Lacuna Coil
Dark Adrenaline
Century Media Records
Lacuna Coil has been an interesting band to watch grow. A touring monster featuring one of the most strikingly beautiful singers in the history of metal, the band has been on the cusp of being huge for a long time. Their last album Shallow Life got them closer to that goal and the new release, Dark Adrenaline, could see them pull a Thelma and Louise over the cliff of mainstream success. Gone are the old screeching vocals and some of the harsher themes, replaced by what really comes down to heavy pop tunes. That’s not a slight; it’s just a realistic appraisal of what Lacuna Coil brings to the table.
Dark Adrenalinekicks off with one of the better songs the band has ever cobbled together. “Trip The Darkness” boasts a catchy riff backed by epic keyboards that scream big metal hit. When lead vocalist Cristina Scabbia releases her angelic vocals you can’t help but bob your head in approval. She’s the ultimate metal girlfriend. Hot, sensitive and super talented. I can picture hundreds of thousands of teenage girls with dark eye makeup and a Jack Skelington hoodie sitting in the corner of their rooms, smoking cigarettes and rocking back and forth to “Trip The Darkness”.
The same can be said for the follow up jam “Against You”. Keyboards announce the hugeness of the gothic angle just as another sweeping and catchy riff propels the song forward. Track after track Lacuna Coil lays down their particular brand of metal/pop with a formula that doesn’t really change. The band has wedged their sound in-between melancholy and rage. The blasts of anger spraying randomly aren’t Lacuna Coil’s bag. They speak more to the gothic/metal outsiders, the ones looking for a dark soundtrack to their infinite sadness.
Lacuna Coil’s formula is undeniable and they apply it across the board. Start with keyboards or a catchy riff, add Scabbia’s lush and hypnotic vocals, mix well with a high school diary lyrical content and serve with a garnish of heavy metal anger. Song after song Dark Adrenaline is the same thing. If you dig what Lacuna Coil are laying down, then have at it. If you think the band sucked before, this isn’t the album that’ll change your mind.
For me this kind of metal is boring and derivative. It isn’t bad; it just does nothing for me at all. When I can predict the changes and structure of every single tune based on the song before it, I usually tune out. I also can’t stand Andre Ferro’s vocals on any level. His presence injects a nu metal vibe to Lacuna Coil that they can seriously do without. Cristina Scabbia is gorgeous and sings like an angel. Lacuna Coil would be well served to dump Ferro and let Scabbia run the show. In my humble opinion that would triple their chances at becoming a Metallica sized band.
I don’t know if the decision to cover R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion” was an honest testament to Lacuna Coils’ love of the song or a tactical grab at bigger radio play. Whatever the reason it’s the most glaring example of how little Andre Ferro means to the band. When Scabbia sings the cover soars, as soon as Ferro enters the fray it becomes something off a Linkin Park covers record.
Dark Adrenalineis a clean, crisply produced collection of heavy pop tunes with massive crossover appeal. Cristina Scabbia was put on this Earth to be a rock star. Her voice is intoxicating and her dark presence screams to be the heroine of sad girls and lonely guys everywhere. Creatively Dark Adrenaline is nothing new for Lacuna Coil, but it could be the album that finally makes them arena rock champions.
CRAVEONLINE RATING 7/10
