{"id":33203,"date":"2015-06-02T00:00:37","date_gmt":"2015-06-02T00:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=33203"},"modified":"2015-10-10T04:06:33","modified_gmt":"2015-10-10T04:06:33","slug":"feature-kamelot-06-15","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/feature-kamelot-06-15\/","title":{"rendered":"KAMELOT – Under Blue Skies (June 2015) | Features \/ Interviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMELOT – Under Blue Skies<\/strong><\/span>
\nAnthony Morgan<\/span>
\nJune 2015<\/span><\/p>\n

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\nKamelot (l-r): Sean Tibbetts, Casey Grillo, Oliver Palotai, Tommy Karevik and Thomas Youngblood<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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\nSongwriting sessions for May 2015 full-length Haven<\/em> \u2013 the 11th studio record from international symphonic metal outfit Kamelot \u2013 mirrored songwriting sessions for preceding studio affair Silverthorn<\/em>, Silverthorn<\/em>\u2019s undergoing issue roughly two-and-a-half years earlier in October 2012. Guitarist and co-founder Thomas Youngblood flew to Germany in order to work with keyboardist Oliver Palotai on Haven<\/em>\u2019s respective tracks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe worked really hard on the core songs,\u201d Thomas shares. \u201cWe sent them over to Sweden where our singer Tommy (Karevik) worked on melodies and lyrics, and the final touches were done in Germany at our producer\u2019s place. That\u2019s sort of the way the songwriting\u2019s been for the last two albums. The inspiration, I had a little kick on some of these older post-apocalyptic type movies. We\u2019re really seeing that those things are coming to fruition when it comes to technology, so we kind of wanted to incorporate that into the album \u2013 into the lyrics, and some of the themes for the songs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Albeit incorporating post-apocalyptic themes into Haven<\/em>\u2019s lyrical fabric, the majority of Haven<\/em>\u2019s lyrics were penned by vocalist Tommy Karevik. \u201cWe discuss ideas when it comes to songs and subjects and stuff, but he\u2019s such a great lyricist,\u201d the axeman enthuses. \u201cI totally love the fact that he can do that, and that I don\u2019t have to do that (laughs). I deal with the music part and I\u2019m also part of the management team, so it\u2019s really great to have such a talented guy in the band. Not only is he a great singer, but he writes amazing lyrics.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thomas isn\u2019t particularly receptive towards authoring lyrics himself. \u201cIt\u2019s not something that I\u2019m inspired to do,\u201d he admits. \u201cI think I could do it. I\u2019ve done it for a few songs, like \u2018Nights Of Arabia\u2019 (from September 1999\u2019s The Fourth Legacy<\/em>) and stuff like that in the past, but it\u2019s not really… I\u2019m inspired to make melodies with the guitar and the piano, and a drum idea, and stuff like that. That\u2019s my inspiration.\u201d<\/p>\n

A given lyrical thread is typically dictated by the melody. \u201cI think it all starts with the melody,\u201d the musician confirms. \u201cThe way that we\u2019ve written songs \u2013 even from back in the day \u2013 is that we have music, and then we write a melody over the music, and then we put the lyrics in last. It\u2019s not like we sit down and write down words like a poem, for example. The way it works for us is we work on the melody first, and then we kind of fit in the lyrics and the words that we think work with the melody.\u201d<\/p>\n

Prior to flying to Germany to collaborate songwriting-wise with Oliver \u2013 which has been the case across two full-length platters \u2013 in the past Thomas would co-write tunes with previous vocalist Roy Khan. \u201cWe wrote together either in Florida or Norway,\u201d he remembers. \u201cIt was in a similar fashion that I do now with Oliver, but we have a third person in Tommy, working on the melodies and lyrics. We actually even have a fourth person in Sascha (Paeth) the producer, coming in to help with the songwriting. It really has taken a lot of pressure off me, and I think it adds a lot of diversity to the sound. If you listen to a song like \u2018Revolution\u2019 for example, that\u2019s probably not something that I would\u2019ve normally written by myself. Oliver kind of wrote the main theme for that song, so that\u2019s a perfect example of what I think you can hear; a diversity based on the songwriting team.\u201d<\/p>\n

