TVD Live Shots: Evanescence and Halestorm at the SAP Arena, 11/9

SAN JOSE, CAAfter being announced in May, Evanescence’s arena tour with Halestorm is finally here. On top of the long-awaited return to live music, the band has a new album (The Bitter Truth) to celebrate.

A quiet Tuesday night found the tour at the SAP Center in San Jose. While it was arguably ambitious to book this particular show in an arena, the crew curtained off the top level which made the vibe a little more intimate while leaving plenty of room for the impressive stage setup.

Halestorm took the stage promptly at 8PM and appropriately launched into their newest song “Back From the Dead.” Looking at the general admission area right up front you could easily forget that they weren’t the headliner because they clearly had some fans in the house that were more than ready to rock along. Lzzy Hale’s voice sounded as powerful as ever, clearly none the worse for wear after the pandemic-driven break. Heck, the entire band looked energized to be back on the road and in front of an audience of any size.

After “Amen” the lights went down, and the crew rolled out a white grand piano which Lzzy took a seat behind and was soon joined by Amy Lee for a duet of “Break In” that both impressed and amped up the crowd for Evanescence’s headlining set. After an hour, Halestorm finally yielded the stage but not before peppering the crowd with sticks, picks, setlists, and even a few bracelets straight off of Lzzy’s wrist.

With the crew making quick work of the stage, the arena lights dimmed at 9:30PM, the intro music rolled and Amy’s vocals for “Broken Pieces Shine” soared through the arena before she was revealed backlit on a riser behind the drum kit. The crowd went nuts and with good reason. Not only does Evanescence have a new album out, but they haven’t played the San Francisco Bay Area for over 3 years!

The stage lighting was truly epic and perfectly framed the band as Amy stormed across the stage without missing a note. Touring in support of The Bitter Truth pretty much ensures a healthy dose of new material, but with the album having already been out for over 6 months, the fans have had plenty of time to familiarize themselves with it and clearly they had done their homework. That’s not to say that the older material got short shrift, and not surprisingly the main portion of the set wrapped with their breakout hit, “Bring Me to Life” but not before Lzzy Hale joined Amy on stage to return her early favor for an epic rendition of Linkin Park’s “Heavy.”

Halestorm and Evanescence proved to be a perfect pairing and, while only the third stop on this tour, neither showed signs of being out of practice after their respective breaks. In fact, both bands were at the top of their games and provided a welcome return to live music for many. Suffice it to say, goth date night in San Jose was a resounding success.

HALESTORM

EVANESCENCE

Halestorm Setlist
Back From the Dead
Love Bites (So Do I)
I Get Off
Do Not Disturb
I Am the Fire
Amen
Break In
Drum Solo
Black Vultures
Freak Like Me
I Miss the Misery

Evanescence Setlist
Broken Pieces Shine
Made of Stone
Take Cover
Going Under
The Game Is Over
Lose Control
The Change
Lithium
Wasted on You
End of the Dream (Synthesis intro)
Far from Heaven
Better Without You
Call Me When You’re Sober
Imaginary
Heavy (Linkin Park)
Use My Voice
Bring Me to Life

My Immortal
Blind Belief

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