SWEDEN 2012 \\ KING DIAMOND Announces Two 'Exclusive' European Summer Festival Appearances

Legendary Danish/American/Swedish heavy metal band KING DIAMOND will play only two shows in Europe this summer:

June 09 - Sweden Rock Festival – Sölvesborg, SWE
June 15 - Hellfest - Clisson, France

A video message from KING DIAMOND's 55-year-old frontman/namesake in which he announces his band's appearance at the Sweden Rock Festival can be seen below.

King Diamond (real name: Kim Bendix Petersen) underwent open-heart triple-bypass surgery in November 2010. He has since completed his cardiac rehabilitation program and has stopped smoking entirely, changed his diet and is getting regular exercise, according to his wife Livia Zita.

King Diamond made his long-anticipated return to the stage with his MERCYFUL FATE bandmates Hank Shermann, Timi Hansen and Michael Denner on December 7, 2011 at the second of four intimate shows at the Fillmore in San Francisco as part of METALLICA's week-long celebration of its 30th anniversary as a band for fan club members only.

KING DIAMOND received a Grammy nomination in the "Best Metal Performance" category for the track "Never Ending Hill" off the group's latest album, "Give Me Your Soul … Please".

"Give Me Your Soul ... Please" entered the Swedish national chart at position No. 28. The CD also landed at No. 58 on the Danish chart (the second highest new entry on the chart behind VELVET REVOLVER).

"Give Me Your Soul ... Please" sold 4,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 174 on The Billboard 200 chart.