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"The End of the Dream" is the ninth track on American band Evanescence's self-titled third album. An alternate, stripped-down version of the song is also included on Synthesis.
Background[]
Amy Lee describes the meaning of this song in the following quote:[1]
| “ |
The End Of the Dream is just about life, and the end of the dream is death. You know it's about the journey and it's about, again, this recurring theme of not being afraid and living while you're alive because it doesn't last forever. I think that's something that comes out a lot in our music because it's something that I deeply feel. It's funny though cause I'm always telling it to myself. It's not like you learn something and then just go 'Yeah, totally'... You have to make a constant effort to remind yourself of things that you believe in, you know. So I feel like, yeah, that theme about not being afraid and life doesn't last forever... that comes out a lot. And yeah, that song is about that. |
” |
The song was never played live during the tour in support of Evanescence because, according to Amy, it's nearly impossible to sing as the notes are "so long".[2] "You need an extra pair of lungs to actually sing it. Live, with all the running around, it's really not do-able", she added.
That song is about life and death. I guess that's very general and it's very Evanescence. But it came from a very personal, real place. In my mind when it's going through the very first verse, it's like:
I found a bird closing her eyes one last time
And I wondered if she dreams like meWhat does it mean? What is the worth of our life? What is the worth of any life? Shouldn't it mean more than a dead bird laying on the ground?[2]
The song was chosen to be reworked on 2017's Synthesis, and Amy explained why:[3]
I wanted to re-record The End of the Dream in a way that exposed the completely post traumatic healing of a survivor- taking the time to focus on the pain, and then look up and past it, gathering the strength to live on, better. Stronger. With a new understanding of the beauty of pain and the heartbreak of real life, not fly away from it, but carry it. Carry it all and feel grateful for it. Even proud.
The song was originally written with programming, synths, loops and vocals, but turned into a full-on rock song on Evanescence.[4] This is why the song was chosen to be re-recorded on Synthesis, as explained by Amy:
There's also something to me that I remember the spookiness of the first verse [on the demo version], the feeling and the gravity of those lyrics. I love those lyrics and miss the way that it felt when it was very sparse. You could hear them and feel them and perform it in a way that was not tied to a beat. It was just full emotion.
So in this [Synthesis] version of it, we stripped it back to that and made it way better than it was in the demo from the early days. We did it though with that in mind that this part that I loved so much ... it was something where I could just go to a place and I'm not tied to a beat or on the click track, nothing. There's just a drone and singing and it feels so good to just start the song off that way and just go into that place and take my time with it and let the song unravel into something bigger.[4]
On Evanescence, the song is titled "End of the Dream", but a "The" was added at the beginning on the album's re-release on vinyl as part of The Ultimate Collection box set and also on all streaming services. The Synthesis version also holds the same title. Both are legal titles of the song.[5]
On their 2021 U.S. fall tour, the band played the song with the Synthesis drone intro until the chorus, then the Evanescence rock version kicks in from the second verse, goes to the first chorus, Amy then goes straight to the bridge and finishes it with the chorus. The song was shortened due to Amy previously saying the song is not "doable" live.[2]
Lyrics[]
I found a grave, brushed off the face |
I found a grave, brushed off the face |
Videos[]
Credits[]
- Amy Lee – Writing, vocals, piano, keyboards
- Terry Balsamo – Writing, guitars
- Tim McCord – Writing, bass
- Will Hunt – Writing, drums
- Will "Science" Hunt – Writing, production, engineer, programmer (on Synthesis)
- Nick Raskulinecz - production (on Evanescence)
- David Campbell - strings arrangement
References[]
- ↑ "NME: Evanescence Track By Track (Part 2)". YouTube. October 14, 2011.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 MacIntosh, Dan (October 13, 2016). "Amy Lee of Evanescence: Songwriter Interviews". Songfacts.
- ↑ Jamieson, Brii (December 19, 2017). "Amy Lee Of Evanescence reflects on the band’s career and influence ahead of their Australian tour". Don't Boreus.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Evanescence's Amy Lee on 'Beautiful, Satisfying' Orchestral Tour". Loudwire. August 14, 2018.
- ↑ "THE END OF THE DREAM (Legal Title)". ASCAP.