Artist: King Diamond
Title: “Sleepless Nights” (Live At The Fillmore) (Single)
Label: Metal Blade Records
Release Date: 12/6/2018
Genre: Heavy Metal
Rating:
The mighty King Diamond sure has been keeping busy once he was given the clean bill of health by the doctors and fans worldwide were able to celebrate his return to the live stage in droves after what I think amounted to a nine-year absence from doing so. When he brought the BIG stage to our regional shows, the fans clamored for a live concert release and in early 2019 we are going to get one as The King calls us to indulge in the album and video “Songs For The Dead: Live At The Fillmore In Philadelphia”. Just the other day we got our first taste of the upcoming release with “Sleepless Nights” which originally hailed from the “Conspiracy” album. Here are some quick thoughts about the tune in this presentation.
There is a nice clean and clear sound to the music and the voice of the mighty King Diamond and since this is a live recording you get enough crowd interaction. They are placed nicely in the mix and not overpowering the music or being overpowered by it. Some live albums go to one extreme or the other, but I guess by this stage in the technology game it’s a little easier to get a better product at the end of the day. Now I should mention that while I like this song it is not by any means a favorite from the King’s catalog. Back in the day I didn’t really enjoy “Conspiracy” too much and had moved on from regular listening and was giving other stuff a chance. The eighties were a glorious time to be a Heavy Metal fan based on all the impacting bands that were putting out albums, but I digress.
The guitar work of LaRoque and Wead is on point and the drums of Thompson are solid and crisp. You can imagine which drum is being hit across the track. Its fraught with the storytelling drama that King is most experienced at and while I would have preferred a different track be the first taste, this was what we got and it’s a nice tease for the live effort coming in the New Year.
Track Listing:
1. Sleepless Nights
Official Website: https://www.kingdiamondcoven.com/