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8/10 Another year, another King Diamond album. The man refuses to give up or rest on his laurels. With an impressive track record that includes two of the finest concept albums ever created (you had better know which ones!), King is intent on adding to his legacy. Lacking the inherent charm and suspense of his past works, his output for this decade has been a little subpar, with House Of God and Abigail II failing to resonate. The Puppet Master borders on brilliance at times, but also teeters on mediocrity. With some surprising new twists thrown into the mix, The Puppet Master is indeed a wild ride of emotions that shows King Diamond at his best and his worst. At this stage in the game, one has to wonder if King is out of enough ideas to create another album comparable to Them. The tonal quality and clarity of The Puppet Master is no small feat considering the circumstances in which the record was created. Recorded at King's house with Andy LaRocque's studio equipment, The Puppet Master glimmers with King and Andy's obvious production ingenuity. Like with all of King's albums, there are several sonic nuances that will be picked up after several careful listens. These nuances are total King Diamond, stockpiling the album with loads of ear candy. King has stated numerous times that his band at the moment is comparable to his band in the late 80's that featured drum wizard Mikkey Dee and underrated guitar slinger Pete Blakk. King proves that sentiment correct on The Puppet Master, for the unsurpassed chops of Andy LaRocque are complimented perfectly by the sensitive, doomy playing of Mike Wead (also of Mercyful Fate). For proof of this, check out standout track, "Magic" which boasts one of King's most urgent riffs alongside some tricky fills by drummer Matt Thompson. There is an extra melodic quality to LaRocque's and Wead's riffs that elevate tracks like "The Ritual," "Darkness" and "Blood To Walk" to levels unseen this decade. Typically, King has handled the bulk of female vocals thanks to his paint-peeling falsetto, but this time King wisely employed the services of female singer Livia Zita to portray the character Victoria. This adds an interesting twist, but is not enough to offset tracks like "No More Me" and "So Sad," both of which are standard filler material. There are a few moments where The Puppet Master runs of gas at the midway point, making the listener lose interest in moving on, or making them want to return to earlier tracks. This can be attributed to the cryptic story line, which is in dire need of a standout character like Jonathon Lefay or Dr. Landau. With Mercyful Fate on ice at the moment, King is either running the well dry of his solo band or trying to buy some time before Mercyful Fate is ready to record again. Either way, The Puppet Master will go down as King's best album of the new millennium thus far. It certainly doesn't match up with Them or Abigail, but bettering those two records isn't something we expect from King Diamond. Related Link(s):
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