| "What You Want" | ||||||||||||
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| Single by Evanescence | ||||||||||||
| from the album Evanescence | ||||||||||||
| Released | August 9, 2011 | |||||||||||
| Format | Digital download, CD single | |||||||||||
| Recorded | 2010–2011 (New York) | |||||||||||
| Genre | Alternative metal | |||||||||||
| Length | 3:40 | |||||||||||
| Label | Wind-up | |||||||||||
| Writer(s) | Amy Lee, Terry Balsamo, Tim McCord | |||||||||||
| Producer | Nick Raskulinecz (2011) | |||||||||||
| Evanescence singles chronology | ||||||||||||
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"What You Want" is a song by American rock band Evanescence. The freedom-themed song was written by Amy Lee, Terry Balsamo and Tim McCord and was included on their self-titled third studio album Evanescence (2011). It was described as the heaviest and most different Evanescence song and according to Lee, the song talks about the experiences with her fans and her realizations about the things that she should do. Musically "What You Want" is an up-tempo song which uses several instruments in its music, notably guitars, synthesizers and drums. Lyrically, the song talks about a relationship that can't work despite the love between the pair together.
A snippet of the song premiered on MTV News in July, and the song was released on August 9, 2011 through Wind-up Records as the first single from the album. Upon its release, "What You Want" spawned mostly positive review from music critics who praised its loud sound, Lee's powerful and soaring vocals during the song and the musical hook. However, some reviewers noticed that the song was not a big departure from their old material. The song charted at number 68 on the Billboard Hot 100 and in several component charts. It also charted at number 55 on the Canadian Hot 100.
The accompanying music video for "What You Want" started filming on July 30, 2011 in Brooklyn, New York, and it was directed by Meiert Avis. It shows the band performing the song live in a small warehouse and Lee running in various locations. Upon its release on the Internet on September 9, 2011, the video received positive response from music critics who generally praised the imagery and noted similarities with Evanescence's music video for "Bring Me to Life" (2003). "What You Want" was performed live for the first time on MTV and later on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.
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"What it really means is, 'I'm all the chaos and all the things you can't control in your life, but don't be afraid of it, because that's how it's always going to be.' You can't be too afraid to go live and take what you want out of life. You can't control all the crazy stuff that happens to you. All you can control is the way you handle it."
"What You Want" was written by Amy Lee, Terry Balsamo, and Tim McCord in New York City, New York.[2][3] During an interview with MTV News, Lee talked about the first single from Evanescence's third self-titled album. She said "So, the song that I think is the first single is the song that wraps it all up. It's got a cool meaning, a lot of great lyrics going on, it also just smacks you right in the face and it's heavy and it's great ... I think that there's a couple songs that meet that same criteria."[4] She added that "What You Want" was totally different for the band and they wanted the new single to be more than a hit.[4] Later the band revealed that there were a lot of songs which could be released as a single, but it was a natural choice to release "What You Want".[5] Lee has stated the song is about her relationship with her fans, and the realization that "this is what I'm supposed to do".[2]
In an interview with MTV News, she explained her inspiration behind the song, "It's about freedom — that's definitely a constant theme on the record — but, it's like Evanescence, and me, and my relationship with the music and the fans, and coming to that realization of 'This is what I'm supposed to do ... I want to do this,' And when it says, 'Remember who you really are,' that's exactly everything you could assume it means."[2] Another inspiration for the song came from Lee's life, "That song is me talking to myself about not being afraid and coming back to this thing and living the life I was born to live. Sometimes, it takes a lot to do this. And I do love it very much, but there is always that fear of putting yourself under the microscope."[6]
She explained that the song was very danceable and the band had fun while recording it. "I had a lot of moments where we were smiling, we were having a great time [making it]. We had a lot of time.[...] this was where we did our pre-production and wrote some of these songs, finished them off. 'What You Want,' for example" - says Lee.[5] In an interview with MTV News, she revealed the recording process for the song. She said that the band was "just jamming, recording demos" and the song has grown a lot since then.[2] She wrote a chorus for the song which according to her was epic and massive and played it on the piano. When Tim McCord and Terry Balsamo heard the song they were very satisfied saying, "Do that. Whatever you just did, that's an awesome melody."[2]
