I both agree and disagree with Dom!
I think Kamelot deserves all the hype they get. They're phenomenal musicians who have a unique image and theme going for themselves and they're also brilliant songwriters in their own right (Oliver Palotai alone is a genius, imo). I think since The Fourth Legacy, each album has gotten better and better, and I honestly believe Poetry for the Poisoned is their best album - it's just such a shame that they hardly got to tour for that album with Khan. Hell, they couldn't even make the Necropolis video with a vocalist, what a shame.
On the other hand, I totally don't understand the cult following behind The Black Halo. It's a good album, there are some wonderful songs on there, but I've heard far better concept albums from numerous other bands so it leaves me scratching my head. I think the songs on Ghost Opera blow TBH's songs away, personally...
Though I can see why they're not for everyone. I think there is a little bit of American pride that's a factor because there aren't very many American power metal bands who blow up as hugely as they have (Iced Earth and Symphony X are the only other two huge contenders, and they're not full-blown power metal like Kamelot). But I do think they've totally earned where they're at after twenty years of hard work and dedication!
Can't wait for my copy of Silverthorn to arrive. I'm a little nervous because they have yet to break their streak of each album being better than the last, so I really hope this isn't the tipping point where they let me down!
