This one had been brewing for awhile.

Originally, when I was first getting into Evanescence, I was set to see them play in Nashville, TN on March 2nd-- two days before their debut CD was set to hit stores. Unfortunately, at the last minute, illness struck the band, and the Nashville tour date got postponed. But I couldn't wait: I had to see this band live as soon as possible, and so an amazing and impromptu, fly-by-night solo road-trip to St. Louis was in order. And somehow it all worked out for the better-- between a delicate acoustic set, an absurdly incomparable rocking main set, and a whole set of new friends, I will remember my St. Louis trip as one of the most amazing times in my life. So amazing, in fact, that I was hooked. I needed more. (So much more.) And what better way to get my fix, I figured, than with a double-header of the re-scheduled Nashville show and the next day's Louisville show-- the first two dates of Evanescence's first honest-to-goodness tour. What I learned, of course, was that it doesn't matter what I figured-- for as prepared as I was with directions, reservations, and expectations, what I got was a trip full of surprises.

Actually, my trip had to brew just a little longer than I'd hoped. I'd wanted to be on the road an hour earlier than I ended up embarking because my companion for this trip and and many others before it-- my best friend Yoosuk-- had himself gotten off to a late start. Though the four-and-a-half hour drive to Nashville passed mostly uneventfully-- other than a stop for some Biggie freedom fries at a Wendy's in Kentucky all that happened was Yoosuk more or less announcing that he would, and I quote, "mindfuck" me constantly. Sadly, this was nothing new for him. So, by the time we arrived in Nashville we were just a hair too late to make it to the acoustic show even though it was right across the street. But I didn't have too much time to get worked up about it, since after dropping our bags off and powdering our noses, it was time to walk down the street and line up at the Exit/In for our first show.

It was an hour before the show and already the line was pretty long. On our way to the back of the line, I noticed Julez from the EvBoards and the St. Louis show. I stopped and spoke to her for a bit, was introduced to some other EvBoarders, and was given a breif run-down of the acoustic set. Jules said she was looking for me at the show: "I know Ray's got to be here." I was developing an interstate reputation as a die-hard Evanescence fan and, to tell you the truth, I thought that was pretty cool.

I went to get tickets our tickets and I saw a familiar-looking guy standing in line. "Man," I said to Yoosuk, "That guy looks like Justin Driggers." And, since he turned out to be Justin Driggers, I'm sure he figures the resemblance is a good thing. Driggers is a fellow Lawrence North graduate, a fellow former Blockbuster 96th street employee, and, it turned out, a fellow Evanescence fan. Yoosuk and I hopped in line with Driggers and started shooting the shit. Drigger's girlfriend recognized Yoosuk as the guy with the stupid website. I don't think he was as pleased as me with his interstate reputation.

I knew that the Exit/In, the venue for the trip's first Evanescence concert, was a small place, but I think I was unprepared for just how small it was. Although Yoosuk and I weren't too far back in line, by the time we got into the venue, the crowd was already pretty well spread out. So even though most people had a lot of comfort room, the actually stage-front area was not quite as throbbingly packed as you'd hope for a venue of that size. Due, I suppose, to the show's all-ages admission and Tennessee's peculiar liquor laws, the crowd was not the sort you'd expect to turn out to hear a rock show in this sort of venue. It seemed as if Evanescence had amassed quite a following of quiet thirteen year old girls and their even quieter mothers.

First up on the bill for the night was Depswa. Though they seemed to have a fairly decent heavy sound, they also seemed to be plagued by a poor sound mix that completely obscured the vocals. Apart from his frequent guttural screaming, I couldn't hear anything lead vocalist Jeremy Penick was singing about, which is a shame since his intra-song explications of what they were about made them sound thematically interesting.

Next up was Revis. Right away, Revis got a great reaction out of the crowd-- especially those aforementioned girls who judging from the volume and frequency of their shrieks, responded more to lead vocalist Justin Holman's rock idol good looks and charismatic (and Christ-like) stage presence than anything else the whole night. At one point, I saw Ben come out of the back and hang around the side of the stage watching Revis play. In all, Revis put on one hell of a show with a set list full of atmospheric introspection not unlike some of my favorite early Evanescence recordings. Revis will be another band for me to watch, and I think they are a wonderful supporting act for what they are jokingly calling the "Revanescence Tour."

