[8/10] While we can only hope that King Diamond will reunite with Mercyful Fate and produce the long-awaited follow-up to 1999's brilliant 9 album, we must be thankful the man continues to pump out King Diamond albums on a yearly basis. Deadly Lullabyes is the second live King Diamond album, the first being 1987's gritty, but charming Abigail Live. Boasting a crystal clear production and backed by what King considers to be his finest group of musicians in decades, Deadly Lullabyes is a quality live album, one that will appease all King Diamond/Mercyful Fate fans for the time being.

King's voice is WAY up in the mix, coming dangerously close at times to drowning out his backing band. Luckily, King's voice is in top form, hitting all of his patented falsetto screams and dirgy bellows with ease. Studio doctoring certainly comes into question considering how fresh and vibrant King's voice sounds, but the man has always maintained that he refuses to doctor up his live work. We must take King's word here, although he sounds almost too good at times.

The ever-reliable Andy LaRocque once again proves his worth as one of metal's top axemen, while Mike Wead (also of Mercyful Fate) provides a suitable partner, perhaps LaRocque's most competent since the Pete Blakk days. LaRocque's impeccable riffing and timing are on full display during ‘Sleepless Nights’ and ‘Burn’, both of which are album highlights. King has sung the praises of new drummer Matt Thompson on a regular basis, and one can see why considering how well he handles some of the trickier Mikkey Dee fills during some of the older songs in the set.

Song selection always comes into play on any live album, and that is definitely the case here. Surely yours truly, along with the hordes of Diamond Bangers worldwide could have conjured up the definitive King Diamond live set, but Deadly Lullabyes was recorded in part to capture both Abigail Part I and II, in addition to showcasing 2003's Puppet Master album. Neither Abigail II nor Puppet Master has reached the status as Them or Fatal Portrait, yet King and his band pull these songs of quite convincingly.

As far as live albums go, Deadly Lullabyes is a fitting showcase of what King Diamond and his band stand for at the moment. A more proper career retrospective featuring all of his albums, even the criminally underrated The Graveyard and Voodoo albums is something King should explore before his illustrious career is over. For the time being, Deadly Lullabyes showcases King in top form, backed by a band of one guitar legend (LaRocque) and some great team players. Live albums typically signal the end of a specific period of time for a band, could this mean King is arranging a dangerous meeting with Hank Shermann? Let us hope so.

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