KING DIAMOND‘s Halloween, the three-track LP picture disc originally released in 1986, will be re-released worldwide with new art by Mario Lopez on October 23rd via Metal Blade Records, just in time for the season!
The Halloween title track comes off KING DIAMOND‘s debut album, Fatal Portrait (1986), as does “The Candle,” which served as the opening track on Fatal Portrait, and was part of the early storytelling approach that would become central to KING DIAMOND‘s future discography. “The Lake,” while recorded during the same general period as Fatal Portrait and associated with those sessions, wasn’t included in the original nine-track album.
Halloween was produced by KING DIAMOND and Rune Höyer with production assistance by Michael Denner and engineered by Roberto Falcao.
Halloween LP Track Listing: A1. Halloween B1. The Candle B2. The Lake
KING DIAMOND Halloween Lineup: King Diamond – lead vocals, backing vocals Andy LaRocque – lead guitar Michael Denner – lead guitar Timi Hansen – bass guitar Mikkey Dee – drums
KING DIAMOND is thrilled to announce the addition of guitar virtuoso Gus G. (FIREWIND, ex-OZZY OSBOURNE) to the band’s lineup. Gus G. joins as guitarist and will compose, record, and tour with KING DIAMOND going forward, marking an exciting new chapter in the band’s storied history.
The band extends their deepest gratitude and utmost respect to Andy LaRocque, whose extraordinary 40-year contribution to KING DIAMOND has left a permanent and irreplaceable mark on the band’s legacy and on heavy metal as a whole. Andy’s musicianship, dedication, and artistry have been an essential part of what makes this band what it is, and that will never be forgotten.
Comments KING DIAMOND, “It’s a Big Honor for me to Welcome Gus G. as our new guitarist. Gus will still continue with all his current projects, FIREWIND, Solo Project etc. No restrictions, just careful planning. We are already working with Gus and I simply can’t wait for you to hear all the new King Diamond music with him playing guitar on it!!! STAY HEAVY – King“
One of heavy metal’s most celebrated and in-demand guitarists, Gus G. – born Konstantinos Karamitroudis in Thessaloniki, Greece – has built one of the most impressive resumes in the genre. As founder and driving force behind FIREWIND for over two decades and ten studio albums, and as Ozzy Osbourne‘s lead guitarist from 2009 to 2017 – contributing to the Grammy-nominated album Scream (2010) – Gus G. has proven himself one of the most versatile and technically gifted players in metal. A celebrated solo artist with six albums to his name, he has also appeared as a guest on records by Bruce Dickinson, Arch Enemy, Doro Pesch, In This Moment, and many more. He has graced the covers of Guitar World, Total Guitar, Metal Hammer, and Young Guitar, and earned accolades including Metal Hammer’s Golden God Award for Best Shredder. His addition to KING DIAMOND represents a pairing of two of heavy metal’s most iconic forces.
KING DIAMOND and Gus G. are already deep in the creative process together, working on what promises to be one of the most anticipated new chapters in the band’s career. Fans can expect new music from the full lineup in the future. Stay tuned for further announcements.
About KING DIAMOND: KING DIAMOND is quite possibly the most recognizable and prolific personality ever in heavy metal. Revered by icons as big as Metallica and Pantera and inspiring newer upstarts globally, KING DIAMOND, the man and the band, have left an indelible mark on the history, and now again, the future of heavy metal.
In August of 2008, KING DIAMOND joined Metallica on stage at Ozzfest in Dallas to perform the Mercyful Fate medley made famous from the Garage, Inc. album. Additionally, KING DIAMOND was featured alongside Motörhead‘s Lemmy Kilmister as a playable character in Guitar Hero: Metallica in 2009.
By 2012, KING DIAMOND was prepared to return to the stage for a select number of shows. The band’s triumphant return were the highlights of both the Hellfest and Sweden Rock festivals in France and Sweden. Fans were treated to the largest and most involved stage production in the band’s storied history. KING DIAMOND continued to hit the stage from 2013 to 2018 including performances at Rock Hard Festival (DE), Copenhell (DK), Graspop (BE), Bloodstock Open Air (UK), Loudpark (JP), Wacken Open Air (DE), and Psycho Las Vegas (US), among many others.
In 2019, after the release of KING DIAMOND‘s first new single in twelve years, “Masquerade Of Madness,” the band hit the road with a series of live shows across Europe and North America.
