Sweet Sacrifice

"Sweet Sacrifice" is a song by American rock band Evanescence from their second studio album, The Open Door. It was released on May 25, 2007, as the album's third single. The song was written by Amy Lee and Terry Balsamo, and produced by Dave Fortman. It is about coming out of the abusive relationship that inspired much of Lee's writing on the debut album. "Sweet Sacrifice" received generally positive reviews by critics, and was nominated for Best Hard Rock Performance at the 50th Grammy Awards. Its music video was directed by P.R. Brown.

"Sweet Sacrifice"
A picture showing five people in a black room. The woman in front has black hair and a yellow dress and is lying on a couch. Four men are shown behind her and all of them are wearing black T-shirts. In front of them, the word "Evanescence" is written with yellow letters. Another word "Sweet Sacrifice" can be also seen which is written in white letters.
Single by Evanescence
from the album The Open Door
ReleasedMay 25, 2007
Recorded2006 (Record Plant Studios, Los Angeles)
Length3:05
LabelWind-up
Songwriter(s)Amy Lee, Terry Balsamo
Producer(s)Dave Fortman
Evanescence singles chronology
"Lithium"
(2007)		 "Sweet Sacrifice"
(2007)		 "Good Enough"
(2007)
Music video
"Sweet Sacrifice" on YouTube

Background and release

"Sweet Sacrifice" was written by Amy Lee and Terry Balsamo, with production handled by Dave Fortman.[1] "All That I'm Living For" was originally chosen by the label as the album's third single, but after pressure from the band and their fandom, "Sweet Sacrifice" replaced it as the third single.[2] The single was first released in Germany on May 25, 2007.[3]

Composition

The main theme of the song is moving forward from an abusive relationship.[4][5] Lee described it as being "almost sarcastic" to herself as she "needs to stop being that sweet sacrifice".[6] She said of her inspiration for the song,

It's the one song on The Open Door that's about the same abusive relationship which was the source of all the songs on Fallen. It was appropriate to put this song at the beginning, but it comes from a much stronger standpoint than Fallen. It's not saying, "I'm trapped in fear and somebody save me." It's saying, "Fear is only in our minds ... I'm not afraid anymore."[4]

According to the sheet music published on the website Musicnotes.com by Alfred Music Publishing, "Sweet Sacrifice" was written in the key of F# minor and Lee's vocals for the song range from the musical note of A#3 to G5.[7] IGN's Ed Thompson said the song is underscored by Lee's "haunting vocals and dark lyrics" alongside a "deep, rumbling guitar", strings, and a layer of programming.[8] Sam Law of Kerrang! musically described it as "a hail of nervy guitars and tense strings fall[ing] around Lee's wild-eyed performance."[2] Sara Berry of St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote that it "features disquieting lines like 'I dream in darkness/I sleep to die/Erase the silence/Erase my life.'"[9]

Critical reception

In his review of The Open Door, Ed Thompson of IGN highlighted the song as the "best track" on the album.[8] Bill Lamb of the website About.com named it one of the top tracks on The Open Door.[10] The Washington Post's Richard Harrington wrote that "There's no shortage of soaring, dynamic rockers on 'The Open Door,' including "Sweet Sacrifice"".[11] Sara Berry of St. Louis Post-Dispatch said the song's "disquieting lines" are "par for the course on this lineup of overwhelmingly melancholy compositions. Still, it's well-executed music, and it's an ideal soundtrack for life's moodier moments."[9] Writing for Entertainment Weekly Jon Dolan found the song to be a "bruising breakup lament that turns into an anthem of freedom."[12] Melissa Maerz pf Spin said the song reveals "an angrier, more self-assured who waxes sardonic".[6] Kerrang!'s Sam Law wrote that it is the sound of Lee "revelling in the ability to turn that pain into something positive as a hail of nervy guitars and tense strings fall around Lee's wild-eyed performance."[2] Dannii Leivers of Metal Hammer complimented Lee's songwriting.[13] "Sweet Sacrifice" was nominated for Best Hard Rock Performance at the 50th Grammy Awards.[14]

Music video
Screenshot from the "Sweet Sacrifice"[15]

A music video directed by P.R. Brown was filmed in Burbank, California, between March 9 and March 10, 2007. The music video leaked onto the Internet on April 4, 2007, after briefly being available for digital download on iTunes Store.[16] It initially premiered on Yahoo! Music on April 5.[17] The video's set was inspired by the psychological thriller film The Cell (2000) directed by Tarsem Singh. Lee said it is "like we're in the walls of our minds".[15] In an interview with MTV News, she described the video as "mostly live performance. It's not so much fluff and flying and tricks and wolves and stuff. It's more really just about the song ... It's gonna be sort of like a video within the video."[15] Sam Law of Kerrang! wrote that the video "added another layer of strained texture and cutting catharsis."[2] The video peaked at number eight on MTV's Total Request Live in April 2007.[18]

Track listing

There are two versions of the single that have been released, they have different photos by Amy V. Cooper.

