‘Silverthorn’

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Review: Kamelot “Silverthorn” (2012)

Posted by Dylan Raine on April 1, 2013
Posted in: Reviews. Tagged: , . Leave a comment

Reviewed by Loris Bergagnakamelotalbum

Artist: KAMELOT
Album: Silverthorn
Label: SPV/Steamhammer
Release Date: 29/10/2012

Tracklist:
1. Manus Dei
2. Sacrimony (Angel Of Afterlife)
3. Ashes To Ashes
4. Torn
5. Song For Jolee
6. Veritas
7. My Confession
8. Silverthorn
9. Falling Like The Fahrenheit
10. Solitaire
11. Prodigal Son
– Part I: Funerale
– Part II: Burden Of Shame (The Branding)
– Part III: The Journey
12. Continuum

KAMELOT are a well-known American Symphonic/Power/Prog Metal band, from Tampa (Florida).
They have recorded nine successful studio albums (plus three live ones and a compilation) and this, “Silverthorn” is their tenth and the first one after the departure of their legendary front-man Roy Khan.
This is a concept album and the debut with KAMELOT for the new singer, Tommy
Karevik (Seventh Wonder).
“Manus Dei”, the opening track, is a sort of intro (good to be used to open their gigs) for the first single “Sacrimony (Angel Of Afterlife). “Sacrimony” is great song with good riffing, orchestrations, choirs, guitar and keys solos, plus the interesting contribution of Elize Ryd on female vocals.
In this platter – in fact – are Elize Ryd (Amaranthe) and Alissa White-Gluz (The Agonist) as female singers, a sort of alter ego(s) for Jolee, the main character of the concept.
The third track “Ashes To Ashes” is a good power piece with nice guitar and keys work. A catchy song with some good prog ideas and some Arabian flavours!
“Torn”, one of the jewels of this release, is a mix of speed, anger, melody and complex structure. Its secret weapon is the beautiful chorus that will conquer every single listener out there.
“Song For Jolee” is a wonderful ballad in which the intensity of Karevik‘s voice sends shivers down your spine. The wonderful work provided by the Seventh Wonder’s singer gives “Song For Jolee” the possibility to be considered the best composition present on this album.
“Veritas”- the sixth song- is another power track, with fantastic backing vocals, in the vein of the previous “Ashes To Ashes”.
“My Confession”, a catchy-but not so interesting song, leads us to the title track,
“Silverthorn”, a track in which the orchestra and the metal band are entwined to form a good wall of sound! Mr. Thomas Youngblood shows us his skills between convincing riffing and well-shaped solos.
“Falling Like The Fahrenheit” has a nice refrain and a great contribution supported by Eklipse, a really great string quartet (especially live. I saw them in Milan opening for Nightwish and they were such a nice surprise).
The tenth track, “Solitaire”, is a weak song with nothing interesting to date but it works well as a prelude to “Prodigal Son”, a complex piece divided into three parts: a mix of intensity, melancholy, heavy riffing and prog ideas. A good old epic track that could be greater with a more homogeneous type of song writing like they provided for their older “epic tracks”!
“Continuum” is the haunting finale of this great release.
“Silverthorn” is a great release, heavily recommended to the lovers of the genre. In conclusion, Tommy Karevik is a fantastic singer….you won’t miss Mister Roy Khan the Great!

RATING: 8.5/10

BAND MEMBERS:
Thomas Youngblood – guitars
Casey Grillo – drums
Oliver Palotai – keyboards
Sean Tibbetts – bass
Tommy Karevik – vocals

BAND LINKS:
Website: www.kamelot.com
Youtube: www.youtube.com/user/kamelotofficial
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kamelotofficial

kamelotband

KAMELOT Guitarist Talks New Singer, Making Of ‘Silverthorn’ Album

Posted by aliblackdiamond on November 5, 2012
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

Source: Blabbermouth.net

On October 7, DaBelly conducted an interview with guitarist Thomas Youngblood of American/German/Swedish symphonic metallers KAMELOT. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

DaBelly: Whether intended or not, [new singer Tommy] Karevik‘s voice is reminiscent to [former KAMELOT singer] Roy Khan‘s and I’m eager to hear Karevik‘s interpretation of your older works.

