I feel absolutely horrible for uneducated Evanescence fans. They go on eBay hoping to score a copy of "Origin" which was their demo album. 99.9% of the copies sold on eBay are Fake. Some copies are going for up to $300 with fake band signatures. My reason for writing this guide it to hope that I can at least save one or two fans from acquiring fake copies of this demo cd.

I run a respectable Evanescence fan site and collect their singles and other rarities. Over the years I have attempted several auctions on eBay and ended up wasting money while feeling lied to and ashamed of my mistake; leaving behind a stack of fake Origin’s and EP’s. I hope that this guide will help even a few people avoid my mistakes.


I thought I had truly found a real copy about a year ago. Unlike the other bootlegs with incorrect track lisitngs, I had come across one that was claimed to be 100% authentic. The seller had a good story, and claimed they were a member of evboard. The thing that really struck me was that It contained "Track 0" -- the hidden outtake at the beginning. Believing with all my heart that it was real, I ended up paying a large amount of money for it.

But alas, a friend who has a real, authentic copy purchased way back in 2000 before Evanescence became famous showed me the truth. I had what has been catagorized as a "Good Fake." Bootleggers have gotten smartedr, and have figured out how to burn the hidden track onto thier cd's. However the telltale sign as i have learned is the quality of the cover.

Look at the Comparison between a Fake Cover and a Real cover; it's absolutely amazing. Both were scanned in the same resolution with the same equipment. Notice the Color Brilliance, the outlining of the text, it all puts even the “good fakes” like I own to shame! Here is a comparison:

While looking to collect rare items even I lost sight of the fact that there were limited copies, extremely limited, of the pre-fallen materials. I came to hard the realization around this time last year that it would be nearly impossible to find an authentic copy of the pre-fallen materials. Origin, The Sound Asleep/Whisper Ep, and the Evanescence EP are all being kept within the tight grasps of their early fans. I still to this day find it amazing that I could acquire a copy of the “Imaginary” single and both versions of the “Missing” singles — but had yet to find a real, true copy of Origin.

The amount of Origin CD’s and the recent rash of fake Evanescence and Sound-Asleep EP’s has become insane. Some going for upwards of $500-1,200! I have reported so many fake auctions to eBay, but they will not do anything about it. It's frustrating and the worst part is that the fans are getting fake copies that are being perceived as real.

So please, please stop feeding the pirates! Learn from my mistakes, and the mistakes of many others. Do what the band wanted you to do all along, and download the High Quality tracks from the "Evanescence Reference."You will make out victorious in the long run, and a lot richer!


[Article Modified from my blog at Sound-Asleep.Net]