Roy Khan (12,296 views)

[Zedd Squared]

Roy Sætre Khantatat
Member Of: Conception (1991-1998, 2005, 2018-present), Kamelot (1998-2011)
Vocal Range: C♯2-F♯5

High Notes:

F♯5 ("The Promiser", "Silent Goddess", "Solar Serpent")
F5 ("Monument in Time", "Solar Serpent")
E5 ("And I Close My Eyes", "Another World", "Bound to Suffer", "Midnight Sun", "My Decision", "Retrospect", "The Shadow of Uther", "Silent Crying", "Silver Shine", "Wings of Despair" live Italy 2001)
E♭5 ("And I Close My Eyes", "Angel (Come Walk with Me)", "Black On Black", "Bound to Suffer", "Building a Force", "Descent of the Archangel", "The Inquisitor", "The Last Sunset", "Live to Survive", "Lunar Sanctum", "Midnight Sun", "Missionary Man", "My Decision", "Parallel Minds", "The Promiser", "Roll the Fire", "Silent Crying", "Silent Goddess", "Silver Shine", "Solar Serpent", "Soliloquy", "Some Wounds", "Sweet Scent of Death", "Under a Mourning Star", "A Virtual Lovestory", "Water Confines", "Wings of Despair", "Wolf's Lair")
D5 ("Epilogue", "The Great Pandemonium", "Nights of Arabia", "Rhydin")
C♯5 ("And I Close My Eyes", "Carnal Comprehension", "Center of the Universe", "Don't You Cry", "The Edge of Paradise", "Elizabeth (Parts I and III)", "Expedition", "The Fourth Legacy", "Grand Again", "The Haunting (Somewhere in Time)", "Karma", "The Last Sunset", "The Light I Shine On You", "Live to Survive", "Lost and Damned", "March of Mephisto", "Midnight Sun", "Millennium", "The Moment", "Nights of Arabia", "Nothing Ever Dies", "Parallel Minds", "The Promiser", "Rhydin", "Roll the Fire", "Rule the World", "The Shadow of Uther", Snow", "The Spell", "Until Kingdom Come", "We Are Not Separate", "When the Lights Are Down", "Wings of Despair", "Wolf's Lair")
C5 ("Across the Highlands", "And I Close My Eyes", "Cardinal Sin", "The Edge of Paradise", "Epilogue", "The Fourth Legacy", "The Haunting (Somewhere in Time)", "The Hunter", "Into the Wild", "Irea", "The Mansion", "Moonlight", "Once a Dream", "Once and Future King", "Parallel Minds", "Parting Visions", "Poetry for the Poisoned, Pt. II - So Long", "Serenade", "Silence of the Darkness", "Temples of Gold", "Twisted Mind", "Wander", "Waywardly Broken", "When the Lights Are Down")
B4 ("Alexandria", "Another World", "Anybody Out There", "Bound to Suffer", "Bowed Down with Sorrow", "Building a Force", "Can You Remember", "Carnal Comprehension", "Center of the Universe", "Descent of the Archangel", "Don't You Cry", "The Edge of Paradise", "Elizabeth (Parts II and III)", "Expedition", "Farewell", "A Feast for the Vain", "Feather Moves", "Forever", "Gravity", "The Haunting (Somewhere in Time)", "III Ways to Epica", "In Your Multitude", "Into the Wild", "The Inquisitor", "King's Eyes", "Like the Shadows", "Live to Survive", "Lost and Damned", "Lost Children of the Universe", "Lunar Sanctum", "Memento Mori", "Millennium", "A Million Gods", "Missionary Man", "Moonlight", "The Mourning After (Carry On)", "Mourning Star", "Move Closer", "Necropolis", "Nights of Arabia", "Nothing Ever Dies", "Providence", "Retrospect", "Rhydin", "Roll the Fire", "Rule the World", "Seal of Woven Years", "Silent Crying", "Silent Goddess", "Some Wounds", "Tell Me When I'm Gone", "Temples of Gold", "Under a Mourning Star", "Until Kingdom Come", "Water Confines", "We Are Not Separate", "Where I Reign", "Wings of Despair", "Wolf's Lair")