Youngblood: One of the reasons we hired Tommy is because his voice had a similar quality and when it came to writing the new record we wanted to keep the KAMELOT sound. But also we want to grow. We want to show that Tommy is his own vocalist with his own thing going on. We know the fans will see that.

DaBelly: Did you write [the new KAMELOT album] “Silverthorn” with Karevik or was most of the record in place before he arrived?

Youngblood: Most of “Silverthorn” was written by myself and Oliver [Palotai], our keyboard player. We presented the songs to Tommy to work on vocal melodies and lyrics. So yeah, Tommy wrote all the vocal melodies and lyrics. I think Sascha [Paeth], our producer, helped a little bit, but for the most part Tommy is already been assimilated into KAMELOT. To me, it’s a really good sign for the future. I know that we will be able to invest a lot more time into writing the next album.

DaBelly: This was the first time you’ve entered the studio with a new singer in a long time. What was the preparation like? Did you approach writing music any differently?

Youngblood: My goal from day one was to make a KAMELOT record, so we didn’t do anything differently. We wrote the songs in the same keys. The only real difference was that some else was writing the melodies and lyrics and Tommy did an amazing job. He worked a little with Sascha on it. I wasn’t in the studio when they recorded vocals. Once Oliver and I started working together on this album, I knew that the music was going to be KAMELOT. The next step was to make sure the vocals fit in with what we’ve done in the past but also that they offered hints of what is yet to come.

DaBelly: I felt your last album, “Poetry For The Poisoned”, was heavier, especially in the lyrics. It was certainly heavier than “Karma”, my favorite. The new record seems heavier as well. The music has the old “Karma” feel, but the vocals seemed more like “Poetry”. Do you think that is a fair description on the new record?

Youngblood: I think one of the things I missed in “Poetry” was the melody, like you said. You know, like with “Karma” and “Black Halo”, the chorus had a melodic sense to it that we didn’t have on “Poetry”; it was something that I was missing and it was one of the first things that I talked to Tommy about — bringing more of a melodic sense to the song. He’s really great at writing melodies. Almost every chorus on the new record has a significant melodic feel to it. But at the same time I don’t want to abandon the melancholy undertones that I personally like in our music. I think it’s an important component that helps make us unique — blending uplifting choruses with a verse or mid-part sections that are darker and make you feel a little sad. But at the end of the record I want people to feel good about life, I don’t want to leave them feeling like they want to cut their wrists! That’s one of the things that I thought we missed on “Poetry” and it’s certainly one of the things that I think people liked about albums like “Black Halo”. Even though it had some darker elements, it also had this uplifting release as well.

Read the entire interview from DaBelly.

“Sacrimony (Angel Of Afterlife)” video:

KAMELOT Guitarist Thomas Youngblood – “The First Few Records Were Basically Just Us Trying To Find Our Identity”

Posted by aliblackdiamond on October 12, 2012
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , , , . Leave a comment

Source: Bravewords.com

KAMELOT guitarist Thomas Youngblood is featured in a new interview with The Great Southern Brainfart discussing the band’s forthcoming album, Silverthorn, and new singer Tommy Karevik. An excerpt is available below:

Q: As opposed to sounding like a lot of the more modern symphonic metal bands, KAMELOT seems to have this old school vibe that really connected with me.

Youngblood: “At first, we really didn’t know what we were doing. The first few records were basically just us trying to find our identity. When we got to the album Karma, we really found our niche and our own sound. We were blending those classical influences with some new age influences and making the record really melodic yet also dark and melancholy. Those were the key identifiers with the band from that point on and with each record we just wanted to grow and try different things. We have the luxury of having open minded fans who are open to change and that’s important especially with the changes that have happened recently.”

Q: The change you’re talking about is the changing of lead vocalists from Roy Khan to Tommy Karevik. That’s a huge change for any band to undergo. Has the addition of Tommy to the band opened doors to some new fans that may have been somewhat on the fence before?