In 2024, KING DIAMOND completed a massively successful North American headlining tour, during which they premiered new material live for the first time in years – including the brand new track “Electro Therapy” – before an ecstatic fanbase. On December 17th, 2024, the band released “Spider Lilly,” their first new single in five years and the first single and video taken from their forthcoming new Horror Trilogy, of which part one is titled Saint Lucifer’s Hospital 1920. Mixed and mastered by Arthur Rizk and directed by David Brodsky of My Good Eye Visuals – with footage filmed at the notoriously haunted Pennhurst Asylum outside of Philadelphia – the single features a special guest appearance by Danish vocalist Myrkur. Written entirely by KING DIAMOND, “Spider Lilly” was met with an enthusiastic global response, reaffirming the band’s place at the forefront of heavy metal and whetting fans’ appetites for the full trilogy to come.
KING DIAMOND‘s forty+ year musical career is one of the most storied in the history of heavy metal, but the tale is not yet over. The most recent album, 2007’s Grammy-nominated Give Me Your Soul…Please, stands as one of the most critically acclaimed albums in an already iconic discography. Future albums will feature entirely new horror stories, concepts, haunting orchestrations, and the band’s signature brand of heavy metal. Many more albums, tours, and ventures lay ahead.
KING DIAMOND Lineup: King Diamond – vocals Gus G. – guitars Mike Wead – guitars Pontus Egberg – bass Matt Thompson – drums
“Spider Lilly” is the first single and video taken from KING DIAMOND‘s forthcoming new Horror Trilogy, of which part one is titled Saint Lucifer’s Hospital 1920. A first-time mixing collaboration with Arthur Rizk, who also mastered “Spider Lilly,” has produced an incredibly powerful sound picture, as clear and dynamic as a full moon on a star filled black night. The music and lyrics are written by KING DIAMOND.
The lineup is still the same with KING DIAMOND handling lead and backing vocals plus playing the Hammond Organ, Andy La Rocque and Mike Wead on guitars, Pontus Egberg on the bass, and Matt Thompson on drums. There is also a special guest appearance by Danish female vocalist Myrkur with some amazing additional backing vocals.
Part of the new “Spider Lilly” video was filmed at the very haunted Pennhurst Asylum outside of Philadelphia on a travel day during the band’s recent North American tour, two days before Halloween. It was only King himself and actress Jodi Cachia who could participate on that specific day, together with producer David Brodsky, Allie Woest, and their killer crew.
“What a dark but great experience,” King says, “Hopefully that was not the last video we will be able to film there.”
There are already several tales waiting to be told about all that has happened before, during, and after the birth of the song “Spider Lilly“…
Watch KING DIAMOND‘s video for “Spider Lilly,” directed by My Good Eye Visuals:
About KING DIAMOND: KING DIAMOND is quite possibly the most recognizable and prolific personality ever in heavy metal. Revered by icons as big as Metallica and Pantera and inspiring newer upstarts globally, KING DIAMOND, the man and the band, have left an indelible mark on the history, and now again, the future of heavy metal.
In August of 2008, KING DIAMOND joined Metallica on stage at Ozzfest in Dallas to perform the Mercyful Fate medley made famous from the Garage, Inc. album. Additionally, KING DIAMOND was featured alongside Motӧrhead‘s Lemmy Kilmister as a playable character in Guitar Hero: Metallica in 2009.
By 2012, KING DIAMOND was prepared to return to the stage for a select number of shows. The band’s triumphant return to the stage were the highlights of both the Hellfest and Sweden Rock festivals in France and Sweden. Fans at these festivals were treated to the largest and most involved stage production in the band’s storied history. Horror concepts from multiple albums were used in the décor; fans can rest assured that this show will only get larger and more impressive at future performances.
KING DIAMOND continued to hit the stage from 2013 to 2018 including performances at Rock Hard Festival (DE), Copenhell (DK), Graspop (BE), Metal Days (SI), Bloodstock Open Air (UK), Loudpark (JP), Wacken Open Air (DE), a 2014 North American tour with Jess And The Ancient Ones, Fun Fun Fun Fest (US), toured as a part of the 2015 Mayhem Festival in the Summer (US), a Fall 2015 North American tour with Exodus as special guests, Sweden Rock fest (SE), Hellfest (FR),and Psycho Las Vegas (US).
In 2019, after the release of KING DIAMOND‘s first new single in twelve years, “Masquerade Of Madness,” the band hit the road with a series of live shows in Europe including stops at Summer Breeze festival (DE), Graspop (BE), Hellfest (FR), Rock Fest (ES), and with Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats and Idle Hands as special guests for nineteen dates across North America.
