Former EVANESCENCE Guitarist/Songwriter Thinks Band's New Album Is 'Awesome'

EVANESCENCE co-founder Ben Moody (guitar),who in 2009 formed a soundalike band called WE ARE THE FALLEN with other former EVANESCENCE members (John LeCompt on guitar and Rocky Gray on drums) along with "American Idol" powerhouse vocalist Carly Smithson and bassist Marty O'Brien (DISTURBED, KELLY CLARKSON, STATIC-X, METHODS OF MAYHEM, TOMMY LEE),has posted a video message in which he praised the new EVANESCENCE album.

Moody co-founded EVANESCENCE with singer Amy Lee, but left the band in 2003, shortly after the release of the group's debut CD, "Fallen". The remaining original bandmembers all filtered out eventually as well. A sophomore LP, "The Open Door", followed in 2006 with the band going on hiatus until 2010.

EVANESCENCEs self-titled third album, which came out on October 11, topped The Billboard 200 chart with first-week sales of 127,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. This marked the second time that that band had taken the top spot on the chart "The Open Door" debuted at No. 1 as well, with 447,000 copies sold its first week.

"I love the new EVANESCENCE," Moody said in his video message, which can be seen below. "I like it better than 'The Open Door'. I think it's awesome. I think Amy and the boys did a great job. . . And it's probably gonna do wonders for [them], both on and off the stage."

Moody last year released statement in which he opened up about his reasons for leaving EVANESCENCE in 2003 revealing his relationship with Lee became "an all-out war" and he tried to force her to quit instead. He said, "I am not going to paint the sugar-coated pleasant version of events. I'm going to tell you exactly what happened in October of 2003...

"We were very young people in a very stressful situation... We had such opposing desires and personalities that mixed with the pride of youth and inexperience... led to an all-out war.

"On the night of October 22, 2003 everything came to a head. And through my fit of rage and desperation I put the nail in the coffin of EVANESCENCE... It was highly probable we wouldn't last the remainder of the tour. Neither one of us willing to back down... I was devastated by what we had become... My once-best friend and I had become enemies."

Moody admitted he wanted Amy to leave the band, but decided he had to go because the group wouldn't have survived with a different vocalist and he said he was sorry for attempting to force Lee out. "Out of ignorance, pride, and resentment [I tried] to convince Amy that she should leave," he said.

"Amy, if for some reason you happen to see this... I hope you know I never truly believed that. There was no way I would ever let someone walk on that stage and sing your lyrics... It would have become a joke."

Despite his strained relationship with Lee, Moody insisted he wished his former colleagues nothing but success. "Every single bit of success that EVANESCENCE achieves is a success for me," he said. "Every CD they sell (with or without my contributions),every venue they sell out, strengthens the one great thing I did with my life. Ensuring my sacrifice wasn't in vain."