Customer Reviews

Puppet Master (Bonus Dvd)

5 star:		(55)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Of King's last 3 albums this one is the best. It nails the perfect blend of power and emotion. Abigail II was very good, and House of God was good but not very catchy. This album is great. Some of the other reviews mention Magic as being a standout track, and I think it is the song that could be the closest to what would be a mainstream hit. The rest are still excellent. There's some pretty gorey stuff going on here.
I've been with King since Abigail and consider this to be one of his best albums.

I never thought a release by the King here would ever make me put next to Fatal Portrait and Abigail (1st Abigail). But, in terms of craziest, best told story throught the music, this one is unblelieveable. The bonus DVD you get of King telling the story is great because you really see the way his demented mind sees it. Excellent!. All in all, the best release since the old days. Not to ripp on the ones in the middle. Any new fans of King Diamond should defintely check out, House of God, The Graveyard, Conspiracy, Them, really all King Diamond is like sex ... even if it's bad it's still good. 5 stars!

I honestly believe King Diamond is incapable of writing a bad album. Out of his solo albums, the only one that I didn't instantly love was VooDoo-need to give that one another go.

King is back with Puppet Master, telling the story of an evil puppet master and his wife as only King can do. He attends a pupet show and meets a girl, Victoria, and they fall in love. Victoria attends the puppet show again, alone, and never returns. The Unfortunate Man (King) goes looking for her and stumbles upon more than he bargained for.

Technically, this is just incredible. It reminds me of his early days. The guitar work is stellar-Andy is in fine form as usual. Riffs dovetailing in and out of each other, VERY melodic. King's vocals are different this time though. Gone are the operatic screams for much if it, instead he uses them to punctuate areas of the story. I also believe this is the first KD album that has no typical introduction as they all have in the past.

The DVD included is a great treat for Diamondbangers! King sitting in full make up telling the story of the Puppet Master. I only wish he had done this for all his other albums. It was a cool touch!

NOBODY does it as well as King! I've been a huge fan since Fatal Portrait and am only more obsessed with each album. He has never faltered and has always remained true to his vision and his fans.

Back in 2002, King Diamond boasted on his website that his new album, The Puppet Master, would be out sometime in October 2003 and he made it quite apparent that he is not holding anything back in this new story filled with terror and sorrow. KingThe rules of censorship are being thrown out the window.", claimed his evilness, "This is going to be the rawest story/album we have ever done; if you are into horror, you're definitely going to get it with this album!" furthermore assured his fanatical fan base that this album is going to make the hairs stand up on the back of listener's neck. "

Ever since he burst onto the metal scene in the early 80's as the lead singer to the Danish satanic metal band Mercyful Fate and throughout his extensive solo career, King Diamond (the late Kim Bendix Peterson) has been shocking audiences and delighting fans alike with concept albums filled with his gruesome tales of horror and macabre.

Ever iconoclastic and firmly ensconced in macabre metal, the King rarely deviates from his secure secret formula of terror and often times goes so far as to engineer and master his albums, most certainly to ensure their evil integrity. The problem with Diamond is that he "blew his wad" back in year one and, in this writer's humble opinion, totally misrepresented The Puppet Master, an album I firmly believe is the pinnacle and possibly a monumental crossroad in his illustrious career. After writing and singing Mercyful Fate songs like Evil, Satan's Fall, Desecration of Souls and ever-heterodoxical The Oath, there is nothing more terrifying or blasphemous that King Diamond can either do or say. Having touched upon and even dedicated complete albums to: insanity, human sacrifice, the occult/magic/the supernatural, torture, abuse, voodoo, bestiality, murder, adultery and even pedophilia, one needs to remind Mr. Peterson that we only have so many deadly sins and he's pretty much covered them all twice. Not that he ever actually engages in these acts as whenever he feels his topics are too extreme, he writes the album's disclaimer personally disdaining anyone who would even consider acting on the topics discussed in said album. Albeit paradoxical, it seems as if the King himself feels morally responsible for possibly misguiding his fan base.

While his topics seem to be horrific in nature, his music is delightfully consistent, ever intriguing and heavily influenced by great artists like Deep Purple, Alice Cooper and the often-overlooked Uriah Heep. Though the King's multi-octave range has waned in recent years, his song writing hasn't and though he doesn't deviate from his formula often, he does periodically experiment with new ideas, recording techniques, sounds and nuances.

It seems like Diamond tends to toggle between putting out a superb album and an acceptable album as his last masterpiece was 1998's VoodooHouse Of God and the completely unnecessary 2002 sequel to 1987's Abigail, the uniquely titled Abigail II: The Revenge. One would tend to agree that release of The Puppet Master was much needed. before boring us into the new millennium with 2000's

From its very first second to its last strains, the listener is assaulted with inspired playing, fantastic songwriting and aural perfection. Billed as horrific, King instead presents his audience with sheer beauty as he experiments with several firsts on this his 11th studio album.

