Customer Reviews

Eternity

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This album is really, really good. 4.5 stars.

I'm new to Kamelot but not to progressive rock. My current favorite band is Circus Maximus (see 2007's Isolate for the best album of the year), and I've followed Dream Theater, Symph X, Queensryche, and others in the genre for a long time.

Last week I went on a Napster spree and listened to each of Kamelot's albums maybe six or seven times. They all had their distinctions and I could clearly see the evolution of the band over time.

With that said, I'd divide the band's work into "early" (Dominion and Eternity), "late" (The Black Halo and Ghost Opera), and "middle" (all else).

The late stuff was simpler in some sense, as it relies less on shredding and more on full band melodies with richer sounds and better production. The early stuff, including this album, have a lot more shredding, more focus on guitar, and are quite melodic (but melodic mostly in the guitar lines). Although sporting different singers, they all sound like Geoff Tate of Queensryche in my mind. Actually, the singer on this album sounds most like Tate than other appearances.

Which brings me to the basic review of this album. This album has some amazing melodies and awesome, awesome guitar riffs. It has a sound that is very similar to Queensryche's Rage for Order. Guitars sound awfully similar, song structures are similar, and I could almost confuse the singer for Geoff Tate's trademark wide vocal range and low range vibratos. The production, though lacking in comparison to later studio technologies, is pretty good and again on par with Rage for Order.

I think this album is creative and features a lot of twists that make each riff refreshing and new. In some ways, I enjoyed this album more than the band's later works, even though they are widely touted as more "sophisticated." It's, in my mind, a back-to-the-past prog-rock-shredding album representative of the late 80s (except recorded in the mid-90s). And it has its mix of ballads and "power metal" appeal for various listeners.

I might add one more notable point that I think is important, which is that the lyrics are not cheesy, as on some metal albums. In fact, I noticed that NONE of Kamelot's albums sound corny, in the vein of metal dragon & wizards storyland cheese as created by bands such as Dragonforce (who I find to be entirely annoying) and Symphony X (love their music, despise their lyrics).

So if you liked Rage for Order or want to hear "early" Kamelot to round your knowledge beyond The Black Halo, I'd definitely pick this one up.

Musically and melodicaly not as sophisticated as the last three studio albums, but a decent listen nonetheless. Origional singer reminds me a bit of Crimson Glory's, though not as shrill, sometimes he sings a little off key. Music & production not up to latest standards, more like early 80's.

I agree completely with Paul N. below. I had the exact same feelings when listening to this album. And like him, I have just gotten into Kamelot's music, and this was the first album I listened to. So as to not contamimate my ears to the newer works yet.

I was totally impressed. Very, very good album. Very guitar heavy melodies, with Mark Vanderbilt's vocals coming across like early Geoff Tate of the "Rage for Order"/"Operation Mindcrime" era. In fact at times, like Paul said, listening to this album can confuse the listener into thinking it was a long lost Queensryche album.

One of my favorite songs on this is "Call of the Sea". Very erie guitar hook during the chorus. Sounds like something off of "Rage for Order" for sure.

Kamelot's follow-up "Dominion" is quite good too, but not quite as guitar heavy as this one, although still quite powerful. It's obvious that the band started to evolve a bit by then. But there's no denying that Mark Vanderbilt sounds like a Geoff Tate of old.

Good stuff...highly recommended. Be sure to get the reissue, as it may be remastered as well, although it doesn't say so. It sounds too good not to be.

Not near as good as most of their other cd's. Way to much volume on the singer. He hits to many out of tune notes. Sounds like he is trying to put to much emotion in his singing. Would not recomment purchasing this CD. older guy.

Overall, I think that Kamelot's debut album is very well-done for a first album. As I listened to it a couple of times over, I enjoyed every second of the listen, and thought that every song flowed very well. Their singer definitely does a great job of converying emotion, despite sometimes singing out of key here and there, and the lyrics are definitely very deep and touching, based on my listening.

The fact that it took me a couple of listens to really appreciate this album, combined with the consequential fact that I would not recommend it to anyone who is new to Kamelot is pretty much the only thing that costs it a star. For first-timers who desire a more epic and over-the-top sound, I would highly recommend the albums "Epica" and "The Black Halo."

I would say that this album is great for experiencing the softer side of Kamelot for some (moderately) easy-listening, and especially if you are not at all picky about how much any particular band varies its sound. What it really all comes down to is that this album is truly a work of art in its own right, as Kamelot are just getting warmed up and breaking the ice.

Overall, you just need to try to put yourself in the perspective they had when they were making this album. No one should ever really expect a perfect masterpiece right away, and this is a good example of such a concept.

An album that is not good and not bad. The production is not so good and i hope they change for the better tin the future

This is Kamelot's debut cd. It is fair, but it is still good enough for me at least. With Progressive Metal, one needs to listen to each CD a few times before taking a stance for or against it. Kamelot does get better with each of there future releases so do not let Eternity as a focal point of this band's use of talent because they do have it.

I'll have to give it a middle score because I never got it. It was backordered but ultimately was out of stock. I'm sure it's a good product because I love the band. I don't blame anyone. That's just how it goes sometimes.