ALBUM REVIEW: Delirium – Lacuna Coil
For an eighth album, LACUNA COIL‘s Delirium is still freshly wrought with emotion and melody. The bass heavy start of The House of Shame, the brilliant blend of vocal talent from the likes of Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro are still as prominent as ever, chilling and clear, shifting into something raw and equally emotional on the other end of the scale. The thrashing, turbulent nature of the track itself sets up what is to come with high expectations, and LACUNA COIL do not disappoint.
Broken Things shifts up the gears a little, with massive impact, urgency and determination. The focus is as always in the gothic theme, but the power behind the band and their years of work shines. The lyrics are inspiring through the hopelessness, the melody of the track is well versed in terms of the band’s signature sound. Title track Delirium is skin tingling. Simply put, it’s catchy, yet still filled with enough heart and top class playing from the likes of Marco Coti Zelati, Ryan Blake Folden and Diego Cavallotti. As a unit, LACUNA COIL knows what they’re doing, and the injection of new blood in the form of Cavallotti can only have helped. The song itself is one you’ll have on repeat, that’s for sure.
A completely new angle, and genius in its underpinning, the intro to Blood, Tears, Dust is an electronic mash of groovy drums, smashing and thudding like true heavyweight musicians can, with the synth of the keys overlaying a melody that Scabbia controls. The verses, as per, are all Ferro’s work, deep and ominous, greatly enhanced by this wonderfully fresh turn in the song style. There’s some brilliant riffing going on here, it’s a true delight to immerse yourself in. tonally thrusting between the melodic and the crazed, it’s a highlight.
Downfall comes as something more inspiring in tone, more pained and in the more gothic vein of LACUNA’s style. The growl of the bass is tone and subtle, the lyrics once again glazed with the fallen purity of gothic mentality. It’s not the most adventurous song, but still a good listen. Take Me Down is a traditionally creepy opening, the harmony of the whole song is pretty effective, but this well used use of children’s voices feels a little below LACUNA COIL. However, the song overall isn’t bad, there’s wired and slightly unsettling tone of the track hits just right.
You Love Me ‘Cause I Hate You might have been a cliché of a song for it title, and while the chorus is somewhat melodramatic, it’s got some pretty sweet points in its favour. One of those is there is a part of Scabbia’s vocals that isn’t usually unleased, but lower, more subdued strength that comes through even without the highs of her voice, which obviously still make an appearance. There are exceptional differences in the way the drums are approached at times, and while in sections it does revert back to form, that is by no means a bad thing; for sure, fans will not be disappointed with this one.
Ghost in the Mist is a wrecking ball of gothic metal at its best. At its heart, it’s a truly heavy piece of music, with the inspirational tonality of gothic storytelling within its lyrics. Keeping the line between too heavy and too melodic can be hard, but there are seasoned pros, and it thankfully still shows after the bands twenty year movement together. My Demons is definitely the most gothic in its tone, bring in more of the droning basslines and poetic lyrics, the bursting forth of emotion in both the words and the melody itself. Having that perfectly original feel that LACUNA COIL have branded their music with over the years, this still feels like fresh ideas and approaches to the music. The layers of production make this track particularly joyous to listen to, rich and full. Claustrophobia is something similar to the previous track, with makes it still a great track, but hard to differential on an album that has shown some real diversity. A shame, but nevertheless still a decent piece, even if it’s a little filler like.
Finally, we get the great electro/gothic angle once again to finish this album up, as Ultima Ratio blasts in with crashing drums and little, whooping tones. The production, again, fills this track out to something outstanding, bringing in so many textures that might have been lost on previous albums. A great way to complete Delirium, for sure.
Fans will be pleased that LACUNA COIL haven’t lost their touch after eight albums. In fact, with the addition of new members, and perhaps a fresh look at their song, the efforts put forth here are all we could ask of the gothic metal titans. Delirium is one for the fans, and with any luck, new blood will pick this up and appreciate the great work and blissful harmonies of one Italy’s best exports.
Rating: 8/10
Delirium is out May 27 via Century Media
Like LACUNA COIL on Facebook