B♭4 ("Abandoned", "Angel (Come Walk with Me)", "Another World", "The Black Halo", "Bound to Suffer", "By the Blues", "Cardinal Sin", "Center of the Universe", "Cry", "Descent of the Archangel", "Elizabeth (Parts II and III)", "Epilogue", "Fairy's Dance", "Farewell", "Feather Moves", "Flow", "Forever", "Gethsemane", "Ghost Opera", "Grand Again", "Gravity", "The Great Pandemonium", "Hand On Heart", "The Human Stain", "III Ways to Epica", "In Your Multitude", "The Inquisitor", "Karma", "The Last Sunset", "The Light I Shine On You", "Like the Shadows", "Live to Survive", "Lunar Sanctum", "The Mansion", "March of Mephisto", "Memento Mori", "Midnight Sun", "Missionary Man", "Monument in Time", "Moonlight", "The Mourning After (Carry On)", "Mourning Star", "Move Closer", "My Decision", "My Train of Thoughts", "Of Raven and Pigs", "Once and Future King", "Poetry for the Poisoned, Pt. III - All is Over", "Quite Alright", "Reach Out", "Reference", "Retrospect", "A Sailorman's Hymn", "She Dragoon", "Silent Goddess", "Silver Shine", "Serenade", "The Shadow of Uther", "Snow", "Soliloquy", "The Spell", "This Pain", "Twisted Mind", "Under a Mourning Star", "Up Through the Ashes", "Wander", "Water Confines", "Waywardly Broken", "When the Lights Are Down", "Would It Be the Same")
A4 ("Alexandria", "And I Close My Eyes", "Anybody Out There", "Can You Remember", "EdenEcho", "Expedition", "The Great Pandemonium", "The Haunting (Somewhere in Time)", "House On a Hill", "The Hunter", "Irea", "Live to Survive", "Lost and Damned", "Lost Children of the Universe", "Millenium", "Monument in Time", "Nights of Arabia", "No Rewind", "Nothing Ever Dies", "Of Raven and Pigs", "On the Coldest Winter Night", "Once a Dream", "Parting Visions", "The Pendulous Fall", "Providence", "Reach Out", "Rhydin", "Roll the Fire 2.0", "Sundance", "Temples of Gold", "Until Kingdom Come", "Where I Reign", "You Raise Me Up" live unknown venue 2020)
G♯4 ("Across the Highlands", "Alexandria", "Among the Gods", "Anthem", "The Black Halo", "Black On Black", "Blücher", "Carnal Comprehension", "Cry", "Descent of the Archangel", "Don't You Cry", "EdenEcho", "Elizabeth I: Mirror, Mirror", "Fairy's Dance", "A Feast for the Vain", "Flow", "Gethsemane", "Ghost Opera", "Glory", "Grand Again", "Guilt", "Hold On", "Hunter's Season", "If Tomorrow Came", "Into the Wild", "Love You to Death", "Memento Mori", "Midnight Sun", "A Million Gods", "The Moment", "Monument in Time", "Move Closer", "My Dark Symphony", "My Train of Thoughts", "Necropolis", "No Rewind", "Nothing Ever Dies", "On the Coldest Winter Night", "On the Loose", "Once and Future King", "Once Upon a Time", "One Day", "The Pendulous Fall", "Poetry for the Poisoned, Pt. II - So Long", "Quite Alright", "Reach Out", "Rule the World", "A Sailorman's Hymn", "Sanctuary", "Seal of Woven Years", "Season's End", "She Dragoon", "Silent Crying", "Soliloquy", "Sundance", "Sweet Scent of Death", "Tell Me When I'm Gone", "Under a Mourning Star", "Up Through the Ashes", "A Virtual Lovestory", "War of Hate", "Water Confines", "Waywardly Broken", "Where I Reign", "Wings of Despair")

