-Lo is that great beautiful ballad-like song but so powerful when Lindsay comes in and Amy's piano with the orchestra. The chorus is so contagious, reminds me of The Change in how contagious it is. NGB is maybe my favorite after Hi-Lo. It's so, so poewrful, Amy's voice sounds amazing. Lacrymosa I already said on another thread, it's awesome I love it. It's one of my faves from Ev's discography and fits this album so well. Lithium, although it is not too different from an acoustic version, I really liked this version, the little changes here and there make it good to me and I love Lithium so I like having a new version to listen to, so it doesn't get old. My Immortal. I thought I wouldn't care about it at all cause it's been so overplayed, but I'm enjoying this version, I may listen to it more often than I did the Fallen version. BMTL. I heard it only once and don't have much to say, I prefer the rock version (without the rap). LiP is beauriful, really different from the origianl, I don't know which to pick, they're for different moods, this one needs a bit more focus to appreciate imo and Idk why but the original makes me more emotional, there's something about that moment when the band comes in that is so powerful. Imperfection. LOVE the song, but didn't like the video. Your Star. I like it, but I miss the power of the band, that last part of the song from 3:45 is amazing live, can't really replicate it with only orchestra. I am loving all the little electronic sounds in all the songs, and of course the orchestra, but the electro sounds especially make me excited for their next official album, I am picturing all the new, creative things they will try now that they don't have a label holding them back. Regardless of what the fandom as a whole says I just hope they let their creative selves go and create exactly what they want to and don't take the fans into consideration much. Then we will like it or not, but I really want to see their creativity in full force, I think this Synthesis album is a step towards that. Let's see. I am watching the guy that made the video review, he is hilarious.
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sandbugs
Baron/Baroness of EvThreads
Posts: 1
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Post by sandbugs on Nov 12, 2017 21:16:35 GMT -5
i might be wrong but Limited Box Set included with "Standard CD" digipak packaging instead of "Deluxe version" digipak (2 CD holders) packaging since the DVD is placed at the last pages of the score book (hope someone can confirm this) and Japan "Standard CD" is in jewel case, someone gonna get all versions since its a bit different ^^
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Post by Andromeda - Evanescent-Killjoy on Nov 13, 2017 1:34:53 GMT -5
Anyone in Australia who ordered the box from Napalm Reecord get their copy yet?
I’m desperately waiting for the score so I can listen to the album and follow along.
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My Last Breath
Baron/Baroness of EvThreads
As much as it hurts, ain’t it wonderful to feel?
Posts: 124
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Post by My Last Breath on Nov 13, 2017 2:34:12 GMT -5
Anyone in Australia who ordered the box from Napalm Reecord revive there’s yet? I’m desperately waiting for the score so I can listen to the album and follow along. I wasn’t aware that any other companies here were producing the box set apart from The Music Vault or is Napalm based overseas?
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