Italian gothic/melodic metal masters Lacuna Coil are back in the spotlight with the release of their sixth studio album Dark Adrenaline, the follow up to their first top 20 album, 2009’s Shallow Life. Heavyweight producer Don Gilmore (Shallow Life, Linkin Park, Pearl Jam) once again manned the board for this new set of a dozen doomsday-drenched tracks with titles such as “End of Time,” “I Don’t Believe in Tomorrow,” and “Kill the Light.” The album’s first single “Trip the Darkness” is already lighting up the rock song charts.

Hakuna Matata: Despite the shroud of darkness that seems to permeate most of the songs (and their titles) on Dark Adrenaline, co-vocalist Cristina Scabbia insists there is a light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel and silver-lining quality to even the gloomiest of tunes. “We realized that the lyrics were about sadness, rage and anger,” she says of the song “Trip the Darkness,” “but also power, self-esteem and excitement.” In other words, don’t worry, be happy, but be ready to fight for your right to have a glass half-full attitude.

Co-vocalist Andrea Ferro feels that Dark Adrenaline is a more complete, more mature record than the band’s previous effort Shallow Life, but it still holds the essence of what Lacuna Coil music is all about. “On the last album we were looking at experimenting with our music,” he explains. “With Dark Adrenaline we’ve been able to sum up almost all of the different aspects of Lacuna Coil. We are aware of what we and our roots are, but at the same time we look into the future with our own vision. Dark Adrenaline is the victorious sum of 15 years of experiences.”

The band tapped into many of those experiences – and then some – during the songwriting for the new album. As Scabbia explains, “Our real life events have been the biggest influence for us. There isn’t any one concept, just a lot of dark vibes and flowing energy.” Those vibes and energy found their way into songs such as “Against You,” “Give Me Something More,” “Upsidedown,” “Intoxicated,” “The Army Inside,” “Fire,” and the album closer “My Spirit.” The deluxe edition holds the bonus track “Soul Inmate” as well as five rare live cuts.

Another song on Dark Adrenaline that to this point has gone unmentioned is Lacuna Coil’s cover of the R.E.M. gem “Losing My Religion.” Was it blasphemous or ballsy for the band to try and tackle this iconic tune? Opinions will certainly vary, but Scabbia defends the band’s decision to record this number by saying, “We felt the songs were turning into something harder and more obscure than on previous albums, but through teamwork, common goals and open minds, we came up with Dark Adrenaline.” Love it or leave it? Let the listener decide.

Seeing Things In Black And White: Sit back and take in the official video for “Trip the Darkness”:

As A Matter of Fact…

* The members of Lacuna Coil are Cristina Scabbia (vocals), Andrea Ferro (vocals), Marco Coti Zelati (bass), Cristiano Migliori (guitar), Marco Biazzi (guitar), and Cristiano Mozzati (drums).

* Formed in 1994 in Milan, Italy, the band was originally called Sleep of Right, then swapped that name for Ethereal, but was forced to change again when they learned the name was already taken by a Greek band. They finally settled on Lacuna Coil, which means empty spiral.

* The group’s studio catalog includes 1999’s In a Reverie; 2001’s Unleashed Memories; 2002’s Comalies; 2006’s Karmacode; and 2009’s Shallow Life.

* Lacuna Coil is currently on the 2012 GIGANTOUR with Megadeth, Motorhead and Volbeat. The North American trek runs through March 3 in Austin, TX.