King Diamond - Abigail

Roadrunner Records
(1987)

The dilemma of modern metal: though infinitely better than the suburban aggro which nu-metal imposed on my youth, the heavy music of today often fails to create anything beyond faithful offerings to genres that were forged 25 years prior. Make no mistake, there definitely exists a place in my heart for the throwback metal band. But as more and more groups continue the endless rehash of already-twice-recycled ideas, a saturation point has been reached. The best course of action to take in this scenario is to return to the source material. Because true classics never fade.

King Diamond's Abigail is a second-tier masterpiece of traditional metal, lacking the notoriety of a British Steel or a Number the Beast. But to claim any inferiority on the grounds of quality would be misguided bogosity. Abigail represents heavy metal doing what heavy metal did best in the 1980's: being unashamedly heavy metal. Reveling in all its excess and cliches, the album conjures up a time when skilled axemen weren't too modest to rip gratuitous solos with the backing of huge arena-style production. Or when it was okay to go nerd for lyrical themes involving fantasy and whimsical horror. Though I was too young to know of Abigail at the time of its release, through a shared heavy metal genealogy I find appreciation in an era gone by.

Then there is the voice of King Diamond. Harnessing one of the most distinctive falsettos in metal (perhaps second only to Rob Halford), his great range regarding both melody and theatrics can simultaneously impress and amuse (a combination of elements paramount to traditional metal). And there should be an emphasis on "amuse"; the King's vocals are frequently overdubbed in threes, each taking on a different part of the given melody, creating a hilariously grandiloquent one-man choir. Laughter is inevitable concerning King Diamond. But if you cannot find the raditude in a dude in face paint that screams in the register of a banshee, pull the stick out of your ass.

Ridiculous and totally metal, Abigail plays like the alternate soundtrack to Castlevania. A definite classic that should not be overlooked. So grab the chain-whip and get to stepping.

(Jathan, I'm looking at you on this one.)

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