Christian rock band Evanescence is officially no longer a Christian rock band.
Following a recent interview in which it used profanity and made clear that it does not want to be known as a Christian act, Evanescence’s albums are being pulled from Christian retailers and its material will be removed from the Christian charts.
Provident Music Distribution, the Christian distribution arm of BMG’s Zomba unit, says it will no longer handle the Wind-Up Records act.
Don Noes, senior VP of Provident – which had been distributing Evanescence’s debut album, “Fallen” – has issued a letter to its accounts saying Wind-Up has recalled the band’s product from Christian retail. Noes tells accounts they can return Evanescence product for full credit.
Evanescence member Ben Moody was quoted recently in Entertainment Weekly as saying, “We’re actually high on the Christian charts, and I’m like, What the f- are we even doing there?”
“Fallen” is No. 1 on this week’s Top Contemporary Christian Albums chart and No. 9 on The Billboard 200, while the single “Bring Me To Life” featuring Paul McCoy is No. 2 on Billboard’s Modern Rock Tracks airplay chart. Material by Evanescence will be removed from subsequent Christian charts.
In a letter to Provident, Wind-Up chairman/CEO Alan Meltzer apologizes for “an unfortunate and embarrassing situation” and vows that in the future, the label will scrutinize “Christian artists’ beliefs and commitment with even greater diligence.”