"Lacuna Coil" Italian Envoys of
Goth-Metal ?? Cristina Scabbia
"Hottest Metal Chick" ?
The
ANNOTICO Report
Pop
and dance music dominate the clubs and airwaves in Italy, so it is an
enormously unlikely event to have "Lacuna Coil", (Empty Spiral)
a Goth Metal band, with a dedicated but very small following in Milan
crossing over to audiences in Europe and the U.S.
It
is also ironic, that the birthplace of the mano cornuta, the "devil's horns" sign also reigns
supreme as the salute of the heavy metal multitudes.
Defying all odds, Lacuna Coil's newest album, "Karmacode,"
is already a hard-rock hit at home and in
Lacuna
Coil first recieved recognition with their initial
appearance on the Ozzfest Tour (Ozzy Osbourne), and will be on
the 2006 Tour.
The
six member group was founded in 1996 by Andrea Ferro, male vocals, and bassist
Marco Coti-Zelati.
But
it is the striking and photogenic looks of female singer Cristina Scabbia that commands much of the media attention,
appearing on the covers of various metal magazines. Revolver magazine recently
put her on the cover of an issue dedicated to "the hottest chicks in
metal."
Labyrinth,
Rhapsody, and White Skull, are other Italian metal bands that have not broken
through yet.
Evanescence
is a
By
Steve Appleford
Special to The Times
April 22, 2006
Rock success is always a kind of miracle, a surprise ending to a series of
unlikely events, years of hard work and impossible luck. And for any metal band
raised in northern
That has begun to change with the rise of Lacuna Coil, a goth-metal
act out of
But Lacuna Coil's newest album, "Karmacode,"
is already a hard-rock hit at home and in
"It was something that surprised everybody," says Andrea Ferro, whose
male vocals share the spotlight with singer Cristina Scabbia.
"In
Italian business magazines are even writing about Lacuna Coil, seeing the band
as a new national export, examining the band's slow rise since forming in 1996.
The signs were already encouraging with the
Lacuna Coil expects to have a busy year in 2006, returning for a second stint
o! n the Ozzfest tour, and
appearing on the main stage before headliners Ozzy Osbourne and System of a Down.
"When we started back in '96, we basically wanted to play the music that
we liked," says Ferro. "Everything was very naive. We never expected
to reach this kind of level, or even to be one day professional or living off
the music. It's so new and so fresh, we're happy about the little things."
The six-person band was co-founded a decade ago by Ferro and bassist Marco Coti-Zelati, who have been friends since they were
12-year-olds riding skateboards in
The group's earliest songs were heav! y with death-metal grunts, but eventually it found its own
sound of brooding melody, male and female vocals, and heavy guitars that evoke
darkness and angst, but also more hope than bitterness. And in a genre often
dominated by growling men with shaved heads and skull tattoos, the band's
following inevitably owes something to the striking looks of singer Scabbia. As a young woman, she commands much of the media
attention, appearing on the covers of various metal magazines. Revolver
magazine recently put her on the cover of an issue dedicated to "the
hottest chicks in metal."
"They probably think they can get better attention this way," Scabbia says. "It's better than a drunk
guy on the cover, if you think about it."
Scabbia is not uncomfortable with the attention, but
she insists that she and Ferro are equal partners, with complementary roles in
the band.
"We just look at our vocals like two instruments you can add to every
song," she says. "We don't care ! who's singing more, who's singing less, who's singing what.
Sometimes I can be the most aggressive part, other times I can be the mellow
one. We don't really like to have roles."
The band's first appearance on the Ozzfest tour in
2004 was a kind of career milestone, as the band discovered new fans lined up
for Lacuna Coil autograph sessions following each day's quick 20-minute set on
the festival's second stage. It was there, during 26 dates across
"It was a very mixed-up crowd," says Ferro. "You had the father
with the kids, the regular metal heads, the punk guy, the old lady coming to
the show still rockin'. We noticed in
That's of some help to a band with aspirations to tackle big themes, such as
the conflict between technology and simpler comforts explored on "Karmacode." But ! like other acts on that tour, autograph sessions also meant
Lacuna Coil was frequently asked to not just sign photos and T-shirts, but
various exposed body parts.
"I signed a lot of boobs as well," Scabbia
says with a laugh. "I think it's something that is becoming really normal.
I don't even see any sexual meaning when someone gets boobs signed. It becomes
a classic."
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