Kamelot: Opus Of The Night
“We wanted to bring back some of the traditional songs that made KAMELOT what we are. Those romantic melodies, upbeat hymn kind of stuff, maybe even a bit of the Irish Celtic influence in there too,” Tommy Karevik says when discussing his band’s new album. “It was a conscious thing to bring that back, we liked it and the fans always responded to it, but dress it up in a new suit.”
He’s joining us from the frosty surroundings of Calgary to talk about The Awakening, their long-awaited thirteenth full-length. It’s been five years since their last one (2018’s excellent The Shadow Theory), which is the longest gap between albums in KAMELOT’s long history. Seeing the release date get pushed back repeatedly was frustrating for fans and band alike, but the good news is that the wait was worth it. We’ve heard The Awakening, and it’s a blast. It’s a rich and sumptuous power metal banquet, and very much a “fan’s album.” If they were making a concerted effort to create a record with all the hallmarks of their sound, they’ve hit the nail on the head.
Running just shy of an hour, The Awakening is awash with atmosphere. There are grandiose orchestral elements, big choruses and a richly theatrical vibe. Comparing metal bands to films is easy, but KAMELOT have more in common with Broadway and their music would be right at home in The Royal Albert Hall. One of Tommy’s earliest music experiences was seeing The Phantom Of The Opera and it’s stuck with him ever since.
What’s also notable is that despite their penchant for romance and tragedy, The Awakening is a very uplifting record. KAMELOT don’t shy away from the darker side of life, but their overall worldview is a positive one. “It’s not going to be easy to be human,” he says, “it’s really tough to be human! But someone once said that progress equals happiness and if you’re not progressing, you’re regressing.”
Nowhere is this more obvious than One More Flag In The Ground. The album’s first single is a blood-pumping anthem with lyrics about overcoming adversity and given that it was written during the coronavirus pandemic, it’s easy to figure out what inspired it. Against a backdrop of despair and constant bad news, they wanted to send out a message of hope.
“I think it’s safe to say that most of us who’ve lived past their thirties and forties has seen someone struggling, be it a mental or physical illness, and I think in the pandemic that was just amplified,” he explains. “A mental issue becomes physical as well, and this song is kind of our way of saying ‘you are not alone. Each step of every day is going to bring you one step closer to healing.’ We want to convey emotion and a story. Just smacking someone in the face with a metal song is not what we do. We want to portray adventure, to be dynamic and have an evolution in the music. KAMELOT has also always been about that light at the end of the tunnel and that hope, that possibly sets us apart from a lot of other bands.”
It’s an early highlight but it’s not the only one. There’s a beautiful ballad in the shape of Midsummer’s Eve and a remarkable guitar/cello dual with renowned cellist Tina Guo on Opus Of The Night (Ghost Requiem). They’ve also continued their tradition of hiring guest vocalists, as AD INFINITUM’s Melissa Bonny turns up to add her fearsome pipes to New Babylon. She and Tommy trade vocals back and forth in a show-stealing duet, but he downplays his role in bringing her on board. He gives guitarist Thomas Youngblood full credit for organising it and claims his bandmate is way better at keeping up to date. Tommy’s dream guest vocalists would be Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson, and as they’ve both left us, there’s not much point in holding out for them.
While we’re unlikely to see his icons sharing the mic with him unless AI develops to new (and terrifying) heights, there are a lot of reasons to be confident for KAMELOT in 2023. The Awakening is a terrific record, and now that touring is back on the agenda, they’re itching to get back out and reconnect with their audiences. As Tommy describes it, the pandemic had some positive side effects; forcing them to stop, breathe and take stock of the band was ultimately beneficial after years in the album/tour cycle. But he’s had his time off and now he wants to get onstage again. That’s partly why The Awakening sounds like it does:
“I think we painted a slightly different picture with this one. The guitars are more upfront, the symphonic elements are still there but not taking over all the time. We made a conscious decision to look at what works live, what we get energy from and what gives people energy. We wanted every song to have a few of those elements to make it into a really good live song. Looking back now, I think all the songs have real live potential.”
The Awakening is out now via Napalm Records.
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