(CelebrityAccess) – The two-time Grammy Award-winning group Evanescence have released their new album Synthesis (BMG). For Evanescence’s singer/songwriter and frontwoman Amy Lee, most of her best creative ideas are inspired by dreams, and with Synthesis, the band’s long-awaited fourth studio album (and first since 2011’s self-titled release), it was a case of turning a long-held vision into reality.
Not simply a “greatest hits” album, Synthesis takes a selection of Evanescence’s three previous studio releases along with two new songs, and reimagines them with brand-new recordings. Synthesis is an amalgamation of Lee’s masterful singing and piano playing, supported by her band, a full symphony orchestra performing arrangements by long-time collaborator David Campbell as well as an array of electronic music programming and effects engineered by co-producer Will Hunt–not to be confused with the band’s drummer, of the same name–and mixer Damian Taylor (Björk, The Killers, Arcade Fire) who also collaborated with the band on the album.
Living up to its name, Synthesis is a combination of organic and synthesized sounds, classical and rock, old and new, reinterpreting the past while giving a glimpse into the future, an old-fashioned concept narrative that takes the listener on a journey from darkness into light, offering Amy Lee’s classic inkling of hope in the midst of despair.
“I tend to dream very big,” says Amy Lee about the project. “The whole idea came from thinking about how cool it would be to do new versions of songs with strings and programming, and it just evolved from there. With the skill and experience we’ve developed over the years, plus all of the great minds who came to be involved in the project, it snowballed into something very big, very quickly.”
As their evolution continues, the band will embark on the “Synthesis Live” tour, performing the record start-to-finish with a live orchestra and electronic programming in each city. “The recording is very much tied to the live experience we want to create,” says AMY. “I’m anxiously excited to play some much more involved, challenging piano for the show, and to focus on singing live more like the way I do in the studio.” Members of the band won’t just be accompanied by the orchestra, but will be embedded in the joined ensemble as a single unit, a presentation that marks the performance as a true theatrical event, again synthesizing the experience of seeing a classic orchestra in a theatre and a band.
As for the rest of the band–guitarists Jen Majura, Troy McLawhorn and Tim McCord and drummer Will Hunt–each had to fit their own skills into the final product, with Majura taking up the theremin, McLawhorn and McCord experimenting with different sounds, and HUNT triggering a collection of synthesized sounds through an electronic kit.
“This wouldn’t be an Evanescence album without my amazing band,” says Lee. “They’re all extremely versatile, talented, open-minded artists. It was up to them to figure out how they melded, blended and created their home in this new world. What can your instrument do that you didn’t realize it could?”
Synthesis is not just about updating the past, but offers plenty of future possibilities. The album includes three, newly created interstitial instrumentals as well as a pair of new tracks in the previously unreleased “Hi Lo”–a decade-old song that was the very first collaboration between Lee and producer Will Hunt–and the single, “Imperfection,” an EDM-infused funk/hip-hop track that represents Evanescence’s future.
With Synthesis, Amy Lee and Evanescence have gone Back to the Future in a way only they can.
Contacts & Information
Evanescence
https://www.evanescence.com
Worldwide Agency
CAA / Creative Artists Agency – Los Angeles
2000 Avenue of the Stars
Los Angeles, CA 90067 United States
Phone: 424-288-2000
Fax: 424-288-2900
http://www.caatouring.com
Responsible Agent: Marlene Tsuchii
E-Mail: mtsuchii@caa.com
Responsible Agent: Rob Light
E-Mail: rlight@caa.com
Worldwide Management
Revelation Management Group / Red Light Management
8439 West Sunset Boulevard, Suite 303
West Hollywood, CA 90069 United States
Phone: 310-273-2266
http://revelationmgmt.com
Responsible Manager: Jordan Berliant
E-Mail: jordan@revelationmgmt.com
Worldwide Publicity
MSO PR / The Mitch Schneider Organization
14724 Ventura Boulevard, Suite 500
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403 United States
Phone: 818-380-0400
Fax: 818-380-0430
http://www.msopr.com
Responsible Publicist: Libby Coffey
E-Mail: lcoffey@msopr.com
Responsible Tour Publicist: Andrea Faulk
E-Mail: AFaulk@msopr.com
Worldwide Co-Record Label
The Bicycle Music Company
100 North Crescent Drive, Suite 323
Beverly Hills, CA 90210 United States
Phone: 310-286-6600
Fax: 310-286-6622
E-Mail: info@bicyclemusic.com
http://www.bicyclemusic.com
Wind-Up Records
129 West 29th Street, 11th floor
New York, NY 10001 United States
Phone: 212-895-3100
Fax: 212-895-3285
E-Mail: windup@winduprecords.com
http://www.winduprecords.com