Youngblood: “When a band has to change a singer, it’s hard. It is becoming more common now and I think people accept it more than they would have say 15 years ago. From the day we knew we had to make this change, we looked at it as an opportunity to not only continue at the same level but to grow as a band. Bringing in a guy like Tommy is not only going keep a good percentage of the older fans but he’s going to be part of building a new fan base for Kamelot for the future. We didn’t want to just rest on our laurels. We wanted to keep the door open and grow.”

Go to this location for the complete interview:

In preparation for their European headline tour, KAMELOT recently issued the following update:

“Here are the only venues allowing VIP ticket sales due to regulations and time restraints. Please note that you must have already purchased a show ticket before you can purchase a VIP Upgrade below. We are looking forward to meeting you!”

November
2 – Eindhoven, Netherlands – Effenaar
3 – Pratteln, Switzerland – Z7
4 – Paris, France – Le Bataclan
5 – Stuttgart, Germany – LKA/Longhorn
6 – Antwerp, Belgium – Trix
7 – London, UK – HMV Forum
9 – Barcelona, Spain – Sala Razzmatazz 2
10 – Lorca, Spain – Metal Lorca Festival
11 – Madrid, Spain – Sala Caracol
13 – Bologna, Italy – Estragon
14 – Vienna, Austria – Szene
15 – Praha, Czech Republic – KC Vltavska
16 – Berlin, Germany – C-Club
17 – Geiselwind – Musichall
18 – Cologne – Essigfabrik
20 – Hamburg – Markthalle
21 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Vega
22 – Stockholm, Sweden – Göta Källare
23 – Gothenburg, Sweden – Trädgarn
24 – Oslo, Norway – Sentrum Scene

EU Tour Tickets
VIP Upgrade/UK
VIP Upgrade/EU

Kamelot’s complete live itinerary can be found at this location.

The band’s new album, Silverthorn, is due out on October 30th in North America, October 26th in Germany and October 29th in the rest of Europe via Steamhammer/SPV. It will receive its Japanese release October 24th via King Records.

Album samples can now be heard at this location.

Silverthorn tracklisting
‘Manus Dei’
‘Sacrimony (Angel of Afterlife)’
‘Ashes to Ashes’
‘Torn’
‘Song for Jolee’
‘Veritas’
‘My Confession’
‘Silverthorn’
‘Falling Like the Fahrenheit’
‘Solitaire’
‘Prodigal Son’
‘Continuum’

The video clip for the song ‘Sacrimony (Angel Of Afterlife)‘ will debut soon and features guest appearances by Elize Ryd (AMARANTHE) and Alissa White-Gluz (THE AGONIST).

The Silverthorn LP and limited edition will have one version of the art, while the standard version of Silverthorn will have a different but equally exquisite version of the artwork. The standard version is presented as an Ecolbook. The limited edition contains the Ecolbook, a bonus CD with nearly 60 minutes of music, a 44 page book and an exclusive poster. The double LP version is a gatefold on colored vinyl and includes the CD.

KAMELOT: Silverthorn Album Samples Streaming

Posted by tarjavirmakari on September 29, 2012
Posted in: News. Tagged: , , . Leave a comment

Source: Bravewords.com

KAMELOT new album, Silverthorn, is due out on October 30th in North America, October 26th in Germany and October 29th in the rest of Europe via Steamhammer/SPV. It will receive its Japanese release October 24th via King Records.

Album samples can now be heard at this location.

Silverthorn tracklisting
‘Manus Dei’
‘Sacrimony (Angel of Afterlife)’
‘Ashes to Ashes’
‘Torn’
‘Song for Jolee’
‘Veritas’
‘My Confession’
‘Silverthorn’
‘Falling Like the Fahrenheit’
‘Solitaire’
‘Prodigal Son’
‘Continuum’

The video clip for the song ‘Sacrimony (Angel Of Afterlife)’ will debut soon and features guest appearances by Elize Ryd (AMARANTHE) and Alissa White-Gluz (THE AGONIST).

