Kamelot.....quick thoughts...
- Thread starter Mosquito
- Start date
General Zod
Ruler of Australia
Interesting. I would say Epica is their weakest disc.
I asked Thomas about this. He said (I'm paraphrasing), that when they play songs from The Fourth Legacy, most of the crowd has no idea what they're hearing.
pack1fan4life
Member
Harris The Epic
The Keyboard Guy
I think it's one of their weaker ones.
Most of Kamelot's fans really jumped on board around the time of The Black Halo and Ghost Opera, so that and later stuff is what most people want to hear.
It was awesome hearing Karma live. I was glad to hear Tommy do that song because that was what they closed with the first time I ever saw them. And Roy's performance stuck with me for that, so I really wanted to hear Tommy sing it.
But honestly, I think that their first tour after Silverthorn comes out should just be the entire album of Silverthorn, with like 4 other songs at the end.
What was the general consensus of Tommy Karevik's performance?
^ Yeah, that's basically it.
Most of Kamelot's fans really jumped on board around the time of The Black Halo and Ghost Opera, so that and later stuff is what most people want to hear.
It was awesome hearing Karma live. I was glad to hear Tommy do that song because that was what they closed with the first time I ever saw them. And Roy's performance stuck with me for that, so I really wanted to hear Tommy sing it.
But honestly, I think that their first tour after Silverthorn comes out should just be the entire album of Silverthorn, with like 4 other songs at the end.
What was the general consensus of Tommy Karevik's performance?
Yonfon
Member
I was just hoping Oliva would join them for The Zodiac since he was at Progpower. But it was still awesome. Tommy is a great fit
Braxil
Member
That really isn't much of an argument. If they played songs live that fans hadn't heard and they liked it, wouldn't they be motivated to check out those albums? If a fan saw a setlist before going to a concert that indicated they'd play certain songs, wouldn't they have an urge to listen to them beforehand?
They had fans before The Black Halo came out, plenty of them, and the reason the newer fans seem to dominate the crowds at their shows isn't because the old ones have disappeared, it's because it's hard to justify paying money to see a band when they're going to play little to none of the songs you like.
Mardoch
Defender of the Universe
I was hoping to go see them in New Orleans too, but it's going to be impossible. I'm so down with throwing a lot of cash at Kamelot for the way they've handled everything over the last several years. Is there another band that's done anything like it with such grace and come out the other side so crazy strong?
I think it also depended on where you were standing. On Wednesday, I was near the stage in front of Casey, and I was overwhelmed with bass and drums, with the guitar mostly punching through during solos. On Thursday, I was on the rail in front of Thomas and the mix sounded FAR better - drums still came through nicely, bass maybe a bit low, but guitars and vocals where they should be in the mix.
It was clear that the drums were cutting through the mix in a major way. I wouldn't say that Kamelot got completely hosed on sound - I've seen a lot worse treatment of opening bands - but due to the layers of their music, they greatly benefit from being in a headlining slot and having full control of the soundboard.
General Zod
Ruler of Australia
Glad I could be a source of news for you and everyone you know.
I'm not saying it's a good argument, I'm just telling you what he told me. Here's the exact back and forth from the interview I did with him leading up to last year's festival:
Greg: As a singer ages his range tends to diminish. And often the first thing that fades is his higher range. Are there now songs, especially from your back catalog, that you really can't play live any more?
Thomas: I don't know. I think it's a combination of different things. We don't play a song like "Nights of Arabia" anymore, not specifically because it's got these really high notes in it. It's because when we play some of these older songs it doesn't connect with the crowd, because a lot of people haven't heard those songs. It's funny, the new record has probably (created) 50% of our fans, and maybe 40% from the previous two, and 10% are the fans from the beginning. So when you play a song like "The Fourth Legacy" or something like that, you have 10 people over here freaking out and everybody else is like, "What song is that?" (mutual laughter)
Greg: I never thought of it like that.
