Metal Reviews

I used to say that when Zad posted in my review threads.

As for The Gathering and Lacuna Coil—they don't sound the same or similar, and they never have. They were simply the first two female-fronted metal bands that got heavily promoted back in 90s. They were never similar in a musical respect, unless you really want to break it down into basic terms (i.e. guitars and a chick singing).

I support this pretentiousness. This review made me want to listen to Comalies more than it did the new one.

If we could get back to the topic of the actual album, and not who is sexist or who sounds or doesn't sound like who, I found this album to be really bad, I like lacuna coil's earlier albums, but this one just seemed lazy and extremely repetitive.

I find it funny that there has been 2 pages of this and none of it talks about the actual Lacuna Coil album...

between this thread and the Dope thread, Zad's been awful restrained in using the "zomg stay on topic" card

I can't please anyone, it seems. Trying to be a moderator around here just gets you hatred from the peons; I love being called a commie fag child-molesting asshole turd as much as the next guy. Maybe we should crack down on it. Let the kids know who's in charge.

Ken, you're right again. The Gathering and Lacuna Coil are not similar-sounding bands, and I am turning into you in my old age, although the process started long ago.

Trapt, Comalies is better, but this is still worth a listen.

Badhoage, you found this album more repetitive than Karmacode? Strange.

I see you're new around here.

Is funny because is true!

They were never in danger of being confused for one another, sure, but hells yes they were similar in a musical respect. Enough to draw pretty heavy comparisons between the two, anyway. Both were all about that gloomy-melodic post-Paradise Lost sound. Although TG were way better at it obv. (Hence me describing Nightime Birds as "the album that made me realise how rubbish LC were").

Anyway, this whole "it's just because there's a woman!!1" argument is deliberate obtuseness. Both bands were/are aware that in metal having a female on vocals was/is a novelty, and they both made the elegantly feminine qualities of their respective singers the focal point of their music.

Bottom line; the comparison is a fair one. Although I suspect you know this and are just saying otherwise because people here think the opposite

It's like comparing Voivod and Metallica. And just because a band does something different from the norm doesn't mean you have to lump it in with another band that does - Skyclad and My Dying Bride both using violins, fo'eggs.

MDB and Skyclad are in totally different genres though at opposite ends of the metal spectrum. LC and TG might be nowadays, I certainly wouldn't dispute that, but around LC's early albums and TG's first ones with Anneke they are definitely part of the same genre IMO.

But if Skyclad were also a doomdeath band, then yeah, the violin usage would probably make them natural comparisons.

FINE THEN Lacuna Coil and The Gathering may once have been more similar than Skyclad and My Dying Bride BUT SINCE now they're totally different then complaining about the relative scores of their two albums IS SILLY and THAT WAS MY ORIGINAL POINT.

And it's still like comparing Metallica and Voivod.

It's not silly because, even though the West Pole is far from being The Gathering's best album, it's still a lot better than LC's latest.

Yeah, that makes sense. Let's bring up completely different albums when we write reviews! Ooh, this album from Slayer is not as good as that album from Emperor!

Why can't we?
There's a rating system for a reason Zad!

Different genres have different things that make them good. So comparing, say, the new Sunn O))) and the new Rush album is clearly ridiculous.

Now you're being silly.
Both The Gathering and Lacuna Coil belong to the same genre. They're not that close but the use of female vocals, the pop thing going on in both bands' music, the light metal touch they both have make they more alike than Journey & Bloodbath...
But, still, if one wanna compare rates of bands belonging to opposite genres saying this one has been overrated and this one underrated, I don't really see what the problem if they're both reviewed here and hence have been rated using the same standards.

Honestly, I think your attitude in this whole thread has been kind of retarded and it's only getting worse.

I'm being silly? They're completely different styles of music! That Gathering is practically ambient, far from radio-friendly and Lacuna Coil are the opposite. Completely different albums, for completely different moods. Again, they both have female vocals, but so do Nightwish and Agoraphobic Nosebleed - it's no more a basis of comparison than if two bands had male vocalists.

There's too many variables, different reviewers, moods, genres - why can't you just take each review on its own without cross referencing with half a dozen others? Now THAT'S retarded.

Completely different styles of music...

Ok, I'll leave it here since you're prepared to argue until everyone either agrees with you or drops it.

THEY ARE! One's all poppy and radio-friendly, the other is atmospheric. Huge difference.

And yeah, make me out to be stubborn when you just posted five times in a row arguing the topic.