Lacuna Coil
Comalies XX – Century Media Records
Celebrating two decades since the original Comalies album was released this re-worked and re-recorded version gives an interesting insight into how music has changed. Where the original had an almost ethereal feel running through it the 2022 update is heavier and has increased gravitas. Andrea’s vocals are brought forward more than previously and their depth is far stronger. You get much more drive from the rhythm section as a whole too. ‘Heaven’s A Lie’ has elements that sound close to the last Mushroomhead album (again partly channelled by Andrea’s vox). Whether this is a good thing or not will be a matter of opinion with fans. Certainly younger ones will find the new production and overall sound more relatable and likely more to their taste. It’s a bold move to revisit an old favourite in this manner. Lacuna Coil could have just gone down the re-master route but that is a well worn path. With the first incarnation something of a classic the newer version has a lot to live up to. It’s far more than just the same songs in a new posh frock. It’s a change in the mind-set of the recordings themselves. And it works magnificently. The best way to put this across is that were Comalies XX a brand new set of songs it would still be hailed as a masterpiece, a testament to the longevity of the writing. Lacuna Coil have just raised the bar in what acts can do with earlier works.
Review by Gary Trueman