Artist: Mercyful Fate
Released: 1984 RATING: 4/5
The Good: Mercyful Fate's second opus isn't exactly an obscure record by Metal standards, but it would be remiss to exclude it from this blog for the sake of not being too obvious; supremely influential to bands throughout the Metal spectrum, Don't Break the Oath is as essential as it gets, well regarded by many a Metalhead. King Diamond's multi-range, acrobatic vocals are buoyed by Michael Denner and Hank Sherman's expert, classically influenced playing. The songs have tons of melody, and utilize synths and other atmospheric effects, with great results. Tracks like "The Oath", "Come to the Sabbath", "A Dangerous Meeting", and "Desecration of Souls" are full of energy and magic (so to speak), and are perfect representations of what the band is all about. And all of the Satanic nonsense is quite funny if you realize that they were really just singing songs to freak people out and have a laugh (not unlike bands like Venom and Slayer in their earlier years) more than advocating devil worship.
The Bad: If you are afraid of the Devil, well, you probably wouldn't listen to Metal at all, anyway. As mentioned, the lyrics aren't nearly as serious as those of the legions of Black Metal bands Mercyful Fate inspired worldwide. There is really nothing wrong with this album, and I strongly suggest that you make a point of listening to it if you love metal, or even heavy rock.
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