It’s that time of year once again. The air gets a little colder, the leaves are falling, the spirits are bolder, and our thoughts turn to sweets & frights. We’re breaking out the costumes, getting our some scary anime and/or video games, and playing some Heavy Metal that’s perfect for this month. Last year I challenged myself by taking a look at the career of Portugal’s pride & joy, Moonspell. It was a lot of fun, but for 2019 I wanted to challenge myself. I wanted to cover somebody that might very well embody October & Halloween, and everything in between. The individual in question I chose (Along with a friend of mine) was none other than Kim Bendix Petersen, but you all know him by his stage name......King Diamond.
That’s right, King Diamond! I made a mention of him back in my 2nd edition of my favorite singers & bands list (Which you can read here), but that little blurb wouldn’t have done this man justice. Since the early 80s, this man brought his wraith-like presence to Mercyful Fate, but when things went south, he left the group to pursue a campaign of conquest in the realm of horror on his own terms, and from 86 onward would come to craft some of the most spine-chilling tales ever made for Heavy Metal. However, to cover the stories penned by this king in a single post would go against his wishes, and thus I’ll be talking about his tales over the entire month. With that out of the way, let’s get into part 1 of my look at King Diamond....and be sure to have the lights on while you read!
Fatal Portrait (1986)
In July of 1985, Diamond and Co. began recording their debut album at Sound Track Studio in Copenhagen, Denmark. On 25 December in the same year, they released their debut single "No Presents for Christmas", and on the 17th of February 1986, through Roadrunner Records, released their first record, Fatal Portrait. The album would go onto number 33 on the Swedish album chart, and the single for the album (Halloween) would be released on June the 6th of that year.
Best Track? The Candle has gotta have one of the goofiest yet highly atmospheric & badass openings on Fatal Portrait. For about a minute & 30 seconds, the buildup comes across like something you’d hear in a black-and-white horror movie, yet the sinister tones throughout it gives you the impression that it’s not joking around. Once the buildup stops, you’re treated to a sonic barrage ghostly guitar & drumwork, not to mention King’s patented usage of falsetto when he sings. It might seem silly for a moment, but The Candle gets serious when it needs to.
The Candle
This also leads into the biggest aspect of Fatal Portrait, and that’s the storytelling. Among the first 4 tracks and the final one, we’re treated to a rather grim ghost story. The narrator of the album sees a face in "every candle that he burns". This face speaks one word to him: "Jonah". So he finds an old book, speaks a rhyme from within the tome, and frees the spirit from the candle. It's the spirit of a little girl named Molly, who tells him that seven years before, Mrs. Jane (Her Mother) kept her 4-year-old daughter Molly in the attic until she died of starvation. Before, Mrs. Jane painted a portrait of her daughter and put it above the fireplace, so that Molly would become immortal; however, Molly made the portrait speak to her mom, so that Jane would know about Molly's pain. Mrs. Jane then speaks a rhyme and burns the portrait. A free spirit of Molly returns to haunt her until she goes insane. Pretty dark stuff, yet it’s somehow fun at the same time.
Worst Track? Really the only issue with Fatal Portrait is that the concept behind it doesn’t extend to all of the songs. The story fits perfectly within the 5 tracks it’s allotted (And works well), but every other song just grazes the frightening tale. I can’t hold it against King however, as I’d have to guess that he didn’t make a full-blown story because he had just left Mercyful Fate 2 years beforehand, and was probably getting used to making material on his own.
Fatal Portrait. A fantastic way to start a career, and was proof that not only could King Diamond be great while in a band, but was just as good in a solo career.