The Silverthorn LP and limited edition will have one version of the art, while the standard version of Silverthorn will have a different but equally exquisite version of the artwork. The standard version is presented as an Ecolbook. The limited edition contains the Ecolbook, a bonus CD with nearly 60 minutes of music, a 44 page book and an exclusive poster. The double LP version is a gatefold on colored vinyl and includes the CD.

 

KAMELOT: ‘Silverthorn’ Cover Artwork Unveiled

Posted by aliblackdiamond on August 16, 2012
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , . Leave a comment

American symphonic metal band KAMELOT will release its new album, “Silverthorn”, on October 30 in North America, October 26 in Germany and October 29 in the rest of Europe via Steamhammer/SPV. The set will arrive in Japan on October 24 through King Records. The CD will mark the band’s first release with new singer Tommy Karevik, the 30-year-old Swede who previously fronted SEVENTH WONDER (a group that he is still a member of).

The “Silverthorn” LP and limited edition will have one version of the cover artwork, while the standard version of “Silverthorn” will have a different but equally exquisite version. The standard version is presented as an Ecolbook. The limited edition contains the Ecolbook, a bonus CD with nearly 60 minutes of music, a 44-page book and an exclusive poster. The double LP version is a gatefold on colored vinyl and includes the CD.

KAMELOT guitarist Thomas Youngblood says of the artwork: “Artist Stefan Heilemann captured the true essence of the story and the main character. The booklet and 44-page book is packed with amazing images!”

In a recent interview with RockLiveBG, KAMELOT keyboardist Oliver Palotai stated about the band’s new vocalist, “[Tommy] was already with us on some tour dates as a guest singer, and he was singing on one or two songs. And in the past year, we were considering which singer to take. I was strongly on Tommy‘s side because he made a huge impression on me. Personality. of course. is really important. and he is a little bit introverted and I like this ‘Scandinavian feel’ about him and he fits KAMELOT really well.”

He continued, “The final decision for him was sending in vocals, lyrics and recorded melody on a ballad that I wrote which is on the album. And it was so great and impressive. We all had goosebumps and when we heard that for the first time we knew immediately that was ‘it.’ He wrote most of the vocal melodies in the album also.”

On the topic of the upcoming CD, Palotai said, “The cover was done by Stephan Heilemann. He also did covers for EPICA and my other band, SONS OF SEASONS. He is one of my best buddies, living in the neighborhood, and in my opinion, he is one of the greatest designers in the whole world. The amount of songs is … I think 9 or 10 without the interludes. . . It’s a concept album and it has a story. In the special edition you will get a little book where the story is described. All the songs will be around the story. It will be something like [2005’s] ‘The Black Halo’.

Regarding how the upcoming CD compares to 2010’s “Poetry For The Poisoned”, Oliver said, “To be honest, I’m not the biggest fan of ‘Poetry For The Poisoned’. For me, ‘The Black Halo’ is a bit like a reference also when I produce bands in my studio. So we wanted to go back to ‘The Black Halo’ but also include modern elements, which we included since then. You will never hear from a band, Our new record sucks,’ but this record is a real killer and brings KAMELOT back on track. It is exactly what I wanted, and I’m really happy with it. I hope the fans will like it as well.”

Thomas Youngblood previously stated about Karevik: “We had around 800 candidates for the vacant position, among them a number of really renowned musicians, and having to reject them really wasn’t easy.”

In KAMELOT‘s search for a new singer, Youngblood found YouTube to be an amazing tool. “I listened to a clip of a studio production featuring Tommy and have to confess that his performance really amazed me,” he said. “His approach to melodies and themes suits KAMELOT perfectly, and during our European shows we had plenty of opportunity to find out what a great guy he is.”

Tommy first appeared as one of the guest singers on KAMELOT‘s very successful 2011 Pandemonium World Tour.

Youngblood on the style and content of the forthcoming KAMELOT concept album: “The new songs sound more symphonic and melodic than our last two studio recordings. The material brings to mind albums such as ‘Karma’ (2001) and ‘The Black Halo’ (2005). In addition, this will be the best production that KAMELOT have ever delivered. Because while other acts tend to opt for low-budget productions due to the difficult market situation, we have gone the opposite way: the new album will be a real statement, in terms of our compositions as well as in terms of our sound.”

