Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding, Brilliant, Awesome, Incredible!!!!, June 16, 2001
First off, this is not Satanic Metal....I just wanted to get that straight.
What this is, is nothing short of genius. I love King Diamond, and Abigail was the first King I ever picked up.
From the very first listen, I was addicted for life. This story is bone-chilling, and the production is flawless. This release opened up all kinds of new doors in the world of Heavy Metal.
Some may consider this Kings 2nd or even his 3rd best recording, putting Mercyful Fates' "Mellissa" or "Don't Break The Oath" above it, and that's alright. I love both of those releases as well....
Nobody does it quite like King, and even today, he's still going strong. His latest release "House Of God" is excellent as well.
Many people may be turned-off by his make-up, or his scary stories, but let me tell you something, after listening to this, none of that will matter anymore. You will be so impressed with the pure talent these guys hold, that you'll beat yourself for not buying this earlier.....TRUST ME.
I've been a Metalhead since 1980, and Iron Maiden are my favorite Heavy Metal band. Not since Maidens "Piece Of Mind" has there been a release that has effected me as much as this did. I put "Abigail", "Mellissa", and "D.B.T.O." in the top 10 Heavy Metal recordings of all-time!!!
Even after "Abigail", King has stayed true to his nature, and in these days, that's very rare. I hope you enjoy every second of Abigail, I know I do.....every single time I hear it.
If you like this, and I'm sure you will, check out all of the other CD's I mentioned above.....They are all considered monumental releases in the history of Heavy Metal...
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The first TRUE KD album: a bit primitive, but VERY worthy!, July 16, 2001
I own the remastered version of this album. I must say that I really love it, but the too much evident influences from Iron Maiden and Judas Priest make me hesitate in giving five stars to it. Also, it sounds less progressive and mature than the next three releases of the band. For these reasons I give four stars (and a half!) to "Abigail", in spite of its high quality and its historical importance.As a concept album, the storyline is superb. This is a horror tale, and has nothing to do with satanic cults and all that commercialist and childish stuff surrounding KD since Mercyful Fate. The musicianship is also impeccable. Vocals are as good as usual, delivering passion, anger and fear; while keeping a majestic and mysterious style in every track. Drums and bass, added to vocals, probably form the most attractive playing ensemble of this album. However, guitars don't sound so elaborated here, although show by times where they would go one year later. I'd say that the guitar work here is very good, but doesn't peak because of some abuse of metal clichés. On a more positive way: in the remastered version of "Abigail" you'll find a bonus song titled "Shrine". This song is bombastic and explosive, but it wasn't included in the original LP due to some divergence from the overall concept. I recommend this tune to any metal fan. The opening riff is an instant classic, and its melody is one of KD's greatest. You'll also find in the remastered CD three more bonus tracks that are different versions (raw mixes) of some songs that you already know. These are mixes without keyboards, containing some variations from the definitive songs. I find them very interesting. Of all of them, please listen carefully to "The Family Ghost" raw mix. Its harmonies and choirs are really great! To finalize my comments: this is a very good job and a milestone in KD's career. Don't miss it, even if I find "Them", "Conspiracy" and "The Eye" more sophisticated and mature. "Abigail" is a masterpiece, and you must pay attention to it if you are an actual metal fan!
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Won me over, September 12, 2000
Growing up I listened to such metal-lite bands as Def Leppard and Warrant. I never really took an interest in darker sounding metal. My first exposure to darker metal was seeing album covers of old Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne in a record store. They used to send chills down my spine and developed a kind of fear of listening to that kind of music (hey, I was a preteen at the time). Even Iron Maiden would give me the shivers until a guitar instructor played Powerslave for me when I was a Jr. in high school. Over the years (I am now in my late 20's) heavy metal has become my music of choice. The internet has brought the ability to explore different bands that I have never heard before and expand my tastes. I've never and will never get into death metal or any type of true thrash. A singer who actually sings is a must. I also don't really care for doom-type lyrics.One band/singer that has always been an enigma to me has been King Diamond. Just the look of the guy kept me away from his music and he really stayed out of my conscience all these years. Well, thanks to the convenience of the internet, I had the opportunity to read a synopsis of Abigail and also read an interview where King Diamond explains his spiritual beliefs. Although I think he is a lot mixed up about the eternal picture, I got to see the man behind the makeup and realized that hey he really isn't any better or worse than any other singer I listen to. In fact, even as a Christian I can say that some of King Diamond's beliefs are closer to how the Bible explains the truth than what even so-called Christians believe. Anyway, it seems like he plays a character like Alice Cooper. Well the story of Abigail intrigued me (I am a fan of classic horror movies), no mention or glorification of Satan present, so I thought I finally reached a point where I would overcome this "fear" of King Diamond and buy a King Diamond CD. The hair on my arms was actually standing on end as the The Funeral started and the intro to The Arrival began. The anticipation of what King Diamond's voice would sound like was unnerving. Would it be a monumental $17 mistake? Would it make me want to go out on a killing spree and perform a black mass? The answer resoundingly to both of these questions is NO. Straight up, King's voice is awesome. Everybody who puts Midnight (ex-Crimson Glory) up on a pedastal better make a little room for this guy. He puts on a vocal onslaught unmatched by anybody but the aforemention Midnight. The music is dark as expected but melodic. As an example of how much I like this CD...I bought Abigail along with CD's by Nocturnal Rites, Brainstorm, Heavenly, and Metalium right before an hour drive home from work. I had it all figured out, 12 minutes per CD. Well, I couldn't eject Abigail out of my CD player. I wanted to hear every song. King Diamond went from being a monster in my mind to being a storyteller and great singer (Midnight meets H.P. Lovecraft). If you take King Diamond for what he really is, than you won't miss out on some great music. I'm going to the CD store today to buy "Them."
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