The Eye (The Eye - King Diamond)

Member Name: Frankingsteins

Product:	The Eye - King Diamond
Date:	01/09/08 (23 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: More accessible.

Disadvantages: Watered down.

King Diamond's fifth album in as many years, 1990's 'The Eye' comes at the end of this highly proficient period and remains one of the band's more memorable works. Once again favouring a lyrical concept to provide a narrative and musical structure, its tale of witch trials is one of the more serious, thoughtful and atmospheric the band has penned, and the lyrics are matched well by a predominant focus in a medium tempo. This makes this slightly slower and less intense than the band's previous albums, and perhaps more accessible to casual rock fans, provided they're still adventurous enough to handle the King's vocals.

While Andy LaRoque is his usual fine self, his riffs do feel a little less creative this time round, and the King's vocals are rooted a little too much in the high end of the scale, robbing them of some of their effectiveness. Worst of all is the fairly obvious drum machine that's unwisely called in to perform some drum rolls and other distracting nonsense, but most of the time it's content to tap away in the background without drawing too much attention to itself. The opening title track is the most instantly memorable song here with its hypnotic chorus, but once again this is a strong release from the band without any real weak links.

1. Eye of the Witch
2. The Trial (Chambre Ardente)
3. Burn
4. Two Little Girls
5. Into the Convent
6. Father Picard
7. Behind These Walls
8. The Meetings
9. Insanity
10. 1642 Imprisonment
11. The Curse

Summary: King Diamond's fifth album (1990).