Wikipedia

The Awakening (Kamelot album)

The Awakening is the thirteenth studio album by American power metal band Kamelot. The album was released on March 17, 2023, via Napalm Records.[2] It is the band's first studio album in five years, following 2018's The Shadow Theory, making this the longest gap between two studio albums by Kamelot.

The Awakening
Studio album by
Kamelot
ReleasedMarch 17, 2023
Genre
Length52:51
LabelNapalm
Producer
Kamelot chronology
The Shadow Theory
(2018) 		The Awakening
(2023)
Singles from The Awakening
  1. "One More Flag in the Ground"
    Released: January 12, 2023[2]
  2. "Opus of the Night (Ghost Requiem)"
    Released: February 14, 2023[3]
  3. "Eventide"
    Released: March 15, 2023[4]
  4. "New Babylon"
    Released: May 23, 2023[5]
  5. "NightSky"
    Released: March 18, 2024[6]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Blabbermouth.net8/10[7]
Metal Hammer[1]

It is the first studio album to feature Alex Landenburg on drums following the departure of Johan Nunez.[8]

Background

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Following the tour for The Shadow Theory, Youngblood revealed in June 2020 that he, Karevik and Palotai were working on new material for the upcoming thirteenth Kamelot album.[9]

Youngblood also revealed that a number of twenty-five songs had been written for the new album, focusing on only thirteen of them. Although the album was supposed to be released in March 2020, both Youngblood and Karevik had also stated that the band planned to release the new album in August or September 2021.[10][11] Youngblood confirmed the number of twelve songs for the album and that the band were going to the studio to record their thirteenth studio album,[12] as well as confirmed that the album will contain a mixture of both old and new elements and influences.[13]

Kamelot announced that they had produced two music videos for the album in May 2022, following the 2021 deadline being passed.[14] In the following month, the band finished the mixing for the album, later planning its release for an early 2023 release.[15] Cellist Tina Guo was later announced that she would be a featured guest on the album.[16]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Karevik, Youngblood, Palotai and Paeth except where noted

The Awakening track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Note(s)Length
1."Overture" (Intro)  1:18
2."The Great Divide"Karevik, Youngblood, Palotai, Paeth, Liimatainen 4:08
3."Eventide"  4:15
4."One More Flag in the Ground"  4:08
5."Opus of the Night (Ghost Requiem)"  5:48
6."Midsummer's Eve"  4:28
7."Bloodmoon"  4:51
8."NightSky"  3:24
9."The Looking Glass"  4:51
10."New Babylon" featuring Simone Simons and Melissa Bonny4:19
11."Willow"  3:51
12."My Pantheon (Forevermore)"  4:34
13."Ephemera" (Outro)  2:56
Total length:52:51
Japanese edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
14."Call of the Void"3:42
Total length:56:33

Personnel

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All information from the album booklet.[17]

Kamelot

Additional personnel

  • Michael Rodenberg – additional keyboards, arrangements on "Midsummer's Eve"
  • Kobra Paige – additional vocals on "One More Flag in the Ground"
  • Brian Howes – backing vocals on "One More Flag in the Ground"
  • Tina Guo – cello (tracks 5 and 6)
  • Florian Janoske – violin on "Midsummer's Eve"
  • Simone Simons – guest vocals on "New Babylon"
  • Melissa Bonny – guest vocals on "New Babylon"
  • Oliver Hartmann – backing vocals
  • Herbie Langhans – backing vocals
  • Ina Morgan – backing vocals

New Babylon Choir

  • Chris Fenske
  • Svenja Kehder

Crew

  • Jacob Hansen – mixing, mastering
  • Sascha Paeth – production, engineering, additional guitars, vocals
  • Giannis Nakos – artwork
  • Karl Dicaire – engineering
  • Phil Hillen – engineering
  • Tommy Karevik – engineering
  • Oliver Palotai – engineering

