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THE HEADLESS GHOST
King Of Pain

Punishment 18 (2024)
Rating: 7/10

Starting out as a tribute to Mercyful Fate and King Diamond, The Headless Ghost is a five-piece from Milan in Italy that still wears its roots on its leathery sleeve. Everything about this debut release, from band name, to album cover and track titles, has that King Diamond vibe so you do get plenty of atmosphere. The music is expertly constructed around a plot concerning a serial killer tormented by the souls of his victims.

Vocalist Steven Crow (aka Stefano Vallino) has a decipherable sneer to his words as he snakes his way through dimly lit corridors like a shadowy apprentice of King Diamond, but without the ear-piercing wails. The album is driven mostly though by the axe work of Aurelio Parise and Alberto Biffi who carve out glistening chunks of Gothic metal like a candle dancing through the blackness of night.

‘Visions’ boasts a haunting melody as well as unexpected gang chants that work in tandem with the percussive thuds of Omar Capetti’s drums. Those Mercyful Fate and King Diamond comparisons are also showcased on the speedy ‘Whisper In The Dark’.

There are no flaws with eight tracks on offer because they all provide a sense of the eerie unnerving without necessarily resorting to more obvious cheesy chills. ‘Hellhouse’ is scowling with a menace, although the vocals seem a bit high in the mix, ‘Inside The Walls’ is thrashy but also zips like Metal Church at their modest, and the title track sizzles with fiery aplomb while the bass of Simone Pesenti Gritti tolls like a pendulum.

King Of Pain is a solid and often scorching heavy metal album ideal for some Halloween rockin’. However, in the future I’d like to see the band veer away slightly from the obvious influences and attempt to create their own brand of shock rock, because alongside the latest Attic release (Return Of The Witchfinder) this just feels so predictable even with its high quality musicianship and storytelling.

Neil Arnold

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