KAMELOT – Silverthorn

Kamelot has been around for nearly twenty years now, and are considered by many to be one of the premier Progressive Metal acts worldwide. They have been traditionally known for their flowing, orchestral compositions and theatrical harmonies. Their previous 2010 release, Poetry For The Poisoned, was a bit of a departure for them, as they presented more dark and guitar-driven melodies. Kamelot’s tenth studio release, Silverthorn, certainly takes their fans back to the glory days of a definitive Progressive and Neo-Classical presentation; however, it appears Kamelot may have taken a more pretentious approach with this one.

Silverthorn is actually a concept album. It tells the story of Jolee, a 19th century young girl who dies in a tragic accident caused indirectly by her older brother. Jolee’s death haunts him throughout his life and inevitably tears their family apart. The visualization of the story is portrayed in dramatic fashion in the video for the song “Sacrimony (Angel Of Afterlife).”

The other unique item of note for Silverthorn is the addition of new vocalist Tommy Karevik; from the Swedish Prog Metal band Seventh Wonder. Karevik replaces longtime vocalist Roy Khan who officially left the band in 2011 due to personal issues. Of course, the natural reaction for any fan is to compare Karevik’s vocal style to Kahn, and they are surprisingly similar. Karevik seems, however, to be taking artistic liberty to re-create the Kahn vocal style instead of implementing his own natural style, which can be heard on the Seventh Wonder albums. The result is a serious lack of divergence, which should be expected when a new vocalist takes over a band’s sound.

Another disparity of Karevik’s vocals on Silverthorn is the thespian-like presence surrounding his performance. Not discounting the incredible talent of Karevik as a singer, he has an amazing and fluid vocal capacity, however, his entire performance ends up sounding like the soundtrack of a Broadway Musical. Encompassed with the overdramatized story behind the album, the whole thing is very stagey.

That being said, the musicianship and overall vocal quality from a materiality standpoint is top-notch. The flawless production and overwhelming talent of the musicians, including band founder and guitarist Thomas Youngblood is excellent. Where this album fails is the blatant excess used in order to present their product. The compositions are very difficult to fall in love with; there isn’t one track that contains a catchy hook or melody. The album seems to have one continuous flow, and the exaggerated vocals make Silverthorn an incredibly difficult album to wrap your head around.

Unfortunately, there isn’t one track that stands out as being a leader on this album. The acoustic “Song For Jolee” seems to be slightly memorable, but the melodramatic vocals are not believable enough to make a lasting impression. Kamelot may need to take a step back and re-evaluate their formula because something here doesn’t click; musicals and Metal simply do not go hand-in-hand.