KING DIAMOND‘s thirty+ year musical career is one of the most storied in the history of heavy metal, but the tale is not yet over. The most recent release, 2007′s Grammy nominated album Give Me Your Soul…Please, stands as one of the most critically acclaimed albums in an already iconic discography. Future albums will feature entirely new horror stories, concepts, haunting orchestrations, and the band’s signature brand of heavy metal from the mind of KING DIAMOND and the talented group of musicians: guitarists Andy La Rocque and Mike Wead, bassist Pontus Egberg, and drummer Matt Thompson. Many more albums, tours, and ventures lay ahead.
King Diamond will embark on a major European tour in the summer of 2025, with Myrkur (additonal vocals), Paradise Lost,Angel Witch, and Unto Others joining as special guests. In addition to numerous concert dates, the band will perform at some of the largest festivals across Europe.
The tour kicks off on June 4th at the Sweden Rock Festival in Sölvesborg, Sweden, and concludes with a spectacular show at the Helsinki Metal Fest on August 8th.
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice spoke to King Diamond’s guitarist Andy La Rocque and Bassist Pontus Egberg in Montreal, Canada at the MTELUS theater on Nov 2, 2024.
The two were asked about the inception of the two new tracks ‘Spider Lily’ and Electro therapy and about an update on the release of the bands new studio album.
When asked about the inception of ‘Spider Lily “That idea came up from King. I don’t know exactly when but he’s been working on it for quite a while. I think the lyrics for it got done just like a few days before the tour started actually. He sent me the basics of the song just a few days, like a week prior to the tour starting, I believe. So we had to learn it real fast, record it because we knew that we’re going to shoot it on video too. So it’s the newest song we have right now that we actually play Live. ‘Spider Lily’ is a mean girl who can also be good, we’ll see if it’s going to change a little bit. It’s a character part of the story that King is working on right now.It’s going to be released as a video single I don’t know when exactly. We also have other songs in the loop too, King has a lot of ideas and I have a lot of songs that’s kind of in the demo stage done or finished.” Andy La Roque
“Like Andy said, for us we only heard the rough demo of this song like a week before we headed over to the States and quickly had to learn it and record it. Now I think it’s been mixed.” Pontus Egberg
When asked when the new King Diamond Studio will be completed and released “We are still working on it and as soon as we get back from tour we’re going to have a little Christmas break and then we’re going to pick it up again. So the plan is to have everything done this spring (2025). It will be released shortly after the European summer Festival tour (2025) and all that that’s the plan we have.” Andy La Roque
When asked about their other new song ‘Electro therapy’ and its inception “It’s been around for a couple of years actually. I think I wrote the intro riff back in 2019. There have been some changes back and forth especially on the verse, trying to find the right key for King to sing on and all that stuff. I think what we have now is probably the final version and it’s going to end up on the album too. King is still working on some fine tuning on the lyrics, you will hear that tonight. It’s like different (lyric) versions every night. Andy La Roque
When asked if there were any plans to remix any of the older albums “I would love to do that but the problem is we don’t even know if (Masters) still exist or not. I would love to do it if we could find the tapes that would be awesome.”
KING DIAMOND will embark on a long-awaited North American headlining tour this Fall! The Saint Lucifer’s Hospital 1920 trek will commence on October 15th in San Antonio, Texas and run through December 6th in Dallas, Texas. Support will be provided by Overkill and Night Demon. Additional backing vocals for the KING DIAMOND set will be provided by the special guest, Myrkur.
Elaborates KING DIAMOND on what fans can expect, “This is Saint Lucifer’s Hospital, enter if you dare! We have been busy putting this ever-growing horror story together, and it’s still growing. I know the end of it, but how we will get there will be a long trip. There are so many characters, and so many unexpected things along this journey. It’s a crazy family on another timeline in 1920, where I experienced some hard times, and they have to come to our time to steal from us to survive. This is the most elaborate thing we have ever done, that goes for the stage production as well.