KAMELOT will support Finnish/Swedish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH on a North American tour in September and October.

KAMELOT has posted a five-minute video clip featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the band’s appearance at this year’s Wacken Open Air festival, which took place August 2-4 in Wacken, Germany. Check it out below.

 

 

Source: Blabbermouth.net 

KAMELOT: ‘Silverthorn’ Pushed Back To October

Posted by aliblackdiamond on July 19, 2012
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , . Leave a comment

 

The release date of “Silverthorn”, the new album from American/German/Swedish symphonic metallers KAMELOT, has been pushed back to October 26 (Germany), October 29 (rest of Europe) and October 30 (North America) via Steamhammer/SPV. The CD will mark the band’s first release with new singer Tommy Karevik, the 30-year-old Swede who previously fronted SEVENTH WONDER (a group that he is still a member of).

In a brand new interview with RockLiveBG, KAMELOT keyboardist Oliver Palotai stated about the band’s new vocalist, “[Tommy] was already with us on some tour dates as a guest singer, and he was singing on one or two songs. And in the past year, we were considering which singer to take. I was strongly on Tommy‘s side because he made a huge impression on me. Personality. of course. is really important. and he is a little bit introverted and I like this ‘Scandinavian feel’ about him and he fits KAMELOT really well.”

He continued, “The final decision for him was sending in vocals, lyrics and recorded melody on a ballad that I wrote which is on the album. And it was so great and impressive. We all had goosebumps and when we heard that for the first time we knew immediately that was ‘it.’ He wrote most of the vocal melodies in the album also.”

On the topic of the upcoming CD, Palotai said, “The cover was done by Stephan Heilemann. He also did covers for EPICA and my other band, SONS OF SEASONS. He is one of my best buddies, living in the neighborhood, and in my opinion, he is one of the greatest designers in the whole world. The amount of songs is … I think 9 or 10 without the interludes. . . It’s a concept album and it has a story. In the special edition you will get a little book where the story is described. All the songs will be around the story. It will be something like [2005’s] ‘The Black Halo’.

Regarding how the upcoming CD compares to 2010’s “Poetry For The Poisoned”, Oliver said, “To be honest, I’m not the biggest fan of ‘Poetry For The Poisoned’. For me, ‘The Black Halo’ is a bit like a reference also when I produce bands in my studio. So we wanted to go back to ‘The Black Halo’ but also include modern elements, which we included since then. You will never hear from a band, Our new record sucks,’ but this record is a real killer and brings KAMELOT back on track. It is exactly what I wanted, and I’m really happy with it. I hope the fans will like it as well.”

KAMELOT guitarist Thomas Youngblood previously stated about Karevik: “We had around 800 candidates for the vacant position, among them a number of really renowned musicians, and having to reject them really wasn’t easy.”

In KAMELOT‘s search for a new singer, Youngblood found YouTube to be an amazing tool. “I listened to a clip of a studio production featuring Tommy and have to confess that his performance really amazed me,” he said. “His approach to melodies and themes suits KAMELOT perfectly, and during our European shows we had plenty of opportunity to find out what a great guy he is.”

Tommy first appeared as one of the guest singers on KAMELOT‘s very successful 2011 Pandemonium World Tour.

Youngblood on the style and content of the forthcoming KAMELOT concept album: “The new songs sound more symphonic and melodic than our last two studio recordings. The material brings to mind albums such as ‘Karma’ (2001) and ‘The Black Halo’ (2005). In addition, this will be the best production that KAMELOT have ever delivered. Because while other acts tend to opt for low-budget productions due to the difficult market situation, we have gone the opposite way: the new album will be a real statement, in terms of our compositions as well as in terms of our sound.”

KAMELOT will support Finnish/Swedish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH on a North American tour in September and October.

KAMELOT‘s recently completed North American, South American and European tours featured guest singer Fabio Lione of RHAPSODY OF FIRE following the departure of KAMELOT‘s longtime frontman, Roy Khan.

 

Source: Blabbermouth.net