Link to the audio interview:
omny.fm/shows/audacy/aftershock-2024-amy-lee-of-evanescencemirror
Published Oct 14, 2024
TLDR: Amy confirmed there is a new music that's connected to SOMETHING she can't talk about, and that the new music sounds "killer".
TRANSCRIPT thru Google sppech to text (pls tell me if there's any mistake, i'm not a native speaker but I edited it a lot so it's good!)
Aftershock 2024 - Abe Kanan: Interview with Amy Lee
It's Abe Kanan show, we're live at Aftershock and Amy Lee just walked in, from Evanescence. You are very impressed with our trailer here.
Amy: I'm very impressed with your trailer. If I've had a room like this in my house, I'd be in it a lot.
With air condition, drinksā¦
Amy: (laughing) You're not doing it any justice when people can't see this. It's absolutely gorgeous goth den with really beautiful victorian ceiling tiles and recess lighting, are you kidding me? This is good.
I mean, you mentioned: I have my own trailer!I do. I mean, it's not belonging to me, i'm in for today.
But you get it, right, cause you're a headliner. Is that how it works? Cause I know everyone does have a trailer.Everyone doesn't have a trailer. Some people bring buses, but, you know, you get what you need. Or you don't come.
So what they give you like, it's like bad in there?No! There's a place to get ready, air conditioning...
They have showers?No... there's like, you know, the same old porta potties back there but they're just for us. That's pretty nice.
That is nice. Yeah, you don't want to share a porta potty.
There's a shower - how do you call it, a porta shower? (laughs)
Like a hose, basically?They're not bad! I'm not making it to sound bad. Imagine a porta potty that's nice.
Yeah, well, we thought they're nice, and then like six hours into the festival...That's what I'm saying, so we get them fresh.
And they're always fresh for you.Um. No. (laughs)
Well, like, they... when you walk in, it's a fresh porta potty, it's like the usual, like the ones that we have, but six hours in it's like, ew!
Not these days, I'm past it. You know what, I'm too old for that shit! (laughs)
So, do you guys have any music coming out or no? What's the deal?Oooooh. We're working on something right now, it's almost done.
Can you break some news?
No. (smiles)
What does it sounds like?
It sounds killer. You're gonna love it. We're just working on a new song.
An one song?Right now, but then we have more recording stuff happening down the road. We have another session happening in November to record some stuff weāre going to work on. We've been writing. So like basically check it out. Last year and the year before we were touring, kind of hardcore, we did a Muse tour, we did a Korn tour, a bunch of our own headline stuff, and then this year, we just sort of like made it way lighter. So it's mainly like festivals like this, one-offs in between, fun stuff only. So there's been all this extra time in... You know, like if you have a festival on a Friday in Italy, and then a festival on the next Thursday in Sweden, for example, you just book an Airbnb in Italy for those in-between days and like have a writing time. So, we've been doing that and having a blast just like kind of making use of the time that we already have together, because we live all over the country. Yeah. So we've got a nice little pile going. Weāre working on it.
Nice. That's awesome. You sound excited.
Iām really excited. Itās time for new music.
Yeah! How long is it been?
Well, we released our last album, The Bitter Truth, sort of intermittently through 2020 and it officially came out in 2021 so it's been long enough.
Yeah, four years. But before that, how long was it?
Oh. We did that Synthesis, like, orchestra thing. I don't know if you know about that. It's like electronic and orchestra versions of a bunch of our songs, plus a couple new ones, that was in 2017.
Okay. So that was six years.
But since, you know, there was a gap there between rock records. Our self-titled album was 2011, and then The Bitter Truth was the next full on rock album and that was in 2021. So yeah.
Do you prefer playing festivals? Because you just get to pop in and leave, right? It's like going to a hotel room instead of your house.
But you never do! It's like, you wanna see all your friends. Like oh damn, let's stay and it turns into a party. Yeah.
Oh by the way, we are live at AfterShock and Evanescence are playing tonight at 7:15 on the Jack Daniels stage. Will you be drinking Jack Daniels?
(silence) No. (laughing)
Oh! Yes, you are.Allegedly, yes. I will be drinking tea and water on stage, but afterwards, all bets are off.
You have one of the greatest voices in music. How do you keep that voice? Because your voice does not crack! At least from what I've seen.That's not true, but thank you.
Oh, maybe I haven't seen enough of that. But how do you keep it so pristine?I don't. You know, I've had my rough shows like everybody else to be honest. But I think that there's something to be said for - as I've gotten older, I've learned how to hold back without it sounding like holding back sometimes, so that you can run the marathon. Because you know, when your sets are like an hour and a half, that's a lot.