As well as diversity perhaps, Haven<\/em> boasts other musical differences when critiqued against past Kamelot platters. \u201cI really don\u2019t like to get caught up in comparing them, because each one has got its own thing,\u201d the composer stresses. \u201cThey were written at a certain time and a different time. When we did The Black Halo<\/em> (March 2005), that was a totally different time in terms of what we were going through personally and creatively. I kind of leave that sort of to the fans and to the journalists to hopefully do that, if they want to compare them \u2013 to listen to it, and use that however they want to. For me, it\u2019s another Kamelot record.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s different, which is important. We talked about the diversity in the songwriting. Also, we incorporated some industrial elements in this record. I think the production is a little bit different in terms of the sound. The mastering was done by Jacob Hansen, who is somebody that we\u2019ve never worked with before, and who I think did an amazing job. Those are the core differences. There are different influences; I think there\u2019s some different melodies on the record without straying too far from the Kamelot sound, which is important. Is it our best? I don\u2019t know. Is it our best selling so far? Yeah, which is cool (laughs).\u201d<\/p>\n

While ensembles don\u2019t wish to cut the same record time and time again, by the same token, ensembles wish to avoid a complete musical U-turn. \u201cAnd that\u2019s also an interesting problem for a lot of bands, doing the same album over and over,\u201d Thomas concurs. \u201cYeah, the fans will know what to expect, but are you gonna grow your fanbase? Are you gonna lose fans that are just tired of hearing the same thing?\u201d<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, this arguably isn\u2019t an issue for the likes of AC\/DC and Mot\u00f6rhead. \u201cYeah, exactly,\u201d the axe-slinger agrees. \u201cThey have a formula, but they\u2019re also gonna be playing \u2018Back In Black\u2019, and that\u2019s gonna be the biggest song they play that night or whatever. For AC\/DC it\u2019s not a problem of course, because they\u2019re so massive (laughs). For smaller bands though, you want to definitely be able to grow with each record.\u201d<\/p>\n

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In addition, the likes of AC\/DC enjoyed the luxury of issuing albums in the 70s and 80s when albums achieved gold and platinum certifications. Nowadays though, building up a group to the point of being financially successful is remarkably more difficult. \u201cYeah, definitely,\u201d Thomas responds. \u201cI don\u2019t think if I was starting now I\u2019d go for it, because it\u2019s just really difficult. Luckily though, we have a foot in the door. We\u2019re able to tour, and that\u2019s where most bands are able to survive, is touring. With the new bands, you won\u2019t see the same growth. I don\u2019t think you\u2019ll see the same uniqueness that you did before, because there are less labels taking risks with artists and stuff. At the same time though, maybe there are too many bands out there. Too many bands that are just clogging up the whole thing, so maybe that will weed out some of that. I don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n

The true method of gauging an assortment\u2019s actual success is longevity, or a lack thereof. \u201cIt was already hard enough back in the 90s to stick around for ten years, and it usually came down to personalities,\u201d the guitarist reckons. \u201cNowadays though, if you\u2019re a band and you get hot \u2013 say within your first three or four years \u2013 you\u2019re probably not gonna still be in around in ten years. You probably got hot because were a trend, and trends come and go as we all know. I think we\u2019re really fortunate with our fanbase and the new fanbase, to have a steady, climbing career. It\u2019s been great for us, because we love what we do. Obviously it\u2019d be amazing playing big stadiums, but we\u2019re really fortunate to be able to play big venues. It\u2019s a testament to hard work, but also to having a great, loyal fanbase.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stadium concerts are generally headlined by veteran acts such as the aforementioned AC\/DC, Iron Maiden, Metallica, and others. Once their ilk have entered retirement in say 10-20 years, an issue will inevitably arise in terms of who\u2019ll take up the mantle. \u201cThere\u2019ll be a void,\u201d Thomas observes. \u201cThere\u2019ll definitely be a void, but if anybody needs us to step it up, we\u2019ll go in there for them (laughs).\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018We\u2019 includes vocalist Tommy Karevik, whose chemistry within the Kamelot fold has grown since opening his Kamelot account with Silverthorn<\/em>. \u201cTouring two-and-a-half years straight,\u201d the band\u2019s co-founder cites. \u201cObviously the response from the fans for Silverthorn<\/em> definitely has given him a lot of confidence to be more integrated into the band, and also to maybe put a little bit more of his own signature into what he\u2019s doing now. I think that\u2019s one of the differences you can hear on Haven<\/em> as well, if we were to compare.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tommy\u2019s appointment was originally revealed on June 22nd, 2011, the Swede stepping into a position previously occupied by Roy Khan for a 13-year tenure between 1998 and 2011. \u201cI\u2019m the kind of person that whenever there\u2019s an issue or any kind of situation, I address it immediately and then I never look back,\u201d Thomas reflects. \u201cI think with that situation, that was the perfect and only way to deal with it. We went into the Silverthorn<\/em> album a 100% confident. It took a lot of work and a lot of analysis in terms of what we felt was the right decision, and at the end of the day, we definitely made the right decision with Tommy. I\u2019m never one of those guys who dwells too much on the past. It\u2019s a good lesson to never let anybody else sort of determine where you\u2019re going in life, whether it be some asshole at work, or whoever it might be, or a boss keeping you down. Take control of the situation, and make things happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

