Synthesis Live


Synthesis Live was a concert tour by the American rock band Evanescence, in support of their fourth studio album, the orchestral and electronica-based Synthesis. This was the first tour where the band performed with an orchestra on stage. For each city on the tour, a local orchestra was assembled by conductor Susie Seiter. Synthesis Live included 60 concerts in cities across North America in 2017 and 2018, four concerts in Oceania and 18 concerts in Europe in 2018. The tour received critical acclaim.

Background

"This is a total passion project for me", Amy Lee said. "There are so many layers in our music underneath the huge drums and guitars. I've always wanted to shine a light on some of the gorgeous David Campbell arrangements and programming elements in our songs, and that idea snowballed into completely re-doing them with full orchestra, not just strings, elaborate programming and experimentation." She deemed Synthesis a fun experience that became "something bigger because you're really starting from scratch on the songs", and found the musical journey to be therapeutic. Lee said she was excited about the new instrumental material on the album and performing with a full orchestra live for the first time in their career.
The Synthesis Live tour was announced by the band on August 14, 2017. They would be accompanied on stage by a different 28-piece orchestra in every city, performing re-worked orchestral and electronica-arrangements of some of their back catalogue plus two new songs from Synthesis. For each city on the tour, a local orchestra was assembled by the show's conductor, Susie Seiter. With the purchase of tickets for the concerts, concertgoers received a free download of the album along with an instant download of the reworked version of "Bring Me to Life" included on Synthesis. For the final leg of the North American tour, violinist Lindsey Stirling, who featured on the Synthesis song "Hi-Lo", co-headlined with Evanescence, with both artists alternating on who headlined each night.

Critical reception

The Synthesis Live concert tour received critical acclaim, with several publications calling it an ambitious tour. Billboard wrote that Evanescence "delivered a riveting performance" and Lee "delved into every nuance of her vocals" with her "haunting voice and eerie piano" evoking "the pulse of Evanescence's sound". Gig Wise said the band "exceeded all expectations" and "the multiple layers in this performance make it become a whole different jaw-dropping experience". "Each and every musician onstage is in perfect sync" and Lee emits "such incredible depth and sound", Renowned for Sound reviewed, regarding the concert "spectacular." Variety wrote, "Lee firmly re-establishes herself as one of rock's pre-eminent vocalists" while "she and the ensemble turn the familiar material into full-throttle, wide-screen epics, its themes of loss, guilt and self-doubt enlarged to tragedy on the Greek proscenium. The Wall Street Journal commended Lee's "rich, measured yet emotional performance" and piano work, concluding, "the majesty of Ms. Lee accompanied by Mr. Campbell's arrangements was undeniable."

Live album

On August 8, 2018, Eagle Rock Entertainment announced Synthesis Live on CD with DVD or Blu-ray and digital download to be released on October 12, 2018. The concert film was shot during their fall 2017 tour at Foxwoods Resort Casino Grand Theater in Connecticut and directed by P. R. Brown and mixed by Damian Taylor. The set contained the entire concert with a live orchestra and included the music video for "Hi-Lo".

Set list

Orchestra opening
  1. "La Strada"
  2. "La Chasse"
  3. "Pavane"
  4. "Moonlight Sonata"
  5. "Lacrimosa"
  6. "Sally's Song"
Evanescence with orchestra
  1. "Overture"
  2. "Never Go Back"
  3. "Lacrymosa"
  4. "End of the Dream"
  5. "My Heart Is Broken"
  6. "Lithium"
  7. "Bring Me to Life"
  8. "Unraveling"
  9. "Imaginary"
  10. "Secret Door"
  11. "Across the Universe"
  12. "Hi-Lo"
  13. "Lost in Paradise"
  14. "Your Star"
  15. "My Immortal"
  16. "The In-Between"
  17. "Imperfection"
Encore
  2. "Speak to Me"
  3. "Good Enough"
  4. "Swimming Home" / "Weight of the World"
On the first night of the tour, at the Pearl Concert Theater, Las Vegas, October 14, "Speak to Me" was not performed. Starting November 30, "Weight of the World" was performed instead of "Swimming Home". "Palladio / No More Tears / Alive", a mashup of Ozzy Osbourne and Sia, was performed by both Evanescence and Lindsey Stirling starting July 7, 2018.