After some difficulty with the sound-check (One of Rocky's drum mics was bad), Evanescence finally took the stage with their stock opener "Going Under." The band had some interesting new stage-lights which made for some very cool visuals during their set, especially during the intro. Yoosuk and I had expected that once Ev took the stage, the crowd would surge forward and rock out, but, for whatever reason, that didn't seem to happen. From my vantage point, it even seemed as if the crowd got alot less energetic during Ev's set-- maybe they were fatigued, just not the type of crowd that rocks hard, or maybe just star-struck. Regardless, the band couldn't do much to get them to move, short of begging. Folks, when a band keeps telling you how much you rock, that's code for "you need to rock more." On the other hand, the band seemed to have a little rust to shake off from their recent trip to Europe, but I'm sure if the crowd had been as hot as the one in St. Louis, that wouldn't have even been a blip on the radar. There were also some audio problems that plagued the performance, as all the audio would blink out for a split second every now and then.

A few songs into the set, Amy announced that they'd be playing a cover. Based on one of her EvBoard postings, I was expecting to hear "Black Hole Sun" or "Fell On Black Days" from Superunknown, so I yelled out, "Soundgarden!" Most of the others who knew what tricks Evanescence keeps up their sleeve played it safe and called for Nirvana. Amy thought people were reading off her set list, but I think the fans are just in the know. As always, the cover was great; Evanescence's "Heart Shaped Box" always serves as a reminder that this band aspires to rock-and-roll greatness.

Afterwards, there was some silent downtime between songs. This was my chance to yell something clever. I wanted to request an old song, but which one? I was torn: I was currently in love with "Even In Death", which is a song which they certainly could play live if they wanted to, and "Anywhere" which despite being virtually unplayable given the band's current iteration is a both a personal favorite and the underrated Evanescence song which Yoosuk and I are most like, according to an Internet quiz. Quickly, I decided: "Play 'Anywhere'!" I yelled. Up on stage, Amy laughed about it and said they were about to play an older song not on Fallen, which drew a fair response from the crowd. Amy asked if that meant we had their older stuff, which drew a little smaller response, though quite a vocal one from myself, at least. Amy said she hoped we downloaded it rather than got ripped off on eBay, to which I cheered loudly. After all, had it not been for downloading music, I wouldn't be in Nashville, I wouldn't have bought Fallen or a couple hundred dollars in merchandise, and I would have never probably given Evanescence much consideration apart from having "that one song."

So when that older song turned out to be "Even In Death," I was elated. I'm not sure how many of those quiet other people in that little room knew the words or were singing along, because I lost all focus for that one. Later it would sink in that "Even In Death" has replaced "Haunted" on the acoustic circuit, making me just a little regretful that I missed out on it. But in the concert proper, it was simply stunning. And, just between us, I think if I had to choose one song which encapsulates everything that I love about Evanescence, it would be "Even in Death."

Later, the band said they'd play another cover: Soundgarden maybe? Turned out to be Smashing Pumpkins' "Zero." I'm not in any way a Pumpkins fan, but Ev did a good enough job with the song that I was able to rock to it just a bit.

As usual, "Imaginary" closed things off for the regular set. The crowd chanted "One more song, one more song." Ben came back and said, in so many words, this was the last one so get off your asses and move for a change. And so as they launched into "Whisper," Yoosuk and I pushed our way to the front figuring other people would pick up Ben's cue too. Of course, the only guy who was into it wanted to mosh, which I just can't stand, and everyone else was pretty much dead. At one point, I got shoved and ended up making the slightest of contact with one of those quiet girls, prompting her to say, "Ouch" very indignantly. Yoosuk and I looked back at her as if to say, lady, this is a rock concert, that's expected.

After "Whisper," I chatted it up with Julez some more and we made our way to the merchandise stand. They had so much cool new swag: I scored a long sleeve T, a poster, and a beanie. I bid goodbye to the other EvBoarders and Driggers and checked concert number one off the itinerary.

After grabbing a pair of post-concert steak dinners, Yoosuk and I set off on foot to explore the area. We heard there was a college campus nearby, and, as two college students, we figured we might be able to find some fun. We got to the campus without any problem, but we couldn't figure out exactly which campus we were on, though I was certain that it was a private college. We passed a theater which, based on a sign, had a V. in it's initials. Yoosuk theorized that this college must have a V. in it's name. "I don't think so dude, I bet V. stands for 'volunteers.' I mean V? What could it be? It's not like this is fucking Vanderbuilt." Of course, it was Vanderbuilt.

The campus was pretty dead and we couldn't find any bars, only statues and architecture. So we ended up somehow outside a Krispy Creme where we were hassled by a vagrant who was either trying to solicit a nickel from us or sell us a nickel bag, I'm not sure. We ended up back near the Exit/In area and ducked in a bar-- not a happening bar, but a bar nonetheless-- to get a couple beers.