One of his firsts is that in the midst of all this horror, King includes the topic of love and surprisingly, it is believable and wonderful. Many a time I find his macabre topics and lyrics to be laughable at best and have often wondered if Diamond writes these stories with tongue firmly planted in cheek. As a result, I was never prepared for the sincerity at which the King emotes his protagonist's love for his sweetheart Victoria.

The band must have also sensed Diamond's newfound faith and heartily embraced it with their performance on the album. Drummer Matt Thompson's playing is nothing less than awe inspiring as he easily changes genres from the fastest raging metal to the slowest power ballad and all points in between. His solid grooves add texture and foundation to the songs. Even guitarists Andy LaRoque (the King's only mainstay in his ever changing line-up) and Mike Wead suspend their neo-classical leads from time to time to belt out sustaining, soulful solos that would make David Gilmour proud.

But the most notable addition to the line up is that of Hungarian singer, Livia Zita, whose angelic voice King uses sparingly but effectively throughout the album. Not only do both voices compliment one another greatly, but Livia's singing enhances the songs Magic, Emergencia, So Sad and the album's epilogue right after the final song Living Dead.
Interestingly enough, The Puppet Master marks the second time King Diamond has touched upon the topic of Christmas, but unlike it's brutal annihilation in 1985's No Presents For Christmas, Diamond reveres it by opening the aptly titled Christmas with verse from the Little Drummer Boy, beautifully sung by the Budapest born Miss Zita. Further research points to the fact that the King's favorite meal is a traditional Danish Christmas dinner and I wonder if he does indeed prefer seeing a present or two with his name on it under the old jule trę.

For all of The Puppet Master's greatness, the bonus DVD featuring his lordship personally telling his morbid tale is a pure let down. Totally packaged with a horra-terror intro, replete with thunderclaps and candles, Diamond's performance is hilarious and further drives home the point that maybe he fully doesn't buy into his own persona. King Diamond and Metal Blade would have done far better to fill the DVD with either bootleg concerts, past music videos or anything that would make the viewer desire to watch the DVD more than half-way through.

Mind you, I am not suggesting that King Diamond should totally suspend writing his horror/occult themed albums, but he should stop trying to top himself in this genre and not be afraid to stray from the small area he fenced himself into as he is the millennium Mozart and The Puppet Master is nothing less than contemporary opera. He is truly a unique performer, a musical genius and is revered worldwide by a devout fan base, which even contains fellow musicians. But the time has come for his highness to put away his plastic spiders and Chucky dolls and broaden his horizons by collaborating with other artists. Quite frankly, with a little spit, polish and better lyrics, The Puppet Master could easily have a theatrical run by a top notch touring company which would rival Phantom Of The Opera, Starlight Express, Cats or any one of Andrew Lloyd Webber's many over-hyped banalities.

Until then, I will continue to relish listening to The Puppet Master and dreaming of what may or may not come. If you are to buy any album from King's arsenal, let it be The Puppet Master and then don't be afraid to work your way back.

King Diamond returns to form with 2003's "The Puppet Master". After a pointless return to Abigail and company in 2002(don't get me wrong, the 1987 original is a Metal masterpiece), the King starts fresh with this tale of Unfortunate Man and the horror that lurks within a local puppet theater. I won't go into the plot since you've got to be a King Diamond fan to be on this page anyway and not off looking at the 8,000 reviews of some Sting album. And if you're a King fan, you probably already have this album. So to the fans I say, isn't this one addicting? Doesn't every track stick with you long after the album is over? Doesn't it feel like you're IN Budapest watching these sick events? I listen to this album start to finish and never skip any tracks. It really flows very well. To the naysayers: Sure there are times where the story could be a bit clearer (I had to watch the DVD that came along with the CD to realize why King's eyes received eternal life), sure King's voice isn't what it used to be back in the days of '80s Mercyful Fate (it's probably due to the HUGE cigarette addiction I hear he has) and sure it isn't quite as raw and aggresive as some other albums (like the fantastic "Voodoo"). BUT the musicianship is superb, the tunes are catchy and memorable, King appears to be having a blast and the addition of a female vocalist is to be applauded (she adds alot to every track she's on). And so there you have it, King Diamond's "The Puppet Master". Buy it and wash away the bitter aftertaste of "Abigail 2: The Revenge".

Well, to say the least, after Graveyard and Voodoo I was hoping for a little more from House of God. But from the 'Children of the Grave" riff in the opening song to the lame ending track, whatever it is, the story and the music had slumped quite a bit from the two preceding albums. I have yet to figure out what King was doing with this album, but whatever.. He's the King so I'll forgive him just this once.

