Line #20 Music/AbigailAlbum


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/king_diamond_abigail_3005.jpg]]
2	->''"We are gathered here tonight to lay to rest Abigail La'Fey, whom we know was first born dead on the 7th day of July 1777.''
3
4	->''Abigail must be nailed to her coffin with 7 silver spikes.''
5
6	->''1 through each arm, hand and knee, and let the last of the 7 be drawn through her mouth, so that she may never rise and cause evil again.''
7
8	->''Who will be the first?"''
9
10	->''"I, O'Brian of the Black Horsemen."''
11
12	-->-- "'''Funeral'''", the album's opening dialogue
13
14	Abigail is a [[HorrorTropes horror-themed]] ConceptAlbum by HeavyMetal band Music/KingDiamond, released in 1987. Widely regarded as a pinnacle of horror among concept albums, heavy metal or otherwise.
15
16	Set in the summer of 1845, it centers on 27 year-old Jonathan La'Fey and his newlywed wife, 18 year-old Miriam Natias, who move into a dark and gloomy mansion that Jonathan has inherited. At the mansion's entrance, they meet seven ominous black horsemen who urge them to turn away from the mansion, or "18 will become 9." Jonathan ignores their strange warnings, and during the night he's visited by the ghost of his relative, Count de La'Fey. The Count shows Jonathan to a vault holding the sarcophagus of Abigail La'Fey, the stillborn illegitimate child of The Count's unfaithful wife, who both died 68 years previous. It's then revealed by The Count that Abigail's spirit has taken hold of Miriam's soul, and will soon be reborn unless he takes her life.
17
18	Sitting among the band's best-selling works, the album was the first of Creator/RoadrunnerRecords' to break into the Billboard 200. ''Abigail'' marks a step up in King Diamond's storytelling prowess, exploring cinematic, horror themes over vivid set pieces, all of it delivered by King's haunting, multi-layered falsetto vocals. More over was the twin guitar attack of Andy [=LaRocque=] and Michael Denner, trading off tasteful-yet-epic leads without compromising the flow of the story. The airtight rhythm section provided by Timi Hansen's driving basslines and Mikkey Dee's complex, {{speed metal}} drumming was also highly-praised, a massive step in a career that would eventually lead to his joining Music/{{Motorhead}}. All in all, the album is a moody, theatrical, riff-laden tale that meticulously weaves its music into the arrangement of its story without sacrificing either.
19
20	It was later followed up in 2002 with a sequel, ''Abigail [[NumberedSequels II]]: [[RevengeOfTheSequel The Revenge]]''. Not to be confused with the Japanese ThrashMetal band of the same name, ''Music/{{Abigail\|Band}}''.
21
22	----
23	'''Tracklist''':
24	[floatboxright:
25	Band Members:
26	+King Diamond: vocals
27	+Andy La Rocque: guitar
28	+Michael Denner: guitar
29	+Timi Hansen: bass
30	+Mikkey Dee: drums
31	]
32	# "Funeral" (1:30)
33	# "Arrival" (5:26)
34	# "A Mansion in Darkness" (4:34)
35	# "The Family Ghost" (4:06)
36	# "The 7th Day of July 1777" (4:50)
37	# "Omens" (3:56)
38	# "The Possession" (3:26)
39	# "Abigail" (4:50)
40	# "Black Horsemen" (7:40)
41
42	!! ''Black Tropesmen''
43	* AlbumIntroTrack: "Funeral," overlapping with OpeningNarration [[spoiler:([[HowWeGotHere sort of]]).]]
44	* AncientTomb: Abigail has been buried in a vault beneath the mansion for years and years (STILLBORN!)
45	* AndIMustScream: [[spoiler:Miriam's screams can still be heard near the stairs, her soul unable to rest.]]
46	* ApocalypseMaiden:
47	** Jonathan is told early on by Count de La'Fey that Abigail's spirit is inside his wife, and he has to kill her to prevent "the second coming of the devil in disguise." He naturally refuses at first, but succumbs in the title track.
