Haken – Visions

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Sensory Records
Produced by Haken

Haken certainly haven’t wasted any time with album number two. Last year’s Aquarius was a lowkey but exquisitely created debut, showing a band that were keen to make long and intertwined pieces of music that were fond of strong melodies, eccentricity and self-reference, but at the same time being very grounded in making accessible and enjoyable music. Their sound could be considered tight and upbeat progressive metal, with a heavy dose of fast keyboard parts and some occasional but sensible wondering into jazzier territory. Despite getting a few nods from niche publications such as Classic Rock: Prog, the band’s relatively humble beginnings meant the album itself didn’t get the kind of audience it should have. That being said, in the last year the band have accumulated a growing international following – and the band evidently have an awful lot of creative energy if they can produce material this quickly.

Visions has one critical, frustrating and perhaps unforgivable flaw, though – it is so significantly better than Aquarius that it actually makes the band’s debut feel worn and dated before it’s time. Even from the start, the album has a much more energetic feel to it, far less introspective (although it has its moments, such as the sombre Deathless) and having a much more lively atmosphere. The style of music is still the same, and indeed sounds familiar – there’s just a stronger sense of life in the music itself.

The opening track, instrumental Premonition, is a literal interpretation of its title, invoking melodies that would latter fully pan out in the album’s conclusion. From the start the album strikes the listener as an album that has been attended to, an album that has been thought over and considered and made to reward the clever listener who’ll observe the subtleties. At the same time, it remains a fully accessible and melodic experience. The songwriting, despite the occasionally lengthy running times, focuses on good melodic hooks rather than overtly technical musicianship or mind-bending rhythm changes (unlike their sister band To-Mera, or many other progressive acts that are too numerous to mention). There’s certainly a threshold of skill shown, but it is clearly not the focus. Overall, it is a clever album – but you as a listener don’t necessarily have to challenge yourself in order to enjoy it.

Like Aquarius, Visions has a fairly short number of tracks, though said tracks are often fairly lengthy. It is nicely encapsulated, having a very clear and distinct start and end, with little in the way of filler material. Nocturnal Conspiracy and Insomnia are perhaps atypical Haken, strong progressive metal tracks with plenty of solid guitar and keyboard work. The Mind’s Eye might be a more surprising track though, if only because it has an unusually brief duration at just over four minutes. This is perhaps Haken’s closest attempt at creating a ‘single’, and the song’s incredibly strong hooks and more standardized song structure certainly make it a very appropriate candidate for a video (should one ever be made). Arguably though it could be considered part of a larger whole, merging into instrumental track Portals before linking into the very signature Shapeshifter.

Deathless perhaps marks the biggest move away from the album’s more energetic feel though, a very dark and introspective song that really gives singer Ross Jennings time to show that, despite being a very tongue-in-cheek frontman, he can do very serious material superbly and sincerely. The real tour de force on Visions though is the album’s incredible title track. Visions itself is well over the twenty minute mark, yet despite this it somehow does not itself feel overblown. Rather it feels like it genuinely needs the time to fully realise the album’s conclusion, both musically and lyrically. Like Aquarius‘s closer Celestial Elixir, the song revels in making the listener go on a lengthy journey before letting go, shifting moods on more than a few occasions and conjuring an epic, cinematic end to the album.

There are some areas where listeners might take issue with Visions. Unlike Aquarius there are no death growls for example, and good luck trying to work out what is going on with the ‘plot’ of the album, if there even is one (it sounds like a mix of dystopian sci-fi, paranormal and time-travel, but who is to know?). These are minor and picky observations that are hardly worth taking into account, though. It is incredibly unlikely that any fan of the band’s debut, or fans of progressive music in general, will not find something of strong worth with Visions as an album. It exudes creativity, imagination and spirit, delivered by talented musicians who are much more interested in giving the listener developed and interesting compositions than simply massaging their egos and trailing off into self-indulgent technicality. It is a deeply emotional and uplifting record, yet still a very smart and intellectual one.

“ focuses on good melodic hooks ”

Tracklist: Premonition / Nocturnal Conspiracy / Insomnia / The Mind’s Eye / Portals / Shapeshifter / Deathless / Visions

Written by James Donovan
More: 2011, Albums, Progressive, Haken