KAMELOT Guitarist Says Upcoming DVD Will 'Blow Away' 2006's 'One Cold Winter's Night'

Yvonne from Kamelot Germany recently conducted an interview with KAMELOT guitarist Thomas Youngblood. You can listen to the entire chat below. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On the band's recent live activities:

Thomas: "It's crazy the way that things are growing. The Tilburg show [which was recorded for a live DVD/Blu-ray] and actually that European tour was our biggest ever in terms of attendance and we're definitely stepping up our game with the live show and increasing the stage production. It's exciting for us. This is what we wanted to do for several years now, to bring a bigger production to the fans. It looks like with the growth of the whole 'Kamelot Nation' around the world that we're able to do that now. It's exciting for us."

On the live DVD shoot in Tilburg:

Thomas: "It was crazy. It was probably our biggest show that we've ever done as KAMELOT headlining and just the logistics to see all these people. I think there was probably 80 people involved with the show. Just to look around and think about everything that went into that show and how everything came together almost seamlessly was just such a relief when the show was over. It was exciting to do the show and after the show look back at some of the footage that we've already shot. It's just really exciting to see how this thing is going to look. It's going to blow away the previous DVD that we did, which was one of my goals for sure. Of course, having my son onstage was also massive for me personally, and he did a great job with the other kids there for the choirs of 'Burns To Embrace'. I don't want to have any spoilers for people that weren't at the show. There's a lot of really cool moments that I think the fans are going to just love."

On whether he has anything new in store for KAMELOT now that he's returned home from their European tour:

Thomas: "If anybody knows me, I don't relax very well. I did have a couple of days, maybe three or four days, to step away from it. But, KAMELOT is very consuming for me. It's hard for me to step away. We have Japan and Australia coming up in a few weeks. Today we announced the next leg of the U.S. tour, so there's a lot of work behind that part of it. I love what I do. I love this band. I love touring. It's something I love to do. I never complain about it."

On KAMELOT's future plans:

Thomas: "I think the plan right now is to do this European tour in March, then for the summer, we want to start working on, maybe slowly working on some new songs for the next record. Then, 2019, September 2019 and October, we're coming back to North America for the second leg of 'The Shadow Theory' tour and we're bringing special guests SONATA ARCTICA and BATTLE BEAST with us. We're really excited about that package, and so far, the fan response has been crazy for it. We're not sure about the summer festivals, because we want some time to spend some time with family and slowly start working on songs for probably a 2020, 2021 album."

On fill-in drummer Alex Landenburg (CYHRA, LUCA TURILLI'S RHAPSODY)

Thomas: "Alex has been with us since June of 2016, I think. We played a show with IRON MAIDEN and at the time, Casey [Grillo], our old drummer was doing some stuff with QUEENSRŸCHE and Alex flew in and literally learned the set in three days. Then he had to come in on the U.S. tour because Johan [Nunez] had some issues with his leg and some other problems, but yeah, he's been great. Basically, I talked to him and said, 'Hey, you need to just finish this tour cycle with us.' He's so cool to work with; he's a great drummer. He's one of the top drummers, basically, in the world. So, we're excited to have him. We're going to discuss the future with him and see what makes sense, but right now, we're really enjoying having such a cool guy touring with us. I mean, anybody that has seen the shows knows he fits really good."

On whether KAMELOT will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its "The Fourth Legacy" album next year:

Thomas: "Actually, we're not really a nostalgia band. I've never been an anniversary kind of guy other than my marriage. I'm always forward and looking ahead, but you never know. To me, that was the record that started everything for KAMELOT. The first three records, of course, were like the basis of what we were doing, but I think when we started working with Sascha [Paeth] and Miro, I think those guys were able to help us hone in on a sound. Even when I listen to 'The Fourth Legacy', I still feel like it's still fresh, like 'Lunar Sanctum' and songs like that. I would say never say never. At the moment right now, we don't have any plans for that. But, let's see what happens. There's other anniversaries coming up too that I'm sure will be talked about, other albums that are coming up on an anniversary."

The second North American leg of KAMELOT's "The Shadow Tour" begins September 10, 2019 in Silver Spring, Maryland and runs through October 12, 2019 in Tampa, Florida with SONATA ARCTICA and BATTLE BEAST in support.

"The Shadow Theory" was released in April via Napalm Records.