| The
Review |
I think I may be finally getting tired of the female led-gothic-tinged-slightly-heavy-slightly-prog
bands. It was funny to me when Evanescence came out here in
the States and suddenly gave the genre a boost. I remember
thinking that bands like Lacuna Coil must have been enraged
that a random band without as much talent was getting so much
attention for doing what they (Gathering, Lacuna Coil, Nightwish,
Within Temptation) had been doing for so long already. After
that, most female led bands (including the aforementioned)
began streamlining their sound with heavier, downtuned guitars
and more accessible structures in an effort to duplicate Evanescence's
success. I then started losing interest in this style. Exceptions
exist, of course, like Epica, Nemesea, and After Forever,
of course, but that is another story.
So - this is Lacuna Coil's fourth full length. Their first,
"In a Reverie", was very well done and innovative. "Unleashed
Memories", my personal favorite from the band, came out next,
and was the perfect combo for them. On "Comalies", they started
sounding simply "OK" in my mind and I started losing interest.
It was a pretty good album, but it had nothing overtly special
about it. By 2004, Comalies had become the best-selling CD
in Century Media's history. The band then appeared at Ozzfest,
and in an effort to best take advantage of their popularity,
the band and label postponed the release of their follow up
to Comalies, Karmacode, to early 2006.
The band has gotten heavier and the major label is definitely
having an influence. Downtuned guitars with a slight "Nu-Metal"
feel abound, but the band does not actually sound that much
different than Comalies. I love Cristina Scabbia's voice,
and she hits some nice low notes on this one, but one annoying
thing about Lacuna Coil is the male vocals of Andrea Ferro.
I'm just not a huge fan of his voice. Yet it seems he is singing
more with each release...
To me - this is a pretty good album with decent songs
- but nothing that stands out as amazing or really interesting.
They do a cover of a Depeche Mode song, which is mediocre
but fun. I don't mean to suggest this is a bad release - but
to me, it is the same as Comalies, only heavier and more overly
produced. Try Unleashed Memories first if you want to get
into this band...
Rating: 3 stars
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