This review covers the nu metal track Evanescence feat. Paul McCoy – Bring Me To Life.
This track was released in 2003 on the album Fallen.
The track starts off with a piano and some string. The female vocals join the track. An effect make an appearance. Shortly after, the guitars join the track along with the drumkit.
After a brief drop, the lead guitars, drumkit, and both male and female vocals rejoin the track for a main chorus.
From there, the female vocals take the track into the next verse. The male vocals make subtle appearances. After an effect with a gate filter applied, the vocals take the track into the main chorus. The main chorus is extended with some whisper elements.
After that, the vocals continue on together. After a snare, the female vocals gradually fade out and the male vocals take over. The female vocals then rejoin the track briefly multiple times. Those female vocals then take the track into the main chorus.
From there, the piano rejoins the track and the female vocals gradually drop out. The string, drumkit, and an effect lead the track out.
So, for this track, lets start with the positives. First, I do like the lead guitars and how they are laid out. I think they give the track a nice solid amount of energy.
Additionally, I think the use of strings and effects are also nicely applied as they give the track a nice variety of sound.
The vocals and how they are laid out in the track are nicely done. I think that both vocal elements work together nicely and give the track a nice sense of progression.
The negative, and this is a big one, is the lyrics. No matter how much time I give myself and how much other analysis I give to other tracks and how many times I try and think otherwise, all I hear is “Linkin Park ripoff”. Now, I get that the other bands success can influence other artists to try and follow through on a certain style. For me, this is fine as long as the other artists feel they can contribute something to expand the specific style in the genre.
In this case, I don’t think this track really accomplishes it as far as lyrics are concerned. It’s like whoever wrote the lyrics thought that, “hey, if I can throw some raw emotion and edgy wording, I’ll be golden”. The end result is like that Simpsons episode where Homer thinks he can create art by smashing things together and hoping it’ll sell. For me, I’m like that skeptical audience who says, “err, yeah, nice effort.” For every bit of effort I’ve done to try and infer as much meaning from the lyrics as I’ve done, all I can get are just scraps of lines that were thrown together that kind of works, maybe, in a really abstract way, hey it’s art, you’re not allowed to question it.
If you look at any number of Linkin Park track lyrics, it’s very easy to find the emotional feeling. You can get anything from a disturbingly accurate description of a mental disorder to raw emotions that can easily imprint itself onto people after experiencing something. For so many tracks, I can very easily hear that whoever wrote the lyrics knew inside and out the emotions he was feeling and knew how to write them in a way that can be relatable to others.
For this track, I could never really get that. Some people might think, “hey, this is more goth style more than anything, so you don’t know what yo are talking about.” Well, I’ve heard better lyric structures in a goth styled track. One example that come to mind is My Chemical Romance – I’m Not Okay (I Promise). Ultimately, the lyrics, and the meaning for that matter, falls flat for me.
Overall, there is some solid concepts in the track. The back and forth between male and female vocals works well. The inclusion of piano and the effects also do work in this tracks favour. Also, the guitar work actually works quite well. Unfortunately, so much about the track collapses thanks to poorly written lyrics. As a result, it is only marginally better than mediocre.
Score
6.5/10
Drew Wilson on Twitter: @icecube85 and Facebook.
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