The song fools you in this way, too, however, because Lee eventually flips that passivity on its head when she sings that "I will use my voice" right before the heavy guitar and the aforementioned chanting come in. The song is structured interestingly and unusually, however, because even though the chanting is usually part of the full chorus, the first time that we hear it, it stands on its own, and we get the second verse technically before we hear the chorus. The second verse is the first time that the song makes clear what the song is actually about: "Label me 'bitch' because I dare to draw my own line," Lee sings in a soft and low voice, almost a whisper. Amy Lee candidly explained the song's meaning and said that it's primarily about the need to reclaim America by voting in November. She said that she has never used music as a political platform but now feels that it's her responsibility to do so because of what is now at stake, and I couldn't agree more. She is, perhaps ironically, using her voice as an artist to encourage us to use our voices in various ways such as voting. That particular line to which I just called attention, however, makes it clear that the song is also addressing sexism and misogyny. I don't think that it's any coincidence that all of the featured guest vocalists on the song (which includes not only the ones that I previously mentioned but also Deena Jakoub of VERIDIA, Evanescence's own Jen Majura, Evanescence member Troy McLawhorn's wife Amy McLawhorn, and Amy Lee's sisters Lori and Carrie) are women, and there is absolutely a long-standing tradition of attempting to silence assertive women by calling them hysterical, bossy, bitches, and so forth, and Lee has definitely faced her fair share of sexism in the rock and metal music industry such as when Wind-Up Records initially demanded that Evanescence feature not only Amy as a lead vocalist but also a male vocalist. Lee fought that, and the compromise ended up boiling down to the debut single ("Bring Me to Life") featuring Paul McCoy of 12 Stones on guest vocals. In a lot of ways, she has been freed from such shackles. The band is no longer signed to Wind-Up; they are effectively self-signed which has given them a great deal more freedom to do what they want. (See what I did there?)
Amy Lee's voice crescendos in power as the song progresses, and she is practically roaring in the powerful chorus, especially when she asserts, "...don't you speak for me!" She makes it clear that she will not be silenced: "Whether you like it or not, you're gonna take what I got." There is also a cultural history of men attempting to speak for women. I am, for example, reminded of an iconic scene in the film White Chicks in which the following dialogue occurs: "And for the lady, perhaps a salad?" The "lady" in question responds with, "Perhaps not" and proceeds to order what she actually wants. A similar scene is also in the film Titanic in which Rose's fiancé Cal orders a meal for her before she gets the chance to do so herself. He then asks her whether or not she likes what he ordered, but it's made clear that it is more of a statement than a question. Coincidentally, as writing this review of this song, I saw a photo on Facebook featuring a woman holding up a sign that says "Stop teaching girls that being nice is more important than having a voice" on it. Kindness is so important, regardless of sex or gender; however, if being kind comes at the expense of you being uncomfortable, then it isn't worth it. It is so important to exercise your right to speak up for yourself and stand up for yourself and say no when you feel that you need to. As previously mentioned, Lee has stated that prior to the release of this song, she has never used music as an outlet to express political views, and months ago, shortly after "Wasted on You" was first released, I had a strong feeling that this upcoming album would mark the first time that that changed because of something that the band tweeted. In response to someone asking if The Bitter Truth would be politically charged, the band said, "Be prepared for all of it... this is rock. The voice that needs to be heard right now. The voice that is being silenced. The will that can no longer be controlled..." It is now clear that they were, in that tweet, likely planting this song's seed for us without our having realized it.
The cover art for this single (which I am really glad exists, since "Wasted on You" and "The Game Is Over" merely use the album cover as their covers) also indicates a politically charged theme, as the American flag is featured off to the left. In the song's third verse, Lee sings over the track's slow and steady beat, "Gather your friends, and wave your gun in my face." This is definitely a statement addressing the cult mentality that Trump has fostered in his followers, especially since most of them are vehement NRA supporters. I am personally really happy that Evanescence is taking this stand, especially since you know that things must be bad when an artist who has never previously implemented any kind of political commentary in her music now feels the need to do so. I have seen so many people lash out at musicians and celebrities for using their voices, saying that famous people should not be political, and I find that to be ridiculous. The key word in the term famous people is people. Just because someone is famous does not mean that they don't have the right to express political opinions. Several months ago, for example, Chris Motionless of Motionless in White tweeted something expressing his disapproval of Trump, and someone replied to him, telling him to "stick to music." It is absolutely ludicrous to reduce a musician to nothing more than a musician; as I said, they are people, and that could very well be another issue that Evanescence is touching upon in "Use My Voice." As previously stated, "Wasted on You" remains my favorite single from The Bitter Truth so far, but "The Game Is Over" and "Use My Voice" are definitely growers (as opposed to "Wasted on You" with which I honestly instantly fell in love). "Use My Voice" is definitely not metal like some of Evanescence's past tracks. (Songs such as "Lies," "Whisper," and "Never Go Back" come to mind.) It is, however, still heavy, with its heavy guitar (which breaks out into a brief solo near the end of the song) as well as its aforementioned slow and steady but powerful drumbeat. "The Game Is Over" is definitely the heaviest of the three singles thus far, however, and while I do love "Use My Voice" and love its power, I do feel that it could have been made even better by featuring the guest vocalists more prominently.
No comments:
Post a Comment