KING DIAMOND (Live)

At the Arlene Schnitzer Auditorium, Portland, OR, USA, November 26, 2019

KING DIAMOND (Live at the Arlene Schnitzer Auditorium, Portland, OR, USA, November 26, 2019)
Photo: Bryce Van Patten

Having had the honor of seeing King Diamond way back on the Them tour, it’s great to see that this legendary band that was in the forefront of creating the Black Metal genre is still as tight and amazing on stage as they were then. As you would expect, the stage was like the set of a horror film, and as the lights come up to the recorded instrumental “St. Lucifer’s Hospital” we see King wheeled on stage on a hospital gurney. He awakens, and finds his trade mark microphone and bones mounted on a wall and it’s on from here as the band opened with “The Candle” off of their debut album Fatal Portrait to a roaring, standing crowd.

King Diamond with Abigail freshly pulled from her coffin.
Photo: Bryce Van Patten

Heavy Metal Horror Show

The show was a treat of the band’s best material, and the second song “Behind these Walls” from The Eye album was as impressive as ever. Following this was the Abigail portion of the show with “Funeral” followed by “Arrival” and “A Mansion in Darkness”. I feel that the band is as strong as ever, and King’s voice hasn’t lost a thing.

King Diamond with Andy LaRocque on guitars.
Photo: Bryce Van Patten

As always, veteran guitarist Andy Le Rocque was phenomenal on guitars. Being the one constant in the band (besides King of course) since the band’s inception, Andy played every solo note for note to the album version. Joining Andy on guitar for the last 19 years is Mr. Mike Wead. The way these two guitarists play together is beyond incredible.

Mike Wead on lead guitar.
Photo: Bryce Van Patten

Pontus Egberg layed down a heavy thunder on the bass guitar, making for a solid rhythm section with Matt Thompson on the drums. As I have said, the band played the songs perfectly to the original recordings, which I find to be a great and rare thing. When you can count on every note of vocals and every guitar solo being accurate to the smallest detail it makes for such an incredible experience to the fans who have been listening to these songs for upwards of 30 years.

Pontus Egberg on the bass guitar.
Photo: Bryce Van Patten

Last but not least King is joined on stage by his wife / business partner Livia Zita: Hungarian born artist/ graphic designer and singer on backing vocals. Having been singing backups for the band live and in the studio since 2003, Livia blends her voice with her husband’s in an eerie way that really makes it work. The band delivered on every song they played: from “Voodoo” to “Halloween”, from “Welcome Home” to “Sleepless Nights”, the audience was thrilled to hear these legends of heavy metal perform.

Haunting vocals to curdle your blood

King Diamond and wife Livia Zita on vocals.
Photo: Bryce Van Patten

If you get a chance to see King Diamond: don’t miss it! From the stage show to the musical performances, every detail is done to perfection. It feels like there is a lot of life in this band, and hopefully for years to come.

Band lineup

King Diamond – vocals, keyboards (1985–present)
Andy LaRocque – guitars, keyboards (1985–present)
Mike Wead – guitars (1991–1993, 2000–present)
Matt Thompson – drums (2000–present)
Pontus Egberg – bass (2014–present)

Setlist

St. Lucifer’s Hospital
The Candle
Behind These Walls
Funeral
(King Diamond song)
Arrival
A Mansion in Darkness
Let It Be Done
Voodoo
Halloween
Masquerade of Madness
Out From The Asylum
Welcome Home
The Invisible Guests
Sleepless Nights
The Lake
Burn
Black Horsemen
Something Weird

Author

  • Bryce Van Patten

    Bryce is an audio engineer and a graphic designer here at Metal Express Radio. From the day he purchased his first album (Machine Head by Deep Purple), he has had a passion for heavy music, which has influenced his whole life. Bryce is from the great Pacific Northwest in USA, and has played in metal bands like Babylon, Holy Terror, The Wild Dogs, Warhead and Egypt through the 80s. He had his first interview for the Portland, Oregon publication The Rock Rag with guitarist Paul Gilbert in his Racer X days. Then he was honored to get to have drinks, and talk for an hour with the legendary Dan McCafferty of Nazareth for his second interview. In 2013, he spent an amazing hour talking to Andi Deris of Helloween, which was the high point of his heavy metal journalism.   In the year 2001, he formed Man in Black Music Publishing. They released recordings by several local bands, and in the spirit of the old Metal Massacre compilations, he created a 2-album series called The Defenders of Metal. The albums featured classic styled Metal bands from all around the world, with bands from Australia to England, and from Argentina to Russia. Currently, he is the producer/creator/vocalist of the Metal band The Black Tuesdays.

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