Search - King Diamond, Mercyful Fate :: Dangerous Meeting

A DANGEROUS MEETING is an excellent compilation.

10/23/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well, I am a sort of newcomer to King Diamond's music, so I picked this one up to check out some of his earlier work. I was completely and utterly blown away, as King is an excellent metal composer when he gets to it, unlike some others I can mention (James Hetfield, for one). The record has two parts: 7 Mercyful Fate songs and 9 King Diamond. Many consider this to be thrash; however, I hear more of a proto prog-metal sound in this, sort of like early Fates Warning (actually, this sounds very much like Fates Warning, so if you like them, check it out). This is for the Mercyful Fate songs, of which the standouts are the oddly and uncannily beautiful "A Dangerous Meeting" (it's the chorus)and "Come to the Sabbath" (medievally flavored). The King Diamond work is heavier, but more orchestrated, as there is some haunting keyboard work and a more epical feel to tracks like "The Candle" and "Eye of the Witch." "Arrival" starts with a riff similar to Fates Warning's "Exodus," for those who like/love AWAKEN THE GUARDIAN. "Sleepless Nights" and the goofily heavy "No Presents For Christmas" are also standouts. The trick to the material is to forget about the Satanic, stupid lyrics of the Mercyful Fate stuff and just listen to it, and pay close attention to the rock opera stylings of the King solo lyrics. Oh yeah, you can probably scare trick-or-treaters with it, too. HAPPY HALLOWEEN!! Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha..."

Awesome!

rprasad@zianet.com | New Mexico, U.S.A. | 08/21/1998

(4 out of 5 stars)

"If you like Mercyful Fate and King Diamond, this one is for you...It's like a "Best of Album" for both bands (7 MF songs and 9 King Diamond), and it is bad-ass. Killer tracks on here are:1. Doomed By the Living Dead (MF) 2. Corpse Without a Soul (MF) 3. Come to the Sabbath 4. Halloween 5. The Eye of the Witch"