The courtship of Dave and Paula Lombardo is the kind of thing that would make for an inspired romantic comedy. Picture it: The man who raised the bar for heavy metal drumming rendezvous with a beautiful woman whose musical background included backing up legacy acts in Las Vegas and trying to break into Nashville as a singer/songwriter. Fortunately for the world, their musical union has manifested as Venamoris, whose Ipecac debut To Cross Or To Burn (out February 28) goes far to explode preconceived notions while constructing captivating new possibilities.
Obviously, the indefatigable Dave Lombardo’s bonafides as a world-class drummer are well-known. But while he drafted the blueprint that would define thrash-metal drumming, he’s also applied his finesse to solo percussion (2023’s Rites Of Percussion, also on Ipecac), hip hop and classical music, as well as boundary-pushing recordings and performances with everyone from John Zorn’s ensembles to punk icons Misfits and Mr. Bungle. To Cross… is another milestone in his storied career, where he’s added guitar, bass and considerable production techniques to his sonic skill-set. “The only thing that rivals how many drums we have [at home] is how many guitars Dave has,” says Paula, laughing. “So he plays guitar quite a bit on this album.”
Paula is truly a dynamic musical force powered with impressive vocal prowess, a deftness on piano and synthesizers and a great instinct for alluring lyrics, melodies and arrangements. At 18 years old, she was a backing singer as part of Las Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton’s enclave, which taught her grace under pressure when you’re performing multiple shows in an evening and perfection was demanded every day. She left Vegas to head to Nashville to continue her career in music, but by her own words, “It just wasn’t the right fit.”
Taking their name from the Latin vena amoris (“the vein of love,” purported to run from the left-hand ring finger to the heart), Venamoris’ first public recording was “The Gift,” a Christmas song the Lombardos posted to Bandcamp. Not long afterward, their 2023 debut album, Drown In Emotion, was released. Paula’s singer-songwriter vibe felt like it was plucked from the FM dial in 1975 between deep cuts from Carole King’s Tapestry and Heart’s Dog And Butterfly.
“She was very apprehensive,” recalls Dave. “She didn’t know what people were going to think. Meaning, how the songs would be perceived and critiqued. I tried to explain to her that it doesn’t matter, your focus should only be to write for yourself, release it and move on. Slayer would never have been Slayer if we cared what anybody thought. Nobody in our genre cared. Punk rockers didn’t care. Some of the most creative artists went about their work never concerning themselves with how anyone felt about them or what they did. That’s what made them unique. So I explained all of that to her, but there were still some other obstacles to overcome.”
“I think that the idea of trying to reteach my brain so late in the game was a bit much for me,” acknowledges Paula. “All of the advice and direction that Dave gave me are lessons that I really wish I had learned much earlier in life. If I had more of a punk/metal mentality early on I don’t think I would have let those walls build up. I would have given a middle finger to it all and gone about my way Anyway, it’s time for the next chapter.”
“So she needed me to hold her middle finger up and say, ‘Here!’” says Dave, as the two of them start laughing.
However, that debut album doesn’t fully prepare you for To Cross Or To Burn. Venamoris—occasionally visited by guitarist Alex Skolnick (Testament), Trevor Dunn (Trio-Convulsant, Tomahawk), Ra Diaz (Suicidal Tendencies, KORN) and Gary Holt (Slayer, Exodus)—deliver a multi-directional statement that resonates with character while side-stepping away from staid radio clichés. To Cross doesn’t waste any time introducing itself: “Stay With Me” opens the proceedings with a quantum leap from Victrola gramophone static to digital bliss in three-and-a-half minutes, as if you were dropped into Sean Young’s apartment in the movie Blade Runner. “Holding On To Nothing” flexes Schadenfreude at an enemy’s emotional decline, with a sonic backdrop reminiscent of Ben Folds discovering Black Sabbath. Venamoris and Skolnick make an exquisite jazz trio on “Stain Of Pain,” and if Tim Burton would make a left turn into making psychological horror movies, he should get on the Venamoris tip: Paula brings a luscious strain of tension to darkly cinematic tracks as “Spiderweb” and “Burnt Paper.” The performance is so positively beguiling, you might want to cover your drink while you’re listening. Or eagerly anticipate the dose.
The Lombardos throw some wicked curveballs, as well: They deliver some aural erotica with a steamy cover of the Scorpions’ “Animal Magnetism,” flavored with a delicious solo from Slayer’s Gary Holt. “The very first night that Dave mentioned it, he said, ‘Let’s do this as a cover,’’’ remembers Paula. “But he also said—and excuse me for cussing here— ‘I’m getting Gary fucking Holt to play on this!’ And sure enough, Gary loved it.” The follow-up track, “Numb” adds an electro-shoegaze atmosphere, with Paula assuming the role of a dead-eyed heroine that’s sick of your shit as the glowering electronic maelstrom grows behind her. The proceedings end with the title track, a spy movie theme somewhere between Portishead and Nine Inch Nails that makes you consider what you’re going to do with your life. It’s the very conundrum Paula found herself in to arrive at To Cross Or To Burn’s creative high point. Oh, and the album title? Yeah, it has nothing to do with building or burning bridges. Rather, it’s about building a better self.
“It’s about coming to a crossroads in your life,” reveals Paula. “To move forward, or to go back and burn yourself once again. What lessons do I want to learn? Do I want to evolve, or do I want to repeat the same old patterns and find myself with the same old pain?”
“Creativity should have no limitations,” Dave remarks. “I don’t feel that there should be any musical style that Venamoris should avoid.”
So, in summary: Venamoris’ second album contains no 200-bpm invites to come sip the broth of Hell; no wolverine-style, riot grrl anger; no haut metal bitch-posturing; and definitely no mainstream middle-of-the-road balladry. Across these 10 tracks you will find alluring personal explorations, whimsical psychodrama, futuristic torch songs and conjurings akin to a sharp, red-lacquered fingernail making spirals on the surface of your libido. As Venamoris, To Cross Or To Burn is the record Paula and Dave Lombardo needed to make. After all, the number of facets, the brighter the diamond…