9

Formed in Denmark in the early 80's, Mercyful Fate achieved near legendary status almost immediately after the release of Melissa, the bands' first ...

9
Provided By:The Daily Vault

9
Mercyful Fate
Metal Blade Records, 1999
REVIEW BY: Bill Ziemer
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 08/16/1999
Formed in Denmark in the early 80's, Mercyful Fate achieved nearlegendary status almost immediately after the release of Melissa, the bands' first full-length release. Led by theirface painted frontman King Diamond, the band was one of thepioneers of Death or Black Metal. Aptly named, death metal's themefocused on more morbid topics, frequently with a satanic theme.
Feared by parents and despised by bible-wielders, Diamond wroteabout topics that scared people half to death. He didn't just writeabout death or Satan, he wrote about Satanism, sacrifice, gravedefiling, and cemetery births. People couldn't believe what theywere hearing. Not only was the subject mater scary, but he sangthese songs in a voice that ranged from strident growls to falsettohighs. Astute lyrics about the occult and stage props that includeda human skull and a cross constructed from bones made Mercyful Fatequite famous, despite their short initial life span. Mercyful Fatedisbanded after their second album, and Diamond continued on to asolo career, still maintaining that he was a practicing Satanist.In the early 90's the band re-formed, and since then Diamond hassplit time between the two projects.
Quite frankly, many bands in this segment are hacks. Theypretend to be skilled at their instruments, and write completelybrainless lyrics. This has never been the case with Mercyful Fate.These guys can flat out play. Fate's latest release, 9, continues with this tradition. Lyrically, Diamondcontinues with the dark themes, but has progressed beyond theshock-oriented, over-the-top story lines of the past. Diamond stillwrites about the devil, but he approaches the subject from aseemingly atheist perspective. His stories are still dark, but havedeveloped into what I'd call "mini horror stories."
Musically, the band sounds even more solid now than they did onthe early albums. Founding guitarist Hank Shermann still providesmuch of the musical direction, with Diamond taking the music crediton the remainder of the tracks. Dueling guitars are everywhere onthis album, with Sherman and fellow guitarist Mike Weed tradingsolos on nearly every track. Drummer Bjarne Holm is simplyoutstanding - his performance is one of the best I've everheard.

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