The album is hailed as a Nu Metal classic, and perhaps the swan song to nu metal's reign as a whole, as it died out not long after the release — this album and Meteora were the last big success stories of the genre in the mainstream. The Genre-Busting sound with female vocals made it appealing to all types of listeners — from hard rock fans, to indie listeners, to teenage girls (and boys). The Multiple Demographic Appeal showed in its success. As for the album itself, the aforementioned Genre-Busting really deserves to be mentioned, as people aren't sure what kind of genre to class it as. Alternative Metal, Nu Metal, Gothic Metal, Hard Rock, Pop, Alternative Rock and (bizarrely) Christian Rock and Emo have been tagged to it.
The lyrical themes typically deal with Angst — such as loss, heartbreak, and inner torment. The album was widely praised for making Hard Rock and Nu Metal accessible to pop listeners, something that few had done before. Singles include "Bring Me to Life", "Going Under", "My Immortal", and "Everybody's Fool".
This is the only album made by the original lineup of Amy Lee and Ben Moody. The latter left not long afterwards.
Tracklist
- "Going Under"
- "Bring Me to Life" (featuring Paul McCoy)
- "Everybody's Fool"
- "My Immortal"
- "Haunted"
- "Tourniquet" (Soul Embraced cover)
- "Imaginary"
- "Taking Over Me"
- "Hello"
- "My Last Breath"
- "Whisper"
- "My Immortal" (band version, later pressings only)
Principal Members
- Amy Lee (Vocals, piano, keyboard)
- Ben Moody (Lead guitar)
- Francesco DiCosmo (Bass, session musician)
- Josh Freese (Drums, session musician)
Trope Me to Life
- Alternative Metal: This is the genre that the album is supposedly rooted in, and the elements are definitely there, but get blurred between all the genres that are mixed in (whether intentionally or not).
- Angst: It's everywhere in the album.
- Broken Bird: Amy comes off as one in almost every song.
- Cover Version: "Tourniquet", a cover of Christian Death Metal band Soul Embraced, who also happen to hail from the same state of Arkansas.
- Due to the Dead: "Hello" is dedicated to Amy Lee's long lost sister, who tragically died when she was five years old.
- Face on the Cover: Amy Lee, a close up shot of her.
- Genre-Busting: Take a look at the varied list of genres that this album has been labeled as, and tell me what you think this album belongs under.
- Heartbeat Soundtrack: Sampled in "Haunted". Its demo versions feature it more prominently.
- Lighter and Softer: The cover of "Tourniquet" is an alt metal cover of a death metal song, naturally this happens.
- Loners Are Freaks: "Imaginary" is about Amy being alone in her room, not wanting to leave.
- Nu Metal: The album was influenced by Hybrid Theory, and it shows. To this day, it's regarded as the last big success of the genre, before Emo and Metalcore took its place.
- Obsession Song: "Taking Over Me" is about this, though the context is vague.
- Pop: It's unclear if they were influenced by pop music or take on pop sensibilities. Either way, this went a long way to making it accessible to the general public.
- Special Guest: Paul McCoy of 12 Stones appears in a back-and-forth Linkin Park-like duet in "Bring Me to Life", uncharacteristic of their normal material.
- Take That!: "Everybody's Fool" is this to the pop industry.