Low Notes:

E♭3 ("Across the Highlands", "Among the Gods", "And I Close My Eyes", "Anthem", "Black On Black", "Blücher", "Bound to Suffer", "Bowed Down with Sorrow", "Building a Force", "By the Blues", "Descent of the Archangel", "EdenEcho", "Feather Moves", "Forever", "The Light I Shine On You", "Love You to Death", "March of Mephisto", "Monument in Time", "Mourning Star", "Of Raven and Pigs", "One Day", "Season's End", "Silent Goddess", "Solar Serpent", "The Spell", "War of Hate")
D3 ("Epilogue", "Happy Day" live May 2013, "The Human Stain", "Mourning Star", "Once a Dream", "You Raise Me Up" live unknown year)
C♯3 ("Alexandria", "Among the Gods", "Angel (Come Walk with Me)", "Anthem", "Black On Black", "Blücher", "Don't You Cry", "The Edge of Paradise", "Grand Again", "The Haunting (Somewhere in Time)", "III Ways to Epica", "The Inquisitor", "Karma", "The Last Sunset", "Lost and Damned", "Love You to Death", "Lunar Sanctum", "Millenium", "Missionary Man", "My Dark Symphony", "Necropolis", "Nothing Ever Dies", "Once Upon a Time", "Rule the World", "Sanctuary", "Seal of Woven Years", "Season's End", "Snow", "Solar Serpent", "Tell Me When I'm Gone", "War of Hate", "Would It Be the Same", "The Zodiac")
C3 ("Epilogue", "Happy Day" live May 2013, "House On a Hill", "Hunter's Season", "If Tomorrow Came", "Interlude I: Dei Gratia", "Irea", "The Mansion", "Moonlight", "Once and Future King", "Silence of the Darkness")
B2 ("Anybody Out There", "Flow", "Guilt", "The Haunting (Somewhere in Time)", "Karma", "Live to Survive", "Lost Children of the Universe", "A Million Gods", "Nothing Ever Dies", "On the Coldest Winter Night", "On the Loose", "Retrospect", "Soliloquy", "Up Through the Ashes")
B♭2 ("Carnal Comprehension", "Center of the Universe", "Elizabeth II: Requiem for the Innocent", "Fairy's Dance", "Feather Moves", "Gethsemane", "Grand Again", "Hunter's Season", "In Your Multitude", "Into the Wild", "Like the Shadows", "Monument in Time", "The Mourning After (Carry On)", "My Dark Symphony", "On the Coldest Winter Night", "Retrospect", "A Sailorman's Hymn", "Sweet Scent of Death", "Waywardly Broken")
A2 ("Lost Children of the Universe", "Roll the Fire 2.0", "Twisted Mind", "You Raise Me Up" live unknown venue 2020)
G♯2 ("Alexandria", "Among the Gods", "Guilt", "Karma", "Lost and Damned", "Reach Out", "A Sailorman's Hymn" live April 23rd 2011, "The Shadow of Uther", "She Dragoon", "Silent Crying 2.0", "Snow", "Solar Serpent", "Soul Society", "Sweet Scent of Death", "Where the Wild Roses Grow", "Your Own Lullaby (For Matilda)", "The Zodiac")
G2 ("Abandoned", "Across the Highlands", "Guilt", "The Human Stain", "The Hunter", "Hunter's Season", "Interlude III: At the Banquet", "Memento Mori", "My Decision", "My Train of Thoughts", "On the Loose", "Poetry for the Poisoned, Pt. IV - Dissection", "Trois Vierges")
F♯2 ("Anybody Out There", "Elizabeth III: Fall from Grace", "Gethsemane", "Karma", "Lost Children of the Universe", "Love You to Death", "Memento Mori" live Oslo 2010, "My Decision", "No Rewind", "Nothing Ever Dies", "Poetry for the Poisoned, Pt. IV - Dissection", "Reach Out", "Silent Crying 2.0", "Soliloquy", "Up Through the Ashes", "Where I Reign", "Your Own Lullaby (For Matilda)")
F2 ("Abandoned", "Blücher", "Cardinal Sin", "Missionary Man", "Moonlight", "My Decision", "Soul Society", "When the Lights Are Down")
E2 ("Twisted Mind", "Where I Reign", "Your Own Lullaby (For Matilda)")
E♭2 ("Across the Highlands", "Blücher", "Center of the Universe", "Love You to Death", "Roll the Fire" live Norway 1997)
D2 ("The Great Pandemonium")
C♯2 ("Angel (Come Walk with Me)")

