Friday Song: “Bring Me to Life”
A 2003 classic put theatricality back into rock music after a decade of flannel
In somewhat the same way that Nirvana’s 1991 album Nevermind and its major hit “Smells Like Teen Spirit” burned away the excesses of ’80s rock, Evanescence’s “Bring Me to Life” and their 2003 album Fallen elevated rock back to a level of drama and artifice that the grunge era eschewed.
Even seeing a word like “evanescence” as a band name — along with the album cover, with lead singer Amy Lee’s arresting gaze in chilling high-contrast art — seemed to push the music world back toward a slightly theatrical and uncompromising power rock we’d missed.
The song was about being desensitized after an abusive relationship the then-19 Lee had experienced, and then meeting a man who would stir new feelings in her — Evanescence’s guitarist, a man she would later marry.
Coming from what was known then as “nu metal rap,” the song has the imprint of the Red Hot Chili Peppers in part, Queen in other ways, and Metallica elsewhere. It’s a shining reinvention that still arrests attention with its iconic piano intro and stirring crescendos.
“Bring Me to Life” won a Grammy Award as the Best Hard Rock Performance at the 46th Grammy Awards, where it was also nominated for Best Rock Song.
Enjoy!