Amy Lee has said that she was initially embarrassed when she came up with the chorus for the song. Speaking to NME, she said that she felt self conscious about singing the hook of the song for McCord and Balsamo. She explained: "I remember being a little bit embarrassed when I wrote the verse [to the song] and the melody even; 'Do what you, what you want'. I was like 'they're going to make fun of me and think I'm Janet Jackson or something but, screw it, I'm going to show it them anyway. (But) they were like 'no, that's cool, the hook is what is cool about it!'"[7] During an interview with M Music & Musicians Lee revealed that she wouldn't have recorded the song if it was brought to her before the recording of Evanescence: "I would have thought, 'That's stupid'."[8] Lee further described her vocals in the song as "fun and snappy and it gives a cool dynamic [to the song]."[8]
A snippet of "What You Want" premiered on MTV on July 11, 2011.[2] During that time it was reported that the new single will be released in early August.[2] The whole song was performed live by the band on August 8, at 7:54 p.m. ET on MTV.[9] After the performance the album version was shown on MTV.[9] The song was digitally released on August 9, 2011 exclusively on iTunes,[10] and to all other digital retailers on August 16.[11][12] In the United Kingdom, the song was released on August 21,[13] and a CD single of the song is scheduled for release on September 9, 2011 in Germany.[14] To promote the single, the band has partnered with SoundTracking and GetGlue. Fans who identified an Evanescence song using the SoundTracking application and shared it to Twitter (using the hashtag #Evcomeback) entered themselves to win an album from the band.[10] If fans checked in to Evanescence using GetGlue, they unlocked an exclusive sticker.[10]
The song was well received by the fans. After James Montgomery from MTV News showed the snippets of the song, he asked Evanescence's fans on Twitter to share their opinions about it. According to the fans' tweets, the new songs were well received and praised.[15] Kara Klenk of the same publication also confirmed the positive reception adding, "In the fast-paced music world where artists need to constantly reinvent themselves and pump out music, videos, appearances, and tours to keep their fans happy and interested, it's rare for a band to take a multi-year hiatus and come back to legions of fans who have anxiously awaited their return."[16] On August 22, 2011 Lee went to Toronto's Liberty Studios, to preview 5 mastered songs from Evanescence to a selected crowd of thirty people.[17][18] "What You Want" was one of the five previewed songs.[17][18]
"At the heart of this epic, Lee relays another personal story that impacts intensely, especially as the song breaks during the bridge and her voice takes flight like never before. Lyrics like 'Somewhere beyond the pain there must be a way to believe' sear and soar, as Lee continues to hypnotize like no other singer in rock or pop for that matter."
"What You Want" opens with drums and soon moves into a danceable guitar-driven mode,[20] accompanied by synthesizers.[21] Then, those sounds are followed by hard rock guitar which according to Pop Crush's Scott Shetler, "define Evanescence's sound."[21] The chorus contains "crashing cymbals", guitars and keyboards.[22][19] Scott Shetler from Pop Crush described "What You Want" as a "polished production, with piano, strings and a few industrial rock effects also finding their way into the mix."[21] According to Bill Lamb of the website About.com, the "piano flourishes maintain the gothic feel that has always lurked in the music of Evanescence".[20] Laurie Tuffrey of NME said that the song is "standard goth-pop fare, full of rapid drum breaks, swathes of fuzzy riffing and a catchy, chant-friendly chorus."[23] Robert Copsey of Digital Spy found "stadium-shaking drums" and "thrashing, high-wired rawk guitars".[24] A writer of Rolling Stone compared the song with the other material by Evanescence saying that it contained baroque metal with a pop hook.[25] Dane Prokofiev of PopMatters found nu-metal influences on "What You Want" and similarities with Korn's songs.[26] Rick Florino of Artistdirect said that the song was similar to works by Depeche Mode and concluded that it has a repetition drawing on classic synthpop.[19] IGN's Chad Grischow wrote that "The slamming beat and odd blend of twinkling piano and electro-pop dance elements toil with thrashing guitars for a cluttered, but uplifting listen as Lee pleads for freedom of expression on the oddly poppy vocal of 'What You Want'."[27] Marc Hirsh of The Boston Globe found a "metallic lurch playing off of Lee's goth-empress vocals" in the song.[28]
