Lacuna Coil – Sleepless Empire
Release Date: 14th February 2025
Label: Century Media
Bandcamp
Genre: Gothic Metal
FFO: Within Temptation, Epica, Arch Enemy.
Review By: Jeff Finch
Coming back to listen to a band that’s been virtually ignored for almost two decades is basically like getting started as a brand-new fan. The last time I actively listened to Lacuna Coil, the focus of today’s review, was Karmacode back in 2006, as that album cover was always fascinating so it intrigued me enough to give it a whirl. And at that time, the fact that Cristina Scabbia had to share airtime with another vocalist wasn’t something I was terribly interested in. But twenty years later, likes change, expectations change, tastes mature, and for this listener, the narrow-minded, pigeonholed view of Lacuna Coil is gone, as the adult self has listened to the band as they deserve, not as I once had.
What that previous self was really a fan of was the phenomenal clean singing of Cristina Scabbia over some groovy metal riffs and some solid percussive power, and when she was front and center, it was an auditory treat, brought to an abrupt end by the inclusion of Andrea Ferro: but that was then, and in this moment of self reflection, the past self was wrong. Andrea and Cristina are both the glue that keeps this band together, their stark contrast in vocal styles able to do something difficult in music at times, and that is to keep listeners truly engaged.
Naturally the superb cleans of Scabbia are enough to bring a listener in, but when the visceral, vicious harsh vocals from Ferro kick in, it’s pure bedlam from the speakers, the band shifting from an almost Evanescence type of gothic sound to straight up metalcore at the drop of a hat and the turn of a voice. The operatic highs following the deep lows in Scarecrow, the quick violin burst piercing the sonic veil acting as the bridge between Ferro and Scabbia in Gravity, these moments of drastic shifts show a group that hasn’t lost a step; the band masterfully works their magic, crafting compositions that not only compliment each vocalist, but complement each other.
There is nothing jarring about these shifts, the transitions there and gone before we’ve realized anything has happened. One standout that catches listeners sleeping comes from late track Sleepless Empire, which sees a frenetic musical pace set the tone and Ferro, despite not vocalizing at nearly the same pace, elongating his growls to keep in tune with the frantic percussion behind him. At first, it seems a bit out of sync, but follow-up listens demonstrate the excellent execution that leads us into a moment of silence before the chorus, arguably one of the catchiest and one of the best demonstrations of how these two work so well together, Cristina’s highs, notes stretched out for maximum impact, slightly higher in the mix as Ferro comes in with his shout of sleepless empire. And probably the very best example of this band crafting moments of pure musical bliss occur on the next track Sleep Paralysis, so much focus on Scabbia’s vocals and the beefy rhythm beneath her but when the chorus hits, her angelic cleans, including a mammoth high note, are matched exactly by Ferro, just on the opposite side of the vocal spectrum, an almost literal Angel and Devil contrast that works to create one of the most haunting moments of the album and a chorus that won’t soon be forgotten.
While on the one hand I could get angry at my former self for not seeing the forest for the trees with Lacuna Coil, it is that very mindset that put me here, with an entirely new and fresh perspective with which to approach the band for a second time. And while Scabbia’s vocals are still just as jaw dropping, hearing the brilliant contrast with Ferro play out over the atmospheric, gothic backdrop, is pure ear candy, a combination of two things I love in music. For 30 years this band has been doing their thing and in this, their 31st year, they’ve released one that I think might be hard to top by any of their past releases.
(4.5 / 5)
Album out on 14th February 2025.
Cheers!