Maps of Music

Fallen (2003)

Where the lyrics of Fallen take you, and where it was really made.

Radio programmers first turned down Fallen's lead single, asking whether a female voice and a piano belonged on rock radio at all.

Key places

Track Record Studios (2003)

Recording site Track Record Studios — Fallen was recorded at Track Record Studios, one of four California studios used between August and December 2002. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Ocean Studios, Burbank (2003)

Recording site The Enterprise (Burbank) — Recording began at Ocean Studios in Burbank, where the drum tracks were laid down with Josh Freese on selected songs. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

NRG Recording Studios (2003)

Recording site NRG Recording Studios (Hollywood) — Lee's lead vocals, the pianos and the Millennium Choir's background vocals were recorded at NRG Recording Studios. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Strings recorded in Seattle (2003)

Recording site Seattle Coliseum — A 22-piece string section was recorded in Seattle before the strings were mixed in Los Angeles. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Debut studio album by American rock band Evanescence
• Released March 4, 2003, by Wind-up Records
• Four singles: Bring Me to Life, Going Under, My Immortal, Everybody's Fool
• Sold over 17 million copies worldwide, with over 10 million in the US
• Certified diamond by the RIAA in November 2022
• The only Evanescence studio album to feature Ben Moody, who left the band in October 2003

Background

• Amy Lee and Ben Moody met as teenagers in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1994
• The duo released two independent EPs and a demo CD, Origin (2000)
• They signed with Wind-up Records in January 2001
• Several songs on Fallen come from their earlier independent releases
• Lee wrote most of the core material; the two mostly wrote separately and added to each other's parts
• Lee said the creative differences between her and Moody made the album a process of compromise

Recording

• Recorded in California at Track Record Studios, NRG Recording Studios, Ocean Studios, and Conway Recording Studios
• Sessions began at Ocean Studios in Burbank
• Recorded and mixed from late August to early December 2002
• Producer Dave Fortman said the album was built on overdubs to support its depth of production
• Moody wanted the band's real playing to be heard: the strings, choirs and piano were real
• A 22-piece string section was recorded in Seattle
• The Millennium Choir's 12 voices were recorded and then doubled or tripled
• Josh Freese played drums on selected songs
• Ted Jensen mastered the album at Sterling Sound in New York City

Cover

• Art direction by Ed Sherman
• Photography by Frank Veronsky

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in 1994 in Little Rock, Arkansas by singer and keyboardist Amy Lee and guitarist Ben Moody.
• Started as a duo that released independent EPs and a demo CD, Origin (2000).
• Signed to Wind-up Records in 2001.

Members

• Current lineup: Amy Lee (lead vocals, piano, keyboards, harp), Troy McLawhorn (guitar), Tim McCord (guitar; bass before 2022), Emma Anzai (bass), Will Hunt (drums).
• Lee has been the main songwriter since the band's start.

Career

• Debut album Fallen (2003) sold more than four million copies in the US by January 2004 and won two Grammy Awards.
• The Open Door (2006) followed, and the self-titled album Evanescence (2011) debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
• Went on hiatus after 2011, then returned in 2015 and released the orchestral Synthesis (2017).
• The Bitter Truth (2021) reached the top five of several Billboard charts.
• Sixth album Sanctuary was announced for June 2026.
• Total album sales are about 31.9 million.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Johnny Loftus of AllMusic wrote that the album includes flashes of the single's nu-metal, but that the symphonic goth rock of groups like Type O Negative influences most of it
• Entertainment Weekly said the nu-metal genre was not overflowing with great vocalists, and named Amy Lee as an exception
• Spin's Melissa described the album as having a touch of Andrew Lloyd Webber theatrics, with a string section added and capital-letter themes treated with grandeur
• Billboard's Christa Titus called Fallen a "highly polished, hook-filled affair."
• Rolling Stone's Kirk Miller said Lee's singing gave the album a creepy spiritual tinge that the new-metal bands lacked
• Adrien Begrand of PopMatters praised Lee's voice and said Evanescence would be nothing without her, but criticized the lack of musical adventurousness
• Christopher Gray of the Austin Chronicle found the album a little too by the numbers to fully use Lee's talent
• Robert Christgau of the Village Voice said Lee's soprano gave the goth-metal a palpable sweetness

Reappraisal

• Rolling Stone ranked Fallen number 99 on its 2017 list of the 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time, calling it an unlikely classic
• Loudwire's Rae Lemeshow-Barooshian ranked Fallen number 11 on a 2025 list of the top 50 nu-metal albums of all time

Records

• Debuted at number seven on the Billboard 200 with more than 141,000 copies in its first week
• Peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 on June 14, 2003
• Debuted at number 18 on the UK Albums Chart, then reached number one seven weeks later
• Peaked at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart on August 13, 2003, with 8,900 copies sold
• Certified platinum by the RIAA in April 2003, 4x platinum in January 2004, and diamond in November 2022
• Sold more than 17 million copies worldwide
• Ranked eighth-bestselling album of 2004
• Received five nominations at the 46th Grammy Awards, winning Best New Artist and Best Hard Rock Performance

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Prior to making Fallen, the band recorded a demo of "My Immortal" at the radio station where Lee's father worked, after it was empty late at night
• Lee wrote "Going Under" about coming out of a bad relationship
• Radio programmers rejected the lead single, and Wind-up president Ed Vetri said they asked whether a female voice and piano belonged on rock radio
• Wind-up initially promoted Fallen in the Christian market, a move Lee said she had always opposed
• Lee said the label and Moody pushed the songs toward radio-friendly forms, and she felt some artistic integrity was lost in the process

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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