King Diamond Abigail II : The Revenge
Metal Blade 2002
By Russell Garwood
King Diamond has, with his latest album, resurrected a story that began 15 years ago - Abigail II : The Revenge picks up the plot from where Abigail left off. While sequels can often lack originality and be inferior copies of the predecessor, if you were hoping for another Abigail you will be sorely disappointed. The Revenge is closest in style to House Of God, but with touches reminiscent of Abigail. For those unfamiliar with King Diamonds music, his band, consisting of Andy LaRocque and Mike Wead on guitar, original Abigail bassist Hal Patino and new drummer Matt Thompson, play a kind of gothic, catchy power metal. With frequent solos that dont detract from the melodic nature maintained throughout, Diamonds trademark vocals range from deep grunts to the highest falsetto screeches and are perhaps his finest ever, driving the narrative well.
As ever with King Diamond, the plot is complex and has obviously been written with great attention to detail. The vocals are refreshingly comprehensible; but the lyrics provided in the booklet help you catch every twist and turn of the plot, and the family tree is more helpful still. Much effort has been invested in the music which is largely progressive; few songs have repeated sections, while the frequent sound effects and keyboards help create tremendous atmosphere. Contributing to a sense of unease is the sporadic female sobbing (Abigail) and voice of Little One performed wonderfully by Alyssa Biesenberger.
The guitars on "Abigail II" are technical but melodic, and flow well, with bass underpinning the twin melodies. Overall this is everything you would expect from King Diamond: dark ghostly music with excellent production and artwork courtesy of Travis Smith - perfect for the atmosphere. All King Diamond fans probably own this already, for everyone else The Revenge is a great album to start getting to know this unique artist.
Metal Blade 2002
By Russell Garwood
King Diamond has, with his latest album, resurrected a story that began 15 years ago - Abigail II : The Revenge picks up the plot from where Abigail left off. While sequels can often lack originality and be inferior copies of the predecessor, if you were hoping for another Abigail you will be sorely disappointed. The Revenge is closest in style to House Of God, but with touches reminiscent of Abigail. For those unfamiliar with King Diamonds music, his band, consisting of Andy LaRocque and Mike Wead on guitar, original Abigail bassist Hal Patino and new drummer Matt Thompson, play a kind of gothic, catchy power metal. With frequent solos that dont detract from the melodic nature maintained throughout, Diamonds trademark vocals range from deep grunts to the highest falsetto screeches and are perhaps his finest ever, driving the narrative well.
As ever with King Diamond, the plot is complex and has obviously been written with great attention to detail. The vocals are refreshingly comprehensible; but the lyrics provided in the booklet help you catch every twist and turn of the plot, and the family tree is more helpful still. Much effort has been invested in the music which is largely progressive; few songs have repeated sections, while the frequent sound effects and keyboards help create tremendous atmosphere. Contributing to a sense of unease is the sporadic female sobbing (Abigail) and voice of Little One performed wonderfully by Alyssa Biesenberger.
The guitars on "Abigail II" are technical but melodic, and flow well, with bass underpinning the twin melodies. Overall this is everything you would expect from King Diamond: dark ghostly music with excellent production and artwork courtesy of Travis Smith - perfect for the atmosphere. All King Diamond fans probably own this already, for everyone else The Revenge is a great album to start getting to know this unique artist.
