LACUNA COIL: Shallow Life

Produced by Don Gilmore

Released: April 21

Lacuna Coil disappointed many fans with Karmacode, this correspondent included. Their commercial aspirations seemed to have driven away everything that made them appealing in the first place. There was never anything wrong with them chasing success, but on their way to selling half a million albums the soul appeared to have been sucked out of the band.

Shallow Life does something to readdress the balance between their commercial pretentions and their metal roots. If you've heard any Lacuna Coil you know what this is going to sound like, yet while the band's songwriting remains steadfastly risk-free, this is a much heavier album than Karmacode. Possibly due to the guiding hand of Linkin Park and Avril Lavigne producer Don Gilmore, Lacuna Coil has been allowed to expound their pop inclinations while also pounding out music that is (most of the time) undeniably heavy metal once again.

"Survive" is the perfect start, a tinkling xylophone and a repetitive, child-like vocal line are suddenly overwhelmed by crushing guitars that for a moment almost makes you wonder if you're listening to the right CD until the familiar harmonies of Cristina Scabbia enter the picture. A true star whose presence looms over the rest of the group like a colossus, it is Scabbia's distinctive timbre and grasp of melody that really makes this band. Musically, Shallow Life is the group's typical wall-of-sound guitars, rock beats and sprinklings of keys, with simple, catchy riffs recycled from the best songs on previous albums. It's heavier than before and the whole thing goes along all right, but there's nothing outstanding about the tracks, which for the most part stick rigidly to Lacuna Coil's tried and tested formula. "I Won't Tell You" and "Not Enough" are quite memorable and in the rock stylings of "I'm Not Afraid" the band nudges the accessibility of Linkin Park, an aspect that is echoed in the title track. Similarly, "I Like It" is so unashamedly pop that only the lack of a funky beat stops it from becoming an instant dancefloor hit.

Nevertheless, Shallow Life still has a metal vibe, with a much stronger presence from Andrea Ferro, who seemed to spend most of Karmacode standing around doing nothing. With Scabbia's talent and presence overshadowing him, Ferro was in danger of becoming completely redundant but on Shallow Life he takes the lead on a couple of occasions, and turns in his best performances so far. As much as Scabbia owns the first two-thirds of this, Ferro dominates "The Maze" and "Unchained", two of the band's heaviest and darkest songs.

Shallow Life doesn't offer any real surprises but it is certainly edgier and heavier than its predecessor and just as likely to snare more fans in Lacuna Coil's harmonious net. Again, Scabbia proves what a giant talent she is and the band shows how they'd be nothing without her.

1. Survive
2. I Won't Tell You
3. Not Enough
4. I'm Not Afraid
5. I Like It
6. Underdog
7. The Pain
8. Spellbound
9. Wide Awake
10. The Maze
11. Unchained
12. Shallow Life

Rating: 73%

LACUNA COIL: Visual Karma (Body, Mind and Soul)

Released: November 2008

I have been a Lacuna Coil fan for a decade, which is probably about twice as long as many of the people who appear on and contribute to this massive DVD release. Originally announced over a year ago with the band asking for video clips and tributes from fans on their own YouTube channel, this is an immaculately produced double volume that shows the public and intimate sides of what is now arguably the world's biggest Goth metal band.

The first disc showcases the band in the live arena. Specifically, their entire set from Wacken 2007 and half a set from Japan's LoudPark festival. While it's true that about 80% of their songs sound pretty much alike, both performances show Lacuna Coil to be an engaging and remarkably heavy live band. Cristina Scabbia may be perfectly happy to share the spotlight both with Andrea Ferro and other members of the band, but the truth is that she is completely mesmerising and impossible to look away from to the point where you just want Ferro to disappear every time he's on screen and the other guys might just as well be standing behind screens or playing their instruments remotely from space. The sound of both shows is less than perfect, with lots of wowing and clipping during the latter half of the Wacken set, although Scabbia's vocals at least sound overdubbed here and there. The LoudPark show is rawer in quality and I actually enjoyed it more, even though Scabbia's sexy little dance during the intro of "Enjoy the Silence" at the Wacken show was the highlight of the whole disc.

