Kim Bendix Petersen a.k.a. King Diamond is a Danish
Heavy Metal singer who fronts Mercyful Fate, as well as a solo band. He is
highly critical of religion, and is an atheist in real life.
note He is a follower of Anton LaVey's Satanism philosophy, which is not to be confused with actual Satan worship, but is actually atheistic individualism combined with "ceremony and ritual". His live performances include wearing black and white face paint with inverted crosses, as well as using a microphone handle consisting of a femur bone and a tibia bone in the shape of an inverted cross. His own vocal style is another distinguishing aspect of his performance, for its range from low to unhumanly high pitch levels, as well as the often-
over the top deliveries.
Before forming his own bands, he previously played in the
Hard Rock band Black Rose, and the
Punk Rock band Brats. With Mercyful Fate and his solo band, he became known for producing comprehensive and groundbreaking
Heavy Metal Concept Albums (pretty much every release by both bands).
To mainstream audiences, King Diamond is best known through
Metallica's "Mercyful Fate Medley", and the inclusion of his songs in
Clerks II by King Diamond fan
Kevin Smith (the admiration is mutual).
Influences:
Mercyful Fate Albums
- Melissa (1983)
- Don't Break the Oath (1984)
- In the Shadows (1993)
- Time (1994)
- Into the Unknown (1996)
- Dead Again (1998)
- 9 (1999)
King Diamond Albums
- Fatal Portrait (1986)
- Abigail (1987)
- "Them" (1988)
- Conspiracy (1989)
- The Eye (1990)
- The Spider's Lullabye (1995)
- The Graveyard (1996)
- Voodoo (1998)
- House of God (2000)
- Abigail II: The Revenge (2002)
- The Puppet Master (2003)
- Give Me Your Soul...Please (2007)
King Diamond demonstrates the following tropes:
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King Diamond himself/live performance
Lyrics/Themes/Concepts
Music/Music referential
- Black Metal, though King Diamond himself hasn't made black metal, his image and lyrics inspired later black metal bands.
- Heavy Metal
Music Videos