Interview by Tony Cannella
On their new album, “Haven”, Kamelot continues to prove themselves as one of the leading metal bands in the world. Recently, vocalist Tommy Karevik was nice enough to answer some questions for Femme Metal. Here is what he had to say…
Hello Tommy. How are you?
Hey! I am very good thank you.
How do you feel “Haven” has been received?
I feel it has been very well received and I can honestly say that it’s been exceeding all of my expectations. All the way from the studio where everyone worked super hard, to touring all over the world seeing everyone in the crowd singing along to the new songs. It has really been a cool journey. This is also the first time ever in the Kamelot history that we have an album charting number 1 on the Billboard hard rock charts! That is very cool and something I am very proud of.
“Haven” is your second album since you’ve joined Kamelot. What were some of the differences between recording this album and “Silverthorn”?
It was pretty much the same way of working actually. The biggest difference I would say was the fact that I now have been in the band for a couple of years and have a better understanding of what Kamelot is and is supposed to be. “Silverthorn” was written and recorded before I ever played any shows with them as a lead singer and all the touring started after that. Touring was a great way of getting a feel for the “aura” of the band… the fans, the history and the love… It was easier to incorporate that into “Haven” once I learned more about that.
Lyrically, is there a common theme connecting the songs on “Haven”?
We wanted to portray this dark future that we fear is coming for humanity but also give the listener a feeling of hope… That this is not irreversible… That we can change the way we think and view the world and thereby change the outcome. This is not a concept album in the vein of “Silverthorn” and it is not a story in chronological order. One could say that it is different people telling their stories from the same dystopic world… Stories about how to cope with reality, how to not lose hope, how to stand up for what you believe in and how to pursue your dreams despite your fears. There are elements and characters around which the songs revolve… Some things are connected and could be viewed upon as a story… But let’s leave it at that…
You’ve been doing a lot of touring in support of “Haven”. Are you happy with how the tour has gone?
Yeah there has been a lot of touring and it has been great from start to finish. We visited a lot of new cities and explored some uncharted territories and it was great to see how solid the support for Kamelot is everywhere we go.
Any chance of another DVD?
Absolutely! There are plans to record another live DVD in the future but as for now nothing is set. We want to make sure we do it right and blow anything we have done before out of the water.
Are you collecting ideas for your next record?
Well the brain never really stops spinning =) Got a few ideas for sure but the majority of the music will come together when we are closer to recording and really sit down to start working. For me that is when I am the most creative. A little time pressure is a good thing for getting stuff done.
You are also a member of Seventh Wonder. Is it difficult to balance your time between Kamelot and Seventh Wonder?
Being a singer in 2 bands and having a full-time job does not leave room for much rest, so naturally it comes down to some kind of priority list. Kamelot has been busy for a few years so that has left me focusing on that. As a result of that, things have been progressing slowly in the SW camp. We are now waiting to release the Live DVD recording of “Mercy Falls” from PP USA 2014. Any news on what is going to happen after that will be shared with the fans as soon as we know ourselves. At the moment I am working a lot on some new SW stuff so I can tell you that cool things are brewing as we speak =) Stay tuned…
What’s next for Kamelot?
We got a few shorter tour cycles coming up as well as some summer festivals, starting with 10 days in Europe in the end of April. Looking forward to that! Then later this year we will start working on the next Kamelot chapter.
Thank you for taking the time to talk to us Tommy. Is there anything you would like to say to your fans to close this out?
Thanks for having me. Well… To all the Kamelot fans out there… Old and new…..You guys are the best! Keep coming out to the shows to support us and we will never stop making music for you!