Lyrically, "What You Want" is filled with the angst of a relationship that just can't quite work out despite the presence of love binding the pair together.[20] The song begins with Lee singing "Do what you, what you want / If you have a dream for better / Do what you, what you want / 'Til you don't want it anymore."[17][21] In the chorus she sings the lines "Hello, hello, remember me? I’m everything you can’t control / Somewhere beyond the pain there must be a way to believe we can break through."[21][19] At the end of the song Lee shouts "Do what you, what you want," with an echo that fades away.[21] Jason Lipshutz of Billboard said that in the song, Lee is "trying to convince a romantic partner to stop 'spiraling down, down, down' and help her find a new beginning."[22] Steve Beebee of rock magazine Kerrang! wrote that Lee reaches a conclusion that "Love will guide you home."[29] Talking about the lyrical content of the song, Laurie Tuffrey of NME concluded: "It's quite hard to tell what the song's about, with lots of references to 'the unknown' and 'the pain', and it confusingly switches between suggesting people 'do what you want you want, if you have a dream for better' in the first verse and the decidedly creepier final chorus where Lee seemingly gets an ex-lover on the blower, only to tell them 'Hello, hello, it’s only me, infecting everything you love'."[23]
Scott Shetler of Pop Crush described the song as a "forceful rock track that reminds fans why the group was one of the most successful crossover acts of the past decade."[21] He added that the riff used in the song is accompanied by Lee's "strong-but-pretty vocals."[21] James Montgomery from MTV News, praised the song saying that the "elastic-yet-lock-step energy not only makes the song the perfect comeback single for a band that's been gone for far too long, but it manages to capture the very essence of what inspired them to press on."[5] A writer for NME praised the guitar riff in the song "built around Amy Lee's pseudo operatic vocals."[30] Tom Goodwyn of the same publication wrote: "A big thumping drumbeat and driving guitar riff kick things off, before giving way to a stomping chorus written with NFL stadiums in mind."[31] Karen Bliss of the magazine Rolling Stone praised Lee's "haunting" and "crystalline" vocals in the "industrial-strength sound" of "What You Want".[17] Nick Catucci of the same publication gave the song three stars writing, "Amy Lee trades anguish for defiance, goosing her wail with welcome sass. Still, she's nearly overrun by the music, a collision of two-ton guitars, strings and piano."[32] Steven Hyden of The A. V. Club wrote: "Lee really can sing, and the opener 'What You Want' shows she has the pipes (and even the submerged spunk) to become the new Pat Benatar this generation desperately needs."[33]
However, while reviewing their third album, Catucci called the song "pummeling but pretty."[34] In another review for the same publication, Matthew Perpetua wrote that the "heaviness is less top-heavy" in the song before adding that the band "never sounded so brisk and dynamic."[35] Bill Lamb of the website About.com gave the song four and a half stars out of five, praising its powerful and danceable rock beat, Lee's soaring vocals and lyrics of pain and heartbreak.[20] Lamb also added that the song was set in "engaging melody that will inspire listeners to join in on the 'Hello hello' choruses."[20] He finished his review writing that the song "is a perfect single to continue the band's legacy."[20] Rick Florino of Artistdirect gave the song five out of five stars saying that it had one of the "best hooks of the band's career to date"[19] which made it "so instantly unforgettable."[19] Florino ended his review calling the song "another classic from Evanescence" which will revive rock music again.[19]
Andy Battaglia of Spin wrote that "What You Want", "careens through lots of dramatic crashes and crescendos".[36] She added that the line which were talking about freedom, could "be [a] tricky language when pushed out by politicians, but presumably through the mouth of a rocker it's a good thing?"[36] Camille Dodero of the same publication called "What You Want" a "hair-blowingly grandiose" song.[37] Melissa Maerz of Entertainment Weekly gave the song a B rating and said, "the song's grinding guitars, massive drums, goth-princess piano frills, and warrior-grrrl vocal rage feel like 2007 all over again."[38] Melinda Newman of HitFix praised the line "Hello Hello, it's only me, infecting everything you love" in the song saying that "it should have been the theme song to the movie 'Contagion.'"[39] Robert Copsey of Digital Spy put the song in his list of "10 tracks you need to hear" adding, "'What You Want' is a hefty slab of dramatic rock which includes the band's trademark electric guitars with melodic choruses."[40] Later, in another review, he gave the song four stars out of five stating "electro it certainly ain't, but the result is as dancefloor-friendly as it is mosh pit-ready."[24] He further praised the "catchy-as-cholera" chorus and gave a mixed review about the lyrics and the title saying "fortunately their words seemed to have been a touch overzealous; though it's clear from the trailer for the group's third album that they've been spending a night or two on the tiles."[24]
