Some bands become part of your personal history as a music fan. For me, Kamelot is one of those bands. They were one of the first bigger metal concerts I saw when I was younger, around “The Black Halo” era, so I have followed the band with a little more interest ever since. With “Dark Asylum”, their fourteenth studio album, I think Kamelot have delivered one of their strongest records in years.
Set within the Victorian world of RavenHill Asylum, “Dark Asylum” follows a story of fractured identity, madness and the search for sanctuary. It is a concept that suits Kamelot particularly well, giving the band plenty of room for the cinematic and theatrical elements that have become such an important part of their sound. The orchestration, choirs and atmosphere are all there, but thankfully the album never loses sight of the melodies and hooks that make Kamelot recognisable.
For me, though, the biggest improvement is Tommy Karevik. I’ve always considered him an excellent technical vocalist, but over the years I’ve sometimes felt that his delivery was missing a certain emotional depth. It was never bad, quite the opposite, but there were moments where I wanted more feeling behind the performance. On “Dark Asylum”, Karevik sounds much more emotionally involved in the material. You can hear it particularly well on “One Last Masquerade” and “The Puppet King“, two of my personal favourites. There is much more vulnerability and character in his delivery, and it gives these songs considerably more impact.
The guest performances are another highlight. Tobias Sammet brings his unmistakable voice and theatrical presence to “One Last Masquerade“, while Ignacia Fernández and Clémentine Delauney make “Sanctuary” one of the album’s most interesting vocal tracks. Fernández also appears on “Ashen World“. None of these collaborations feel unnecessary, and each vocalist brings something different to the songs.
Then there is “Beneath the Moon (Tunglið)“, which is probably the album’s most unusual moment. The song features Lea-Sophie Fischer of Eluveitie on violin, alongside the ethereal voices of Rannveig Sif Sigurðardóttir and Sólveig Sara Leupold, and incorporates Icelandic. At just over two minutes it is one of the shorter tracks, but its atmosphere makes it surprisingly memorable. It feels almost like a brief detour away from RavenHill before the album continues its journey.
That track also connects nicely with something from Kamelots past. I interviewed Thomas Youngblood several years ago, and during that conversation he told me that he felt the band’s “medieval era” was over. I’ve always remembered that comment, because those folk and medieval influences were such a distinctive part of the band’s earlier material. That’s why I was particularly happy to hear some of that old-world atmosphere return on “Ivy, My Dear” and “Beneath the Moon“. Kamelot isn’t trying to recreate their older records, but these elements give “Dark Asylum” a nice connection to their history. Youngblood has also spoken more recently about bringing some of those Folk and Gothic influences back into the band’s sound, including elements reminiscent of “Ghost Opera” and “Silverthorn“.
The production is in familiar hands, with longtime Kamelot producer Sascha Paeth returning to helm the album and contributing additional guitars. Jacob Hansen handles mixing and mastering, resulting in a big, polished production that gives the orchestral elements plenty of room without completely burying the guitars. It is a particularly good fit for an album that is aiming for such a cinematic atmosphere.
There is one aspect of the record that doesn’t quite work for me, though, and that is the title track. “” feels somewhat too lighthearted considering the darkness of its lyrics and the themes surrounding the album. The song itself is catchy and certainly isn’t a bad addition to the record, but musically I expected something a little more unsettling. Compared with the rest of the album, where the music and storytelling generally complement each other very well, it feels slightly out of place.
That is a relatively small complaint, however. “Dark Asylum” manages to combine the cinematic grandeur of modern Kamelot with some welcome echoes of the band’s past, while giving Tommy Karevik more room to show the emotional side of his voice. The guest performances add variety without distracting from the core of the album, and the production makes the whole thing feel like a cohesive journey rather than simply a collection of individual songs.
Having been a Kamelot listener since before the “The Black Halo” era, I find that particularly rewarding. “Dark Asylum” doesn’t try to turn back the clock, but it does seem to remember where the band came from. More importantly, it sounds like a band that still has something to say.
Rating: 9.4/10
Release date: August 28, 2026
Label: Napalm Records
Writer: Michael
Tracklist:
- Sanctorium
- Ashen World (feat. Ignacia Fernández)
- Dark Asylum
- Sanctuary (feat. Clémentine Delauney & Ignacia Fernández)
- Nocte Veritas
- One Last Masquerade (feat. Tobias Sammet)
- Ivy, My Dear
- Godlike Alchemy
- The Sleeping Mind (Orphic Paradigm)
- Kaleidoscope
- Enigma (Think of Me)
- Cassandra’s Disease
- Beneath the Moon (Tunglið) (feat. Rannveig Sif Sigurðardóttir, Sólveig Sara Leupold & Lea-Sophie Fischer)
- The Puppet King
- Sanctum Requiem