We were into our second and final beers when Yoosuk was suddenly accosted by a random dude. "Hey," he said to Yoosuk, "You're the only other Asian guy here! Come play trivia with me." And so Yoosuk did. After that this guy, Bobby, wouldn't let Yoosuk go, plus, he had an inexplicable desire to buy us drinks. After a little while, his friend Cat showed up. Yoosuk mentioned to her that he was a photography major and Cat said she was so happy to connect with another artist.

Knowing Yoosuk, I had to grin about that one; he's no great artist but he was mindfucking these people without even trying. Two more beers, three shots of Jagermiester, and a Jager-bomb later, I was ready to go back to the hotel room, as was Yoosuk. But first, Cat had to show Yoosuk the Artist some of her art in her car, and after that we were back to the comforts of the Hampton Inn.

I didn't get much sleep and woke up fairly hung-over. Yoosuk, on the other hand, was refreshed. We enjoyed our complimentary continental breakfast outside as the weather in Nashville was quite nice. Seated next to us was a charmingly southern family who's topics of conversation included "Jimmy Swaggart", "Evolution", and, my personal favorite, "Fun is Sin." Back in the hotel room, Yoosuk had me convinced that one of the guys in that family was Billy Bob Thorton. "Really?" I asked. "Yup, he was the quiet one with his back to the wall," Yoosuk replied. Thinking I could at least snare a look at Mr. Thorton, I looked out the window at the dining area... and that guy was definitely not Billy Bob. Yoosuk laughed at me, but it's not nice to mindfuck a man with a hangover.

We tried to visit some local establishments for food and / or vintage clothing, but every place, it seemed, was closed on Sunday and there was no one out on the streets at all. Nashville-- or this part of it, at least-- was dead by day too. "Come on," Yoosuk said, "Let's go some place less Christian." And so we were off to Louisville, Kentucky.

We weren't on the highway for too long Yoosuk's insatiable hunger acted up again. "Let's go to Pizza Hut," he suggested after seeing a road sign. I concurred, got off the highway, and within 5 minutes of him saying that, we were seated in Pizza Hut eating pizza. Of course, we were drinking beverages too, which turned out to be a bad idea for Yoosuk. Yoosuk, you see, is a notoriously slow drinker when it comes to soft drinks-- this is a guy who can't finish one of those hospital-size half-cans of Coke in a single sitting-- but today he was unusually thirsty and was gulping his Pepsi down at an unprecedented rate. After his chug, he looked concerned. "Dude," he said, "Taste my Pepsi and tell me if it tastes OK to you." Not liking regular Pepsi, much less tainted Pepsi, I took the smallest sip possible and was treated to one of the worst tastes I've ever experienced. "Dude," I said, "That's not safe for human consumption. There's some sort of cleaning solvent in there." Suddenly, Yoosuk's stomach was in excruciating pain. Not knowing whether to induce vomiting or not, we decided to just eat more pizza.

Back in the car, Yoosuk complained some more about the pain the poision was causing him, but resolved to go to sleep rather than deal witht the pain. I was certain that he'd die in my car and throw off the rest of my itinerary, but when I rolled into Louisville, Kentucky, he was still alive.

The Louisville Jillian's, the location of the trip's second Evanescence concert, is what appears to be a converted warehouse. It's a very bizarre visual-- a full service entertainment complex smack in the middle of an industrial complex. Since Louisville isn't really that far from Nashville and I have no idea of where anything is in Louisville except the Jillian's and Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom, we arrived at the venue four hours early.

When we walked in, we noticed Amy and Ben giving an interview in a dining room. My policy on the famous is usually "don't hassel them at all" but my Evanescence fandom finally got the better of me and I drug Yoosuk with me into the room. They finished up the interview by taking a funny looking shot in front of a Bruce Lee poster. Amy struck a kung-fu pose and Ben joked, "Okay, Avril."

When they wrapped up, I moved in: "Hey Ben," I said to get his attention. "Do I know you?" Ben asked. "I doubt it. I was just wondering if I could get a picture with you guys." One of the interview guys snapped the picture for us. Afterwards, I briefly shot the shit with Ben and Amy about the lack of energy in the Nashville crowd and how much they rocked St. Louis back in March. I told Amy how happy I was that they were playing "Even In Death" now and also said, "And, since this is my first time meeting you guys, I just want to officially advocate that you play 'Anywhere' or 'Forgive Me'." I looked at Ben, "I know you said online that will never happen, but I just wanted to try again."

"Maybe, maybe," Ben and Amy said as they were leaving.

