Evanescence may be forever associated with the nu-metal scene of the late Nineties and early Aughts, but singer and bandleader Amy Lee loves all sorts of music and, in particular, has a deep, long-lasting love of electronic-based artists such as Portishead, Massive Attack and Depeche Mode. Another one of her favorites? Björk. Here, Lee breaks down her four favorite songs by the tireless Icelandic genre-hopper, whose wild, carefree spirit lurks in Evanescence's darkness corners.
"Crystalline"
"Björk inspires me in a lot of ways. Her voice is one of the most amazing voices in the world. And she'll just say whatever. The way she uses the English language, probably because it's not her first language, she uses it for the way the words sound as much as what the words mean. That always inspired me. When I'm writing lyrics, I think that way, too. I want the meaning to matter, but the way they actually sound coming out your mouth matters, too. Smart girl, that one."
"Army of Me"
"I know that's everybody's favorite, but it's just so good. There's a whole album of covers of that one song. If you go on iTunes, there's an album that's fully just that song 12 times by 10 different bands."
"Joga"
"I'm probably pronouncing that one wrong. I love that song. [An MTV News reporter] was saying that [Evanescence's song "Lost in Paradise"] reminds him of this song. That's a song that inspired me from a long, long time ago. It definitely inspired me musically ages ago."
"Pagan Poetry"
"That's another great one that I listen to a lot. Man, the lyrics are so good. 'On the surface simplicity/But the darkest pit in me/It's pagan poetry'... I love that! Totally speaks to me, it's so beautiful!"
