Mercyful Fate Melissa (White vinyl)

Description

Condition: Brand New Ships from: Melbourne

• Description
• Release details
• Tracklist

• Melissa is one of the defining albums of early extreme metal, emerging from Denmark at a time when the New Wave of British Heavy Metal was reshaping the genre. Mercyful Fate pushed that sound into darker territory, combining sharp twin-guitar harmonies from Hank Shermann and Michael Denner with occult themes and the unmistakable falsetto of King Diamond. Songs like Evil, Curse of the Pharaohs, and Into the Coven balance fast, melodic riffing with eerie atmospheres, creating a record that feels both theatrical and genuinely menacing.

  What makes Melissa endure is the precision of its songwriting. The band moves fluidly between galloping heavy metal, doom-laden passages, and melodic guitar interplay, while King Diamonds dramatic vocal range adds a sense of storytelling rarely heard in metal at the time. The albums influence spread far beyond traditional heavy metal, shaping the sound and imagery of later thrash and black metal bands. More than forty years later, Melissa still sounds strikingly original.

  Reviews

  Melissa is a landmark album that helped shape the sound and imagery of extreme metal. AllMusic

  Mercyful Fates first full-length remains a cornerstone of heavy metals darker side. Decibel Magazine

  Melissa is a cult classic of early 80s metal, packed with razor-sharp riffs and King Diamonds unforgettable vocals. Metal Hammer

  King Diamond explains: “These are not remasters, the albums are exactly as they were originally, straight from the original production masters. They contain all the dynamics as they were recorded back then. So I’m very happy to make the recordings available to the fans in their original state!”

  Review

  AllMusic rating: AllMusic users: (448 votes) Read the AllMusic.com review

• Artist: Mercyful Fate Label: Metal Blade Records Format: LP Units: 1 Country: UK & Europe Genre: Metal Style: Heavy Metal

• A1 Evil
  A2 Curse Of The Pharaohs
  A3 Into The Coven
  A4 At The Sound Of The Demon Bell
  B1 Black Funeral
  B2 Satan’S Fall
  B3 Melissa