Yoosuk and I killed some time playing games-- apparently Ben and Amy did another acoustic set at this point, but we missed it. During this time, I saw a variety of band members from all the acts milling about Jillian's playing games and I went up to most of them and said hello and wished them with the show. As for Evanescence band members, I talked to Rocky as he was playing a gun game, but John was playing a game that required his whole body so I didn't want to interrupt him.

The highlight was meeting Revis. They played a brief acoustic set and were hanging out talking to fans. I went up to them and told them how much I thought they rocked in Nashville and they signed a publicity shot for me and I got my picture taken with the whole band. Real nice guys.

Waiting in line, we were next to a girl with the rather bizarre name of Toey. It was her first time seeing Evanescence live. When we were let into the concert area itself, she stuck with Yoosuk which was good, because he needed something to lean on between sets.

After hours of waiting, the concert finally started. Die Trying didn't play in Nashville, but they were on hand for Lousiville, so they kicked things off with a short set. I'd never heard of their music before. They weren't bad-- nothing spectacular, but they played with a lot of energy and were able to get the crowd pretty into it. I liked the song, "Turn Up The Radio."

Depswa came up next. Once again, they were plagued by sound problems-- it was just impossible to hear anything that Jeremy Penick was singing. While in Nashville we thought the problems might have been technical, Yoosuk and I concurred: Depswa sucks live. We weren't alone: the crowd reaction was totally flat, and drew very few applause. There were even some boos. Hopefully these guys can get their sound problems figured out and make the changes that they need to, 'cause crowd reactions like that one night in and night will demoralize a band, I'm sure.

Revis was next. Just as before, they rocked the house. The crowd was definitely feeling the music. Revis is so good live with such charismatic stage presence and their set list so varied and well-paced, that they don't feel like an opening act at all.

I remember thinking to myself after Depswa finished up that it was time to bring out the main acts: Revis and Evanescence. They really are that good.

I haven't been able to score any of their recorded stuff yet-- since, bizarrely, I don't own the Daredevil soundtrack, but if you ever have the chance to see Revis live-- with or without Evanescence-- take it.

Finally, Evanescence came out playing "Going Under." Amy was wearing a Carrie-esque ballerina outfit, complete with ballet shoes and freaky eye make-up. The look was quite jarring at first, a bit like a possessed doll, but I warmed up to it as the set went on. Throughout the show Amy would curtsey and do various ballet moves to seal the deal.

The set list was the essentially same as in Nashville, though the both the crowd and the band and a lot more energy in Louisville and so the show rocked so much more.

One of the highlights for me came about half-way through the set, just after "Farther Away." Ben came out with a mic and said they were going to play an older song.

"How many of you have heard of a little song called, 'Anywhere'?" Ben asked. I freaked out: OH MY GOD! ANYWHERE! I cheered like no one's business. "Well," Ben continued, "This one's called 'Even In Death'."

"Ha, ha," Yoosuk joked. "Ben hates you." Indeed, I was personally mindfucked by Ben Moody. I can think of no higher honor.

And, of course, 'Even In Death' ruled again. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, 'Even In Death' is a stunning song and would have been the musical highlight of the show for me had it not been for something completely unexpected.

After "Imaginary," the crowd chanted "encore, encore." Quickly, the tech crew brought out... a keyboard? AHHHHH!!!!! AHHHHHHHH!! I started jumping up and down and grabbing onto Yoosuk like someone who had just won the lottery. I knew what was coming and I knew how special it was. Amy came out and sat down at the keyboard, adjusted her mic, said that she'd never done this in public before...and with that Amy Lee played "My Immortal" live for the first time ever.

According to Yoosuk, I my jaw had literally dropped. The crowd hushed and lofted lighters into the air. I felt in my pockets for my "Fuck Communism" zippo, but I didn't have it. Amy was amazing, of course, and single-handedly moved the entire crowd with her voice and her playing. Then, somewhat surprisingly, the rest of the band slowly appeared behind her and turned "My Immortal" from a delicate piano ballad into a atmospheric rock number along the lines of "Solitude."

When Amy played the last chord, the place the applause were staggering. Amy was visibly excited, barely containing a self-congratulatory smile. For a moment, as the applause were reaching their peak, it looked like she was about to run over to Ben and give him a hug. She should have; her performance deserved celebration.

After "My Immortal," they closed things off, as usual, with "Whisper."

Afterwards, as the tech crew was starting their clean-up, I asked one of them if I could please have a set-list. He gave me Amy's. Almost immediately, one of the bouncers taps me on the shoulder. "Hey," he says, "That girl over there said she'd show you her boobs for that."

I laughed. "Not a chance," I said.

After all, girls who will show you their boobs come and go, but Amy Lee's set list from the first night she played "My Immortal" is forever.