After his concert at the past Sweden Rock, we met Roy Khan in the festival’s press area. Warm, calm and tremendously humble, he proved to be a true gentleman during a conversation in which his excitement at singing the songs from his Kamelot era again was clear, and above all, at making the people who have followed them for so many years happy.
We talked about The Black Halo, some of its most important songs, that period of Kamelot and what is to come: his new solo album, Conception and his return to Spain at Gineta Rock in a few days.
David Aresté
Interview photos: Susana Manzanares
M.S: Hello, Roy. It is a pleasure to have you with us. Your concert today at Sweden Rock was wonderful. How have you felt on stage?
It was great. Sweden Rock is probably my favourite festival of all festivals. Really, the way they treat the musicians, the crew and everyone is so wonderful. And everything is very well organised and well prepared. I think this is the fourth time I’ve played here. I’ve played here three times with Kamelot. It’s great to be back and play in front of an audience like that. After so many years, it’s really great.
M.S: It has been around fifteen years since you last sang these Kamelot songs. What has your journey been like to reach the point where you felt you wanted to do it again?
Well, a lot of things have happened along the way. But, you know, I had to leave Kamelot in 2011. And I really took a long break from the whole music industry for four or five years. Until I got back together with the guys from Conception, in 2016 or 2017. They showed me some demos. And that was what inspired me to do this again. So we’ve had a couple of albums with Conception. And it wasn’t until Edu Falaschi invited me to be a guest at the Tokio Marine Hall concert in São Paulo. That I really felt like… “Oh, yeah.” I felt so good. I only did “Center of the Universe”. And a couple of other songs. One of Edu’s songs. And also half of a Conception song. But I felt so good. Especially seeing the appreciation from the audience. When I sang “Center of the Universe”, I felt like… “I have to go and do this again.” I love these songs. For myself. For the people. These songs mean so much to people. And I’ve talked to Edu. He has done almost the same thing. He was in the band. And then he left. And he still sings the songs from his time with the band. And it’s working great. It’s so good to see all these happy faces. And, as I said, these songs… I love them.
M.S: What memories do you have of that time, especially the years of The Black Halo with Kamelot?
My time with Kamelot was always great. But, in the end, I started struggling with drinking. And all kinds of bad things that come with doing this business. So, in the summer of 2010, I hardly slept. Almost six weeks without sleeping. And I was very bad. The idea of going to the airport made me sick. I told my wife I was going to stop doing this. I told the band to give me some time. But, in general, all the time with Kamelot… I would like to say that joining Kamelot was a good decision. But leaving was even better. At that time I had to leave. I think I would die if I didn’t.
M.S: Instead of doing a full analysis of the album, let me play a quick and fun game with you. I’ll give you the song title and you answer with a few words or memories. Let’s start with “March of Mephisto”, the album’s main song.
It’s one of Kamelot’s most important songs. It’s one of the songs they still play. They don’t play that many songs from that era.
M.S: “When the Lights Are Down”.
It’s a fantastically arranged song. Sascha Amiru did a great job on that song. And the orchestra is also incredible. I remember writing the melody for that song and working on the arrangements with Sascha and Thomas at my house in Norway. It’s one of my favourite songs.
M.S: “The Haunting”.
Yes. Everything that happened with Simone and the video. It’s one of the songs I would always show in Kamelot.
M.S: “Soul Society”.
Yes. “Soul Society” was like… I wasn’t Christian before this. And at that time I liked the idea that there was something after life. With the idea of “Soul Society” and heaven.
M.S: “Abandoned”.
“Abandoned” is almost like a prayer. It relates a little to the darkness I had in my life. And it’s also a very special song. That album… The whole album… It’s no wonder that album is still the best Kamelot album. I think it’s the best Kamelot album. Yes. As I said, “Abandoned” is also a song that will always be with me.
M.S: “This Pain”.
“This Pain” is a little more of an introspective song. It’s like “Abandoned”, but it’s not a prayer. The prayer is more like me, reflecting on the decisions I make in my life. Everything is involved in Ariel’s story and in the concept of the album. The album has a second level, which is more related to our own lives. Both Thomas and I wrote this together.
M.S: “Moonlight”.
“Moonlight” is still one of my favourite songs. I have many favourite songs from this album. And I love this mix between major and minor in the chorus. I remember writing with Thomas in my room. This period, this period in general, was very special to me. Because I had an illness called Miller-Fisher syndrome. My eyes started to drift. I had half a year when I had to stay in hospital. The pre-production had to happen at my place. Normally we did it in Germany or the United States. But this had to be done in Norway because of my illness. I’m fully recovered from that, but… It was a strange time in my life.
M.S: “The Black Halo”, the song that gives the album its title.
Yes, “The Black Halo”, the album title. Thomas gave us this very interesting guitar riff. And we developed this song that became the album title.
M.S: “Nothing Ever Dies”.
“Nothing Ever Dies” is a bit of a fading song. I love it. It has a unique intensity. It’s not very fast, but it’s like… It has an intensity that I really like.
M.S: “Memento Mori”.
“Memento Mori” is also one of my favourites. It’s a song that is larger than life. In the sense that it captures everything from beginning to end. It starts and ends like a ballad. And then you have the super progressive and more powerful parts. Lyrically, it sums up the whole album in one song.
