The Evanescence song that sparked concern around Amy Lee: ‘Do you need therapy?’

In compositions for the Evanescence, Amy Lee He doesn’t shy away from letting all his feelings out. From the band’s rise to stardom with their debut album Fallen (2003), this was one of the hallmarks of his music.

And a song came from that album that, according to Amy, caused concern around her. Its about “Haunted”, a track that was not released as a single, but remains one of the most appreciated by fans.

In an interview with Kerrang!, the artist revealed that the emotional charge of the track made people approach her to ask if she needed therapy. Interestingly, however, this composition does not portray a situation experienced by Lee — according to her, it is “more like a narrative”.

“After the song came out, I was approached, like, ‘Do you need therapy? You need help?’ But the lyrics are more like a narrative. We were really inspired by movies. I wasn’t writing from my own experience, the idea was to enter a horror film zone, it’s something ‘from the killer’s perspective’.”

The singer even made it clear that this is not her favorite type of composition. Her favorite lyrics are more autobiographical.

“It’s not a type of lyric I’ve done much since then – a song that’s the idea of ​​a story that’s not my life, it’s more about a character. It might be fun to maybe go back into it a little bit – it gives you the ability to go different paths. But yeah, it wasn’t about me.”

What does the lyrics say

Below are the translated lyrics of “Haunted” by Evanescence (via Letras.mus.br):

“Words long lost are slowly whispered to me

Still I can’t find what keeps me here (oh)

When all this time I’ve been so empty inside

(I know you’re still there)

Watching me, wanting me

I can feel you pulling me under

Fearing you, loving you

I won’t let you pull me down

Hunting you, I can smell you alive (oh)

Your heart beating in my head

Watching me, wanting me

I can feel you pulling me under

Saving me, raping me

Watching me

Watching me (oh), wanting me (oh)

I can feel you pull me down (feel you pull me down)

Fearing you (oh), loving you (oh)

I won’t let you pull me down.”

Inspiration

In a report published online in the 2000s, Amy Lee told what would be the inspiration behind “Haunted”: a short story written by Ben Moodyoriginal guitarist of Evanescence. She said:

“A little girl of about 8 or 9 years old in a little white dress is walking down a neighborhood street playing with a little red ball. As she approaches a large, obviously deserted house with a sinister demeanor, her attention moves to the house. Without her paying attention to her jump, the ball hits the curb and ricochets toward the house. As she chases the little red ball toward the house, the ball gains unnatural momentum and bounces straight into the huge, open front door. The girl pauses for a moment, looks at the house that now seems to be looking at her, and cautiously enters the house in search of her little red ball. As she slowly enters, she takes in the decaying mess that was once obviously a beautiful mansion. She is mesmerized by the exquisite detail of every inch of the handrail that climbs the seemingly endless staircase in front of her. Suddenly, her thoughts are interrupted by a horrible commotion. She turns to run out the front door, but finds only an empty wall where the door used to be. Frightened, she runs down the first hallway she sees, desperately trying to find a way out, but with each turn, the world behind her changes, bending to the will of the house, so that even finding a way back becomes impossible. Terrified, the girl sinks into a corner, puts her head in her hands and cries.

Ten years later….

The girl wakes up in a panic, now a young woman. Dirty, with scars. She is now dressed in black pants, work boots, and a black tank top. Her skin is pale and dirty. The sun hasn’t touched her skin in over a decade. She wakes up to find a meal placed on a dirty silver tray before her, just enough to sustain life, like every morning before. Placed there by a figure she can only see in passing, around a corner, through a door… a figure that has become her only friend and her only enemy. Her entire existence has become nothing more than hunting down and destroying this shadow that keeps her here. As she hunts him relentlessly, day after day, she becomes lost in the dichotomy of her being. This thing that keeps her here, this person who is repeatedly lying to her and watching her while she sleeps, has become her only friend. Because if this person left, they would cease to exist. For she lives only to kill him. But she lives only FOR him. Every day the house changes around her, so that every day she wakes up in a foreign land. The only constant… is him. She hears his heart beating, she smells him, all she can think about is finding him, but he is also the only thing she knows about love.”