Editing Don't Break the Oath

{{Infobox album
| name       = Don't Break the Oath
| type       = studio
| artist     = [[Mercyful Fate]]
| cover      = MercyfulFateDBTO.jpg
| alt        =
| released   = 7 September 1984
| recorded   = May 1984
| venue      =
| studio     = Easy Sound Recording, [[Copenhagen]], Denmark
| genre      = 
*[[Heavy metal music|Heavy metal]] <!-- Even though this album has influenced later black metal acts, the album itself is not in that genre. -->
| length     = 47:30
| label      = [[Roadrunner Records|Roadrunner]]
| producer   = Henrik Lund
| prev_title = [[Melissa (Mercyful Fate album)|Melissa]]
| prev_year  = 1983
| next_title = [[The Beginning (Mercyful Fate album)|The Beginning]]
| next_year  = 1987
}}

{{Music ratings
|rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
|rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name="DontBreakTheOath">{{cite web|title=Mercyful Fate - Don't Break the Oath review |url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/dont-break-the-oath-mw0000651526|publisher=[[AllMusic]]|first=Steve |last=Huey}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Martin Popoff|Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal]]''
| rev2Score = 10/10<ref name="martin" >{{cite book | last = Popoff | first = Martin | author-link = Martin Popoff | title = The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties | publisher = [[Collector's Guide Publishing]] | date = November 1, 2005 | location = [[Burlington, Ontario]], Canada | isbn = 978-1894959315 | page= 220}}</ref>
| noprose = yes
}}

'''''Don't Break the Oath''''' is the second studio album by Danish [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]] band [[Mercyful Fate]], released on 7 September 1984 through Roadrunner Records.

The style Mercyful Fate employed on ''Don't Break the Oath'' resembled a mixture of heavy metal with [[progressive rock|progressive]] elements, lyrically preoccupied with [[Satan]] and the [[occult]] and distinguished by [[King Diamond]]'s theatrical [[falsetto]] vocals. Very influential to future [[black metal]] bands due to its lyrical content, the music itself tends toward progressive forms such as dramatic modulations, tempo and tone changes. The album was remastered and subsequently re-issued on [[Roadrunner Records]] in 1997. This reissue came with the bonus track "Death Kiss (Demo)", which would eventually evolve into the album's lead-off track, "A Dangerous Meeting". The album received critical acclaim, and ''[[Metal Rules]]'' named this the greatest [[extreme metal]] album of all time.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metal-rules.com/polls/index.php?id=7|title=Top 50 Extreme Metal Albums|website=[[Metal Rules]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405003815/http://metal-rules.com/polls/index.php?id=7|archive-date=April 5, 2018|access-date=April 16, 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Track listing==
{{track listing
| all_lyrics = [[King Diamond]]
| headline = Side one
| title1   = A Dangerous Meeting
| music1   = Hank Shermann
| length1  = 5:10
| title2   = Nightmare
| music2   = Shermann
| length2  = 6:20
| title3   = Desecration of Souls
| music3   = Shermann, Michael Denner
| length3  = 4:54
| title4   = Night of the Unborn
| music4   = Shermann 
| length4  = 4:59
}}
{{track listing
| headline = Side two
| title5   = The Oath
| music5   = Diamond
| length5  = 7:31
| title6   = Gypsy
| music6   = Denner, Diamond
| length6  = 3:08
| title7   = Welcome Princess of Hell<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wonderingsound.com/feature/king-diamond-kim-bendix-petersen-dreams-of-horror-metal-blade-us-tour-interview/|title=King Diamond Interview|last=Ludwig|first=Jamie|date=October 22, 2014|website=[[Wondering Sound]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820063939/http://www.wonderingsound.com/feature/king-diamond-kim-bendix-petersen-dreams-of-horror-metal-blade-us-tour-interview/|archive-date=August 20, 2016|access-date=April 16, 2019}}</ref>
| music7   = Shermann
| length7  = 4:03
| title8   = To One Far Away
| music8   = Denner, Diamond
| length8  = 1:31
| title9   = Come to the Sabbath
| music9    = Diamond
| length9  = 5:19
}}
{{track listing
| headline = 1997 re-release bonus track
| title10 = Death Kiss
| note10 = demo
| length10 = 4:30
}}

==Personnel==
'''Mercyful Fate'''
*[[King Diamond]] - vocals, keyboards, [[harpsichord]]
*[[Hank Shermann]] - guitars
*Michael Denner - guitars
*[[Timi Hansen]] - bass
*Kim Ruzz - drums
*Benny Petersen - guitar (on track 10)

'''Production'''
*Henrik Lund - producer, engineer
*Niels Erik Otto - engineer
*Thomas Holm - cover art

==Charts==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+Chart performance for ''Don't Break the Oath''
|-
! scope="col"| Chart (2020)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
{{album chart|Germany4|66|id=44737|artist=Mercyful Fate|album=Don't Break the Oath|rowheader=true|access-date=June 12, 2020}}
|}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Mercyful Fate}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1984 albums]]
[[Category:Mercyful Fate albums]]
[[Category:Roadrunner Records albums]]