“There will be additional backing vocals by Myrkur and she’ll be playing organ for songs that need it. There will be some horrific surprises taking place on stage, but we are not to be held responsible since we are on a whole different timeline in 1920. It was back at the time when medicine was going through a dark period with lots of testing on human beings in order to progress medicine. This is Saint Lucifer’s Hospital, also known as The Institute, enter if you dare!“
Artist presales begin Wednesday, July 31st at 10:00am ET. General on sale date is this Friday, August 2nd at 10:00am local time. Secure your tickets at: kingdiamondcoven.com
KING DIAMOND w/ Overkill, Night Demon: 10/15/2024 Boeing Center at Tech Port. – San Antonio, TX 10/16/2024 Bayou Music Center – Houston, TX 10/18/2024 Andrew J Brady Music Center – Cincinnati, OH 10/19/2024 The Factory – St. Louis, MO 10/20/2024 The Midland Theater – Kansas City, MO 10/22/2024 Murat Theatre At Old National Center – Indianapolis, IN 10/23/2024 The Louisville Palace Theatre – Louisville, KY 10/25/2024 The Eastern – Atlanta, GA 10/26/2024 Duke Energy Center for the Arts – Mahaffey Theater – St. Petersburg, FL 10/28/2024 The Fillmore – Silver Spring, MD 10/30/2024 Kings Theater – Brooklyn, NY 10/31/2024 Roadrunner – Boston, MA * 11/02/2024 MTelus – Montreal, QC 11/03/2024 The Theatre At Great Canadian – Mississauga, ON 11/04/2024 The Masonic Temple – Detroit, MI 11/06/2024 The Agora Theatre & Ballroom – Cleveland, OH 11/07/2024 The Chicago Theatre – Chicago, IL 11/08/2024 The Riverside Theater – Milwaukee, WI 11/10/2024 The Fillmore – Minneapolis, MN 11/11/2024 Vibrant Music Hall – Waukee, IA 11/14/2024 Mission Ballroom – Denver, CO 11/16/2024 The Complex – Salt Lake City, UT 11/18/2024 Orpheum – Vancouver, BC 11/20/2024 Edmonton Convention Center – Edmonton, AB 11/21/2024 TCU Place – Saskatoon, SK 11/22/2024 Grey Eagle Resort And Casino – Calgary, AB 11/24/2024 Keller Auditorium – Portland, OR 11/25/2024 Moore Theater – Seattle, WA 11/27/2024 Fox Theater – Oakland, CA 11/29/2024 YouTube Theater – Los Angeles, CA 11/30/2024 The Theater At Virgin Hotels – Las Vegas, NV 12/01/2024 Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre – San Diego, CA 12/02/2024 The Van Buren – Phoenix, AZ 12/04/2024 REVEL – Albuquerque, NM 12/06/2024 The Factory In Deep Ellum – Dallas, TX * No Overkill
KING DIAMOND is quite possibly the most recognizable and prolific personality ever in heavy metal. Revered by icons as big as Metallica and Pantera to inspiring newer upstarts globally, KING DIAMOND, the man and the band, have left an indelible mark on the history, and now again, the future of heavy metal.
In August of 2008, KING DIAMOND joined Metallica on stage at Ozzfest in Dallas to perform the Mercyful Fate medley made famous from the Garage, Inc. album. Additionally, KING DIAMOND was featured alongside Motӧrhead‘s Lemmy Kilmister as a playable character in Guitar Hero: Metallica in 2009.
By 2012, KING DIAMOND was prepared to return to the stage for a select number of shows. The band’s triumphant return to the stage were the highlights of both the Hellfest and Sweden Rock festivals in France and Sweden. Fans at these festivals were treated to the largest and most involved stage production in the band’s storied history. Horror concepts from multiple albums were used in the décor; fans can rest assured that this show will only get larger and more impressive at future performances.
KING DIAMOND continued to hit the stage from 2013 to 2018 including performances at Rock Hard Festival (DE), Copenhell (DK), Graspop (BE), Metal Days (SI), Bloodstock Open Air (UK), Loudpark (JP), Wacken Open Air (DE), a 2014 North American tour with Jess and the Ancient Ones, Fun Fun Fun Fest (US), toured as a part of the 2015 Mayhem Festival in the summer (US), a fall 2015 North American tour with Exodus as special guests, Sweden Rock fest (SE), Hellfest (FR),and Psycho Las Vegas (US).
In 2019, after the release of the KING DIAMOND‘S first new single in twelve years “Masquerade of Madness,” the band hit the road with a series of live shows in Europe including stops at Summer Breeze festival (DE), Graspop (BE), Hellfest (FR), Rock Fest (ES), and with Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats and Idle Hands as special guests for nineteen dates across North America.
KING DIAMOND‘s thirty+ year musical career is one of the most storied in history of heavy metal, but the tale is not yet over. The most recent release, 2007′s Grammy nominated album Give Me Your Soul…Please, stands as one of the most critically acclaimed albums in an already iconic discography. Future albums will feature entirely new horror stories, concepts, haunting orchestrations, and the band’s signature brand of heavy metal from the mind of KING DIAMOND and the talented group of musicians: guitarists Andy LaRocque and Mike Wead, bassist Pontus Egberg, and drummer Matt Thompson. KING is currently in the studio working on the band’s next album which will be released in 2025.
KING DIAMOND Live Lineup: Andy Larocque – guitar Mike Wead – guitar Pontus Egberg – bass Matt Thompson – drums Myrkur – additional backing vocals, keyboards
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