The Puppet Master (album)
Encyclopedia
The Puppet Master is an album
by King Diamond
released in 2003. A limited edition includes a DVD on which King Diamond
is telling the story of The Puppet Master. It is a concept album with a storyline telling the tale of a young couple who go to watch a puppet show in Budapest and end up being turned into undead puppets by the Puppet Master and his wife.
When King regains consciousness, he finds himself strapped to a hospital bed and The Puppet Master and his wife standing in front of him with a scalpel. The Puppet Master leans over him and says: "First your eyes... then your skin... we will make you feel born again." and starts to cut out his eyes. One eyelid drops down into a jar. The Puppet Master uses an instrument to pull the eyeball out of its socket, and cuts off the nerve-string which is the only thing holding the eye in place. The Puppet Master then puts the eyeball into a puppet's eye socket. His body is being made into a puppet that comes to life when blood is injected into it. An accident during the ritual when The Puppet Master is dealing with the Devil about King's soul, leaves King Diamond's soul trapped within his permanently aware eyes. It is after this that he sees his wife's body, now a puppet, on another shelf in the Puppet Master's shop.
King Diamond and his beloved are infused with a syringe-full of their blood nightly, so they can practice their routines and learn how to perform for their Master. Each night, after being put away, King and his beloved "talk with their eyes" from across the room as the essence of their blood fades away. King Diamond is forced to witness her fading away every night, because his immortal eyes keep him from slipping away like she does. Once instructed to dance by the Puppet Master, Victoria stumbles into the wall where jars of blood for the puppets are stored on shelves, knocking six of them down. She is then sent away to Berlin and King vows to find her again.
Christmas time comes around for the third time in the tale, and King is to perform as The Little Drummer Boy. At his performance, he intentionally falls and breaks his drum to embarrass the Puppet Master. For his actions, he is sold to a shop and left nailed to the wall. At some point, he hears of how the Puppet Master is building a second theater in London, to be run by the Puppet Master's son and daughter and he re-affirms his vow to find his lost love or see her on the "other side".
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by King Diamond
King Diamond (band)
King Diamond is the heavy metal band that King Diamond formed after the split up of his heavy metal band Mercyful Fate, and the departure of Hank Shermann. He was joined by most members of the then defunct Mercyful Fate. The Satanic focus was replaced by a focus on horror stories...
released in 2003. A limited edition includes a DVD on which King Diamond
King Diamond
Kim Bendix Petersen , better known by his stage name King Diamond, is a Grammy Award nominated Danish heavy metal musician. As a vocalist, he is known for his extensive vocal range, in particular his usage of falsetto. He is the lead vocalist for both Mercyful Fate and the eponymous King Diamond...
is telling the story of The Puppet Master. It is a concept album with a storyline telling the tale of a young couple who go to watch a puppet show in Budapest and end up being turned into undead puppets by the Puppet Master and his wife.
Plot
King Diamond meets Victoria after a Christmas show put on by the Puppet Master in Budapest. One year after they meet, his beloved goes missing and he sets out to find her. While searching, he comes across the Puppet Master's wife killing a homeless man. He follows her into a building where he is struck from behind and loses consciousness.When King regains consciousness, he finds himself strapped to a hospital bed and The Puppet Master and his wife standing in front of him with a scalpel. The Puppet Master leans over him and says: "First your eyes... then your skin... we will make you feel born again." and starts to cut out his eyes. One eyelid drops down into a jar. The Puppet Master uses an instrument to pull the eyeball out of its socket, and cuts off the nerve-string which is the only thing holding the eye in place. The Puppet Master then puts the eyeball into a puppet's eye socket. His body is being made into a puppet that comes to life when blood is injected into it. An accident during the ritual when The Puppet Master is dealing with the Devil about King's soul, leaves King Diamond's soul trapped within his permanently aware eyes. It is after this that he sees his wife's body, now a puppet, on another shelf in the Puppet Master's shop.
King Diamond and his beloved are infused with a syringe-full of their blood nightly, so they can practice their routines and learn how to perform for their Master. Each night, after being put away, King and his beloved "talk with their eyes" from across the room as the essence of their blood fades away. King Diamond is forced to witness her fading away every night, because his immortal eyes keep him from slipping away like she does. Once instructed to dance by the Puppet Master, Victoria stumbles into the wall where jars of blood for the puppets are stored on shelves, knocking six of them down. She is then sent away to Berlin and King vows to find her again.
Christmas time comes around for the third time in the tale, and King is to perform as The Little Drummer Boy. At his performance, he intentionally falls and breaks his drum to embarrass the Puppet Master. For his actions, he is sold to a shop and left nailed to the wall. At some point, he hears of how the Puppet Master is building a second theater in London, to be run by the Puppet Master's son and daughter and he re-affirms his vow to find his lost love or see her on the "other side".
Track listing
- Christmas contains an excerpt from "The Little Drummer Boy" written by Davis – Onorati – Simeone. Arranged by King Diamond
Credits
- King DiamondKing DiamondKim Bendix Petersen , better known by his stage name King Diamond, is a Grammy Award nominated Danish heavy metal musician. As a vocalist, he is known for his extensive vocal range, in particular his usage of falsetto. He is the lead vocalist for both Mercyful Fate and the eponymous King Diamond...
– vocals, keyboards - Andy LaRocqueAndy LaRocqueAndy LaRocque is best known as a guitarist, songwriter, and occasional synth player for the band King Diamond.-Biography:...
– guitars, keyboards - Mike WeadMike WeadMike Wead is a Swedish guitarist who lives in Stockholm. Wead contributed to heavy metal bands such as Hexenhaus, Memento Mori, Abstrakt Algebra, The Haunted, Edge of Sanity, Witch, Firegod, Candlemass, The Project Hate. Currently Wead is the guitarist of Mercyful Fate, King Diamond, and bibleblack...
– guitars - Hal PatinoHal PatinoHal Patino is a bass guitar player who has been a member of the King Diamond and Force of Evil metal bands. He also played in Blakk Totem, Maltese Falcon, Palladion and Doctor Butcher....
– bass guitar - Matt Thompson – drums
- Livia Zita – additional vocals