Tuesday, February 24, 2015

My Occult Metal Pick


On the Decibel Magazine website last week, they had a contest to win a book called “Season of the Witch: How the Occult Saved Rock and Roll” by Peter Bebergal. You had to write in under 150 words who you thought was a pivotal occult band. I wrote my piece on none other than Mercyful Fate. Yes there are many bands that come to mind, such as Black Sabbath and Candlemass to name a couple, but as far as I’m concerned, Mercyful Fate is it! Here’s what I wrote:

                When I think of pivotal occult bands, a few come to mind, but the standout band for me would have to be Mercyful Fate. They are indeed a band that paved the way for later occult bands, but were also at the forefront of the black metal movement.  With the heaviness of the music and the range of King Diamond’s vocals, it is no wonder they released so many classic metal albums. The themes of these albums ranged from horror to strictly satanic and the cover art is so memorable. King Diamond was also one of the early pioneers to utilize corpse paint; proving looking evil can win the hearts of any diehard metal fan. Is Mercyful Fate pivotal for occult rock? Of course they are, just listen to “Mellissa”, “Don’t Break The oath”, or even “Dead Again” if you don’t believe me.

 

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