When seeking to describe Roy Khan's voice or singing style, terms like "romantic" or a phrase like "smooth as silk" come immediately to mind. As the former singer for Kamelot and current singer for Conception, Roy's distinctly emotive voice has proven to be one of the most unique and praised voices in power metal. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Roy's wide vibrato and crystal clear tone is not showcased solely in his high range but also in an intimate croon that he used even on the first Conception album in 1991. Because of this, he is generally thought of as one of the lower voices in power metal, but in truth he still mains a sort of "leading man" tenor style persona in much of his work as well. While his piercing 5th octave got much more use in Conception, he also has some great high range performances with Kamelot as well. Post 2005 however, he began to shift more and more towards a baritone tessitura that continued to set him apart from his peers. Khan then retired from the music business in 2011 only to surprise us all by announcing in 2018 that Conception have reunited! It looks to be a good time for Khan fans the world over, and I am eager to hear how he continues to develop his voice in years to come.
....................................................................................................................................
*Underlined notes are found in backing vocals or otherwise obscured in the song mix.
*Blue marks soft falsetto notes.
*Boldface indicates notes that are notable examples of this singer's capabilities.
*Grey marks solidly pitched but noticeably fryish notes.
*Italics mark non-sung notes.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Questionable Notes}F♯5 ("Bowed Down With Sorrow" ²)
E5 ("The Moment" ^[2])

E♭2 ("Among the Gods" ^[4], "She Dragoon" ^[4])
B♭1 ("Reference" ^[1])
G♯1 ("Lost Children of the Universe" ^[1][3])

.......................................................
[1] marks yelps and short trills in high range or anacrusis and short dips in low range.
[2] marks notes of questionable identity that cannot be confirmed to be the singer in question.
[3] marks non-melodic notes that don't have a significant enough pitch to warrant inclusion.
[4] marks notes that possess uncertain pitch or have been pitch-shifted.
[5] marks notes that do not fit the previous criteria but are not of a substantial enough quality to warrant counting towards the singer's range.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Album Ranges}Conception

The Last Sunset (1991): G♯2-E5
Parallel Minds (1993): F2-B2-F♯5
In Your Multitude (1995): F2-G2-F♯5
Flow (1997): C♯2-G♯2-C5-E♭5
My Dark Symphony (2018): B♭2-B4-C5-C♯5
State of Deception (2020): F♯2-B4-C5

Kamelot

Siége Perilous (1998): E2-F♯2-C♯5-D5
The Fourth Legacy (1999): G♯2-B♭2-E5-F♯5
Karma (2001): E♭2-B2-E♭5
Epica (2003): E♭2-B♭2-C♯5-E♭5
The Black Halo (2005): F2-C♯5
Ghost Opera (2007): E♭2-C♯5
Poetry for the Poisoned (2010): D2-F♯2-C5

[Henny Macc]

So I pointed out to Sir Toddington that the backing vocal in "Where I Reign" might get below E2, as the lead vocal goes C3-E3 during that section, and it seems like the backing vocal follows it even if it gets drowned out for the first half of the word. He said he might be able to try isolating it for me, but also said he thought it didn't sound like Khan's normal lows, and raised the possibility that it could be Thomas Youngblood (who's also credited for backing vocals on that album). Any other opinions on this?

[Zedd Squared]

I wouldn't be able to pick out Youngblood's voice very well because he doesn't ever sing lead. Having said that, it's certainly possible. If it were range expanding I'd be more inclined to put it in a spoiler but it doesn't sound too out of character for Roy in that range to me.

[Henny Macc]

I may see asking if he can isolate it then, and we can give it further review from there

[Zedd Squared]

I finally got around to adding the notes from State of Deception to the OP. Also, does anybody have other bolds they'd like to highlight? I threw the bolds together for this thread a bit haphazardly.

[Siren]

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HLDiA8iUNo Great performance, sounds like he sings it a semitone lower and hits an A4 at 2:38

[Henny Macc]

Damn, quite a few lows by Roy in this new Star One song! C3s, A2s, a possibly boldworthy F♯2 in the first minute or so of this. The only highs are some A4s at 3:50, but then the outro at 8:52 has D3s, a sustained C♯3, and B2s.