Consisting of band member profiles, tour diaries and fan-made tributes, disc two is for the truly dedicated Lacuna Coil nut. The first part is comprised of six home movies from each of the members, of varying quality. Ferro's personal tour of Milan is poorly produced and just not very interesting. Bass player Marco Coti Zelati's self-portrait of himself getting hammered is somewhat amusing, but Marco Biazza's romance with his own guitar is just bizarre. Once again Scabbia proves why she is the real star of this band, with a genuinely warm piece about a benefit she organised that funded a new well in a Kenyan village. Most of the rest of the disc is prime filler material, unless you happened to be one of the ten people who's video clips made the cut and are included or you were interested enough in watching the winning entries. Personally, I wasn't so I didn't even bother with most of it. Anything with Cristina being totally candid is a joy to watch, and not just because she's gorgeous. The woman is a true star.

Visual Karma is a bit of an epic, especially if you try to watch the whole thing all at once. The live footage and Karma Code clips would be more than enough for the average fan; the rest of it is really for Coilophiles only.

DVD 1:

Wacken 2007

1. Intro

2. To The Edge

3. Fragments Of Faith

4. Swamped

5. In Visible Light

6. Fragile

7. Closer

8. Senzafine

9. What I See

10. Enjoy The Silence

11. Heavens A Lie

12. Our Truth

Loudpark 2007:

1. Intro/To The Edge

2. Swamped

3. Closer

4. Within Me

5. Daylight Dancer

6. Our Truth

Videos:

1. Our Truth

2. Closer

3. Enjoy the Silence

4. Within Me

DVD 2

1. Simple As Water (Cristina)

2. Inside Milan (Andrea)

3. The Leaning Journey Of Pizza (Marco B)

4. 7-Seven... Strings Life (Maus)

5. The Real Thing (Marco C Z)

6. Enter The Drummer (Christiano)

Behind The Scenes:

Australian Tour 2007

First Time In Japan

Making Of The Our Truth Video

Making Of The Closer Video

Fan Submissions:

Lacuna Coil's introductory clip

Empty Spiral Interview

To The Edge Remix Contest

Inside The Spiral

Links

Rating: 75%

LACUNA COIL: Karmacode

Produced by Waldemar Sorychta and Lacuna Coil

Released: 2006

Lacuna Coil seem to have become one of everyone's favourite bands over the past few years, at least since Comalies and their appearances at Ozzfest had Americans arguing over whether it was they or Evanescence who was emulating the other. Since then, Lacuna Coil has only risen in popularity, and a good proportion of that success has come from this album.

Karmacode was this band's breakthrough album on a commercial, mass-following level. The hordes that ate up Evanescence and are currently scoffing down H.I.M. and even Opeth also grabbed this with both hands, especially the guys once they got a load of the incredibly sexy Christina Scabbia, easily one of the hottest women in rock history.

However there is little doubt that ever since Unleashed Memories, when the grim male vocals that made their first couple of releases so uneven were reined in, Lacuna Coil has become an increasingly formulaic band. It was evident even then that they had a clearly mainstream agenda and Karmacode is the final confirmation of this. All of Lacuna Coil's hallmarks are here. It's not ridiculously heavy, but there's still enough guitars in there to make it metal. Coupled with the band's typically soaring melodies, Scabbia's wonderful voice and the hint of Gothic melancholia, this is almost the perfect release for the seemingly increasing army of commercial Goth-metal fans around the world at the moment. Artistically, and from a long-time fan's point of view however, Karmacode is not particularly exciting. Virtually every track is built on the same quiet keyboard intro/delicate verse/soaring chorus/repeat/interlude/chorus structure that helped get units ticking over, but it doesn't make for a very interesting album. Karmacode is so rigidly formulaic that it makes Comalies seem diverse; worse, it lacks any real catchiness so that after 47 minutes have gone by you're left without any one particular song stuck in your head.

Lacuna Coil deserve success. They are great at what they do and have been doing it longer than most but with an offering as bland as Karmacode, that success may prove to be fleeting.

1. Fragile


2. To the Edge


3. Our Truth


4. Within Me


5. Devoted


6. You Create


7. What I See


8. Fragments of Faith


9. Closer


10. In Visible Light


11. The Game


12. Without Fear


13. Enjoy the Silence

Rating: 64%