M.S: And finally, “Serenade”.
“Serenade” is also a beautiful song. I love all these songs. “Serenade” was the natural ending of the album. And Sasha, I remember Sasha came up with the middle section. Sasha took our demo and developed that middle section to make something a little different from what we had in mind. But it turned out great. We never played that song live. But maybe we will. When I set out to work with this song live, I would still include a lot of Kamelot material in the set. That’s one of the songs I’m thinking of bringing back to the stage.
M.S: As I understand it, Epica and The Black Halo are connected. What story do these two albums tell together?
It’s mainly the story of a guy who sells his soul to the devil to gain pleasure and power. But he has some doubts and problems along the way. I’m not entirely sure that… Yes, the main character becomes smarter throughout the story. But he also feels that he is trapped in something he can’t get out of. And he suffers a huge loss in his life with Catalina, who dies. It’s really a strange mix of this fictional story, the story we read. We read it and felt that we understood most of it, but it’s a very intricate book and difficult to understand. But we tried to make it reflect some of our own lives in this story. It has two layers, like most of my lyrics.
M.S: Before these albums came Karma, which redefined Kamelot’s sound at that stage. This year marks the album’s 25th anniversary. Are you considering doing some kind of celebration for that anniversary, or perhaps the band?
The Black Halo is the only album that really… I’m playing a couple of songs from Karma, like “Forever” and “Karma”. And I don’t see the same potential in celebrating that album in the way I’ve done with The Black Halo. You have to remember that I have a solo album coming next year. I’m very happy with these songs. I’m definitely going to include many of those songs in the new set. But, of course, I’ll include songs from all the albums, as I continue with my solo project.
M.S: You will also be revisiting One Cold Winter’s Night in Oslo next year. What can fans expect from this new version of the show?
Well, the set will be the same. There will be some guests. There will be a very good production. I’m going to put a lot of money into the production itself. There will be a bit of attitude, like a three- or four-part vocal section. It’s going to be the biggest production I’ve done so far.
M.S: Are you going to sing “Elizabeth” again?
Yes, the same set. That’s the most important thing. It will be the same order, the same set, everything. It’s incredible, “Elizabeth”. I think there are only about twenty titles left. If there’s anyone who wants to sing “Elizabeth”, I think it would already be too late.
M.S: Perhaps with Adrienne singing Simone’s part?
I’m probably going to bring Adrienne. Her voice is like one of those singers that I can do. Strong and very clean, powerful voices. She has a super unique voice. And I love working with her.
M.S: While you’re doing this tour, I think your solo album is already well advanced. What can you tell us about this stage?
What can I say? People ask me what it’s going to sound like. And naturally it’s going to sound like a mix of Conception and Kamelot and something new. But I’m also writing with other people. It’s incredible. I’ve been writing with Kayo, the lead guitarist. I’ve always worked with a guitarist. I play guitar myself, but this genre is so technical that I can’t believe it. I have ideas in my head, but my fingers don’t follow me. I need a guitarist to work with me. Kayo also has many ideas. He’s very creative and a very good guitarist. Adrián has been part of the production and has written with me. Lars, the guitarist, he, Kayo, Adrián and I wrote a song in New York. And Gus G., from Firewing. We also wrote a song together. But we don’t know which songs are going to end up on the album or what the order will be. We don’t know yet. But that’s something we decide at the end.
M.S: With this album in mind, perhaps it would make sense to have a band accompanying you live. What musicians or bands would you like to have with you?
I don’t know yet. That’s so far away that I don’t think about it. But I would like to come back with one of the bands I’ve been playing with so far, like Maestro or maybe Seven Spires. Together with Seven Spires we’re going to do a North American tour that will be great. And they’re super talented. And the other thing is that it’s so nice to be with people you like. I like being with them. They’re so great, so funny and easy to deal with. They’re the nicest people in the world.
M.S: What are the next plans for Conception?
We’re going to do some acoustic concerts in August. We have a new campaign for the fans. We’ve bought six or seven tickets. We’re going to take nine or ten people to the mountains. This time we’re going to be in Sweden. And then the new album will come out. We’re going to play at ProgPower in the United States. I’m going to play with Conception and with my solo project at ProgPower. But we’re going to make a new album. My album will come out in the summer and the new Conception album will probably come out in the summer. So I’ll be busy.
M.S: In 2027?
Yes, in 2027.
M.S: In September you’ll return to Spain for Gineta Rock. What memories do you have of the Spanish audience?
Always good. I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about the further south you go, the more enthusiastic and devoted the audience is. That energy is unbeatable. I don’t know what it is. Maybe it’s the heat. It’s always great.
M.S: I suppose we can also expect to see you in Spain when the time comes to present your new solo album.
I hope so. We have to do a tour there, that makes sense. But yes, I’m sure we’ll be back.
M.S: Finally, thank you very much for your time. It has been an honour speaking with you. If there is anything else you’d like to say to our readers, now is the time.
Welcome to Gineta Rock. I hope to see many people there. Just stay tuned for the new material, the new album coming out in spring 2027. See you there.
M.S: Of course. Thank you very much.
Thank you very much. A pleasure.
David Aresté