Kamelot – Poetry For The Poisoned

Starting as one of the good power metal bands, after the addition of Roy Khan they became one of the biggest hopes of the genre also adding progressive elements to their songwriting. Now after 3-4 very successful albums in a row, Kamelot has to prove that they have the qualities to stay on top.

“Poetry for the Poisoned” is exactly that. What proves the band’s qualities but stays just there. Don’t get me wrong here. The album is very good and I’m listening to it over and over again. The only thing is that there is nothing in there to surprise me. Perfect production, great orchestrations and a more straight forward songwriting meet the ever-enchanting performance of the Norwegian bard. But is anything of these elements new to the recipe of Kamelot? Probably not.

Most songs remind me of older ones that I grew to love. Björn “Speed” Strid’s guest brutal vocals remind of Shagrath’s on the epic “March of the Mephisto”, only the latest was much more suitable. Simone Simons is about to be announced as the 6th member of the band. We have a new four-part suite here, named after the album’s title, which is probably the weakest part of the album and a copy-paste “cover” of “Where the Wild Roses Grow”. For the end I purposely left the zenith of the album; “The Zodiac”. By far the best song in there, enriched by the great performance of the master of the kind, Jon Oliva. His great voice, along with Khan, creates a two-piece dream team of the genre. Dark, wicked, melodic, perfect. A cooperation that really adds to the song and not just to the credits of the album. Finally I just wanted to mention the great job Seth Siro Anton did covering the album with his dark veil of the artwork.

To conclude “Poetry for the Poisoned” is not poison for the poets that created it. It’s a nice album you’re gonna listen a good deal of times before you put it back to your precious cd collection. But after that, it’s going to be “Ghost Opera” or “The Black Halo” for a revision. If this is your first contact with the band maybe you’ll probably worship it. Give it a try and the decision is, as always, yours.