Once considered a cult act, Milan (Italy) based progressive/gothic
act Lacuna Coil moved into the major league with the release of their
third album 'Comalies' after the album went on to become one of Century
Media Records' biggest selling releases with sales in excess of half
a million copies.
Rather than rushing into a quick follow up, the five-piece
act (consisting of vocalists Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro, guitarists
Cristiano Migliore and Marco Biazzi, bassist/keyboardist Marco Coti
Zelati and drummer Cristiano Mozzati) decided to bide their time and
maximise on the huge success they were enjoining while out on tour.
It was to be another four years before the band would venture back into
the studio for the long awaited follow up, and this month Lacuna Coil
finally deliver what fans have been patiently waiting for in 'Karmacode'.
While doing press in the lead up to the release of 'Karmacode',
I caught up with the band's lead vocalist Cristina Scabbia in LA to
talk about whether success has changed the band, the correlation between
their cover artwork and spirituality, the band's evolution sound wise
beyond 'Comalies' and the groundswell of anticipation building around
their new album.
"We've been so busy of late. Between finishing the
recording of the album, mixing, mastering, doing final checks on the
artwork and the endless interviews we've done so far, we feel like things
haven't stopped since we first started work on this album! (Laughs)
But that's fine by us, because there seems to be a big buzz surrounding
the 'Karmacode', and it's really getting a lot of attention so far.
Everyone we've talked to so far seems to be loving the album, but of
course I'm not sure if that's their real impression or not, because
when you talk to the press, they're hardly the kind of people to say,
'Hey, your album sucks!' (Laughs) But so far it seems as though everybody
likes the new songs. We also had the chance to present the album to
fans at a special show we had recently (in March 2006) in London. Of
course, there were a lot of people that had never heard those songs
before, but they were jumping around and liking them very much. So we
were pretty happy with that. I just hope everything works out like it
all has so far."
Unlike what most would assume, 'Comalies' was hardly an
overnight success for Lacuna Coil. In fact, it took almost two years
before the album really started to take an upswing in terms of sales.
But as Scabbia points out, it's that very reason why that the success
Lacuna Coil has enjoyed in recent years hasn't affected the band or
the members themselves individually.
"We honestly had time to deal with it. The time in-between
'Comalies' and 'Karmacode' was four years, and 'Comalies' really only
started to take off in a major way two years after it was released,
so we had that time to deal with it and enjoy it, without losing sense
of who we are. We definitely kept our feet firmly on the ground after
the album took off. So when it came time to write the new material on
'Karmacode', we didn't feel any pressure because we didn't know what
was going to happen in regards to success the next time around. You
can only be yourself, and do what you really want to do. It's only then
that people will hear whether you've been real and genuine, or not.
I can only hope that they like the new album because we have been real
to ourselves, but I think they will."
It would seem that the same principle applied in regards
to the group's song writing as well.
"The process of song writing has always been the
same for us. The only difference this time around was in terms of influences.
We've been spending so much time in the US in recent years that we had
the time to check out a lot of bands, and realise that we wanted a bigger
sound, while keeping our distinct European roots. I would say now that
we are the missing link between Europe and the US, because we still
keep the melodies, the structure and the Mediterranean parts of the
music of the past. But we're now mixing it with an American sound, which
is the power. I mean every single instrument on 'Karmacode' plays a
bigger part than anything we've done in the past. You can really hear
the guitars, the drums and the bass. They're so much more important
sounding than it was in the past."
It's this bold new American sound that really marks out
'Karmacode' as different from previous Lacuna Coil release, but it's
something that Scabbia feels was a natural evolution for the band, rather
than simply an exercise of ensuring themselves a bigger slice of the
lucrative US market.
"We only hit the US market years after we first started
out in 1996, so it wasn't really a case of us completely changing our
unique style. As I said before, you'll hear the Mediterranean influences,
Arabian vocals and strings on 'Karmacode', all of which aren't present
in American music today as far as I'm concerned. There are a lot of
things that are not present at all in the American scene. We want to
be different, as well as have a better sound than we did in the past,
and I think you can hear it."
Unlike what usually happens in the case of recording an
album, Lacuna Coil didn't record 'Karmacode' in one huge session, but
instead over two sessions.
"We recorded four of the songs initially in Germany,
and then the rest of the songs were recorded at home in Milan, apart
from some drums and a little bit of bass. The reason we did that was
because some of the songs were ready at that point, and we actually
wanted to have a demo to show what we were doing to a couple of producers,
and chose the one we liked the most. We got a lot of different impressions
from those who heard it, and we chose the opinion that we preferred,
which was that of Waldemar Sorychta (who has worked with the band throughout
their career)."
One part of the band's sound that stands out a little
more than in the past (apart from the bass heavy sound) is the greater
use of strings, rather than keyboards on 'Karmacode'.
"I think it's much better to have a dynamic album
which is not boring by having all the songs sounding exactly the same.
I like the fact that every song is different this time around. The whole
album has a very up and down feeling throughout. We have some really
groovy stuff, some slow songs and some string (violins and cellos) based
efforts thrown in this time. The strings are very real sounding. We
only used them as a subtle touch in some of the songs so that way they
wouldn't take over. For us, keyboards and all the arrangements are very
important to us, but they should never dominate the music. We're not
playing classic symphonic music here, so it makes no sense for us to
overplay those parts on the album. We just wanted them to support the
music itself."
Although the albums lead single 'Our Truth' is an obvious
choice, it doesn't necessarily represent the album as a whole.
"There's not one single track that really stands
out as one single favourite amongst the band, or one that best gives
you an idea of what 'Karmacode' sounds like as a whole. When we record
an album, we're not particularly focussed on just any one song. We don't
want to spend all our time on just one single, and rush through the
rest of the album by filling in time if you know what I mean. I think
that there are so many different songs and styles within the tracks
on the album that suit many different moments or moods. That's why we
like songs like 'Our Truth', and in the same way we like the ballads
like 'Within Me', which is slower and more gothic like."
