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TerriG reviews Lacuna Coil's new album, Shallow Life.THE G SPOT4/23/09 I admit that I wasn’t too excited to hear Lacuna Coil’s neweffort, “Shallow Life” after their previous album, (2006’s “Karmacode”) failed tomeasure up to the very excellent “Comalies.” But because I loved them so much atone point in time, I gave it a shot. The opening track, “Survive” caught me asa particularly catchy tune, leaving me hopeful for the rest of the album.However, it just goes downhill from there. Producer Don Gilmore should have realized that he is workingwith a talented band that knows how to put a song together, and not bands likehe’s previously worked with like LinkinPark (who have alwaysbeen a product of the studio in my opinion) or Good Charlotte. ApparentlyGilmore helped contribute to the writing process, and it shows. The music becomesincreasingly bland, forgettable and “mainstream” sounding. I’m not usually oneto criticize production values but “Shallow Life” indeed does sound shallow andflat. I wish they hadn’t gone for this sort of approach because the Lacuna Coil Iam a fan of has a much richer, wider palette. It’s just a continuation of thedowntrend that Karmacode started. “Wide Awake” isn’t a bad ballad, and songs like “Not Enough”and “I’m Not Afraid” are pretty listenable. Cristina Scabbia has indeed honedher skills in the pronunciation department, and her voice is generallyimpeccable (but overproduced). But I just can’t shake the feeling that I lostthe band I saw opening for Type O Negative five years ago, and the change isnot for the better. -TerriG  ______________________Shallow Life (LacunaCoil)Label:Century MediaRating: 5/10