Album Review: Eternity by American Progressive Metal Band Kamelot

Kamelot is a progressive and/or power metal band from the United States. Their 1995 debut album called Eternity is the only album that I have heard from them but it is quite a good one. We know that when it comes to power metal, the United States isn’t as well-known in that category of metal. Vocalist Mark Vanderbilt sounds like a mix of Bruce Dickinson and Tobias Sammett of the band Edguy. The lyrics are similar to bands such as Ensiferum, Blind Guardian, Rhapsody of Fire and many others. The first song Eternity is about a person who is sitting on some rocks as the waves of the sea make contact with the shore. An old man approaches him and tells him of some tales. Could this forlorn man ever fulfill his dream of being united with the sea? I guess we can never really know for sure. What follows is a song-by song analysis of the album Eternity. The strongest songs in this debut are Black Tower, Proud Nomad, Red Sands, Etude Jongleur, and The Gleeman.

4. Proud Nomad-This song starts out with the kind of melody that I really have never heard from an American metal band very often. This is because US bands tend to focus more on speed and aggression rather than melody with some exceptions. The song is about a nomad that travels through the desert on horse but he must be careful because others that have made this long journey have not returned. The melody in this song makes it one of the strongest songs in the album.

5. Red Sands-This song starts with some fast picking and sounds more like a power metal song. The lyrics are similar to what was discussed during the Middle Ages as wars were started by countries and the swords were drawn so that people could honor their king. I also hear a part that sounds very much like a riff that Yngwie Malmsteen would use during 1986. It brings to mind the song Trilogy.

6. One of the Hunted-The song has influences ranging from Yngwie Malmsteen, Fates Warning among others. When someone is being pursued there is nowhere for them to run. There is a constant chant of “one of the hunted” in this song.

7. Fire Within-The song is about someone that looks into a crystal wondering what his future will be. The fire is raging and the waters of life are coming in as well. There was once the passion in this man’s life to succeed but now that passion has been taken away and sapped from him.

8. Warbird-This melodic song is about a man that starts his flight on a warbird as this war bird swoops through the air sinking its claws into its prey. However, this song is nowhere near as good as the song of the same name by the band Annihilator.

9. What About Me?-This is a love song about someone being held in the arms of his lover. However, he does not realize that she wanted the chance to do her things in her life and she desired a life of freedom. Sometimes in relationships one or both partners makes it all about them and as a result, the relationship does not last.

10. Etude Jongleur-This is a short instrumental that sounds very progressive in nature and I also see a bit though not too much Gipsy Kings influence in the guitar work.

11. The Gleeman-This is the best song in this album and it is about someone that has traveled far and wide. He has no known home but with the musical power of his harp he is able to maintain some sort of happiness. He wants to sing of the heroes that along with some knights and kings conquered much territory and they were rewarded for their bravery. Then the song is full of melody that is very catchy and this is the band’s finest musical hour at this early stage of their career.

Final score for Kamelot's Eternity: 82 out of 100 points