Customer Reviews

Abigail (W/Dvd) (Aniv) (Reis) (Dig)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have to admit I was rather reluctant to purchase this re-release of Abigail. I already had the LP and the first CD issue. I missed out on the Remastered ones and the double sets Roadrunner has released. But the inclusion of a bonus DVD got the better of my control. But I'm glad I got it. First, the CD sounds great, it doesn't sound like there was any tampering done to the original recordings. Second, the booklet that was included is chock-filled with quotes from the bandmembers from 1987, relating their memories of all aspects of Abigail. And third, I didn't have those rehearsal tracks, nor had I heard them before. I was expecting a little more for King Diamond/Mercyful Fate's first "official musical" release on DVD. But, getting a peep off a bootleg tape from the Abigail tour in Sweden, 1987, is better than I expected. King's vocals are much better here than the Abigail Live release('91, '92?). Plus, having all three of the band's videos is a great addition, too. More than just a re-release.

Whilst many debate which is the better seller or indeed better album between 'Abigail' and 'Them' you really can't deduct any stars because this is such a nice package and an essential buy for any King Diamond fan. You get the remastered version of the epic saga 'Abigail' which is clear as a bell, (a church bell at midnight)and in fantastic packaging. There is an enclosed booklet that takes various comments from the band that made this classic release come to life way back then, and their memories of each other's contributions. The other thing that makes this worth the dollars is the DVD. Despite being of pirate quality which adds to the underground feel of the eighties before MTV and the like, it is a great collection of songs live in Europe on the Abigail tour. If that is not enough then the official videos for 'The Family Ghost', 'Sleepless Nights' which is fantastic and 'Welcome Home' certainly will please.The only odd thing is how hairband King's band looks around him, somewhat out of step for the kind of music and atmosphere being portrayed. Don't delay in buying this whilst you can and lets hope there is more live video footage sitting in the vaults.

Let me preface this by saying that I hate having to re-buy albums that I already own. This marks the fourth purchase of Abigail for my collection; the first on cassette, the second on CD, the third the remastered CD with bonus tracks and finally (hopefully) this outstanding release. It actually is worth every cent you'll spend and maybe even a little more. The first disc sounds fantastic and the bonus tracks are cool although it's exactly the same as the previously released remastered edition. I would have deducted stars for that if the second disc (DVD) and the booklet hadn't been so incredible. The DVD has live footage from Gothenburg in 1987 (the full show would have been better but that's nit-picking) and three videos. The quality of the concert footage isn't the best you'll ever see but it's far from the worst. The audio is good and the performance was super tight. Makes me hungry for the DVD release of Deadly Lullabies! All in all you can't go wrong. Abigail is a five star classic in any edition and the addition of the DVD and the superb liner notes seal the deal.
Why are you still reading?...Go click "Buy Now"!

Granted, King Diamond is an acquired taste. His falsetto histrionics are a love it or hate it proposition; I am firmly in the love it camp. Of course, that means that my review should be taken with a grain of salt, since King Diamond and Mercyful Fate are two of my favorite bands. Now, back to this album. "Abigail" marks the first, full horror concept piece from King Diamond, and is arguably the best (the two part "Them" and Conspiracy" are also great, and so is "The Eye"...oh, they're all great). "Abigail" meets the requirement for a great concept album: great, chilling story; strong songwriting; and awesome songs that can stand alone like "Mansion in Darkness", "The Family Ghost", "The 7th Day of July, 1777", and "Black Horsemen". Guitar players have much to enjoy with the work of Michael Denner and Andy LaRocque here. 5 star classic.

The King Diamond Band started around the time I was actually born, and it took to about the age of 18 for me to actually discover them. At first I was a little offset on King's vocal style, but have grown to accept and admire his work. With 55 bucks in my pocket and nothing to do, I headed for the music store in search of this album. What I found was Abigail, Them/Conspiracy 2 pack and Puppet Master. I bought all of them without hesitation, left with only 1 dollar to my name. I've heard many songs from the album over the past year, and had them in my computer, but I needed the whole thing to truly appreciate. The price of this package(20 bucks) is highly fair, considering the fact that there is so much included. There are the standard 9 songs of the album, several bonus tracks that include rough mixes, a live video with 7 songs, and three official music videos. The quality of the music tracks are very 1980's feeling-King explains that he wants to keep the original feel of the album without altering the sound in any way whatsoever. It's a breath of fresh air since most classic albums(especially Megadeth) have been changed dramitically. This shows the unwavering demeanor of the King, something that demands respect for. The whole album is melodic yet heavy, and it has some very beautiful guitar solos. The live concert footage is very amateur and low-quality, but it's worth watching. The music videos for "Welcome Home", "Family Ghost" and "Sleepless Nights" is a cool addition, hell, I didn't even know that King Diamond ever had any music videos. The booklet contains many facts about the era, what it was like, and plenty of photos. All in all, as a big time King fan, I would recommend this album to anybody. It's a groundbreaking record from a truly unique artist and his very talented compatriots.

Stay Heavy!!!!!!!!

This cd is just amazing by itself, but now it comes with a dvd! A live performance from Gothenburg Sweden 1987 is included, plus... the music videos for "The Family Ghost", "Welcome Home", and "Sleepless Nights".
The dvd quality is not the best, but it's still worth a watch, if your a king diamond fan.
Everyone should go out and get this one!

Man, say no more, it's King Diamond. I started listening to him with "THEM",by the way "THEM" is the greatest KD album, and I got a really good impression of the artist. If you are a drummer, you are not worthy of Mikkey Dee;If you play guitar you are not worthy of Andy Laroque;and if you sing...well...Don't expect much of the DVD, it's...a Bootleg recorded mor than 15 years ago and I don't think they ever thought of making a video of it, so yeah it's resolution and sound quality is very bad, although fun to see if you've never seen KD live before as I.
King Diamond Rules!!!

of the four concept albums that I own (pink floyd's the wall, queensryche's operation mindcrime, dream theater's Scenes from a Memory and this one)wich they all include a story that keeps you listening to the album, I have to say that this one and queensryche's operation mindcrime are the greatest ones I've listen to, I heard this album before, and I loved it, but it wasnt till I actually bought it that I got to understand the story behind "Abigail" and it is great and I wont tell you anything about it cause I dont want to spoil it for you, musically it is amazing, and this remastered version will make it more of an experience since it sounds amazing, king diamond's voice it's pretty haunting sometimes and it matches perfectly with the story's setting.
this is a must have if you like concept albums or if you are a king diamond fan and with the addition of bonus tracks, videos and a live concert (not great sound or picture quality but it is interesting to watch and not painful like some revier said, it is just a bootleg but you still can see and hear what's going on even though it is not perfect), why not to get it?, oh yeah and did I say it was remastered and sounds amazing?

I only own 2 King Diamond albums - Abigail and Them. I love them both the same. I just love concept albums with a story - it grabs my attention and makes me listen carefully to find out what is going on! King Diamond's stories are his own original and this guy knows how to make concept albums! I love his voice too! It can be very haunting at times!!

with abigail being a metal masterpiece and the remasters giving you a few demos to make it better now the 3rd time is a charm when they throw in a dvd of all 3 of kings videos and a 7 song bootleg concert from the abigail tour which is great to have. just when you think how could roadrunner find another way to get me to buy abigail again they did it. just buy this if you love metal