Tony Martin's parts unfortunately seem to have nothing above B4 (in other words, the parts of his featured in the teaser were the only rangey parts to speak of for him), but...was that a fucking G♯1 I heard at the end of the line at 2:01?!? I have no idea what to make of that, considering that it doesn't really sound like his tone and he's literally never gone below G2 before, but it's credited in the lyrics as being part of his vocal section...

Anybody know who's on which harmonies between Marcela Bovio and Irene Jansen in this? 4:02 and 4:53 are a few examples of where they show up. I can't tell myself, but it sounds like there are some notes that should be added to Marcela's thread there, so I'm gonna tag epicdestruction in this as well.

[Zedd Squared]

Pretty sure the G#1 is Khan (and very fryish at that). It's true that the lyrics label that whole section as Martin but the "there is hope it's not over" sounds exactly like Roy's tone to me and then the bit right after it with the G#1 also sounds like him. Not entirely sure how to count it, but I guess we should get confirmation when the album comes out which will apparently have both a version with entirely Martin and a version with entirely Khan.

[Henny Macc]

Oh sweet, that would be handy! I was kinda hoping it would turn out to be Roy, cause that would make such a mess of Tony's thread otherwise lol. I also agree that it sounds much more like his tone as well, so if it is indeed him I'd be pretty favorable towards counting it. I hear the fryish quality that you're talking about, but it's some pretty strong, resonant fry at that.

Definitely looking forward to hearing Tony's solo version of that song when it comes out, because even if he does that particular line at a much higher pitch (which sounds pretty likely, knowing him), I'm very curious to hear how he'll handle a lot of the second octave notes in Roy's sections, especially that F♯2!

[Zedd Squared]

Yeah hopefully Tony doesn't just sing it an octave higher lol. I thought it was interesting that in the teaser for Roy (when the fans were meant to guess the singer) Arjen described him as a "deep, rich voice." It struck me he's probably a big fan of his low range in particular with that kind of advertising so when I clicked on it and heard dat F#2 I was quite satisfied . I'll hold off on adding the notes until the album's out but it's definitely a dream union to finally have a Khan/Arjen collab.

[Henny Macc]

Funnily enough when I first started listening to the song, the atmospheric keyboards with a haunting low vocal melody over them reminded me a decent bit of "Closer to the Stars". If Tony's version of this song ends up following the vocal melody of Roy's faithfully, it'll be the second time that Arjen has helped us get some of his best second octave singing to date!

[Henny Macc]

Alright, looks like the time has come to decide what to do about this spoken G♯1, which unsurprisingly did in fact turn out to be Roy. I personally think it's kind of a cool-sounding note, though admittedly pretty fryish, so maybe it would be appropriate as a grey italicized note.

Other than that and the other intro/outro lows already mentioned above, there are a bunch of A4s in the higher parts of this version, and one short B4 trill at 4:45, though I was kinda surprised to hear that Roy's rendition of the song emphasized that note much less than Tony Martin's. But still, that makes around a two and a half octave span at minimum in this song, and over three octaves if we count the G♯1.

[Zedd Squared]

Thanks m8, added the notes. The G#1 seems to be seen as a spoiler note overall and I do feel it's more of a grumble than a real purposeful "note" - even if admittedly there is at least some tone to it so it's worth acknowledging if nothing else.

[Henny Macc]

I feel like the G♯1 could maybe eventually make it out of the spoiler if we hear more notes like that from him. I can see how on its own without any other notes to bridge that C♯2-G♯1 range gap it may seem questionable, but I could imagine him using that tone for some other pretty cool low passages in the future, so I guess we'll find out down the line whether it was a one-off or not. It's kind of a shame that line is so short, cause if it were more drawn out I could see potential for that actually being a really spooky, ominous moment in the song. Really makes me wanna hear how Roy would handle a passage like Mats Levens' lows in "The Death Farm", for instance.

[Rodney Blazershorts]

I actually like it, countability wise, but I’m with Henny

[susgang666]

Hi! Kinda random and really late, but I just listened to the original Gethsemane and I think he goes down to Eb2 on the backing vocals of the second verse. Would be pertinent to add to the thread! Thanks!

