Segue Myles

Well...maybe...Black Anima is a really strong album aside from the mix. But they do seem to be slow on a follow up...I swear they've been writing for at least two years now. Hope it's not the end. But I'd hate them to turn into Leaves Eyes who just released the fourth exact same sounding album in a row.

I've noted a lot of bands doing re-recordings lately. Paradise Lost, Sonata Arctica, In Flames and I'm sure many more...I think it's an easy sell. The worst part of the new Comalies for me is that it is actually a really well done album. Great vocals, great songs, great playing...but we know how it sounded before and that ruins any chance of enjoying this version. And honestly, one thing I've noticed is a lack of sensuality. Early LC had a somewhat passionate, warm, breathy vocal style from Cristina that was backed up by the style of music they played. These songs lack any of that sort of ambience and it leaves us with a really soulless experience. I enjoy some of the new takes, but even then I think they took incredible songs and made them sound like modest b-sides at best. But the production is so much better than Black Anima's. I wish they would fix that instead.

Lacuna Coil- In A Reverie Lovely little album. They weren't yet on the level of The Gathering or Paradise Lost, but they were clearly on the right track. Lacuna Coil- Shallow Life I wish I hated this album, I feel left out. Oh well. Guess I will just have to keep on enjoying it...but not as much as anything else they did. I like this handbag pop era of Lacuna Coil. I Like It is a crunchy pop rocker ready made for Glee or High School Musical. What's the iss...oh wait, never mind. I get it. Sorry, I still singalong to every word 🤣

She was pretty much an icon here in the UK. Her substance abuse didn't detract from her music being massive here. When she died, it wasn't a shock but it did really sting. Amy Winehouse has fantastic albums. I feel she paved the way for Adele, who was constantly compared to her in her early days. Winehouse was a huge presence on our radio before she died, so when she passed, it's hard to know if they played her more or just carried on as normal.

Lacuna Coil Not sure what has happened, but I haven't played them for a fair while (at least not in a way that I paid much attention). I'm finding myself really immersed in my deep dive and really picking up on things I missed before. They have a lot to offer to melodic metal fans. Anyway, I feel a strong rush of love for them that reminds me why they are now nearly 20 years on my most consistently favoured band.