Yeah. So itās the way you sing.Yeah, we don't have a lot of songs, that are like, okay, here's a chill one... that never happens! Like oh, it's chill - and then you get the choruses full on raging! So (laughing) it's a lot. So I've learned to like, first is setlist building. So I know when the parts are that are easier for me, or lower in my register, and I work those in between the hard ones to on a degree. So like, you know, you run and then you have a walk second, and then you run and then you have a little bit of walking around. You learn to pace it like that. The little parts when I get to sit down at the piano, even if it's hard to sing, it helps that my body is being still so I can just like breathe and focus. (laughing)
Could you teach me? I'm not a good singer. But they say you sing from your diaphragm, right? I always wondered. You're one of the greatest singers. So you're the person to ask: What's the proper way that someone like me should sing? Do you sing from down here? Because Jacoby Shaddix from Papa Roach said you sing from your taint, right? That's what he told me. I'm like, how do I sing for my taint?
Right! Itās like your guts. It's hard to explain. I was just saying this. It's one of those things for me personally: Technique comes into it after a bit, but it starts with your soul. It has to. Especially (when) it's rock, right? It comes from the heart. You sing from your heart. You're not thinking, (not singing) in the face. I mean, unless you have to, because you know that's the only way you get the notes out. (laughing)
So how do I do it?
You heard how I just laugh, thatās my diaphragm. HA! Like, coming from a SOOOOOUL! You know thereās a room inside there.
Oh my god! So do you actually think about it that way?
I'm not thinking about my crotch. Youāre grabbing your crotch.
No, thatās my belly button.
Yeah, okay. (Laughing) I'm not thinking about anything about my body when I'm singing.
Oh. Because you're a real singer.Well, it just happens. That's what I mean about being from your heart. Like, if you're singing from your soul and from your heart, I find that you unlock abilities that you can't unlock if you're just trying to hit a note.
That's very deep.Itās true though, if you sing from the heart it comes out in a way that your spirit is going to make that happen, whether you feel like you're physically able to or not.
You're playing pretty soon - so when you do your warm-up, how early do you do that?Like 30 minutes before.
Is it a whole build-up?
It's not complicated, itās like ironing, like straightening your hair.
How do you do that?
All kinds of whenever it feels cracky I just keep working that area up and down until it's smooth. (singing) Aaaaaahaaaaa! Work it up, work it up, and then: (high note) Aaaaaaaaaa! Iron it! Because if I do that first thing in the morning, itās like
argh argh argh, you know, cracks all the way. Yeah. So, get the cracks out.
So, do you hearing anything right now that you need to get out? I sounds good to me.(high note) Aaaaaaaa! And I'm pretty good. Let's sing right now.
Oh my god. Let's go. One, two, three.
No!
(Falsetto) Goā....GOOOING UNDER!
Oh my God. Real talent. All right. Well, I know you don't have much time. So, new music you said? You said you might have a song. You can't tell us what it's for.
Iām sorry, I'm not trying to be like that butā¦
No, I understand, of course.Weāre working on
something thatās connected to
something. So I don't give away the
something because not my
something to give away.
Is it like Jurassic Park 7 or something?
No but that's a great guess. (laughing)
WWE Wrestlemania theme?Hmmm, thats a BAD guess! (laughing)
Did they warn you guys that back in the WWE they added you there?
They did used it, yeah, I donāt know what for but they used our songs a lot.
I remember. We want to make Evanescence the official theme of WWE SummerSlam.
It was official? What if they didnāt ask me? (laughing)
Well, thank you so much for stopping by. You could still get tickets for After Shock, you just get them at the gate or AfterShockFestival.com. 7:15 at the main stage, the Jack Daniels stage, Evanescence. If you've never seen them ā you know, there's gonna be some kid here today that's never heard of your band? Which is shocking. Phil Anselmo said yesterday - you said you watched Pantera, okay?
I wasnāt here yesterday but I have seen Pantera.
Because Phil says: āThere's always people here who have never seen us before!ā. It's like, it's true!It is true! Every festival. That's the cool thing about a festival. You asked me and I answered it: is playing festival your favorite? I wouldn't say that it's my favorite - but it's awesome because you have an opportunity - at this point in our careers, you know, for a lot of us it's less often (laughing) - you have an opportunity to play for people and win people over that didn't even come to see you. So that's the fire. That's something that really makes us excited about a show: seeing the fan with a Pantera shirt or Stones there, with his arms full and then he seems like, all right, that's cool, I'm gonna go check that out.
Yeah. It's like when you have your audience, they're gonna like it.
Exactly.
But you're like almost winning over new fans. It's fun! Like when a band like yours would have to win someone over, thatās crazy, but itās fun.I don't have to but itās fun, letās do it! Letās do it tonight.
All right, thank you so much for stopping by. Take a drink please. Take another one.
Thanks for a drink. Thatās good. I will come by after.
It's Amy Lee, Evanescence. We are live at Aftershock, Abe Kanan show, Sunday Rock.