Tour dates

DateCityCountryVenue
February 10, 2018BrisbaneAustraliaBCEC Great Hall
February 13, 2018SydneyAustraliaSydney Opera House
February 14, 2018SydneyAustraliaSydney Opera House
February 16, 2018MelbourneAustraliaRod Laver Arena
March 12, 2018MoscowRussiaCrocus City Hall
March 15, 2018St. PetersburgRussiaYubileyny Sports Palace
March 17, 2018PragueCzech RepublicPrague Congress Centre
March 19, 2018MilanItalyArcimboldi Theatre
March 20, 2018ZürichSwitzerlandSamsung Hall
March 22, 2018StuttgartGermanyPorsche-Arena
March 23, 2018LeipzigGermanyArena Leipzig
March 25, 2018AmsterdamNetherlandsAFAS Live
March 26, 2018DüsseldorfGermanyMitsubishi Electric Halle
March 28, 2018ParisFranceLe Grand Rex
March 30, 2018LondonEnglandRoyal Festival Hall
March 31, 2018LondonEnglandRoyal Festival Hall
April 2, 2018ManchesterEnglandO2 Apollo Manchester
April 3, 2018NottinghamEnglandMotorpoint Arena Nottingham
April 5, 2018GlasgowScotlandSEC Armadillo
April 6, 2018SheffieldEnglandSheffield City Hall
April 8, 2018BrusselsBelgiumPalais 12
April 9, 2018LondonEnglandEventim Apollo
July 6, 2018Kansas CityUnited StatesStarlight Theatre
July 7, 2018Maryland HeightsUnited StatesHollywood Casino Amphitheatre
July 9, 2018ClarkstonUnited StatesDTE Energy Music Theatre
July 10, 2018Highland ParkUnited StatesRavinia Pavilion
July 12, 2018NoblesvilleUnited StatesRuoff Home Mortgage Music Center
July 14, 2018CincinnatiUnited StatesRiverbend Music Center
July 17, 2018CamdenUnited StatesBB&T Pavilion
July 18, 2018MansfieldUnited StatesXfinity Center
July 20, 2018CharlotteUnited StatesPNC Music Pavilion
July 21, 2018RaleighUnited StatesCoastal Credit Union Music Park
July 24, 2018BristowUnited StatesJiffy Lube Live
July 25, 2018UncasvilleUnited StatesMohegan Sun Arena
July 27, 2018TorontoCanadaBudweiser Stage
July 28, 2018Saratoga SpringsUnited StatesSaratoga Performing Arts Center
August 10, 2018HolmdelUnited StatesPNC Bank Arts Center
August 11, 2018WantaghUnited StatesJones Beach Theater
August 14, 2018SimpsonvilleUnited StatesHeritage Park Amphitheater
August 17, 2018TampaUnited StatesMidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre
August 18, 2018West Palm BeachUnited StatesCoral Sky Amphitheatre
August 20, 2018JacksonvilleUnited StatesDaily's Place
August 22, 2018New OrleansUnited StatesBold Sphere Music at Champions Square
August 24, 2018DallasUnited StatesDos Equis Pavilion
August 25, 2018The WoodlandsUnited StatesCynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
August 28, 2018AlbuquerqueUnited StatesIsleta Amphitheater
August 29, 2018PhoenixUnited StatesAk-Chin Pavilion
August 31, 2018Chula VistaUnited StatesMattress Firm Amphitheatre
September 1, 2018IrvineUnited StatesFivePoint Amphitheatre
September 4, 2018Los AngelesUnited StatesGreek Theatre
September 5, 2018Mountain ViewUnited StatesShoreline Amphitheatre
September 7, 2018AuburnUnited StatesWhite River Amphitheatre
September 8, 2018RidgefieldUnited StatesSunlight Supply Amphitheater

Changed dates

The concert in Brisbane was originally scheduled for February 11, at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre, but the promoter changed the date to February 10 and the venue to the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Personnel

Evanescence
Additional musicians