An April 21st, 2011 MySpace post by Roy announced his Kamelot exit, although the statement failed to shed light on the reasons behind his departure. \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d the performer muses. \u201cI still don\u2019t know the full explanation, and it\u2019s not something that I\u2019m even interested in talking about any more because we\u2019ve basically moved on from that. We definitely made sure that we kept everything classy when it came to talking about it, though. We wish him 100% the best, and I\u2019m totally happy for him because he\u2019s happy. That\u2019s really all that matters, is the guy\u2019s happy. We had to cancel a tour. That was kind of messed up, but other than that, people have to make decisions in their lives. For us, if that\u2019s what it takes to be a happy person, then go for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

And as well, Kamelot is happy with Tommy behind the microphone. \u201cOh yeah, and we\u2019re having a great time,\u201d Thomas adds. \u201cThere are no complaints.\u201d<\/p>\n

Haven<\/em> doesn\u2019t exclusively feature Tommy behind the microphone however, the opus including several guests. \u201cWe have Troy Donockley from Nightwish playing some cool instrument that he plays on \u2018Under Grey Skies\u2019,\u201d the axeman informs. \u201cWe toured together with Nightwish in 2012, and became friends. Then we have Charlotte from Delain also on that song. We have Alissa-White Gluz again, who was also on Silverthorn<\/em> \u2013 she also toured with us like crazy on the Silverthorn<\/em> tour. She\u2019s the lead singer of Arch Enemy. Yeah, she\u2019s also singing clean on this album, which is really cool. I think it\u2019s a different aspect, and something that the fans probably haven<\/em>\u2019t heard before.\u201d<\/p>\n

As well as boasting Arch Enemy frontwoman Alissa-White Gluz as a returning guest, another familiar face in the form of Sascha Paeth sits in the production chair once again. \u201cHe\u2019s been with us for like 12 years,\u201d Thomas divulges. \u201cHe\u2019s almost like the sixth member of the band. He\u2019s not only an amazing producer, but he\u2019s a crazy, great, good guitar player and he\u2019s got great song ideas. Yeah, he\u2019s just a super-cool guy. He was one of the guys who helped forge the Kamelot sound back with The Fourth Legacy<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe usually send him demos and ideas, and talk about the different ideas. We redo the demos based on what we all agree with, and then we cut the drums, and then we go in and do guitars. Keyboards this time were done by Oliver in Stuttgart at his own studio, and Tommy did most of the vocals in Germany at Sascha\u2019s place. Yeah, that\u2019s basically the way it works. Then with this record, like I said, we had it mastered by Jacob Hansen, which was really cool. I\u2019ve been wanting to work with him for quite a few years. And yeah, that\u2019s basically how that worked.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Kamelot (l-r): Thomas Youngblood, Casey Grillo, Oliver Palotai, Tommy Karevik
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An album\u2019s master ultimately influences its resultant sound. \u201cThe master has a lot to do with the overall volume, but it\u2019s also like a second mix,\u201d the musician describes. \u201cWhen you first get the mix of an album, you can also tweak the mix to give it more mids or more highs and more bottom end. If you have a bad mastering, it can completely ruin a good mix. Sometimes you can fix a decent mix in the mastering, but if you can have a mixture of a good mastering and good mix, then you\u2019re on your way. Jacob is really good at mastering, and making sure that it\u2019s not too… There\u2019s so many tiny, little nuances that most people don\u2019t even think about, but when you hear the differences, it\u2019s definitely there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of the 11 full-length records among the Kamelot catalogue, not all perhaps enjoy a proficient mix. \u201cThe Si\u00e9ge Perilous<\/em> mix (August 1998) I\u2019ve never really liked,\u201d Thomas reveals. \u201cThat was done in Germany. I don\u2019t need to mention the mix guy, but I was never really happy with that mix. I just felt that the balances were kind of unusual. One of my favourite mixes was for The Black Halo<\/em>; there\u2019s something about that one that is unique and special. A lot of the time, it has to do with the songs. The songs are sometimes different, and so we want each record to sound different. Otherwise, it sounds like it\u2019s coming out of a factory. What I mean with some bands \u2013 their records sounding like they come out of a factory \u2013 every record has the same sound.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think that\u2019s cool, when the drums always have the same sound on each album. Each song has the same guitar sound. There\u2019s a certain sound for guitars, and 80% of the bands have this exact same sound \u2013 same drum sound, for example \u2013 which is safe, but is it really cool? Is it unique? Is it artistic? We want a killer guitar sound and we want a killer drum sound, but we also want it to be unique. I kind of like the old school way, when bands like Queen and even Deep Purple or Led Zeppelin were like \u2018This song needs a different snare\u2019 or \u2018Let\u2019s use a different amp on this song than we did on the other song.\u2019 That old kind of approach to creating different pictures with the music.\u201d<\/p>\n

