Lacuna Coil creates chaos in Nashville

It’s been 30 years since Italian metal icons Lacuna Coil began captivating the world with their beautiful and operatic style of music. Being a longtime fan, I had never managed to align my schedule with their tour dates. So, when their Ignite the Fire Tour was announced, I was thrilled to see Nashville listed as one of the stops. Joining Lacuna Coil on the tour were Houston upstarts Oceans of Slumber and metal veterans New Years Day.

The night kicked off with Oceans of Slumber and, while they are classified as a metal band, their sound truly lives up to their name. This isn’t to say they were boring; their music was just more soothing than I had anticipated. They had some heavy moments, but the overall vibe felt like a metal lullaby. Lead singer Cammie Gilbert’s voice was incredibly beautiful; she could easily succeed in almost any musical genre.

I’ve seen New Years Day perform many years ago in New Jersey…

To me, they felt similar to Five Finger Death Punch with a female vocalist. Their music features some screaming, but most songs are easy for the crowd to sing along to, with themes that are motivational and uplifting. Songs like “Fearless” and “Burn It All Down” had the audience screaming along; it was easy to see why this band resonates with so many fans. Their “take no shit from anyone” theme is particularly appealing to the metal community. A highlight of their set was an interpolation of the Pantera song “Fucking Hostile”, which incited a massive frenzy and a venue-wide mosh pit. It was pretty amazing.

Lacuna Coil is the type of band that genuinely cares about every detail of their live performance. From matching outfits and makeup aesthetics to their overall stage presence, they leave no stone unturned when it comes to entertaining their audience. Despite their long-standing career, they never just show up and dial it in. Singers Cristina Scabbia and Andrea Ferro displayed great onstage chemistry, seemingly enjoying every moment of their time in Nashville. They led the audience through sing-alongs of their hits “Heaven’s a Lie” and “Our Truth”, and even brought out New Years Day singer Ash Costello to perform their latest collaborative single, “In the Meantime”. Overall, it was one of the best shows I have seen this year and I hope it won’t be the last time I get to see Lacuna Coil dominate the stage!

Photography by Derek Jones

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