At the heart of Lacuna Coil lie their two vocalists, Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro. Cristina's voice is gorgeously melodic and her range is incredible, while Andrea Ferro's male vocals can go from harsh, deep growls to resonant spoken word almost seamlessly. Both are incredibly talented, and their contrasting vocals, rather than be caustic and grating on the ears, are beautiful and melodic. They complement each other perfectly!

Lacuna Coil has been described as Italian goth metal, or gothic rock. In my humble opinion, they really are their own genre. They have the crunching guitars characteristic of metal music, yet the vocals don't get buried under the guitars and drums. The arrangements on this album are amazing. Furthermore, their lyrics actually convey several great messages rather than consist of mere useless drivel and angst.

All are incredible tracks, and none make you want to hit the "skip" button. However, here are some that stand slightly above the rest:

Track 1: "Heir of a Dying Day" - Excellent opening song, with a great beat and a chorus that changes up the tempo a bit so that things don't get monotonous.

Track 2: "To Live is to Hide" - Probably my favorite track on this album. Once again, there is a tempo change between the verses and the chorus to change things up a bit. Excellent emotional lyrics with stellar performances from both vocalists.

Tracks 4 & 13: "Senzafine" - Two versions of this song, sung in italian, appear on the album. Both are excellent.

Track 6: "1:19" - You simply can't help but bang your head along with this song! Characteristically "gothic" lyrics.

Track 9: "A Current Obsession" - I love the lyrics on this song. Again, very characteristically "gothic," conveying a message of deep despair and mourning.

If you are new to Lacuna Coil, this is a great place to start as there is such a wide variety of songs on here. Indeed, there is something for everyone to be found on this album. "Unleashed Memories" consists of a remarkable array of heavy guitar driven songs, slow, melodic ballads, and a plethora of powerful, emotional lyrics. Definitely pick up this album along with any other album of theirs! This is a band that should be getting much more recognition here in the states than they are currently getting.

I was fortunate enough to get to see them headline a live concert this past year, and this is most certainly a group that is far better live than on their albums (a sign of great musicians). If you ever get the chance to see them live, then take advantage of it, as they don't travel here often!


Why Do I Even Bother?   September 14, 2002
 17 out of 21 found this review helpful

"Dude, do you know that chick?", you ask, poking me in the ribs with your elbow and pointing at a blond girl who just walked by, "She digs some really weird music. Like this European goth freaky stuff - bands like Lucy's Call and The Gutters, I think."

"You're an idiot!", I snap back, "That's my little sister and she likes female-fronted European goth metal bands. The ones you are thinking of are called Lacuna Coil and The Gathering."

"Whatever," you reply taking another swig from your vitamin-enriched bottled water, "It's all crap!"

"I beg to differ, my yuppie friend. If you didn't spend so much time sipping lattes in those trendy coffee shops in Shadyside and spent more time building a respectable music collection, you might actually have heard some Lacuna Coil by now."

"Please tell me more," you mutter sarcastically.

"Glad you asked. Take LC's latest, Unleashed Memories, for example. It combines the heavy riffing of middle-era Paradise Lost with ethereal female lead vocals and a Nick Holmes-style male vocalist chiming in at times. I don't know - maybe I'm talking to the wrong person. Someone whose music tastes are driven by the songs played during Jaguar commercials is not likely to be able to handle the heaviness of "Heir of a Dying Day", the track that leads off Unleashed Memories. On the other hand, even someone with tastes as mainstream as you might actually enjoy some of the more melodic numbers on this album like "When a Dead Man Walks" and "Cold Heritage". Cristina Scabbia has the voice, not to mention the classic Italian beauty, to one day make Lacuna Coil the stars here in the States that they already are in Europe. Unleashed Memories does bog down a bit towards the end and the bonus EP, Halflife, included on the CD is generally subpar (with the exception of "Senzafine" and "Stars"), so I only feel comfortable giving the CD four stars. Nevertheless, I strongly recommend that you give it a chance - there are a lot of great songs on it that you might actually like. Wh-, what are you doing? I was talking to you."

I can't believe it. You're sitting there ignoring me, desperately trying to pull the shrink wrap off the most recent Sting album. Why do I even bother?


Probably the best goth/metal band I have heard in years   June 11, 2001
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

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.


One of the most incredible albums I've heard in my life   June 16, 2004
 9 out of 9 found this review helpful

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.


Lacuna Coil : "Unleashed Memories"   February 21, 2005
 9 out of 9 found this review helpful

***** - FIVE STARS
===================

This is an incredible release by Lacuna Coil. "Unleashed Memories' is also a great place for newbies to start. It has everything that makes Lacuna Coil one of most unique bands in Metal....

This music is hypnotic, and very addictive. It brings you under it's spell, and leaves you wanting more and more when it's all over. This happens every time I listen to "Unleashed Memories". I simply can't get enough of it. It's such an incredible offering, and it's very well balanced too. No weak songs here at all....

Some say "Comalies" is Lacuna Coil's materpiece. Don't get me wrong, it's another 5 star effort. As for my favorite however, "Unleashed Memories" is their finest hour in my opinion. There something different about it, it has a harder edge than "Comalies". More Metal so to speak....

If you love great music, and are an open minded listener of various types of Metal, I think Lacuna Coil, and "Unleashed Memories" is worth your attention. BUY IT NOW!!!!

LACUNA LEGIONS RULE FOREVER!!!!!