Concert review: King Diamond w/ Overkill and Night Demon | 10.19.24, The Factory (with photo gallery)

Photo of King Diamond by Laura Jerele

Heavy metal is, in fact, alive and well. And thanks to King Diamond, it’s also bombastic, over-the-top, theatrical, technically proficient, and just what St. Louis needed on a spooky Saturday night prior to Halloween. Touring a massive production dubbed Saint Lucifer’s Hospital 1920, King Diamond brought the biggest stage I’ve ever seen at The Factory, pumped in more fog than I ever imagined possible and gave us all an evening of very creepy, over-the-top theatrics that did NOT disappoint. 

King’s trademark falsetto voice is damn near otherworldly live, and he does not show up to give anything less than 100%. He surrounds himself with amazing musicians (including bassist Pontus Egberg, drummer Matt Thompson, and guitarist Mike Wead) that evoke a theatrical vibe, making the show even more dramatic and creepy, all the while being extremely well-played. Guitarist Andy LaRocque is a heavy metal legend and is absolutely phenomenal to watch—he has been a longtime band mate of King’s, and a favorite player of mine.  Playing a good mix of his catalog that spans decades, including early solo faves of mine like “Halloween” and “Abigail,” his set was full of theatrics that included props and actors intermixed with his seemingly effortless dramatic performance. King’s penchant for the dark side is very well known and ever apparent, and I’m pretty sure most people said a little prayer of the mass amounts of merch they bought at the show…ya know, just to be safe. 

Opening the show was the incredibly and criminally underrated band Overkill, and there was a huge contingent of the crowd that was there just for them. Rushing to the front of the barricade and starting a circle pit, their fans were ready to show their love for Overkill. Sure, the crowd was a sea of black concert shirts, but there were loads of vintage Overkill shirts being worn to show their love for tours past, with their new swag thrown over their shoulder that will no doubt be worn at their next stop in town. Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth and D.D. Verni started this band and they continue to thrash and perform with just as much love and vigor as ever, never tiring of playing such fan favorites like “Elimination” and “Hello from the Gutter.” But their newest release, Scorched, is by far superior to anything they’ve ever done and “The Surgeon” was a true highlight of their set. Well, that is until they closed their set with the ultimate fan favorite sing along where middle fingers fly in the air, the anthem “we don’t care what you say…fuck you” is sung LOUDLY at the top of everyone’s lungs as if “F you” was a way of showing the Overkill fellas our love! I mean, if that isn’t metal, I don’t know what is!

Heavy metal trio Night Demon opened the show and while they were not afforded much room on the stage thanks to the massive amounts of gear and stage design that awaited to be revealed by Overkill and King Diamond, they sure did bring a commanding performance that didn’t feel “opening act.” Very much metal veterans at this point, Night Demon are really fantastic live, really heavy and a lot of fun to watch perform. Tons of hair flipping and head banging while still playing their instruments really damn well—I got tired just watching them! | Laura Jerele