Has it really been 28 years since King Diamond’s horror themed masterpiece Abigail was released? My god I’m feeling old. It’s been called the first horror metal album ever and the landmark record is finally being performed in its entirety along with one hell of an elaborate set to tell the story properly.
This is one of my favorite metal albums from my teenage rebellion years when I would buy records simply based on how evil the covers looked. It was a ploy to piss off my parents and Abigail certainly did the trick, but it also paved the way for me to appreciate metal in a whole new way. Theatrics, soaring falsettos, growling lows, layer over layer of instrumentation, and most importantly—an incredible story that transported the listener.
The set started off with some King classics including “Welcome Home” and a trio of Mercyful Fate songs. This was just the teaser to the full meal deal which would be Abigail. I’ve got to say that this record as a whole stands up magnificently and doesn’t sound like it has been around for nearly three decades.
There is something sort of timeless regarding this music. I don’t think that there’s any band on the planet today who can bring together these elements of drama, storytelling, and sheer evil so beautifully as these musicians. It was truly a spectacle to be seen, and the sold out crowd at the Warfield was absolutely losing their shit. So much so that the photogs got pulled from the photo pit a bit early due to all of the chaos.
1987 saw not only the release of Abigail, but it was also a very good year to be a fan of metal. Bands like Helloween, Sanctuary, and Savatage were going bigger and bolder with power metal while bands like Exodus, Anthrax, and Testament were pioneering a new movement called thrash metal. You really had the best of both worlds as a fan and that’s exactly what’s happening on this tour with local legends Exodus opening the show.
Minus one Gary Holt as I guess he’s working on new music with Slayer, Exodus showed the sold out crowd why their legacy in metal is not even close to being finished. A blistering set that included all the classics, highlighted by the Bay Area anthems on Bonded By Blood all the way through to their latest release, the not surprisingly great, Blood In Blood Out.
It’s such a pleasure to see Steve Souza rightfully return to the throne on lead vocals for the band. In my opinion he is the fucking man when it comes to the best work that the band has done.
Another interesting observation this evening was the coming together of Bay Area musicians to support their fellow brothers in metal. Within just a few minutes I ran into Craig Locicero from Spiral Arms (who apparently have a new record coming shortly—their last one was absolutely brilliant), Death Angel singer Mark Osegueda, and Harald Oimoen who plays bass in punk legends DRI. I was in pure thrash metal heaven walking around the venue and running into these guys.
EXODUS