An Ivan Colic-directed music video was filmed Haven<\/em> composition \u2018Insomnia\u2019 , meanwhile. \u201c\u2018Insomnia\u2019 is basically about things in life, all of the pressures that we have in our lives, and it\u2019s a got a lot to do with the pressure of modern society,\u201d the songwriter discloses. \u201cEven if you\u2019re super-confident and successful, there\u2019s still pressures in life that can kind of keep you from relaxing and sleeping. That\u2019s kind of what the basic genesis of that song was about.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe shot the video for it down in Belgrade, Serbia. Those guys, they also did the Ghost Opera<\/em> (June 2007) video \u2018Rule The World\u2019 and the \u2018Sacrimony\u2019 video. Really fun guys to work with. It\u2019s a cool atmosphere down there, and they love Kamelot; they really get what we\u2019re doing. I think that\u2019s a super-important thing, is to have a team \u2013 whether it be in the studio, or the video guys \u2013 that are also kind of onboard with the vision that you have, so we worked with those guys on the \u2018Insomnia\u2019 video. We have a second video that is coming out in a month, which is sort of a continuation of the \u2018Insomnia\u2019 video, which is gonna be really cool. I\u2019m waiting for the treatment. I would like to do four for Haven<\/em>. Right now the plan is to do three, but I would like to do four at some point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cover artwork duties for Haven<\/em> were principally handled by Stefan Hielemann, with additional art \/ layout work being undertaken by Gustavo Sazes. \u201cI basically sent him a few ideas, and he sent over some of the first versions,\u201d Thomas tells. \u201cI wanted to add this skull element to the back of it. After that, we pretty much felt like \u2018Wow. This is exactly what we need for the cover.\u2019 This cover and probably Poetry For The Poisoned<\/em> (September 2010) are my two favourite Kamelot covers. I don\u2019t like comparing, but when it comes to covers, I will compare (laughs). To me, the composition is the perfect mixture of class, but also the gothic and darkness. Seth Siro Anton did the Poetry For The Poisoned<\/em> cover, and he\u2019s like a genius when it comes to mixed media. Hielemann in the past has done some amazing stuff, but I think on Haven<\/em>, it\u2019s a new kind of standard for him in my opinion. So yeah, those two really match that higher level criteria.\u201d<\/p>\n

Haven<\/em> marks the first Kamelot outing to be issued through Napalm, the inking of the record contract being publicly disclosed on January 14th, 2015. Albums seven through to ten had arrived via SPV \/ Steamhammer. \u201cBasically our deal with SPV was over, so we had quite a few different labels wanting to sign Kamelot,\u201d the axe-slinger notes. \u201cIn the end it came down to two labels, but we felt with Napalm that there was a different sense of priority for the band. That\u2019s basically what it came down to. I think SPV did a really good job on Silverthorn<\/em>. They did this thing called insolvency, which is basically like a bankruptcy. They did this a few years ago; another company bought the company, and so then the management was different. That\u2019s basically the main reason for us not entertaining going back to them, but the people there are all into metal \u2013 at least the guys that work in the office \u2013 and they\u2019re all good people.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey did a really good job on Silverthorn<\/em>, but I think with Napalm, it\u2019s a different level. I think they\u2019re making some smart signings. They\u2019re working hard. They understand the promotional part of it, but they\u2019re also signing unique bands and they\u2019re diversifying their label, which is important. So yeah, they\u2019re a small, growing label, but they\u2019re definitely growing fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Haven<\/em> was released on May 5th, 2015 in North America and subsequently on the 8th in Europe, all via Napalm Records (excluding Asia) as part of an exclusive licensing deal through the band\u2019s Kamelot Music LLC.<\/p>\n

Interview published in June 2015.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMELOT – Under Blue Skies Anthony Morgan June 2015 Kamelot (l-r): Sean Tibbetts, Casey Grillo, Oliver Palotai, Tommy Karevik and Thomas Youngblood Songwriting sessions for May 2015 full-length Haven \u2013 the 11th studio record from international symphonic metal outfit Kamelot \u2013 mirrored songwriting sessions for preceding studio affair Silverthorn, Silverthorn\u2019s undergoing issue roughly two-and-a-half years […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,460],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33203","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-features","category-kamelot"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33203","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33203"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33203\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35803,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33203\/revisions\/35803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33203"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33203"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}