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45863
Fatal Portrait
(1997)
King Diamond
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Label: Roadrunner Records
Duration: 46:09
Genre: Heavy Metal

I loved Mercyful Fate,but I had it pretty lucky.I had an older sister that introduced me to bands like KISS,Iron Maiden,and Judas Priest as well as some of the more alternative flavored music from the 80's and late 70's,but I discovered Mecyful Fate all on my own,and was disheartened when I heard they had broken up.But a year later,out came his No Presents For Christmas single,and a few months down the road,it happened..King Diamond's first solo album,Fatal Portrait.I was just eleven,but it had as much an affect on me as did the Ramones or Dead Kennedys.Fatal Portrait is one of those albums that from the beginning grabs you by the short curlies and drags you forward in such a rush of ecstasy that its hard not to tell all your friends about it the moment its over.The opener The Candle begins with spooky synthesizers and a spoken word piece that I can still remember to this day..Seven years have gone..It can no longer be left undone.So the songe begins,and so began a career of creativity that is hard to measure in impact in the metal community,whethr it be traditional or black metal you speak of.I truly enjoyed this album,and so will anyone either previously familiar with either Mercyful Fate or King Diamond,or just becoming familiar with his work.This is my favorite King Diamond album,and it still gives me goosebumps to this day when I listen to it.Some of the best songs on the album are the catchy singalong Halloween which will have you singing glass in hand,or the perfectly melancholy The Lake,not originally available on the release back in '86..And as others have said,No Presents For Christmas will instantly be any headbanger's favorite christmas tune..Every year I make a loop copy of the song on disc and sneak into my local Wal-Mart and sneakily slide it into the stereo that constantly belts out cheesy xmas music.I'm sure there's some old lady banging her head right now to King Diamond thanks to me and my yearly mission..Buy Fatal Portrait..You won't be disappointed..


TrackDuration
The Candle6:40
The Jonah5:16
The Portrait5:07
Dressed In White3:08
Charon4:16
Lurking In The Dark3:34
Halloween4:13
Voices From The Past1:31
Haunted3:54
No Presents For Christmas [Bonus Track]4:20
The Lake [Bonus Track]4:10
Original Release: 1986-01-01
Producer: King Diamond, Rune Höyer
UPC: 16861878924