48	-->''"Abigail, nothing I can do / but give in, Abigail''\
49	''Follow me to the crypt''
50	-->''Abigail, you ought to be reborn / where you died, Abigail"''
51	-->''"Jonothan, I agree... Yes I do"''
52	* ArcNumber:
53	** 7 mostly, but the phrase "18 is 9" from "Arrival" is important in "The Possession" as well.
54	** The album also largely revolves around number 9. It has 9 tracks, both parts of main couple have age divisible by 9 (Miriam is 18, while Jonathan is 27) and the main story takes place in 1845, which is also divisible by 9. And while the flashback year 1777 is not in itself divisible by 9, the full date, July 7th 1777 is: 7 + 7 + 1 + 7 + 7 + 7 = 36.
55	** [[spoiler:18 stands for Miriam, who is 18 in the story. 9 stands for Abigail, who was stillborn at least 9 months into her mother's pregnancy.]]
56	* AristocratsAreEvil: Count de La'Fey is no saint.
57	* BigNo:
58	** The Countess let one out as she was pushed down the stairs.
59	** Miriam gives a terrified series of them in "Omens" when asked by Jonathan if she brought the haunted cradle into the house (because ''he'' certainly didn't).
60	* CallBack:
61	-->''So this was 9...''
62	* CassandraTruth: Jonathan doesn't believe the 7 black horsemen that warn him not to go into the mansion, even if it belonged to him.
63	-->''Jonathan laughed and said "Get out of my way / I don't believe a word you say"''
64	-->''The 7 horsemen disappeared into the night / "[[IWarnedYou Someday you'll need our help, my friend]]"''
65	* CharacterTitle: The whole album.
66	* TheClimax: The title track and the first half of "Black Horsemen."
67	* ColdFlames: When the spirit of Count de La'Fey first appears, the fireplace is mysteriously lit and yet the room is freezing cold.
68	* ConceptAlbum: The album centers on Jonathan La'Fey as he slowly comes to realize what sort of mansion he's inherited
69	* DeathByChildbirth: [[spoiler:Miriam dies when she gives birth to Abigail.]]
70	* DeathByFallingOver: Countess De [=LaFey=] breaks her neck upon landing at the bottom of the stairs. [[spoiler:Jonathan suffers the same fate]].
71	* DemonicPossession: What ends up happening to Miriam, as the black horsemen warned. Probably best punctuated by this lyric:
72	-->''I am alive / Inside your wife''
73	-->''Miriam's dead / I am her head...''
74	* DesignStudentsOrgasm: The album cover was designed by Thomas Holm, who did several covers for Music/KingDiamond and Mercyful Fate.
75	* DownerEnding:
76	** [[spoiler:The couple is dead and Abigail gets buried forever by the black horsemen.]]
77	** As sequel reveals, [[spoiler:only Miriam dies at the end of original story. Jonathan is just severely crippled and the horsemen actually spared this Abigail's life.]] Although by the end of it [[spoiler:Abigail and Jonathan end up dead anyway.]]
78	* EchoingAcoustics: The album is absolutely swimming in reverb, but the band is quite happy with that, saying it fits the mood (King describes it as a "church-like feel").
79	-->'''[=LaRocque=]''': A difference between us and some other bands from that time was that we never tried to hide bad playing with reverb. We just used it to create atmosphere.
80	* EpicRocking: "Black Horsemen" (at over seven minutes)
81	* EvilLaugh: Many throughout. At the 2:45 mark in "The Family Ghost," King seems to allow a small, less-intimidating chuckle into the mix.
82	* ExpressDelivery: According to one lyric, [[spoiler:Miriam "grew hour by hour."]]
83	* ExtremelyDustyHome: "A Mansion in Darkness" mentions that the titular mansion was like this when the couple first got there (while also being very, very dark).