Lacuna Coil: 1. Delirium (I think 2016 was an amazing year for Lacuna Coil. They returned to the scene with style, great critical acclaim and won over many younger fans. Sales were steady, but the album itself is just faultless. I think the lineup change really brought new life to them, and this is their most daring album to date. The music videos this time around are stellar as well, particularly the one for You Love Me 'Cause I Hate You, which is very cinematic. Their is a joyous sense of ambition and creativity on display here, which contrasts magnificently with the intensity of the material. House Of Shame, Ultima Ratio and My Demons are the highlights for me. The bonus tracks are great (though i can see why they were cut, with their cover of Madonna's Live To Tell being arguably their best cover to date) 2. Unleashed Memories (Gothic metal perfection. Sure, you can hear that this was a low budget production, but the songs are sublime. Heir Of A Dying Day is a beautifulopening track that really, I think, helped define Lacuna Coil's style. Unleashed Memories sees the band rise above their early influences. If Comalies is the better known album, Unleashed Memories is the better album. Cold Heritage, Distant Sun and When A Dead Man Walks are hypnotically captivating songs.) 3. Karmacode (yes, I put my all time favourite albums at third place. See! I cam be objective, people! But yes, this is my personal favourite album, but if i take nostalgia and personal feelings out of the equation, I think Delirium and Unleashed Memories are better. Still, Within Me, Fragments Of Faith, In Visible Light, Without Fear and Our Truth are songs that define my life. Periodt.) 4. Broken Crown Halo (Stunning album. It ended the era with the same lineup that first recorded the HalfLife EP back in 2000. It fittingly sounds like a combination of everything that came before. This album is perfect for newbies. One Cold Day is possibly their best ballad. A tribute to a former band member who passed away, it took on new meaning for me when my mum passed. Songs like I Forgive and Hostage To The Light are so melodically and vocally exuberant, its a wonder this band never broke through to the mainstream.) 5. Comalies (The fan favourite, the genre staple, the critical darling. It's fifth place, but first place in my heart. Eew that's gross, never saying that again. Let me try again: this album makes me moist. There, that is better). 6. Dark Adrenaline (Its like Shallow Life, only a million times better. Better songs, better hooks, better solos, better vocals, better production. Had this come out instead of Shallow Life, I think they would have had a much gentler backlash. Is it generic? Yeah. Does it really matter of the songs are fantastic? No. I'd actually love to see the band revisit this album, get rid of Don Gilmore who basically tried to turn them into Linkin Coil, and really let these songs soar. If I have one complaint, the songs feel too tightly edited. There is little room for spontaneity here, but the way the album charges through the hooks is brilliant all the same. With songs as brilliant as Intoxicated, The Army Inside, Kill The Light, My Spirit...its a bit odd they felt the need to add in a cover of REMs Losing My Religion.) 7. In A Reverie (The Gathering's Mandylion and Paradise Lost's Draconian Times lovechild, only it's not as attractive as either parent. Still, this is a wonderful debut that really feels like a step into the past. Of all the gothic metal debut albums, I think this one has cause to believe its the finest. Veins Of Glass, My Wings, To Myself I Turned, Falling Again...gosh this album is STACKED with killer songs.) 8. Black Anima (The songs are great, the production is not. Also their are moments throughout where sections of songs sound plagiarised from their back catalogue. Save Me has a chorus that sounds almost exactly the same as the chorus to Ultima Ratio from Delirium. Also, Under The Surface has a vocal line in the verse that is beat for beat the same as Andi's in Give Me Something More from Dark Adrenaline. I'm all for recycling of ideas, but Save Me literally sounds like a song from the previous album. Anyway, still great songs. Layers Of Time is a beautiful slice of emotionally hefty alt metal that takes the beauty of a song like The Ghost Woman And The Hunter and beefs it up with a touch of House Of Shames flair for drama. Its beautiful. And the rest of the album is top five material, its just...the production...its iffy. Black Anima has so much to offer and it's limitations are annoying). 9. Shallow Life (It's a sad thing: they really thought they had a smash hit here, but the album came out, upset everyone, and nearly lost them a fanbase. I think working with Don Gilmore, he who worked with Linkin Park, Kelly Clarkson and Avril Lavigne, really ruined this albums chance to shine. He made it clear to the band he didn't think their older music was his thing, and he said himself he was shocked the band chose him. He took away everything he didn't like about Lacuna Coil and tried to mould them to fit the pop charts of 2009. So basically, he hated everything that makes Lacuna Coil magic. Dark Adrenaline did much to rectify the damage but it took til 2016, seven years later, for anyone to really take them seriously again. Me? I don't mind this album. I cringed at the time, and I actually think creatively, the band learned a lot from this album. Their ability to write huge hooks is the albums selling point, and they only improved on this when the heaviness came back later on. Still, I'm Not Afraid, Wide Awake, the title track and all three bonus tracks are killer. And Not Enough has a chorus to die for. I love that song, and likely always will). 10. Comalies XX (there are moments this shines. Its beautifully produced, the vocal performances are pristine, I love Daylight Dancer...but it's a pale, soulless imitation of a classic album. I honestly think it's too clean sounding. Where are the atmospheric synths? It's all too...basic. I will also credit them for the new Ghost Woman, Unspoken and Entwined. These three new versions shine because Cristina really sounds impassioned. Still not sure thats enough to match the originals. I really don't like the new Angel's Punishment. Like, at all. That was my first Lacuna Coil song so I'm heavily biased.)

It's my absolute favourite to be honest, and I find Images And Words suffers for me because that early 90s metal production style always makes everything sound like a demo. I think Awake has better songs and better production. It's my favourite DT album to be honest. Distance Over Time and View From...are likely in my top three at this point too. Still...all just opinions.