Charts

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Chart performance for The Awakening
Chart (2023) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[18] 31
Canadian Current Albums (Billboard)[19] 11
Canadian Current Digital Albums (Billboard)[20] 13
Canadian Hard Music Albums (Billboard)[21] 2
Canadian Hard Rock Albums(Billboard)[22] 35
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[23] 85
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[24] 94
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[25] 9
Japanese Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[26] 54
Scottish Albums (OCC)[27] 68
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[28] 15
UK Albums (OCC)[29] 27
UK Physical Albums (OCC)[30] 28
UK Album Downloads (OCC)[31] 30
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[32] 4
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[33] 11
UK Independent Breakers (OCC)[34] 3
US Current Albums (Billboard)[35] 27
US Current Digital Albums (Billboard)[36] 17
US Current Hard Music Albums (Billboard)[37] 2
US Current Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[38] 2
US Current Rock Albums (Billboard)[39] 11
US Record Label Independent Current Albums (Billboard)[40] 7

References

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  1. ^ a b "kamelot-the-awakening". metal-hammer.de (in German). March 17, 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Kennelty, Greg (January 12, 2023). "Kamelot Announces First Album In Five Years, Streams "One More Flag In The Ground"". Metal Injection. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  3. ^ "Kamelot drops new single "Opus of The Night (Ghost Requiem)" lyric video". Chaoszine. 14 February 2023. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  4. ^ "Kamelot Unveils New Song "Eventide"". Metal Underground. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  5. ^ "Kamelot Shares Music Video For 'New Babylon'". Blabbermouth.net. May 23, 2023. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
  6. ^ "Kamelot Share New Lyric Video For "NightSky"". Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. March 18, 2024. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
  7. ^ "The Awakening". Blabbermouth.net. March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  8. ^ "Kamelot Officially Welcomes Drummer Alex Landenburg". Blabbermouth. April 10, 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2022.
  9. ^ "THOMAS YOUNGBLOOD On Next KAMELOT Album: 'Everything Is Fresh, But It Still Has This Signature Sound'". Blabbermouth. June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  10. ^ "TOMMY KAREVIK Says Next KAMELOT Album Will Be 'Killer'". Blabbermouth.net. August 6, 2020. Retrieved August 6, 2020.
  11. ^ "Kamelot Has 25 Songs For Next Studio Album". Blabbermouth.net. August 20, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  12. ^ "KAMELOT Is Preparing To Record New Album: 'We Have Pretty Much Narrowed It Down To 12 Songs'". Blabbermouth.net. 13 October 2020. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
  13. ^ "KAMELOT's Upcoming Album Will Be A Mixture Of 'New Elements' And What 'Fans Expect'". Blabbermouth.net. December 26, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  14. ^ "Kamelot – Two Videos in the Can for Upcoming New Album". Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. May 25, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  15. ^ "KAMELOT – "The Final Touches Of Mixing Are Underway For The Upcoming Album"". Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. June 28, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  16. ^ "Kamelot – Grammy Award Nominated Cellist Tina Guo To Guest On New Album". Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  17. ^ The Awakening (CD liner notes). Napalm Records. 2023. NPR1054DP. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
  18. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Kamelot – The Awakening" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  19. ^ "Canadian Current Albums". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  20. ^ "Canadian Current Digital Albums". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  21. ^ "Canadian Hard Music Albums". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  22. ^ "Canadian Hard Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  23. ^ "Ultratop.be – Kamelot – The Awakening" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  24. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Kamelot – The Awakening" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  25. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Kamelot – The Awakening" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  26. ^ "Billboard Japan Hot Albums – Week of March 29, 2023". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved March 29, 2023.
  27. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  28. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Kamelot – The Awakening". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 26, 2023.
  29. ^ "UK Album Sales". OCC. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  30. ^ "UK Physical Album Sales". OCC. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  31. ^ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  32. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  33. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  34. ^ "UK Independent Breakers". OCC. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  35. ^ "US Current Album Sales". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  36. ^ "US Current Digital Albums". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  37. ^ "US Current Hard Music Albums". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  38. ^ "US Current Hard Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
  39. ^ "US Current Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  40. ^ "US Record Label Independent Current Albums". Billboard. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
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