84	* FadeOut: The album ends with one.
85	* FetusTerrible: Abigail ''[[spoiler:[[BodyHorror ate her way to life from inside Miriam's womb]]]]''.
86	* FightingFromTheInside:
87	** Miriam, while possessed, manages to break from Abigail's control for only a moment.
88	-->''Jonathan, this is Miriam / Our time is out / [[ICannotSelfTerminate Remember the stairs... it's the only way]]''
89	** [[spoiler:It's also implied to be a gambit by Abigail speaking through Miriam to get Jonathan close enough to the stairs so she can push him herself]]. Just based on lyrics like...
90	-->''Soon I'll be free!!!''"
91	* FlashBack: "The 7th Day Of July 1777" takes place 68 years earlier, to the original incident that created Abigail. It ends with the Countess being pushed down the stairs, [[spoiler:[[FlashBackEcho a fate that later befalls Jonathan]].]]
92	* {{Foreshadowing}}: This line [[spoiler:from Count de La'Fey]]:
93	-->''Beware the slippery stairs / you could easily fall and break your neck!''
94	* ForDoomTheBellTolls: At the start of "Omens."
95	-->''Nobody's inside the church but the bell / is ringing''
96	-->''For no reason the flowers / are dying''
97	* HauntedHouse: The setting. According to "A Mansion In Darkness," it seems [[GeniusLoci to almost be breathing, as if alive]].
98	* HowWeGotHere: The final track ("Black Horsemen") reveals that [[spoiler:"Funeral" was chronologically the last event to take place, with the titular horsemen dragging Abigail to a chapel in the forest to finally be buried ([[ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice impaled by silver spikes]]).]]
99	* HumanPincushion: When Abigail was laid to rest, she was [[spoiler:suppossed to be]] impaled with "7 silver spikes, 1 through each arm, hand and knee" (with the last of them "drawn through her mouth").
100	* IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: Jonathan tries to call out to Miriam in the title track, telling Abigail that he'll get a priest to get his wife's soul back. It doesn't work out, and in the next song, [[spoiler:the possessed Miriam pushed him down the stairs of the crypt where Abigail was buried.]]
101	* InadequateInheritor: Count de Lay'Fey murders his adulterous, pregnant wife because of this.
102	-->''No bastard baby / will inherit what's mine''
103	* ItWasADarkAndStormyNight: The start of "Arrival" and "A Mansion In Darkness" mentions rain on the night the couple moves into the mansion. "Black Horsemen" [[CallBack calls back]] to the rain on the day of their arrival in particular.
104	* LargeHam: It's King Diamond. The delivery is naturally going to be pretty intense.
105	* LongestSongGoesLast: "Black Horsemen". The second longest song, "Arrival", is more than two minutes shorter.
106	* TheLeader: O'Brain of the black horsemen.
107	* MeaningfulName: Abigail's name contains [[ArcNumber seven letters]].
108	* MetalScream: Nearly the entire album is sung in King's signature shriek, with some passages instead being told through low growls.
109	* MurderBallad:"The 7th Day Of July 1777" goes back to Count de La'Fey killing his unfaithful wife by pushing her down the stairs while she was still pregnant, miscarrying the child. [[spoiler:He later burns her body, and mummifies the stillborn fetus, naming it "Abigail."]]
110	-->"''Abigail, you must rest in shame''"
111	* MurderMakesYouCrazy: [[spoiler:After he kills his wife, Count de La'Fey becomes strangely obsessed with mummifying Abigail ("for the future to find").]]
112	* NestedStoryReveal: The album's final line implies this.
113	-->''[[spoiler:That's the end of another lullaby]]''
114	-->''[[spoiler:Time has come for me to say goodnight]]''
115	* NonAppearingTitle: Only "The Family Ghost," "Omens," "Black Horsemen" and the title track directly drop their titles at some point, and often only briefly. Otherwise every other song qualifies.