[susgang666]

Also, I just listened to The Edge of Paradise and the thread seems to be missing the back vocals of the modulated chorus, which goes up to C#5. Thanks!

[Batfleck]

Found a couple notes from their One Cold Winter's Night performance:


C3 in "When the Lights Are Down" (oh, come all ye faithFUL)


A couple E♭5s in "Edge of Paradise"

[susgang666]

In the back vocals of No Rewind, there's a falsetto C#5 in the back vocals at about 1:05 :

[MrToddington]

Conception's original albums have all been remastered, with new demos also released.

The demos of songs that made it onto their respective albums had no changes, but the new songs have a few cool things going on:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpjLR5GVGpQ
Midnight Sun - surprised it never landed on an album, or that it lost out to songs like Building a Force/Live to Survive which don't grab me much.
Lots of Eb5s: 0:49, 2:26, 2:46, 3:59, 4:11. Choruses have backing vocal E5s + lead vocal B4s and C#5s also. (edit: I thought the E5s were F5s, but I think I got fooled like I did with the Silent Crying E5s, oops)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR3Lx_0lAkI
Bound to Suffer - featuring an unknown female vocalist (which due to the sonic quality sounds like has been added more recently than the original recording)
Light B4s and Bb4s in the choruses eg: 1:25, as well as the verses. E5s at 2:16 and 4:01. Backing vocal Eb5 at 3:48.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtj023Pm6Dw
By Dawn's Early Night - an instrumental with some nice bass work, linking here for interest. Bits of this song ended up on A Million Gods a couple of albums later.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQOpNTVjjqM

Move Closer - much of this song got reworked into Sanctuary which was also on In Your Multitude.

Lots of solid Bb4s and G#4s throughout. B4 at 3:46 and a couple of more brief ones elsewhere.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrfIMIMnCCs

Sundance - This was a B-Side to Guilt and has been floating around the web for awhile, noticed it wasn't listed. Lead G#4s at the ends of choruses eg: 1:22, 2:20. Backing A4s at 4:05 and 4:15.

[MrToddington]

Noticed a couple of the things off the State of Deception deluxe edition are missing:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD59SWXZtJ8
Monument in Time - Bb4s (both falsetto and full voice) and Eb3s in the choruses.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuUagn4UN34

Your Own Lullaby - Lots of F#2s: 0:26, 0:43, 1:28. Lots of G#2s also. E2 at 1:22 bordering on non-sung but countable IMO. F#4s at 2:33 and 2:50 (I know you're not counting these atm, but just including them for posterity)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=MII5Bg4WU1o

Silent Crying 2.0 - Quite a few F#2s and G#2s in the first part of the song. G#4s in the choruses (except for the first one). Falsetto B4 at 1:35.

[susgang666]

At 3:48, the spoken words at the end of Pendulous Fall. I hear it as a Eb2, but I might be wrong. But it certainly belongs in the "lows" section.

[Zedd Squared]

Finally got around to listening to and adding the notes from the Conception demo and new tunes. Also added the missing C#5s from The Edge of Paradise, though I don't think that spoken bit at the end of Pendulous Fall has any real pitch to it. Just sounds like a whisper to me. I also updated the OP pic to be from a live show which I think gives the thread a nicely updated and modern feel. I bolded a few of these "new" Conception highs, but I'm starting to wonder if Bound to Suffer is a better Eb5 than Midnight Sun. Anybody have a preference there?

Bound to Suffer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR3Lx_0lAkI&t=240s
Midnight Sun: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpjLR5GVGpQ&t=251s

[susgang666]

I like the Bound to suffer one. More isolated, the tone is easier to hear.

[Henny Macc]

Aug 17, 2022 14:17:38 GMT Batfleck said:

Found a couple notes from their One Cold Winter's Night performance:


C3 in "When the Lights Are Down" (oh, come all ye faithFUL)


A couple E♭5s in "Edge of Paradise"

Did you check the entire concert? I just realized it looks like that and The Expedition never got anything added to this thread, so I might look into notewatching them at some point if they haven't been checked in full yet.