I was waiting on the edge of my seat for Abigail II, but after about a day or two I was ultimately still disappointed. There are some pretty catchy riffs and some sweet vocals, but I never got into the abigail story to begin with. She hangs out with a baby ghost and sets some dude's wheelchair on fire.. big deal. Not in any way is it comparable to the Graveyard or Voodoo, musically or storywise. But, it was better than House of God, a little.

So of course I was skeptical about the Puppet Master. I only decided to buy it after hearing some samples on his webpage. So on the release date I went up to the store and got it, and popped it into the stereo...

I was pretty much blown away. Sure, it wasn't the Graveyard, but it was pretty close. Andy's solos are back where they should be, and Mike's are pretty good too. Now, there will always be people who will complain about the 'lack' of production quality, but don't discount this CD for an obvious cheap shot like that. Some people will complain about anything just because they don't like it and can't find anything real to complain about.

The only thing I can even pretend to complain about is that King doesn't pull as many high screams on here as in Abigail II. But, they are still in there. His vocal style is a little more low and raspy, but I think it fits with the story well. Anyone who wants only super-high vocals can go listen to Fatal Portrait over and over again forever. Nothing wrong with that, but there is more to King than constant screaming, and this album proves he doesn't have to just pop off screams left and right to really tell a good story with some pretty strong musicianship. I've been listening to it exclusively for a week and I will be listening to this one for a while... so go get it if you were hoping for a little more than Abigail II or House of God could deliver. This time he's getting back to where he should be.

Satan save the King!

I have never been a real fan of either King Diamond or Mercyful Fate, though I do like early works of both bands. Especially, the last a few King Diamond albums were extremely annoying and boring to me. Abigail 2 was slightly better, but none of them approched a litthe closer to the level my favorite King Diamond album, Abigail. The main reason is not stories, but the music. No catchiness, no memeorable melodies, boring riffs. Well, until I heard the Blood To Walk and other five song samples on the net, I thought this wouldn t be any different from other King Diamond albums. I was dead wrong . This is not only the best Diamond album since Abigail, but also one of my favorite albums in 2003 together with Arch Enemy and Iron Maiden. From the beginning to the end, there is no weak song here, and a few of them are candidates to be King Diamond classics such as The Puppet master, Magic, Darkness, Christmas, The Blood To Walk. Also, female vocals and guitars will blow you away. Don t also forget King Diamond telling the story on DVD.

Before I heard this album I didn't believe that anyone could make a better album then Tool. I had been a hardcore Tool fan since my first year of high school, but then I heard this album and it blew me away. I try to listen to one song and then i get sucked into the rest of the album. I end up listening to it 5 times in a row because its so great. Plus unlike King Diamonds other albums his voice remains alittle less supersonic for the duration of the time. Not that theres anything wrong witht the supersonic voice. I got Fatal Portrait and Abigail and they kick ass. Andy La Rocque (don't kill me if I spelled that wrong) can do some great riffs. It's almost impossible to not whip out the air guitar and start headbanging to this stuff. This is the kind of music that you'll want to be listening to before u finnaly go deaf. KING DIAMONDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've had the Puppet Master CD for two weeks, and I'm still listening daily, and it now ranks a close 4th on my all-time Diamond list behind Abigail, Them and Voodoo. Who knows, it may jump up to number 3 on my list. Abigail is the best. Period. "Them" brings me back to my youth, and will always hold a special place in my heart (the guitar solo on "Tea" is phenomenal). His other works were good, but not outstanding like Abigail and Them...Spider's Lullaby was very good, and The Graveyard was also very good, but overall none approached his early works...until Voodoo came along. Voodoo is outstanding. Since then, House of God was OK and then Abigail 2 did nothing for me.

Puppet Master, however, is fantastic. Great riffs, superb vocals, excellent story line, and best of all, the words match the music at key plot points, which is eerie...and that is, after all why I love the King so much! So right now, I recommend Puppet Master for it's musical quality FIRST, before even mentioning STORY LINE or PRODUCTION QUALITY (which I think is just fine). Puppet Master is truly a headbanger, and it compels you to sing along and CRANK THE VOLUME !!!. I can't imagine what the yahoo who complained about production quality brings to the table in terms of musical expertise. Obviously that person is just another sack of hot air....held up by silvery strings....

I would say the reviews on King Diamonds new CD "The Puppet Master" are mixed,some lomg time fans love it,some say Kings lost it,I say i Love it,and thank god Kind put this album out,because it could be the very last album we get from king and Co,before he gives up music and goes into another career,in a recent interview with King on his official website,he stated that with sales decreasing mostly due to burning cds and what-not,label and financial troubles and the fact that this is the last K.D. release with current labels contract,he may be through,so i say thanks for this cd and hopefully enough people will buy it and support him on tour so he will stick around for a few more years and put out some more albums.M.F. or K.D.....thanks for reading......Support metal,dont be to critical!