Emily, strange?

I am constantly in turmoil for my dislike of 'christian rock' a denomination that is as oxomoronic (and moronic) as anything I've even seen. The thought of all the (young) christian jesus freaks getting their jesus freak on to the rhythm of a genre of music that is all about rebellion is just beyond idiotic. And incomprehensible. They apparently get all 'rock' and get a tatoo -probably Jesus or some abstinence mantra- and then their purity rings between one set and the other. Or get baptized between jumping in a mosh pit and praying. Awesome. Poor little souls have no idea that they are being duped into believing they are 'free'. They are 'normal' but pure. They have Jesus behind them. They are invincible and of course, always right. The American Taliban knows no shame.

One of the few bands that 'crossed over' from the prutriently 'pure' enviroment of that kind of 'rock' was Evanescence. Unlike the boring and pretentious P.O.D. (whose lead singer could actually pass for a Bear in a gay bar and is kind of hot in a twisted kind of way) Evanescence had a sound that mixed some punk and goth rock and was kind of believable because of the presence and voice of Amy Lee, the Addams-perfect beautiful lead singer-songwriter. Even though she indulged in Emily-Strange attitude and HotTopic dress code, she was as far from the fake rebeliousness of Avril as it was possible to be. Her cry for help in 'Bring me to life' (her one hit I can remember liking a lot) sounded real, raw, painful.

Then the realization that the band was 'one of those' made me throw up a little in my mouth. Oh, I had this happen to me before: when I first listened to Stacy Orrico, I liked the sound, only to despise her later for her stupid ignorance. And what about liking Sixpence Not The Richer for 'Kiss me'? I know. No justification there. Maybe I deserve it? Thank goodness I've never liked Clay Gayken, yet another 'christian' boy who has made millions selling his WWJD shit to the ever hungry (and hyper-bland) christian masses (Narnia, anyone?).

So I gave in the pain and decided to bury Evanescence with all the other idiots before them. But Amy Lee kept getting in the way. This girl was way too strange to be just another stupid christian chick. And the lyrics were smart (sometimes overwrought, but hey, it's goth rock) and the music very dark. So I decided to give it a try. And voila! they had 'renegaded' from the christian masses and were trying to get away from that labeling. Very rock of them.

My interest has peaked with some articles I've read about Lee and her troubles with the band. The creepy lascicous manager, the possibly abusive ex-boyfriend and bandmate, the love for a friend that seems to be redeeming her. And this last video: 'Call me when you're sober' with that beautiful werewolf and Lee playing red riding hood. Nothing like fairy tale sexual tension. Go, Amy, get your goth on and keep on playing.

I think I'll log on BMG music and will get the first CD. With any luck, it'll turn me on as much as Nine Inch Nails does. Oh, wait. There's no Trent Reznor in Evanescence.