Lacuna Coil Album: “Unleashed Memories [Japan]”

I'm not much of a fan of goth and/or metal music but after seeing an advertisement for this album in a magazine, I suddenly felt compelled to check out Lacuna Coil's "Unleashed Memories". Now that I have listened to it twice, I must say that I was completely impressed and blown away by what I have heard. I didn't think it was possible to put such a beautiful voice such as Cristina Sabbia's with the gloominess and heaviness of goth/metal riffs. The two are extremely well juxtoposed and makes for an excellent combination. I was extremely moved by Cristina's gorgeous vocals as well as by the tormented lyrics for songs such as "Purify" and "Heir of a Dying Day". Goth and metal music has not sounded this beautiful in years. Too bad metal in generaltoday sounds terrible no thanks to the likes of such talentless bands as Limp Bizkit and Crazy Town. Lacuna Coil's music combines both the heaviness of metal with the gorgeous melodies of goth music. I am definitely going to check out the band's other albums as a new fan of their's.

Amazon.com CD reviews tend to be full of hyperbole... if you went by the reviews here, you'd think every album made by every band was either a masterpiece, or sucks horribly.

But you know what... this is one of those albums that REALLY IS that good, and fully lives up to the praise lavished on it. Cristina's voice makes the band, and while the male singer Andrea has his moments (when he isn't screaming), it is Cristina and her incredible skill at weaving together compelling, beautiful vocal melodies that makes this album so good. Unleashed Memories is very catchy without being commercial. Many of the songs are 4 minutes+, giving the songs time to develop and the band room to stretch out, with several of the songs having short guitar solos (something I wish there were more of on the album).

Lacuna Coil has somehow struck a perfect balance on this album. It's far less repetitive than Comalies - which is a good album and was my introduction to the band, but it's clear that Comalies was written with the intention of taking the band to the "next level", and compromises were made so that they could break out on to corporate rock radio in the US. Unleashed Memories is the perfect blend between their 2nd album "In a Reverie" and Comalies.

The most amazing thing, though, is that several months after getting this album, I still listen to it every day! It hasn't left my car's CD player. This album is like musical crack, and it's Lacuna Coil's best so far.

This Italian group has released four albums- their self-titled EP, In A Reverie, Unleashed Memories, and Comalies. Unleashed Memories is definitely my favourite album out of the four.

All of the songs have the same feel to them- dark and moody- but enough variation so that none of the songs sound alike. An added bonus is that they added the 'Halflife' EP, which contains some wonderful songs.

1. Heir Of A Dying Day: This is a wondeful opening song, with both Andrea and Cristina singing. The strings are gorgeous, and the chorus was very well thought out.

2. To Live Is To Hide: One of my favourite songs by them. The verses are very well-written, but the chorus is the best part. The way it's sung is very melancholy.

3. Purify: The songs, though still very broody, also seems to have more hope to it. 'See the structure of my pride. Wasn't easy to build it away from this. I've never walked away from you. I've never walked alone.'

4. Senzafine: It's sung in Italian, but you can find the English lyrics if you look for them, and they're wonderful. The song is very fast-paced and well sung.

5. When A Dead Man Walks: This is another favourite of mine, for the chorus. 'Once again, living in their cage, they're killing me.' It's a sharp contrast to 'Purify'. Where that song had hope, this song does not.

6. 1:19: Yet another favourite. It's very fast-paced, and you can't help but bang your head. There's a great guitar solo, and the repeating line of 'I'm a loser.'

7. Cold Heritage: This is a little slower, but by no means is it a ballad. It's just Cristina singing in this song, and she does a wonderful job, of course.

8. Distant Sun: Another slower song, but a bit more powerful. Andrea and Cristina both sing the first line together ('We've never been apart, the day has come, I'm feeling that your sun shines away from me.') but then branch off.

9. A Current Obsession: Another great song. The chorus is one of the best parts. It's just wonderful.

10. Waves of Anguish: This truly is like a wave of anguish. 'Wrong place, no money- just responsibilities.' It's a powerful song, and the chorus is one that you could relate to.

11. Halflife: This song is about the new millenium, and how 'We're incomplete despite the new millenium.' This song is definitely true.

12. Trance Awake: This is an instrumental, kind of like a two-minute intro to the next track, which is...

13. Senzafine: This is the original version of the song. It's pretty much the same as track four, just a slightly different beginning.

14. Hyperfast: Another fast one, you can tell right at the beginning. There are man different styles covered in this song, but it's done seamlessly.

15. Stars: This is a wonderful outro, and the beginning is amazing. The song is very touching, as well. The song is actually a cover of a song by Dubstars, but all the same, this song is wonderful.

This is definitely the album to buy if you want to start listening to Lacuna Coil. The next album, Comalies, is very good too, but they commercialised themselves a little bit. That's not a bad thing, but the songs are focused more on heavy power chords than on moody solos. The next album is coming out sometime in 2005, and I look forward to it.

This is by far the best album that Lacuna Coil has released so far. It is definitely better than their 3rd album Comalies. An absolutely perfect album. The guitars are heavier and better but it is the vocal performance of Cristina that makes this album what it is. Andrea in my opinion actually rather than lowering the quality of the music with his vocals adds to the music. This makes Lacuna Coil a unique band in a way.

Andrea and Cristina really make things work on this record. They deliver their best performances to date. Cristina's beautiful, passionate, calm and powerful voice makes Lacuna Coil what they are. I can't imagine what this band would be like without her. Andrea's vocal growl and singing provides a good and different contrast to the music.

The best songs in this record in my opinion are Purify, 1:19, When a Dead Man Walks, A Current Obsession, Halflife and Hyperfast. Stars which is a cover song is performed VERY WELL. The other tracks are good as well. This album deserves no less than five stars. Marco Coti Zelati shows his talents as well because he wrote most of the songs by himself.

This band is one of the best in the music business and Cristina in addition to her awesome voice is also one of the most beautiful women on Earth for sure! She is absolutely STUNNING! VERY BEAUTIFUL!! This band should be more popular instead of Evanescence. Cristina is easily 10 times better than Amy Lee when it comes to vocals in my opinion. I do not think that Evanescence is even close to being similar to Lacuna Coil in terms of the style of music.

This is a MUST BUY for any fan of Lacuna Coil!! You will NEVER regret it!! BUY THIS!!!

If there were any justice in the world, rock fans in the U.S.A. would know who this band is! On their third release (2nd full-length), this wonderful band from Italy proves they are the masters. Often described as being "Goth-metal" or some such nonsense, Lacuna Coil defies description and simply makes beautiful, heavy, thought-provoking music. The problem with their "goth" description is that while, yes, their lyrics tend to the darker, moodier side of life, their music is anything BUT dark. You can almost hear and feel the joy the band members feel at playing these songs. Cristina Scabbia has the most beautiful, haunting voice in the business and it is put to good effect on "Unleashed Memories," whether it be trading vox with her male counterpart or carrying a song alone. Just listen to her work on "Purify" and "Cold Heritage," and you'll be an instant fan. The songwriting on this release is the other star. Lacuna Coil presents a more varied group of songs on this one. There are the familiar, heavy tunes, but mixed in are some more introspective, atmospheric pieces that really add to the overall listening experience. This is one killer band, and this is easily their best work.