Since their 2016 record Delirium, Lacuna Coil has adjusted their sound, changing up their gothic stylings for more metalcore elements, particularly the beauty and the beast vocals of Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro. Their more aggressive, cinematic approach came as a result of their lineup overhaul following the tour for Broken Crown Halo, and the result was a critically acclaimed album that has further exhibited their staying power in the metal world. With Sleepless Empire, the band leans more into experimentation and takes bigger swings, and as such make an album that walks a fine line between being familiar to longtime fans of Lacuna Coil and being accessible enough to lure in new fans.
Perhaps the band’s biggest strength is their choruses. Their refrains are powerful earworms that can make a good track great and a great track stay with the listener. “Oxygen” serves as an example of this, as the verses don’t feel up to par, but the chorus is an all-timer, and for a band that has songs like “Heaven’s A Lie” in their catalog, that is an achievement. The most straightforward song here is “I Wish You Were Dead,” a dead simple structure that highlights Scabbia’s voice for its range and its impact. It harkens back to songs like “I Forgive (But I Won’t Forget Your Name),” giving the dedicated fan a touchstone and a nod to what brought the band to the dance to begin with.
The change of drummers to Richard Meiz, formerly of Genus Ordinis Dei, has breathed new life into the band’s output as well. He played on the band’s previous studio album Black Anima and the revamp that was Comalies XX, but on tracks like “Hosting The Shadow,” which also features Lamb of God vocalist Randy Blythe, the drum fills and flourishes are more lively and intense, as well as “Sleep Paralysis” and its myriad machine gun kick drum sections, Meiz shows off his chops as a drummer in a band where the drums aren’t usually the highlight.
Over a quarter century into their tenure, Lacuna Coil manage to keep things fresh and hold on to their mantle as one of the most consistent bands in the metal world. Sleepless Empire is filled with melodic choruses and standout vocal performances from Ferro and Scabbia, making a further case for the band being unable to put out a bad album.
Sleepless Empire is out now via Century Media Records.
