2023 has been a good year for Lacuna Coil. The Italian alt-metal band toured the U.S. with Fear Factory, played festivals (including the inaugural Sick New World), released a new song (June's "Never Dawn") and then got started on their new album, which will be their first since 2019's Black Anima.
We caught up with frontwoman Cristina Scabbia to reflect on Lacuna Coil's biggest accomplishment of 2023, the best new band she discovered this year, her favorite live show and what types of music and TV series have been keeping her busy on the side.
Then, she let us in on how that long-awaited new Lacuna Coil album is shaping up.
WHAT WOULD YOU CONSIDER TO BE LACUNA COIL'S BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT OF 2023?
CRISTINA SCABBIA Well, we wrote some music and there's a new single out called "Never Dawn."
That's also a super cool collaboration we did with the brand CMON for the game Zombicide. Which is a huge table game that came out in different versions, so being part of it — we're actually miniatures in the game — is a great achievement. That kind of underlines, once again, our connection with the nerd world, with the world of games and video games.
So that made us really, really happy. The fact that we went to Comic Con as guests is something I consider a big achievement.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ALBUM OF 2023?
To be honest with you, I don't really listen to a lot of new stuff. I've had the same playlists for ages now and I listen to a lot of soundtracks from video games. So it might not be unusual but it could be the soundtrack for Elden Ring.
Of course, as soon as I hear the music I think about the game right away. It was such a great, developed game that everybody was waiting for, and the music just builds the vibe for it. I love the fact that it's dark, it's epic, it's scary, it's very, very well done. I just put it [on] whenever I do something at home.
WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE SHOW YOU'VE SEEN THIS YEAR?
I saw Pantera — that was pretty cool. I saw them in Spain because we played the same festival, and the thing about it is that I watched them from the stage we literally just played because they were going on after us on the stage that was in front of us.
So we kind of got the best view. That was pretty awesome.
WERE THERE ANY NEW-TO-YOU ARTISTS WHO CAME ONTO YOUR RADAR THIS YEAR THAT YOU REALLY ENJOY?
I listened to a lot of Sleep Token. If they count as new for this year, they might be the band. I like them very much — I adore his voice. I just like the vibe.
I don't care about whoever says, "Oh, they're not metal" — I don't give a fuck. Music is about what you feel when you listen to it, and they play so well and have such a wonderful singer. That, to me, is awesome.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TV SERIES OF 2023?
Well, I finally progressed on Attack on Titan. I re-watched Neon Genesis Evangelion. I started the live action One Piece. I'm digging more into that world.
WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO IN 2024 FOR LACUNA COIL?
Well, the new record. We are writing it right now. So we're in the composition zone now. We have so many ideas. We're just waiting for something that puts everything together.
We don't like to write singles. We don't like to write long songs. We like an idea of a record, so we're looking for the spark for the [theme] of the next record.
We want to take our time to write. We just want to be inspired and release something that we really like, that we really want to share with people.
DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS FOR WHAT IT'S GOING TO SOUND LIKE?
Honestly, no, because there're some things that are sounding very Lacuna Coil, and there are other things that are completely different.
But we honestly like to keep it a way where it sounds like Lacuna Coil. We like to experiment, we like to evolve. But there has to be a logic.
Whenever I think about bands that I like, movies that I like, TV series that I like, I kind of want to see a change, but I also want to feel the core of what I liked. And it's not easy because, obviously, as a band we listen to so many things, we're inspired by so many things.
But it wouldn't make sense to evolve in a way that takes you too far from what the band is. So that's another thing I would love [in 2024]. To keep on-focus, let's say.