One of the more unusual tracks to make it onto the album
is the cover of Depeche Mode's 'Enjoy The Silence' (from 1990's 'Violator').
"Both Ferro and I like them very much. But what's
strange about having 'Enjoy The Silence' on the album is the fact that
it was Zelati who came up with the idea of covering Depeche Mode. He's
not even a fan. He's more into stuff like Strapping Young Lad, Meshuggah
or something as equally extreme. His tastes are really nothing along
the lines of Depeche Mode. But the thing is that we had a lot of cover
songs to choose from. In the end, 'Enjoy The Silence' was the only one
that was really similar to our own style. We just cut the song in the
studio, and it was only when we had finished it and we were listening
back to it that we realised that it sounded very much like a Lacuna
Coil song. It's like our tribute to Depeche Mode. We had other cover
song ideas too. We also wanted to do 'Black Hole Sun' by Soundgarden
(from 1994's 'Superunknown'), along with some others, but they just
didn't really fit with the voices and the style we have within the band.
It sounds weird even with a female vocalist singing. Those covers may
turn up one day. I mean, why not? We don't want to put any limitations
on what we can do. Right from the very beginning we have been evolving
and giving out different impressions of the band with every new album,
so I believe that we can be totally free to do what ever we want to
do in the future."
One of those unique impressions that Lacuna Coil have
rarely shown in the past is the visual artwork that accompanies 'Karmacode',
which interestingly enough is another piece created by Asterik Studios,
whose recent clients include Atreyu, Bleeding Through, Anthrax, Funeral
For A Friend and Throwdown.
"Well the suggestion to use Asterik Studios actually
came from Century Media Records, because they had worked with them in
the past. We found it really interesting to work with Asterik Studios
because doing the artwork for 'Karmacode' was like an assignment and
a job for them. In the past, our covers were more the case of somebody
else having an idea and us agreeing to use it, or something that we
found very eye catching. Our past covers have never really represented
anything in regards to the album titles, so I think it's great that
this time we can actually have a cover that is related to the title,
and actually mean something. This is the first time that the cover artwork
has been designed and influenced around the album title and concept.
The man taking off his face to reveal the bandages underneath represents
the spiritual part inside us. When you open up the booklet, you'll really
see what the title is trying to say. The face of the man is cut away,
and you can see the bandages on the third page. It's really interesting.
Asterik made everything - they sent us two or three ideas and we picked
out the one we liked the most. I think the cover is very modern, but
still dark because of the colours."
Touring is once again an important part of Lacuna Coil's
future plans, with dates already mapped out well into late 2006 already
booked.
"I would think that we'll be out on the road for
some time! (Laughs) After spending the last four years on the road,
a couple of years back out there should be quite easy. We're prepared
to go out for the long haul once again, and so far things are booked
out until December. We're ready for that. We start out in a couple of
days when we head out with Rob Zombie. When that tour finishes up in
May, we'll fly back out to Europe for some summer festivals, and then
we're back here in the US for Ozzfest, and then back to Europe for some
more European festivals."
Although playing with Zombie may seem like a strange pairing,
Scabbia claims the band prefer to play in front of a different audience,
rather than going with the obvious.
"I don't think it's any weirder than some of the
other combinations we've had in the past, because we've had the opportunity
to play with bands like Anthrax, Opeth, Nevermore and P.O.D. We've never
had any problems playing with those bands. In fact, we've always been
able to steal some of those fans from all of the bands that we've played
with. I have always thought that it's better to go see a concert where
the support band is doing something completely different from the headlining
act. In fact I couldn't think of anything more boring than going to
see a show where all three bands are doing exactly the same thing. By
the time you get to the headliners, you've already had enough. Please,
if I have to listen to the same thing three times in a row, I'll skip
straight to the headliners instead. If you're presenting something new,
at least you have a better chance at getting more attention from the
crowd."
One part of the band's 2005 tour plans that really has
the band excited is the opportunity to play Ozzfest once again after
having cracked the US market with the same tour back in 2004.
"It will be awesome. It means a lot because to us
because it was that festival that really helped us initially with the
success of 'Comalies'. It was just an amazing experience. We had a big
chance at huge exposure, and it ended up earning us a lot of fans. And
then there's the opportunity of meeting all the fans at the signing
tent after the shows. It's there that you can see the impression that
you have on people. It's simply awesome. The difference between our
position on 2004's Ozzfest tour and now is that we're now playing the
main stage. After playing on the festival for one year, that is a huge
step up for us. Usually you'll play a few years on the second stage,
and then maybe one day you might make it onto the main stage, but we've
managed to do that with just one tour! It will be kind of weird because
there's so much energy on the stage when we play, so it will be strange
seeing so many people in front of us. But having said that, it will
be good to involve everyone on the main stage."
Another hope the band harbours is that the opportunity
to play Australia will present itself with the release of 'Karmacode'.
"I've heard so many good things about Australia.
I can't wait to get down there. It's one of those places that I've always
wanted to visit, but the band has never been offered the chance yet.
So many other bands have told me about the amazing time they've had
down there and that the people are very warm and reactive, so it would
be great to play down there. Hopefully 'Karmacode' will do really well
so we will get an offer. I'm doing a lot of promotion for this new album
so far, so hopefully something will come out of it too and we'll be
able to go down there to play someday soon."
I would personally like to thank Christina Scabbia
for her generous time, and Andrew Haug at Century Media Records for
making the interview possible.
For more information on Lacuna Coil, check out - http://www.lacunacoil.it
© Justin Donnelly - justindonnelly@ozemail.com.au
