Lacuna Coil: Movings In Metal
LACUNA COIL, are a world-class band with a discography spanning almost three decades. Distorted Sound caught up with Andrea Ferro to chat about the changes he’s seen within the scene, Grammy nominees and of course, their upcoming album, Sleepless Empire.
It cannot be denied that seasoned gig-goers have noticed a shift in concert etiquette. Particularly since live music returned post-pandemic. It’s hard to say whether the lockdowns are completely to blame. In the last four years, the ‘importance’ of social media and camera quality on phones has skyrocketed. People are dying to capture live moments in 4k to share with their friends, family and most importantly, followers. Perhaps this is just the natural trajectory of things, with or without lockdown’s influence. It’s one thing to experience these changes from the crowd, but hearing what it’s like from a band’s point of view adds a different perspective. Turns out it’s not all bad. There’s also been an increase in age diversity and higher energy coming from the crowd!
LACUNA COIL vocalist Andrea Ferro highlights. “We see more circle pits and crowd surfing at shows now!” Since live shows resumed “There is also an older generation that has been coming on board after the pandemic. Maybe they’re 60, 65, or even 70. These people weren’t coming to the show before. But they’ve started to listen to Spotify or Amazon music.” There is a valid discourse around the negatives of streaming and how we as a society are conjoint to smartphones. However, to hear there is also a livelier energy at shows is a refreshing new take. It is also encouraging to learn how a band with such a long-standing career can reach older generations through the power of an algorithm. “It’s absolutely great. People can enjoy music without the problem of their age”. It’s not just those raised in the digital age who are reaping its benefits.
In today’s world, these algorithms are often how people find music in the alternative scene. Sometimes it’s an older sibling or family member who passes on the good word but it’s hard to stumble across a heavy metal song by accident. Ferro reminisces on when LACUNA COIL graced the same stage as KNOCKED LOOSE and POPPY did on Jimmy Kimmel back in 2006. “I think it’s really needed that metal or alternative music scratches the surface of the mainstream. It doesn’t have to be there all the time. It’s important to keep the scene alive, to get the attention of the new kids. You need to expose bands to the public. I think it’s great that we get some exposure like that for our genre and our community.”
2024 was quite a year for metal scratching the surface of mainstream media. As well as the killer performance from KNOCKED LOOSE, GOJIRA performed with alternative opera singer Marina Viotti at the Olympics. “I think that the most special thing has been from GOJIRA. The fact that they got to open the Olympics is just such a big thing for metal music.” GOJIRA‘s performance at the Olympics demonstrates the complexities of metal music that can be overlooked. The inclusion of an operatic voice paired with the theatrics made it a spectacle for the ages! Both of these performances are nominees for Best Metal Performance at the Grammys, as well as SPIRITBOX. It is such a special moment that two performances occurred on such an impactful stage but also having three out of the five nominees have women in these metal nominations.
The metal music scene can be a bit of a boy’s club. Although it still is to an extent, seeing the genuine talents of women’s voices in metal get recognition on world stages is always wonderful to see. LACUNA COIL are no strangers, of course, to the value female vocals can bring to the metal genre. For Ferro, his prediction for who will take the Grammy is split between two nominees. “I think that GOJIRA is so big that it’s hard to match, you know because it’s such a unique event that if it’s going to be celebrated with the Grammy, I can’t say it wasn’t deserved. I also think if Courtney (SPIRITBOX vocalist) is gonna win it, it’s great; I think they’re a very interesting band, very fresh, they deserve it.”
LACUNA COIL has their first studio album in five years coming out this February. Sleepless Empire has some top-tier features on board, like Ash Costello from NEW YEARS DAY and Randy Blythe from LAMB OF GOD. The album takes a look at life in a post-pandemic world and how many things have changed, for better and for worse. “There’s been a lot of helping people so they don’t feel alone. A lot of trying to stay united even when there is distance. But on the other hand, there’s been a lot of confusion and separation.” It also looks at the impact of this digital age and the attachment to our screens in search of any form of connection. “We were locked in our houses and we became algorithms in a way. We’re influenced heavily by the digital world.”
Randy Blythe from LAMB OF GOD features on the track Hosting The Shadows. Ferro mentions how naturally this collaboration came about. Knowing each other for over twenty years, he refers to it as “a long-term friendship that is beyond music”. It is a melancholic number, where the listener follows a journey of getting to know one’s own shadow in the battle of light vs dark. The track is full of raw emotion, with the beautifully contrasting vocals of Blythe and Cristina Scabbia to propel it.
The second feature comes from Ash Costello, vocalist of NEW YEARS DAY. “We wanted somebody powerful, somebody with a little bit of a raspy voice, not so clean and not so operatic.” They knew Costello was the perfect candidate for the track In The Mean Time. It is a play on the term ‘meantime’, taking a look at the meanness that floods today’s society. Being one of the harder and heavier songs on the album, it feels like a cathartic therapy session. There’s also a bewitching vulnerability to it, convincing listeners of its message: be defiant, stay true to who you are.
The album is available in the usual formats, such as varying collectable Vinyls and CDs. However, again LACUNA COIL are offering something a bit special for avid fans. This time, in the form of an oracle dice game. The alchemic symbols on the dice match with an oracle table and artwork on the album. “When you throw the two dice, you can combine the two symbols with two phrases. And it’s sort of like an oracle. I think it’s a cool idea to combine the music with the graphics and the theme of the record.” It seems collectable additions to music releases have become more common in recent years. Streaming and digital are the most popular formats of music consumption, but there is still a craving for tangible aspects of music.
The music industry is, in some ways, an ever-changing, ever-evolving creature. Shifting from CDs to downloads and single sales to streams all seemed formidable during the transition. From the chat with Andrea Ferro, looking at the changes that are happening in the scene, it’s not all bad. Not only does there seem to be a future for alternative music, but it’s also a bright one.
Sleepless Empire is out now via Century Media Records. View this interview, alongside dozens of other killer bands, in glorious print magazine fashion in DS117 here:
For more information on LACUNA COIL like their official page on Facebook.