Basic Maxi CD (Part 1)[3][19]
  • "Sweet Sacrifice" (Album version) - 3:05
  • "Weight of the World" (Live from Tokyo) - 3:44
Premium Maxi CD (Part 2)[20][21]
  • "Sweet Sacrifice" (Album version) - 3:05
  • "Weight of the World" (Live from Tokyo) - 3:44
  • "Sweet Sacrifice" (Radio mix) - 3:03
  • Interview with Amy Lee and John LeCompt* - 5:07

Credits and personnel

Album credits are taken from The Open Door liner notes.[1]

Charts
Chart (2007)
 Peak
position
Turkey (Türkiye Top 20)[22] 11
Germany (Official German Charts)[23] 75
Greece (IFPI Greece)[24] 13
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[25] 24

Release history
Country Date Format Label
Austria[26] May 25, 2007 Digital download Sony
Germany CD single[3]
Maxi single[20]
Digital download[27]

References
  1. The Open Door (liner notes). Evanescence. Wind-up Records. 2006.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. Law, Sam (August 21, 2020). "The 20 greatest Evanescence songs – ranked". Kerrang!. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  3. "Sweet Sacrifice/Basic [Maxi-CD]". Amazon.de (Germany). Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved June 28, 2007.
  4. Bottomley, C. (September 18, 2006). "Evanescence: Amy Lee Explains the New Songs". VH1.com. Archived from the original on October 16, 2006. Retrieved February 2, 2007.
  5. Reesman, Bryan (November 2006). "The Essence of Evanescence". Metal Edge. Vol. 52, no. 11. pp. 5–10. ISSN 1068-2872.
  6. Maerz, Melissa (October 2006). "She sold more than 15 million albums with Evanescence, only to find herself in abusive relationships". Spin. Vol. 22, no. 10. p. 70. ISSN 0886-3032. Archived from the original on November 27, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  7. "Evanescence - Sweet Sacrifice Sheet Music (Digital Download)". Musicnotes. Alfred Music Publishing. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  8. Thompson, Ed (2009-10-04). "Evanescence - The Open Door". IGN. News Corporation. Archived from the original on 2011-06-28. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  9. Berry, Sara (2006-10-13). "Evanescence makes welcome return through 'The Open Door'". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Archived from the original on 2012-10-12. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  10. Lamb, Bill. "Evanescence - The Open Door: Review The Open Door, the Second Album From Evanescence". About.com. The New York Times Company. Archived from the original on 2007-08-28. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  11. Harrington, Richard (2006-10-06). "Another 'Door' Opens for Amy Lee". The Washington Post. pp. 1, 2. Archived from the original on 2012-11-12. Retrieved 2011-07-23.
  12. Jon, Dolan (2006-10-09). "The Open Door Review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  13. Leivers, Dannii (April 5, 2021). "Every Evanescence album ranked from worst to best". Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on March 28, 2022. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  14. "Grammy 2008 Winners List". MTV News. 2008-02-10. Archived from the original on 2009-06-05. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  15. Moss, Corey (2007-03-26). "Evanescence's Lee Laughs At 'Idol,' Promises Less Fluff In 'Sweet' Clip". MTV News. Archived from the original on 2012-11-07. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
  16. "Sweet Sacrifice by Evanescence". iTunes Store. Apple Inc. Retrieved 2011-08-31.
  17. "Evanescence Music Videos on Yahoo! Music". Yahoo! Music. Yahoo!. 2007-04-05. Archived from the original on April 28, 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-05.
  18. Campbell, Rachel (October 5, 2017). "32 times the scene rocked the 'TRL' countdown". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on October 26, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  19. Sweet Sacrifice (Basic Maxi CD Single). Evanescence. Germany: Wind-up. 2006. 88697088592.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. "Sweet Sacrifice/Premium [Maxi-CD]". Amazon.de (Germany). Retrieved 2007-06-28.
  21. Sweet Sacrifice (Premium Maxi CD Single). Evanescence. Germany: Wind-up. 2006. 88697088612.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  22. "Yabanci Sarki". Billboard Türkiye. No. 9. July 2007. p. 90. ISSN 1307-0959.
  23. "Offiziellecharts.de – Evanescence – Sweet Sacrifice". GfK Entertainment. Archived from the original on December 26, 2015. Retrieved August 30, 2015.
  24. "Top 50 Singles". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on October 29, 2007. Retrieved March 26, 2016.
  25. "Evanescence Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard.
  26. "Sweet Sacrifice - EP". iTunes Store (Austria). 25 May 2007. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2013.
  27. "Sweet Sacrifice - EP". iTunes Store (Germany). 25 May 2007. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2013.
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