There are some bands you just have to travel to see, and for me, Kamelot are definitely one of them. So when the opportunity came up to catch them in Manchester, there was only one thing for it. A 400-mile round trip from Glasgow, three incredible bands and a drive straight back up the road after the show. Sounds like a perfectly reasonable way to spend an evening, doesn’t it? Hahaha!
What made this particular night even better was the line-up. Joining Kamelot were Exit Eden and Temperance, two bands I had never seen live before but was very much looking forward to. By the end of the night, I can safely say there wasn’t a single weak performance across the entire bill.
First to take the stage were Italian melodic metal outfit Temperance, a band I had actually discovered through Dead Centre Media. After covering news of their latest album, I decided to check them out properly, and one name immediately caught my attention: Marco Pastorino.
Being a fan of Serenity, I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Marco perform on a few occasions, so I was particularly looking forward to watching him again, this time with Temperance.
I’ll admit, I’m still relatively new to their music. There were a couple of songs I recognised throughout the set, but I certainly wasn’t familiar enough with their catalogue to be singing along to everything. Not that it mattered in the slightest, because these guys were absolutely fantastic.
One thing that immediately stood out was just how good they sounded. Everything was clear, the vocals were excellent and the whole band sounded incredibly tight. But what impressed me just as much was their stage presence.
With Kamelot’s rather substantial stage production already occupying a good chunk of the available space, Temperance didn’t exactly have acres of room to work with. Yet somehow, they managed to squeeze four massive personalities onto that relatively small area and make it feel like they had the entire stage to themselves.
There was plenty of movement, interaction and energy from start to finish, and it was obvious that they were enjoying every minute of it. You would never have guessed they were working with such limited space.
For a band I was seeing for the very first time, Temperance made one hell of an impression. They’ve certainly gained another fan, and I genuinely hope it won’t be too long before I get the chance to see them again.
Next up were a band I had been particularly excited about, Exit Eden.
Despite having been around for several years, this was their first tour, which made the opportunity to see them even more appealing. I was already familiar with Clémentine Delauney through Visions of Atlantis, and of course her appearances on Kamelot material, but Anna Brunner was a vocalist I hadn’t really had the chance to explore. I knew of her band League of Distortion, although it’s not one I’ve properly listened to yet.
Unfortunately, Marina La Torraca wasn’t able to join the tour due to her commitments with Battle Beast, but Exit Eden had a rather impressive replacement in Chiara Tricarico.
I’d actually seen Chiara perform with Avantasia in Berlin earlier this year, so I already knew what an incredible voice she had. Add to that her work with Moonlight Haze and even a recent guest appearance with Manowar, and it’s fair to say she’s built up a pretty impressive CV.
Now, put Clémentine, Anna and Chiara together on the same stage and you’ve got something special.
These three women can fucking sing!
Seriously, the vocal talent on display was ridiculous. Each has a distinctive voice, but when they came together, the harmonies were absolutely outstanding. There were moments where I genuinely didn’t know which vocalist to concentrate on because all three were delivering such brilliant performances.
Of course, one of the things Exit Eden are best known for is taking familiar pop and rock songs and transforming them into these huge, symphonic metal arrangements. It’s a concept that could quite easily go wrong in the wrong hands, but when you’ve got vocalists of this calibre, it works incredibly well.
Their set included Journey’s “Separate Ways”, Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi”, the Pet Shop Boys’ “It’s a Sin” and Shontelle’s “Impossible”, alongside their own material, including “Femme Fatale”, “Dying in My Dreams” and “Buried in the Past”.
That’s part of what makes Exit Eden such an entertaining live band. Even if you’ve never listened to them before, there’s a very good chance you’ll recognise at least a few songs and find yourself singing along.
Their version of “Désenchantée”, originally by Mylène Farmer, was another great addition to the set, and hearing these familiar songs delivered with such powerful vocals and a full metal band behind them was brilliant.
It wasn’t all covers either. Their original material stood up just as well, particularly “Run!”, which featured a guest appearance from Michele Guaitoli. Having another excellent vocalist join an already impressive line-up made for a fantastic moment in the set.
And it wasn’t just the singers who deserved the attention.
Exit Eden had assembled a seriously talented group of musicians for the tour, including guitarist Nils Courbaron of Sirenia and Bloodorn, bassist Siebe Sol Sijpkens, formerly of Blackbriar, and drummer Marco Sacchetto of Temperance, who was pulling double duty throughout the evening.
Considering the amount of talent involved, perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised by how good they were, but they genuinely exceeded my expectations.
What I particularly enjoyed was that this wasn’t simply three vocalists standing at the front of the stage taking turns to sing. There was plenty of personality, interaction and chemistry between them, and they made the whole performance feel like a proper show.
For their first tour, Exit Eden were absolutely outstanding. If this is what they’re capable of now, I really hope there’s plenty more to come.
And then, finally, it was time for the band responsible for dragging me all the way from Glasgow to Manchester in the first place.
Kamelot!
Now, here’s something that might surprise a few people. The last time I saw Kamelot live was all the way back in 2009 at the Cathouse in Glasgow, when the legendary Roy Khan was still fronting the band.