Lewis Corner of the same publication concluded: "'What You Want' proved on its unveiling this summer, the band's melodious rock sensibilities remain firmly in tact. 'Hello, hello, remember me?/ I'm everything you can't control,' Amy Lee declares over roaring guitars and classical strings, reinforcing their medieval influences as opposed to the electronic sound they've been purporting."[41] Tamar Anitai of MTV Buzzyworthy, Theon Weber of Spin, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic and Edna Gundersen of USA Today chose the song as an album highlight.[42][43][44][45] Los Angeles Times' Mikael Wood wrote that "'What You Want' rides its central riff with a bulldozer's efficiency."[46] While reviewing Evanescence's third self-titled album, Entertainment Weekly's Kyle Anderson put the song in his list of songs to download from the album describing it as "fierce".[47] Marc Hirsh of The Boston Globe called "What You Want" a "strong declaration" that the band is back.[28]
On the chart issue dated August 20, 2011, "What You Want" debuted at number 68 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, selling more than 78,000 copies according to SoundScan.[48][49] The song also debuted at number 32 on the Billboard Rock Songs becoming the "Greatest Gainer" of the week on the same chart. Later, during the digital release of Evanescence, it moved from number 15 to number 13.[50] It debuted at number 35 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart in the United States.[51] As of November 2011, it has sold more than 112,000 digital downloads.[52] On the Canadian Hot 100, "What You Want" debuted at number 55.[53] On September 3, the song debuted at number one on the UK Rock Chart, removing Evanescence's own single "My Immortal" (2003) from the top spot.[54] That achievement helped the song to debut at number 72 on the main UK Singles Chart.[55]
The song was the 9th best selling rock song of 2011 in the UK.
The music video for "What You Want" started filming on July 30, 2011 in a warehouse in Brooklyn, New York, and it was directed by Meiert Avis.[56] The video featured their fans who were playing a crowd on a concert by Evanescence.[56] During an interview, Lee revealed that the music video for the song was one of their most real videos that the band has ever made adding, "this is more a personal video. We've done a lot in the past that [were] very 'fantasy,' and this is sort of the real us.[...] I just wanted to do something that really felt personal for a change. Obviously, I'm wearing crazy makeup, and that's not my everyday, but, you know, I want ... to connect with the fans again. We all do. We miss them. A lot of this record is about them, and that's why they're going to be here and be in it, too."[56] In an interview with MTV News, she described the concept of the video:
"This video is sort of, like, the history of the band. This club [set] is emulating old shows we used to play in the beginning — we used to play this club called Vino's in Little Rock [Arkansas] — it's sort of like back then, the gritty, dirty club, sweaty. And basically, it's also [about] New York, where I've been, [and] where [bassist] Tim [McCord] lived in the past few years since we've been gone. And it's sort of about escaping New York and.[...] coming back out into the world."[56]
However, before the filming of the video, the band was still finishing the album and when it came time to shoot the video Lee didn't had an idea about how it should look like. Because the song was different for the band, she knew that they didn't want to "go the classic, sort of fantastic, epic [thing]. I mean it's still epic, but we didn't want to go the classic route — I wanted to do something different."[57] Lee asked her sister Carrie to help her around the concept of the video. Her sister said that they should film the video for the song in New York and Lee thought it would be great, "She just started saying things that were right on. She was like, 'This should be in New York. You guys need to do something different, this song feels different.' And she started talking about running across the Brooklyn Bridge, and it being where I live, and I was like, 'Oh my God, this is great.'"[57] However, the final shot of the video filmed at Coney Island was her idea. The shot represented the band coming back in the world and "heading into the unknown, coming into a new world".[57] Lee said that the final shot was difficult because Terry Balsamo "especially did not want to get in the water."[57] She added, "It was a little cold. I loved it though. I think the guys did, too."[57]
