KAMELOT guitarist Thomas Youngblood spoke to the band's German fan club about the progress of the writing sessions for the follow-up to 2015's "Haven" album. He said: "I just returned from a second round of songwriting with Oliver [Palotai, keyboards], and we have around fifteen solid song ideas. We will now start working on the details and decide which ones are the best for the album. So far the demos are really sounding heavy and melodic. I spoke to [producer] Sascha Paeth last week regarding the recordings, co-songwriting, production and possible special guests. It's still an exciting process for me, even after many years of doing this."

Asked if he already has ideas about a lyrical theme for the new album, Thomas said: "We are discussing this now: will the new album be a concept or not? Not sure yet… Once we discuss song topics, ideas, direction, we will know for sure. I think many of our albums have some thread throughout, whether it's a long story or series of stories that convey a feeling or topic. On 'Haven', we had a dystopia vision and the songs all worked into this direction. I feel the new material has some of the 'Haven' vibe, but with new ideas and elements. As a writer, I need to feel growth and evolution."

"Haven" sold around 7,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD was made available in May 2015 via Napalm Records as part of an exclusive licensing deal through the band's Kamelot Music LLC.

Produced by Sascha Paeth and mastered by Jacob Hansen, "Haven" featured guest appearances by Alissa White-Gluz (ARCH ENEMY, ex-THE AGONIST), Troy Donockley (NIGHTWISH) and Charlotte Wessels (DELAIN). The g cover and artwork was created by Stefan Heilemann and additional art/layout was done by Gustavo Sazes.