That particular show holds some brilliant memories for me, not least because I was actually working security at the Cathouse at the time. I spent the gig standing directly in front of the stage, between the band and the crowd. Quite possibly the best seat in the house, although technically I wasn’t sitting down! Hahaha!
Fast-forward seventeen years and quite a lot has changed.
Tommy Karevik took over vocal duties in 2012, and despite being a massive admirer of his voice, this was somehow my first time seeing him perform with Kamelot. It wasn’t my first time seeing Tommy live, though, as I’d caught him with Avantasia in Berlin earlier this year.
Still, seeing him front Kamelot was something I’d wanted to experience for a very long time.
As the intro “Sanctorum” filled the O2 Ritz and the band prepared to take the stage, the anticipation was building nicely. Then they launched straight into “Ashen World”, and within seconds I knew that the drive down from Glasgow had been worth every mile.
What a fucking sound!
Kamelot are one of those bands whose music is so layered, theatrical and full of detail that getting the live sound right is absolutely essential. Between the guitars, keyboards, orchestral elements and soaring vocals, there’s an awful lot going on, and if the mix isn’t right, it could quite easily become a mess.
Thankfully, whoever was behind the mixing desk that night deserves a massive pat on the back, because everything sounded incredible.
This was also my first visit to Manchester’s O2 Ritz, and I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from the venue. I have to say, I was really impressed. It’s a fantastic room for a show like this, and the sound throughout the entire evening had been excellent.
And then there’s Tommy Karevik.
What an absolute machine of a vocalist.
I’ve always been a huge fan of Roy Khan, and those early Kamelot albums will forever have a special place in my music collection, but Tommy is an exceptional singer in his own right. His range, control and sheer power are ridiculous, and hearing him tackle material from across the band’s catalogue was an absolute pleasure.
Following “Ashen World”, the band wasted no time getting into “The Great Pandemonium”, before delivering one of the songs I had been desperate to hear, “Rule the World”.
Now we’re talking!
As much as I love what Kamelot have released in recent years, there’s something about those older songs that really gets me going, and hearing “Rule the World” live again was a fantastic moment.
The setlist was a really good mixture of material from different periods of the band’s career, with songs including “Liar Liar (Wasteland Monarchy)”, “Godlike Alchemy”, “Karma” and “Revolution” keeping the momentum going.
I’ll admit, there were a few more older tracks I would have loved to hear. When you’ve been listening to a band for as long as I have, there’s always going to be a list of favourites you’re hoping they’ll pull out.
But the newer material is so strong that I honestly couldn’t complain.
“Opus of the Night (Ghost Requiem)” was another highlight, with its huge, dramatic arrangement sounding absolutely magnificent live, while “Dark Asylum” and “Ivy, My Dear” showed just how much variety Kamelot can bring to a set without ever losing their unmistakable sound.
And visually, the whole thing looked fantastic.
Kamelot have always been a band that understand the importance of putting on a show, and this was no exception. The stage production, lighting and overall atmosphere complemented the music brilliantly. Everything felt suitably grand without taking anything away from the musicians themselves.
The band were on excellent form throughout, with Thomas Youngblood’s guitar work sounding superb, while the rhythm section and keyboards provided the enormous musical backdrop that makes Kamelot sound like Kamelot.
Even the drum and keyboard solos fitted nicely into the evening, giving the individual musicians their moments in the spotlight without making the show feel like it had ground to a halt.
“One More Flag in the Ground”, “Sanctuary” and “Veil of Elysium” brought the main set towards its conclusion, but there was absolutely no chance Kamelot were getting away without an encore.
And what an encore it was.
First came “March of Mephisto”.
YES!
Another one of my absolute favourites, and a song I had been hoping to hear all night. That unmistakable opening, the sheer weight of the music and the atmosphere it creates made it one of my personal highlights of the entire evening.
Then, to finish things off, Kamelot gave us “Sacrimony (Angel of Afterlife)”, the first single released with Tommy Karevik on vocals back in 2012.
What a way to end a show.
It’s a song that perfectly captures everything I love about Kamelot. The melodies, the drama, the heaviness and that massive chorus all come together to create something pretty special, and hearing it live was the perfect ending to an already incredible night.
As the final notes faded and “Sanctum Requiem” played out, I was left standing there with a massive smile on my face, knowing I’d just witnessed one of those gigs that reminds you exactly why you love live music so much.
Three bands, three outstanding performances and not a single moment where I found myself wishing I was somewhere else.
Temperance were a fantastic discovery and proved they could command a stage regardless of how much room they were given. Exit Eden delivered an incredible display of vocal talent, backed by some seriously impressive musicians. And Kamelot? Well, they were every bit as good as I’d hoped they’d be after waiting seventeen years to see them again.
Of course, there was still the small matter of driving all the way back to Glasgow.
Normally, the thought of a long motorway journey in the middle of the night after a gig isn’t particularly appealing, but this time I genuinely didn’t care.
I must have spent half the journey with the biggest grin on my face, singing “Sacrimony” to myself and replaying moments from the evening in my head.
Was a 400-mile round trip worth it?
Every. Fucking. Mile.
Kamelot: official | facebook | twitter/X | instagram | youtube
Exit Eden: facebook | instagram | youtube
Temperance: official | facebook | instagram