Abigail (1987)
It’s the summer of 1845. Miriam Natias and Jonathan La'Fey have just inherited a mansion from the previous owner. It seems that said mansion must have issues, as a group of seven horsemen ride up to him & state that if he & his wife stay, then “18 will become 9”. Not heeding the cryptic warning, Jonathan & Miriam stick it out.....but things take a turn for the spectral. On their first night, Jonathan happens to meet with the ghost of the manor, Count de La'Fey. Finding out that he’s related to the Count, the specter tells him the sordid tale of what happened years before. On the 7th of July, 1777, the Count finds out that his wife cheated on him, and was carrying his bastard child. In a fit of rage, his pushes his wife down the stairs, killing her after her neck breaks, and the child becomes stillborn. He cremates his wife, and for whatever reason mummifies the fetus & places it in a sarcophagus to preserve it. The count then tells Jonathan that Abigail is trying to comeback through Miriam, and that he must kill his wife in order for the vengeful spirit to not come back. I won’t say anything else, but suffice it to say that this record’s story is considerably more meaty than that of Fatal Portrait.
Abigail would go on to have quite the legacy. In addition to selling over 175,000 copies in North America alone, Beavis and Butt-head watched The Family Ghost music video on the episode Bungholio: Lord of the Harvest, and Capcom would pay tribute to the album in their game Final Fight, as they named the (male) boss of its 5th stage as Abigail. In a rather touching moment, King Diamond would pay tribute to his father in the liner notes of the album, say that he was "the bravest and noblest man" he ever knew. Actually gets me to tear up a little.
Best Track? Bit of a tie between the haunting Omens, and the title track. The former I like because of a nice little bit of organ playing around the middle (Even though everything else is awesome), and at that point in the story things are really hitting the fan. As for Abigail the song, things are even worse in the story. With the spirit of Abigail now in control of his love, Jonathan confronts the spectral fetus in an effort to get it out of his beloved. I can’t spoil anything more than I have, but suffice it to say you might not look at parenthood the same way ever again after listening to this.
Omens
Abigail
Apart from that, what really makes Abigail so good is the storytelling. There was more certainly a story on Fatal Portrait and it was well done, but it was only contained within 5 tracks. Here? Every single track helps out the story, and nothing goes to waste. Not only that, but Abigail is horror I actually like! Sure things get dark & spooky, but King Diamond seems to be having fun telling the story at the same time, so there’s a perfect balance between both sides. This feeling would transfer to just about every other record the band makes, and this get the group my respect.
Worst Track? Rarely am I ever going to say anything bad about King Diamond. All throughout my look at this band, I’m pretty much going to do nothing but praise these guys. In the case of Abigail, I dare any of you to find something bad on this album. From top to bottom this is a well-crafted record, filled with great storytelling, vocal work that’s spine-chilling, instrumentation that’s well done, and the atmosphere is just wonderful.
Abigail. One of the creepiest horror stories that I enjoy, and a fantastic metal release as well! If you didn’t like the lack of storytelling on Fatal Portrait, then you’ll absolutely love this record. However, despite being another feather in the king’s cap, it didn’t mean that Abigail would be a tyrant of the 80s. Like any wise ruler, it was more that happy to share power of the kingdom with other like minded individuals, and with the next 2 albums to come......it was in very good company. Next!
Them (1988)
This time around King isn’t the narrator, as he’s now a full-fledged character. Playing the role of a young man, he and the rest of his family (His Mother & his sister Missy) are welcoming back their elderly grandmother to their manor home after she spent time in an asylum. All seems fine at first, but things begin to go downhill as soon as granny is living with them again. All of a sudden spectral voices known only to King as “Them” are speaking to everybody, influencing them to listen to dear old Grandma, who speaks to her grandson about the “House of Amon”, which just so happens to apparently be where they live. The only one not affected by “Them” & granny is Missy, who suffers a tragic fate for defying her elderly relative. I can’t say anymore, as it would ruin the rest of the story. That being said this is King Diamond, so you might have a clue as to what happens next.
Best Track? Welcome Home immediately pulls you into the world of Them. Granny is back home, the family is getting things ready, and King is the first one to greet his elderly relative. Though it should be a happy reunion, it’s obvious from the first few notes & vocal work.....that this reunification isn’t exactly a pleasant one. Regardless of it’s atmosphere, Welcome Home is a great song musically as well. The drum work is just solid, the guitar work is simultaneously haunting & thunderous, and King Diamond’s vocal work is fantastic.
