King Diamond

King Diamond is famous for his dark, horror image and his falsetto vocal style. He also uses a mic stand made out of a femur and tibia bone in the shape of a cross.

King Diamond started in a band called the Brats. He left the Brats in 1980 (along with 3 other members) to form Mercyful Fate. Mercyful Fate made two albums, 1983s "Melissa" and 1984s "Don't Break the Oath", that are considered classics among many metal fans.  He left Mercyful Fate after the 1984 album due to creative differences and made his own band called King Diamond. He would join up with Mercyful Fate again in 1992 while continuing his solo project.

--------------------------


The band King Diamond was slightly different from Mercyful Fate. Instead of the basic Satanic theme for songs with Mercyful Fate, King Diamond chose to have his albums portray horror stories that would span the entire album. Here is the basic story of maybe his finest solo album, "Abigail".

"Abigial" is about a man named Johnathan Lefay and Miriam Natias who inheirt a house, the Lefay family mansion. Little do they know it is haunted by a demon named Abigail.

Track 1: Funeral - This song tells of a funeral for Abigial Lefay who was born dead on July 7th 1777. She was nailed to her coffin with 7 silver spikes so she may never rise to cause evil again.

Track 2: Arrival - This song is about the young couple, Johnathan and Miriam, riding through the rain in the Summer of 1845 in a horse drawn coach. The coach stops and they could see the ghostly figures of 7 horsemen. One of the Horsemen tells them to turn back or 18 will become 9. Johnathan did not beileve them and was not scared. He told the Horsemen to get out of his way. Before the Horsemen disappeared into the night they told Johnathan that he'll need their help one day.

Track 3: Mansion in the Darkness - This song is basically telling you how creepy their new home is. The house appears to breathe and shawdows appear to be alive and moving. Some might actually be alive.

Track 4: The Family Ghost - This song tells of the couples second night in the mansion. Johnathan meets Count da Lafey, the Lafey family ghost. The Count wants to show Johnathan something and takes him downstairs to the crypt where Abigial rests. The Count then tells Johnathan that Miriam has the spirit of Abigial inside of her and that there is only one way to stop the re-birth of evil itself. Kill Miriam.

Track 5: The 7th Day of July 1777 - This song is basically a flashback to 7-7-1777, when Count da Lafey was alive. The Count caught his wife cheating on him and that she is now pregnant with another mans baby. So the Count pushed his wife down the stairs to the crypt to die. The Countess had broke her neck and died and the embryo of the baby had come out dead. The Count burned his wifes body and even named the embryo Abigial. Then for some strange reason he decided to mummify the baby.

Track 6: Omens - This song is about some foreboding omens. The table in the dining room of the mansion had 3 places set rather than two and there was a empty baby cradle swaying in the air which neither Johnathan or Miriam put there.

Track 7: The Possesion - This is when the story starts to really pick up. Miriam wakes up the next moring and is pregnant. He stomach seems to grow bigger every hour. Johnathan now knew the ghost had been telling the truth and started to cry. Miriam was rocking the cradle and singing a lullaby and told Johnathan "I'm having you baby, my love" but Johnathan new the truth. She was possessed.

Track 8: Abigial - Johnathan tries speaking to Abigial. Abigial then speaks through Miriam and says "I am alive inside your wife. Miriam's dead, I am her head". Johnathan threatens to get a priest and force Abigial out of Miriam. This doesn't work so he tries tricking Abigail to follow him to the crypt because she should be born where she died. She obliges and follows Johnathan.

Track 9: Black Horsemen - This is the climax of the story. The two stood at the top of the stairs. Johnathans plan was working, he just needed to push her down to stop the birth but before he could do anything Miriam/Abigial pushed him down the stairs thus killing him. Miriam was crying remembering her arrival in the rain. Miriam then died due to the pain of labour and the final image she saw was the glowing of two evil yellow eyes. Riding from beyond, the 7 Horsemen arrived before dawn. They were servants of the Count and had helped put Abigial down before. The Horsemen then took the child to the chapel in the forest where her coffing was waiting. They would attempt to put Abigail down again.

--------------------------


King Diamond actually had a lawsuit filed against him by one of his biggest inspirations, Kiss' Gene Simmons, because Diamonds make-up was too similar to Simmons' in the 70s.