116	* OminousPipeOrgan: "Funeral" and the title track end with one.
117	* OneWomanSong: The title track, and the whole album by extension.
118	* OneWordTitle: "Abigail", and the individual tracks "Abigail", "Arrival" and "Omens".
119	* {{Poltergeist}}: During "Omens," spooky things start happening around the house, like a third chair appearing in the dining hall, a crib that seems to rock on its own, and a rotten smell permeating the whole mansion.
120	* PlotIncitingInfidelity: The story begins (chronologically) when Count De [=LaFey=] murders his pregnant wife for cheating on him, causing Abigail's stillbirth.
121	* RecordProducer: The DIY method, produced by King himself (with assistance from Dee and Denner)
122	* SelfBackingVocalist: King is mentioned in liner notes as providing "lead & backing vocals."
123	* ShoutOut: "Abigail La'Fey" is probably a reference to Anton [=LaVey=].
124	* SinsOfOurFathers: Jonathan's [[DisproportionateRetribution only real mistake]] is not listening to the black horsemen. Other than that, [[spoiler:it was his ancestor The Count who really created Abigail.]]
125	* SoloDuet: Every character is played by King Diamond. [[LarynxDissonance Including Miriam and Abigail]].
126	* SopranoAndGravel: Often used to take on certain characters.
127	* StaircaseTumble: Countess de [=LaFey=] dies when she is pushed down the stairs by her husband before the events of the story.
128	* StartsWithTheirFuneral: Abigail's funeral song is the beginning of the album.
129	* SupernaturalGoldEyes: Abigail is said to have "a pair of yellow eyes" [[spoiler:(which where the last thing Miriam ever saw).]]
130	* TechnicianVersusPerformer: Based on the interviews in the digipack version, Denner seems to regard himself as the performer as opposed to [=LaRocque=]'s technician.
131	* TitleByYear: "The 7th Day Of July 1777"
132	* TragicMonster:
133	** Miriam isn't connected to the La'Fey family's history, but gets possessed by Abigail and [[spoiler:ends up being the one who [[NotQuiteDead apparently]] kills Jonathan by pushing him down the stairs.]]
134	** Abigail herself might also qualify. King would rather let the listener decide if she truly counts as a villain or not.
135	* VaguenessIsComing: By the time Jonathan figures out what "18 is 9" means, it's already too late.
136	* VillainSong: [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation Depending on your interpretation]], "The 7th Day of July 1777" (or maybe "The Family Ghost") could be taken this way.
137	* VoiceOfTheLegion:
138	** "Funeral" has King narrating with this effect, proceeding over Abigail's funeral.
139	** Supposedly Miriam spoke "with different tongues" while under Abigail's possession.
140	* UnfinishedBusiness: Count de La'Fey appears before Jonathan as a SpiritAdvisor, to show him the crypt where Abigail rests. [[spoiler:Given the final lines in "The 7th Day Of July 1777," [[AlternateCharacterInterpretation this act might actually make him]] the true villain of the story.]]
141	* UpdatedRerelease: Twice, most definitively as a part of Roadrunner's "Top Shelf" series, released in 2005 [[MilestoneCelebration in honor of the label's 25th anniversary]] (a testament to what a landmark album it was to them). It includes the song "Shrine"[[note]]which was originally released as a B-side to "The Family Ghost" single[[/note]], three demos, expanded artwork, an interview with the band in the liner notes and a DVD containing 3 videos and a live performance from Gothenburg, Sweden in 1987.
142	* WhamLine:
143	-->''"The spirit of Abigail is inside your wife''
144	-->''And there's only one way you can stop''
145	-->''The rebirth of evil itself''
146	-->''You must take her life now''"
147	** There's also this one by Miriam in "Possession":
148	-->''"I'm having your baby my love''
149	----
150	->''"That's the end of another lullaby\

Context Music / AbigailAlbum