The video begins with shots of several skyscrapers in New York, which are followed by scenes of the band performing in a warehouse that has been converted into a stage (similar to Vino's bar which is where the band used to regularly perform before they became popular[56]). The crowd on the concert is singing along with the band as Lee waves her hair in front of them. The video continually cuts Amy Lee walking through Brooklyn in a dark dress and makeup. She walks through a train station, streets and the Brooklyn Bridge. During the bridge of the song, Lee runs through the Brooklyn Bridge and jumps on the other side, landing perfectly on her feet. At the end of the video, the band meet up and walk to the beach where they walk into the sea. The final shot shows the band walking in the sea as the video fades out which symbolizes a new beginning for them. A twenty-two second teaser of the video was released on September 9. The video for the song officially premiered on the Internet on September 13, 2011.[58] It was also made available for digital download on iTunes Store the same day.[59]
James Montgomery from MTV News, said that the video was a departure for the band "eschewing the dark fantasy worlds they've created in previous videos in favor of good old-fashioned realism: the blood, sweat and tears that not only took them to the top, but have fueled their current comeback, too."[56] Later, he added that the video "recalls the halcyon days of big-ticket rock videos" and some "claustrophobic, cathartic performance footage."[58] He called it "a true band clip; it's artfully autobiographical and, perhaps most notably, features all of Evanescence."[58] Entertainment Weekly's Grady Smith, called the video "heavy goth-rock head-banger" and added that the shots of Lee falling from the bridge were similar to the music video for "Bring Me to Life" (2003).[60] Melinda Newman of the website HitFix compared the video with the movies The Crow (1994) and Run Lola Run (1998). She further praised the lighting, the photographs and the mood which according to her, were "perfection, especially the city scapes at night and the intense looks on the fans faces, as they are enraptured by Lee. It's a big budget shoot, the kind we don't see that much of anymore."[39] Jason Lipshutz of the magazine Billboard praised the video with its "crystal-clear" shots of the concert and the "hazy" shots of Lee running through New York.[61] A more negative review of the video was given by Laurie Tuffrey of NME who called the video "uninspiring".[23] He further found CCTV effects and concluded that Lee was "looking for some love to infect" while running through Brooklyn streets.[23] Nicole James of MTV Buzzyworthy simply said "rock videos + themes = the only kind of math I like" referring to the music video for "What You Want".[62]
Evanescence performed the song live for the first time, on August 8, at 7:54 p.m. ET on MTV.[9][63][64][65] MTV called the entire event "MTV First: Evanescence".[9][63] After the performance the band had an exclusive interview.[9][63] James Montgomery from MTV News described Lee's vocals as "powerful" during the performance.[63] Evanescence performed the song during their performance at the 2011 Rock in Rio festival on October 2, 2011.[66] On October 15, 2011, Evanescence performed the song on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.[25][67] They later added the song to the set list on their third worldwide tour in support of Evanescence performing "What You Want" during the encore of the show.[68][69][70] While reviewing a concert by the band, Rick Florino wrote that Lee sounded "pristine and powerful" during the chorus of the song. He further praised Tim McCord's bass and Terry Balsamo's guitar, "volleying with Troy McLawhorn as Evanescene's methodical metallic theatrics hypnotized."[68] He concluded that the song "proved to be an undeniable anthem echoed throughout the room by every voice present."[68] While reviewing a concert during Evanescence's tour, Serene Dominic of The Arizona Republic noted that the band "rocking a lot harder than you might expect" opened the show "with the new headbanger of a single 'What You Want'."[71]
| Chart (2011-12) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Brazil (Billboard)[74] | 30 |
| Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[75] | 55 |
| Germany (Media Control Charts)[76] | 84 |
| Japan (Japan Hot 100)[77][78] | 58 |
| South Korea (Gaon Chart)[79] | 59 |
| UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[55] | 72 |
| UK Rock Chart (The Official Charts Company)[54] | 1 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[80] | 68 |
| US Mainstream Rock Songs (Billboard)[51] | 8 |
| US Rock Songs (Billboard)[50] | 11 |
| US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[81] | 14 |
| Country | Date | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Australia[82] | August 9, 2011 | Digital download |
| Austria[83] | ||
| Belgium[84] | ||
| Denmark[85] | ||
| Finland[86] | ||
| France[87] | ||
| Germany[88] | ||
| Greece[89] | ||
| Italy[90] | ||
| Mexico[91] | ||
| Netherlands[92] | ||
| Norway[93] | ||
| Portugal[94] | ||
| Spain[95] | ||
| Sweden[96] | ||
| Switzerland[97] | ||
| United States[72] | ||
| New Zealand[98] | ||
| Germany[14] | September 9, 2011 | CD single |
| United Kingdom[13][99][100] | October 2, 2011 | Digital download |
| Book: Evanescence (album) | |
| Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print. | |
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