Lacuna Coil- Black Anima My only issue with this album is the production. It sounds overdone, which is so sad after Broken Crown Halo and Delirium each sounded perfect for different reasons. Black Anima really deserved to sound like a combination of the two. It doesn't ruin the experience for me, great songs are still great songs, but yikes...I feel sometimes like the vocal effects are distracting from the killer vocals on display. The live album from this era proves that Andrea and Cristina are at the peak of their respective powers, so what gives? I put it down to the band only recently self producing, and perhaps being a little over confident after the killer job they did self producing Delirium. Comalies XX sounded fantastic in terms of sonic clarity so hopefully it's a one off. Speaking of Comalies XX... Lacuna Coil- Comalies XX Comalies is an iconic album for my generation. It came out in 2002, and defined that era of female dominated metal, particularly from Europe, in a way only really matched by Within Temptation and Nightwish. The style of metal is flourishing now, thanks to the impact of records like this. Anyway, the band said this is what they think Comalies would sound like now if they recorded it for the first time. And you know what? I call bullshit. Broken Crown Halo to my ears sounded the closest to a "modern" Comalies. Delirium and Black Anima also really show off their expertise at bold atmospherics with pop metal hooks. Lacuna Coil have never truly squandered their ability to create atmospheric metal with heart and soul. And that's why I think Comalies XX is a massive misfire. They transform a collection of brilliant songs, and rip out their soul. This is a really poor album. Their are aspects I love (some of these versions are so, so dynamic live), and one or two versions I enjoy as much as the originals (Daylight Dancer and The Ghost Woman And The Hunter), but what made Comalies so special was its atmosphere: it had an ambient, hazy, melancholic feel that felt like an intense reverie. Its something I think Lacuna Coil are very good at, and when they abandon atmosphere for hooks, they suffer (Comalies XX is their most faceless, overtly clean and, honestly, lifeless sounding album since Shallow Life. That album at least had some killer pop songs, and the novelty that we had never heard them sound like that before). If Lacuna Coil wanted to show off 20 years of evolution with a new recording, they could have joyfully recreated their music without having to make it this bizarrely clean, overly calculated, totally free of personality metal album. They mistake being LOUDER for being heavier. Whilst this album is objectively heavier than the 2002 original, in terms of feel, its as shallow as it gets. Still, I do like the new Daylight Dancer, and vocally, as always, the singers are on peak form. But if this is what the band thinks they sound like at their best, I'm worried. However, I won't deny I think Andrea and Cristina sound fantastic, and the particularly faithful rendition of Swamped here shows how much they have grown without sacrificing too much of what made the original so special (it lacks the warmth and sensuality of the original though).

Mastodon- Remission Mastodon- Call Of The Mastodon Mastodon- Leviathan I adore Call Of The Mastodon. Sure, its a early compilation, but the album to me is essentially a full length Mastodon release. This trilogy of sludgy, excitingly full throttle metal is exceptional.

Crowded House- Crowded House

Pearl Jam- Binaural

Pearl Jam- Yield

Lacuna Coil- Broken Crown Halo

Lacuna Coil- Dark Adrenaline Paradise Lost- Paradise Lost In Flames- Come Clarity These three albums all represent a band going somewhat back to basics after a genre shift. And you know what, these are three of my fave albums in general.

Lacuna Coil- Shallow Life Lacuna Coil- Dark Adrenaline Lacuna Coil- Broken Crown Halo Lacuna Coil- Delirium In Flames- Reroute To Remain

Sanctity- Road To Bloodshed This 2007 debut sounds exactly like it Trivium and Testament merged into one. I bought this album after seeing the metal press get super excited for this really bold debut. It's a fantastic album...and it's truly sad it's the only Sanctity album to date, because if this is where they started they could have soared. I know one of the guitarists is now in Machine Head, so that's good. J2112YYZ, Mick...this is such a good album to give a chance if you love metal with big hooks!

We seem to be the same with thrash...we love what we love then...Dust 🤣

Testament- The Legacy Testament- The New Order I don't know why I love Testament but mostly get bored with other thrash bands. I hear...I HEAR...how close they sound to Metallica, I simply think they appeal to me more. Testament, Anthrax and Megadeth...I get the love for these three.

On an unfortunately super patchy album! Thankfully they improved upon that flaw later!

Huge fan here! Love this. ABBA are magic and there is something to be said about the way Agnetha and Anni-Frids vocals harmonise to sound like ONE voice.

Tremonti- A Dying Machine Tremonti- Dust I had an urge to play A Dying Machine. Wow, I forgot what a brilliant album it is! Dust is my second favourite.

Pearl Jam and Testament

Various Artists- Singles (OST Deluxe edition) This soundtrack for Singles is an absolute beauty. Nineties were a goldmine for killer soundtrack albums but this one absolute kills.

Testament- The Formation Of Damnation

Alice In Chains- Dirt Alice In Chains- Jar Of Flies Alice In Chains- Facelift I like AIC. Not my go to band of this era. Testament- Dark Roots Of The Earth I am ever obsessed with this album. Also, one of my favourite album covers ever.