Review Summary: King's cut.
Well, placing your ugly mug after the double cross of
Abigail and
Them cramps your chances of winning the split decision, doesn't it? First, the surprise factor and innovation that
Abigail carried in 1987 is, by default, something you can't expect from anything that ensued. Second, the preposterous story, which for King has always been a component of the highest importance, is a continuation of the
Them preposterous canon. Logically, it means that in order to get the facts straight, one could listen to
Them without checking
Conspiracy but not the other way 'round. In fact, come down to its bare bones, the single act separating this from its more acclaimed predecessors is--you having listened to them beforehand.
Conspiracy exhibits all the features that King mastered during the late 1980s. At the forefront, you'll notice the tasteful guitar brand of Andy LaRocque and Pete Blakk, fabricating a quasi-progressive song structure--a perfect convoy for King's trademark octave oscillation. LaRocque's leads befit a school of thought that ordains sing-along quality before density, or, when being dense and shreddy, add some melody in order to spice things up. In his own right, Pete Blakk fills Michael Denner's shoes for the second album in a row, establishing himself as a decent alternative. You will bask in textures varying from dreamy acoustic passages to articulate riffs, to change of rhythmic patterns, to tension building interludes and, truth be told, some sparse and "poorly aged" synth lines. Of course, as always, vocal layers, instrumentation, and compositions work towards delivering the essence of King Diamond: the play.
To put it briefly, King wants to project some kind of deal with 'Them'; a deal involving a chat with his departed sister in order to break those "Sleepless Nights" and walk with her through gardens of days long past; basically, he wants some answers concerning the events that took place in the previous album[see
Them]. Obviously, such arrangements concerning the dead always come with a price, don't they? Yeah, King Diamond doesn't push the envelope of horror scenarios but in context with what I've previously pointed out, he sure knows how to put an established method into use. Come the theatric delivery, a right frame of mind, taking it with a grain of salt, and a production style--as dearly missed as Missy--that actually allows you to crank up the volume knob without collapsing your eardrums under compression, and such fictions can materialise.
Still, this one could lose on points, especially when the judges reason birth rights while seeking logic and canon in ghost stories. Had
Abigail and
Them been released after this one, I'm not sure if the former would still be the showpiece, or if one would seek a prequel of this story at the latter in order to give
Conspiracy its due. Anyway, considering 'Them' had settled for a fictional "Cremation" in return for allowing one to parlay the dead, then what's the actual price to be paid to HIM for endorsing King's corner once again? Between you and I, offering
Conspiracy on the 'underrated' altar and a little blood on his forehead strikes me as a one-sided deal... An arrangement that has probably left The Fallen One feeling like he had been had, while this mere disciple of his walked away with yet another excellent album under his belt.
