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Kamelot Concert Review
Mokena, Illinois. Of all places in Chicagoland, power metal elite group Kamelot were scheduled to play in Mokena, Illinois a plains-filled suburb twenty miles south of the city, filled with newfangled strip malls just like the one that housed The Pearl Room, where Kamelot were scheduled to play. A peculiar choice, considering that Kamelot could probably play any mid-level venue they wanted to in Chicago and reap quite a bounty, but this would be Kamelot’s first show ever here, so I shall complain no more.
After foolishly debating whether I should go for a week or two, the Saturday of the show arrived and I, with four companions, piled into too-small a car and made the trek. Upon arrival, we were directed to a remote parking lot and had to walk back up the hill to the venue, but no fee was administered, and the facilities were really quite nice.
The Pearl Room looks rather unimpressive from without, but once inside it reveals itself to be a surprisingly spacious venue laid out in the style of a nightclub. Bars were placed here and there across the open floor with a stage slotted in on the side before the back wall. Stairs led up to a wrap-around balcony with another bar and more standing room. The very edges of it were directly over the stage, so those fortunate enough to get those spots could look downward at the performers during their sets. I explored for a little, fumbling with the photo pass sticker (can never get those damned adhesives off) before settling in upstairs with the others of my group to watch the first band. Ion Vein were the ones on the bill, but another local group, Mindwarp Chamber, got the nod instead.
This was the first I’d heard of them, and while they did not make a fantastic impression, they were quite skilled and seemed to be enjoying themselves. They played a rather progressive form of classic power metal belied by their regular Joe clothing (t-shirts and blue jeans) Actually, perhaps in actuality it was less ‘classic’ than I remember it being, but their vocalist had a Bruce Dickinson circa 1982 haircut, so with that image burned into my mind, I can’t picture them being anything but throwback.
They played for half an hour, met with a moderately positive response from the loosely grouped crowd, and then gave way to the next group, Sacred Dawn. Those of us who had descended to the ground level at first thought they might be Epica (since we weren’t aware 4 groups would be playing and their lead singer had a terribly European looking shirt on), but once they started warming up with the heavy tuning and thrashy riffs, all doubt was put aside. They are another local group, partially hard rock, partially power metal, and as I now listen to their sample tracks online I’m glad I waited until the show to hear them. They were much more assertive in that live environment and the songwriting benefited greatly from the beefy live production. While I wasn’t always enamored with the vocal lines (or the extremely loud bass), their vocalist had an excellent vibrato and their hooks were memorable enough.
They had some of their fanbase out for the show, so the cheers during their set were substantially more energetic than for Mindwarp Chamber, and once they finished after 30 minutes the crowd was well warmed up for Epica. Unfortunately, the quick layover time of fifteen minutes for the first two bands was not to be repeated, as Epica’s set up took just over half an hour. Which, really, isn’t all that long, but when the keyboardist for the band is standing on stage, smoking a cigarette and practicing his chords while technicians scurry about, I think the audience is within its rights to get a bit antsy.
Finally, 8:45 rolls around, the lights go dim, the fog starts, and the band arrives, one by one. Each received hearty applause, but it wasn’t until Simone came onstage, lit by a white spotlight, that the crowd really let loose. I’m not sure quite what I was expecting for her outfit, but the power office-suit she was wearing certainly wasn’t it. Nor was I expecting the shimmy/hip-shaking. Perhaps the pictures of the frosty Tarja warped my perspective on female Gothic bands—Simon really seemed to be part of the band and having as good a time as they were, fancy dresses and cool demeanor be damned. She would make faces at the crowd, run around to individual members and headbang with them, joke and smile, and (unintentionally I know) waft perfume at us in the photo pit. Her vocals, while not quite as flawless as on record, were still in tune and not overwhelmed by the rest of the band. As a peculiar side-note—I’m sure we’re all aware of how stringy and sweaty people’s long hair becomes after a few songs…well, hers did not. Must be that conditioner stuff.
Moving on, the rest of the band tended to stick to their spots a little more than Simone, but they were (almost) all quite energetic and clearly enjoying themselves. That boisterous atmosphere seeped into the music, which I personally find mundane on album, making even the least enthralling composition at least fun to be part of the crowd for. I admit, as enjoyable as that was, the best part of their set was not when Simone took off her stuffy jacket, but actually when she left the stage so Mark Jansen took over lead vocals for the cover of the set. Crystal Mountain.