Thomas: And as we are evolving, obviously the songs are changing too, based on whatever... whether it's how we want the vocals to sound or whatever. I don't really know. I know there are some vocalists that still sing high, even if they're fifty or sixty. That's probably a good one for Roy.
I think your point, about how playing these old songs might sell records, is a fair one. However, bands don't seem to be as concerned about back catalog sales. Thomas is a business man. And what labels generally look at (one of the industry guys can correct me if I'm wrong on this), is how much your last disc sold. Plus, if the band spent time playing five new songs that people don't know yet (so they can push the new album) and then they play three old songs from a disc like The Fourth Legacy, than half the show isn't people rocking out, having a great time at your show. It's spent with them hearing music they're not familiar with.
DuchessOfDork
Member
- Feb 9, 2009
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Watched their set on Friday in Springfield, and I was surprised that I knew all the songs they played! I'm not the biggest Kamelot fan ever, I only have maybe half their albums, but I enjoyed everything. Like I've been telling people since we found out about the new vocalist, he's fantastic. They all put on a great show. We felt that their set was a bit short, but I can understand, being that they're playing a show every single night.
- Feb 17, 2009
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KingsGene
God of Thunder
Saw the show again in KC last night. Big turnout for a KC "underground" metal show, may have been sold out at the Beaumont Club. Very pleasantly surprised, although they opened the doors late and it took forever to get into the place so I missed the first song or two.
I may be wrong, but Tommy seems to be struggling a bit. Might be feeling the effects of an American tour. It seems many of the European vocalists have some trouble staying healthy over here. Better sound here, but still getting the short end of the stick soundwise being the opening band compared to Nightwish sound.
Can someone explain to me why you have to have a drum solo, keyboard solo and back-&-forth crowd chants when you only have 45 minutes? They could've played at least one or two more complete songs in that time frame.
I may be wrong, but Tommy seems to be struggling a bit. Might be feeling the effects of an American tour. It seems many of the European vocalists have some trouble staying healthy over here. Better sound here, but still getting the short end of the stick soundwise being the opening band compared to Nightwish sound.
Can someone explain to me why you have to have a drum solo, keyboard solo and back-&-forth crowd chants when you only have 45 minutes? They could've played at least one or two more complete songs in that time frame.
MeTuLHeD
A Member To Remember
Well, while I might agree with you that it sucks, it's still just "the way it is". And it's no "industry secret". This has been SOP in the music industry for as long as I can remember...especially in The Big Leagues.
Most major tour riders actually require that anywhere from 1/2 to 2/3 of the PA be turned OFF when the opening band is playing...as part of the actual contract. For example, on the last Van Halen tour the opener got 1/3 of the actual system. Which in a 25-30K seat arena basically equals "suck" for the opener.
But, it's the way things are done. Doesn't mean I like it. But it is what it is. And the opening bands know it upfront before even signing a contract. So it's not as if it gets sprung on them by surprise. They accept the terms long before the buses roll.
I think once Kamelot comes back for a headliner tour (once the new album is out) they'll mix the set up more. After reading setlists online I was also disappointed but they sounded awesome live! I guess if it wasn't my first time seeing them live I might have more to complain about but I can't wait till they come back for a US headline tour!
Yeah I was wondering the same thing. I would have preferred if they played EdenEcho and Soul Society (like they did at some other shows [or so i heard]in Worcester than what you said. The set was amazing though and I still had a blast. I am glad they played The Great Pandemonium though (I read some sets where they skipped that one too), I think songs from Poetry for the Poisoned don't get played live enough.
I think I said this in my previous post but when they come back to the US as a headliner I hope they mix their set up more.
Kamelot's show in Tempe Az, to put it midly was the best Kamelot show I have ever seen, they were spot on, on evvery song, firining on all cylinders, even when Tommy took a plunge off the stage(not hurt bad, hit his shoulder) he never missed a note, truly professional. as far as the keyboard solo and drum solo, and crowd chants, well the solos lasted maybe 4 sec total, but the crowd chants were really a part of the show, and were awesome.
