Old interview with Cristina

Just found this old interview with Cristina ( 2002)

Enjoy!


LACUNA COIL
Interview with the band's singer, Cristina Scabbia:

Lacuna Coil, one of the most famous Italian metal bands, is going to release their new album, entitled "Comalies," on 23 september 2002. I thought it would a nice moment for an interview with the band's female singer, Cristina. Scabbia.

"Not the voice of fragility"

- Ethereal. That was Lacuna Coil's first name. You recorded a two track demo that later got you a record deal. What kind of music was it? Did it already have the elements of the well-known Lacuna Coil style? Did it also feature double - male and female - vocals?

Cristina: I don't really want to talk about Ethereal because it is something we did in the past and even if (of course), I don't want to deny what we did, it's just that we did a lot of things from 1997. Anyway, the music in Ethereal was really different, it was a real chaos! I mean, we had a strange idea about a structure of a song and we used to put together thousand gothic and metal riffs in just one song. Me and Andrea were singing together, already. I started to sing in the band from that demo and after the recording the guys asked me to join them in the band.

- Waldemar Sorychta is the band's close friend and the producer of all your albums (including the upcoming new release). How did you first get in touch with him? And what is his way of working?

Cristina: Waldemar is incredible. He is such a talented producer and musician. He can play every kind of instrument and he's an incredibly calm person, really patient. He has a strong aura, I think. We got in touch with him because he was already working with Century Media, producing the most famous albums for them, like Tiamat , Moonspell and The Gathering. From the first EP ("Lacuna Coil") on we decided that it was just the right person to grow up with. Because we were working together and not just with a person who tell you what to do.

- In 1998 Lacuna Coil toured with The Gathering. During some of the gigs you performed on stage with Anneke (the recording of "Shrink"). Whose idea was it? And do you still keep in touch with the members of The Gathering?

Cristina: It just happened. We are friends and one day during the tour we just decided to perform a song together and "Shrink" was perfect for two voices. I'm still in touch with her even if we are both very busy with our bands and we unfortunately have just time for a short e-mail, sometimes.

- Checking the band's biography on the official site, I read that one of the highlights of the tour in 1999 was the Metalmania festival in Poland. Very nice to know, since I am Polish myself. What were your impressions from this visit in Poland?

Cristina: It was funny, but as we have been just once in Poland I cannot really express an opinion, we didn't see that much. I remember we spent a lot of time with Anathema that day and I remember the place where we played, people were very cool, even if we were playing a "weird" kind of music for that festival.

- Lacuna Coil is often classified as a gothic metal band. Together with groups like Tristania, After Forever etc. However, Lacuna Coil's music is very different from those bands. Less bombastic, more melancholic. Do you yourself consider your music gothic metal?

Cristina: We don't consider ourselves as a gothic band. A lot of people probably think so because we are always dressed in black! With Lacuna Coil's music we like to mix different kinds of rhythms, from metal, to rock, to gothic, with a modern touch. We always like to discover new things and we hate clichés. Closing ourselves in just one genre would means the death of our artistic creativity and growth.

- Your vocal style differs a lot from most female vocalists in metal. The majority of the songs are little dialogues between you and Andrea. Of course there are many bands using both female and male vocals, but not in this way. Female vocals are mostly fragile, innocent-sounding (early Theatre of Tragedy or Tristania). Your vocals are equally strong, sometimes even stronger than Andrea's. What are your singing inspirations? Who was your first vocal idol?

Cristina: I don't want to express the voice of the fragility but in the meantime I want to maintain my femininity. I have my own voice that I love and I never had real idols, so I prefer to develop alone my way of singing. Just because in a band there are a man and a woman that doesn't necessarily mean that the girl has to be the beauty and the man the beast.

- On "Unleashed Memories," the band's 2nd full-length release, there was one song sung in Italian, "Senzafine." Why aren't there any more Lacuna Coil songs in Italian? Is it easier to write the lyrics for a metal song in English?

Cristina: On the new upcoming album, that will be out the 23 of September, "Comalies", we'll have a song that is half in Italian and half in English. Personally I prefer to sing in English, because in my ears this language sounds better than Italian and also because most of the Italian songs have stupid lyrics, so it's not easy at all to find something serious that has a good sound too.

- The songs' lyrics are mostly written by you and Andrea. How does it work? Do you write the lyrics together or do you write only your own singing parts?

Cristina: Most of the times we try to find a concept for the song, we write all the song separately and then we arrange everything together.

- "Comalies" is the title of the band's new album. The release is planned for september. How would you describe this new album? Are there any surprises for the fans? Or will it be in a similar vein to "Unleashed Memories"?

Cristina: "Comalies" will be THE album: bombastic, with great sounds, excellent songs and a mature conception of metal . There are some surprises for the people in terms of some songs, but I don't want to anticipate anything yet.

- Do you listen at home to metal music? What are your favourite bands?

Cristina: I listen to every kind of music and I'm proud to say that. I love metal and my support goes basically to metal and gothic bands, but I don't refuse to listen to something else, if I like the product. I hate barriers, they avoid the mental expansion.

- What is your favourite Lacuna Coil song to perform live? Has the band ever played any covers during the gigs?

Cristina: I really love to perform "Hyperfast", "Halflife", "Falling"... more than one song and each one for a particular reason, but it is something strictly private! We never played covers live so far.

- Is the band planning to go on a tour to promote the new album?

Cristina: Oh, yes!! In September we'll do an American tour in USA that will last one month, with in Flames and then with another band that is not confirmed. Then we'll come back to Europe and we'll be around with Sentenced for another month. Then we have to plan, but I'm sure that this will be a busy year for us! See you the 23 of September and on tour! Stay tuned with www.lacunacoil.it!

- Thanks for the interview and good luck.

Cristina: You're welcome.



11 july 2002.