Evanescence lead singer Amy Lee has told Australia’s UndercoverNews website that former Cold guitarist Terry Balsamo is now a permanent member of Evanescence. Balsamo stepped in as a temporary replacement late last year for founding axeman Ben Moody, who abruptly departed in the middle of a European tour last October. Lee said that Balsamo and her band “just clicked” the more they played together. “[It is] better than I ever expected…Terry’s an insane guitar player with awesome stage presence. He has a good personality and he’s down to earth and on top of all that stuff, he’s a great writer and he’s done a lot of great writing. I didn’t really realize when we first brought him into the band, so all around, Terry is one of the best decisions we’ve made.”
Lee said that the move means Balsamo’s former band, Cold, is probably finished. “They could hire another guitar player and continue, but I’m pretty sure that their lead singer (Scooter Ward) is in and out of rehab and having real problems. He has been for a long time and I don’t think they’re going to be making another record. Terry was in a situation also where their band was very unhappy, so I think we came together on a common ground.”
Lee added that she was unsure if the hiring of Balsamo had created bad feelings between the two bands. “I haven’t talked to them. We all went on tour together in the States, which is funny, that’s how we met. Scooter, the lead singer, was really hurting, it was not good, but the rest of the guys in the band are really awesome…I don’t think there is any sore feelings, I think they were all pretty sick of the situation in their band.”
A spokesman for Cold’s management revealed, “Cold is NOT over. Look for a new single soon.” Cold’s latest album, Year Of The Spider, came out in 2003 and featured the Modern Rock hit, “Stupid Girl.”
Evanescence kicks off a U.S. tour on February 11 in Los Angeles, before settling down to write their second album. Ex-Limp Bizkit axeman Wes Borland has also reportedly been working with Lee on new material.