Fatal Portrait
Fatal Portrait is the debut album by Danish heavy metal band King Diamond. It was produced by Rune Hoyer and released on 17 February 1986 through Roadrunner Records. Guitarist Andy LaRocque joined the album recording sessions at the last minute, as the band's second guitarist at the time "wasn't working out" in the studio. As a result, it is the only King Diamond album which does not feature any writing credits from LaRocque. Recording a solo for "Dressed in White" functioned as his audition for joining the band. Along with The Spider's Lullabye, it is one of the band's only albums which is not a whole concept album.
Fatal Portrait | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 17 February 1986 | |||
Recorded | July–August 1985 | |||
Studio | Sound Track Studio, Copenhagen, Denmark | |||
Genre | Heavy metal | |||
Length | 41:41 | |||
Label | Roadrunner | |||
Producer | King Diamond, Rune Höyer, Michael Denner | |||
King Diamond chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | |
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 8/10 |
Fatal Portrait has sold over 100,000 copies in North America alone. The title of the album comes from The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. Wilde describes the painting as "the fatal portrait" several times throughout the novel.