Welcome Home
A nice 2nd place track is the ode to granny’s favorite drink, Tea. At this point in the story, King’s Grandmother is now beginning to enact her plan, and all she has to do is bring the rest of the family into it. King’s Mother is the first to be affected, and then King himself. As the song plays, there’s this hypnotic-like feeling as you listen to it. It’s infused in the instrumentation, the vocal work, etc. It does come across as a little hokey at first, but a few seconds in, it’s obvious that this Granny’s evil plan is no joke.
Tea
And the other thing I like about Them is the sense of mystery it has. Though we’re given the fact that King’s Grandmother isn’t on the up & up, and we’re told that Amon might be more than just the mansion, you never actually find out what “Them” are. Are they spirits that followed Amon to serve him, vengeful spirits that desire to see King & his family suffer, bloodthirsty demons, or maybe even spirits from the cosmos? You never really know, and I think that’s kind of what makes Them so good. That, and the craftsmanship of course.
Worst Track? As with Abigail, there’s not a single bad thing on Them. Though there are 3 tracks in the one minute range (4 on the remastered edition), they add to the atmosphere the album has, and I found myself for whatever reason not being able to skip past those tunes. Almost as if.....“Them” were trying to visit me and telling me to stay. Uh oh.
Them. Absolutely disturbing and tragic, yet there’s a bizarre fun factor that keeps a listener engaged with the album until the end. Out of everything that King Diamond released in the 1980s, this record might be the one I recommend to anyone the most (Apart from Abigail). I say might, because this woeful tale doesn’t actually end here. In fact......
Conspiracy (1989)
Storywise, we find ourselves sometimes after the events of Them. King reprises his previous role, albeit much older. He’s returned to his former home to reclaim what is his. However, he still has unanswered questions about his sister's death, his mother's involvement with his diabolical therapist, and his own madness. Trudging on despite the roadblocks set before him, he attempts to solve this problem. Help comes in the unlikely form of the spectral inhabitants of the house.....Them! Upon reaching a deal to reunite King with someone important from his past (You might know who) in return for getting the house back. However, his Mother and his therapist have their own plans in motion, and it’s clear that both sides will go head to head eventually.
Best Track? Bit of a tougher one to pick this time around. Conspiracy has such a good collection of songs, it’s hard to pick which one is the best. If I had to pick my favorite track, I’d have to go with The Wedding Dream. Though I do think it’s a little hokey with the wedding music played on organs at the beginning, at the same time it adds to the atmosphere nicely. By this point, King’s character is having visions of what may happen to his mother. He sees her in a wedding dress, and standing next to her is King’s therapist, seemingly her husband to be. Thinking that this will spell out her end, he begins to conjure up plans to stop this supposed wedding to keep his mom safe. Coupled with some great instrumentation & vocal work, The Wedding Dream is stuck in my head.
The Wedding Dream
In addition to the music, Conspiracy is a considerably more meaty record than the previous 3 releases when it comes to it’s length. Fatal Portrait plays for 41 minutes & 41 seconds, Abigail goes to 40 minutes & 16 second, and Them is 43 minutes and 14 seconds long. Conspiracy beats them all, as it runs for just about 47 minutes (46 minutes and 58 seconds to be exact). None of the prior 3 records are small by any means, but Conspiracy manages to stick in your head for a longer period of time simply due to the fact that (alongside it’s quality) it plays for a good length of time.
Worst Track? My only complaint is that if you didn’t listen to Them before you put Conspiracy on your sound-system of choice, then you might not understand some of the things mentioned on here. You can still listen to this record and be thoroughly entertained (Kinda like playing Borderlands 2 without playing the original game), but you might be confused at some of the things mentioned.
Conspiracy. A phenomenal sequel to a great horror story, and a fantastic album in it’s own right. I challenge anyone to listen to Them & this release back to back, and not be entertained. Most definitely recommended, and a great way to close out his time in the 80s!
And this was part 1 of my look at King Diamond. These first 4 records weaves tales of the macabre, and are so imaginative you wished that they were all books. So with the base of his domain established, he gazed upon the decade that was the 1990s, and pondered what he would do next. See you all in 2 weeks for part 2!
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If you’re curious about listening to these albums, click on the links below:
Fatal Portrait
Abigail
Them
Conspiracy
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