Yes, Epica covered Death. And although Chuck didn’t manifest and shred up a storm, I believe he would have appreciated their effort. The synth arrangements were appropriately understated, and second guitarist Ad Sluijter (who up until this point looked a little out of place, actually, hence the ‘(almost)’ seen above) was able to show off his skills, managing the complex riffs and solos rather well. Mark’s own voice combined with the synths actually sounded as though they would fit well into a symphonic black metal band, Tvangeste, perhaps, which I found curious. Too, the obviously more technical demands of the material showed that Epica do indeed know how to use their instruments, which was pleasantly reassuring. I at times doubt the abilities of groups such as this since their album material is so standard, and it is indeed true that aside from ‘Crystal Mountain’ they played predominantly power chords with hardly any variation, but they have a good time at what they do, and that’s really the most important thing. After their set, their keyboardist, Coen Janssen, was even kind enough to stretch up a setlist to someone on the balcony.
Come 9:15, they finished up and left to much applause. And although Kamelot took just as long to prepare as did Epica, from the moment the attention of the crowd was shifted from all the opening groups to Kamelot, time seemed hardly to pass at all. Between speculation, anticipation, and the eventual reward, the Kamelot atmosphere was nearly intoxicating.
Now, I had seen Khan previously when he regrouped with Conception at Progpower, but Kamelot is truly a different experience altogether, and I was most eager to see him in his full element. To be honest, the rest of the band look a little drab in their promo pictures, if I do say so myself. I’m not sure precisely what it is, but they don’t look as though they’d do all that much on stage or really get visibly passionate about their music. We at The Pearl Room were in luck, though; as the set began and stalwart members Casey Grillo and Thomas Youngblood came out along with new keyboardist Oli Palotai and session bassist Sean Tibbets, it was obvious that they are no slouches and were ready to give us a good show. To drive this point home, they began immediately with ‘When The Lights Are Down’, the ‘The Black Halo’s most uptempo track. Be, even as energized as they all were, once Khan strolled out at the beginning of the verse, he was in total control.
He has been cited as one of power metal’s most exceptional vocalists on album, and those who have seen Kamelot in concert can also attest to his outstanding live charisma. The intense emotion and character of his vocals are reflected in his body language, facial expressions, gestures, everything. From the teenage girls screaming his name to the actual musicians in the crowd just enjoying the music, he can appeal to us all.
From a critical perspective, his performance was not quite up to the standard set at Progpower, but that is a nearly impossible performance to match. Kamelot are on tour, after all, not playing just one set, so there’s undoubtedly a fatigue element to consider. The only place his performance suffered, really, was in the transition from the middle register to the highest. Each register on its own was beautiful, falsetto included, and the way in which he completely gave himself to the music made up for whatever technical flaws there were.
The rest of the band was spot on, from Youngblood’s elegant phrasings to the piano and drum solos of Oli and Casey, respectively. Casey’s kit looked unnecessarily fancy at first with an overarching bar holding the crash cymbals, but his precise use of it proved him able and worthy. It’s interesting that one of the slowest power metal bands around would place such an emphasis on individual performance (and call themselves a progressive group, no less), but with such performances as this one I cannot argue with the claim.
They played mostly material from ‘The Black Halo’, understandably, but ‘Center of the Universe’, ‘Forever’, and other choice cuts from their more recent back catalogue did appear. The female vocalist who occasionally appeared to perform Helena’s pieces sounded like the very same who performed on ‘Epica’, another professional touch, but I’ve not found any information confirming this.
No mistaking Simone, though, when she came out for ‘The Haunting’, which had nearly half the crowd swooning over either one vocalist or the other. The two had a very powerful connection, really playing up the romantic character of the song, but not explicitly, simply through looks and outstretched arms, etc.
That track was but one of a rather long encore including a ballad dedicated to the audience and their closer, ‘March of Mephisto’. It appeared as though Youngblood was actually supplying the harsh vocals of Shagrath’s part for this song, but I suspect there were also backing tracks. The intro to the song was dubbed in, including Shagrath’s part before the verse, and the growls in the chorus sounded quite a lot like the original, but perhaps I do not give credit where credit is due. Either way, it makes for a curious moment and adds to Youngblood’s extensive repertory.
For this last track, Khan changed outfits for the third time and sported a long jacket over his already fanciful outfit. Few men can wear clothes like that and not seem overwhelmingly self-absorbed, but I say truly that with performances like this Khan and Kamelot have earned their leather pants ten times over. Templar crosses on the knees and all.
Finally wrapping up at 11:30, the band took their bows and tossed out memorabilia to the crowd. Those up in that corner above the stage (people from my group, actually) managed to snag a drumstick and set-list while I got ahold of a signature series bass pick (not to mention nearly 400 pictures) to cap off a successful evening.
For a new venue, The Pearl Room organized quite a professional show, and their upcoming roster looks just as impressive. If every show is as successful as this one, the 80 mile round trip will soon sound like a bargain deal.
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