Affinity

Somewhere between metal and rock, deeply rooted in progressive either way, this blends together the aggressiveness of metal with a rare peacefulness on this side of the musical spectrum, to produce ultimately a fairly rare result. It uses the syncopated energy of prog metal along with some of its abrasiveness to accent the riffs and confer a weight and precision to the music, that binds to the eclectic influences taking various different shapes in each track. There's an infatuation with the pure girth that metal allows, most notable with the presence of 8-string guitar instruments, compounded by a strong willingness to include 80's synth-based composition, as this album is essentially attempting to build a meaningful bridge between modern heavy music and a thinner retro sound, reconciling the violence of the first with the dreamy fantasy of the second.

Among the highlights here, "1985" couldn't possibly be more clear about what its objective is. If the name alone doesn't fully establish the mood, then a glance at the synthwave cover art and a taste of that sunny vintage 80's rock settles it. Electronic tom fills and snare samples, an outlandish Peter Gabriel style verse, laden with arrangements and textures, the entire dedicated instrumental part at the middle that's totally Vince Dicola and his work for 'Transformers the Movie' (1986)...it's all there.

The strength on this album however is probably, and ironically, the choruses. Ironic because these bands often invest heavily on the virtuosic aspects of the composition and gamble on the technical proficiency being overwhelming and such a point of emphasis for the listener, that they forget the music is void of elaborate, memorable themes. Not the case here. If anything the songs might be too long for their own good, and perhaps should've weighted more on those radiant chorus sections. Certainly parts of the more accessory instrumental work could easily be trimmed out seeing not much is happening in areas, or how the choruses are such an allure the listener may just be waiting for those to finally return. There's a bit of a disparity in quality between chorus and non-chorus material. The 15min monster on this, 'The Architect', is a perfect example of that: the song is pleasant most of the way but also more or less predictable. It's quite obvious what's going on. And then, the choir-pad backed chorus is nothing short of sublime and absolutely luminous, nearly unhoped for in a track that sounded like it wouldn't surprise. Strong 8-string guitar work in the background contributing articulation and detail to the section while also fitting into the chord progression, with an excellent vocal melody line over the top.

Perhaps the issue is that the prog influences are too obvious: King Crimson ('The Architect', midway clean guitar pattern), the part after that (no joke) sounds 100% like an Opeth record is playing, the aforementioned 80's artists... maybe it feels like too much of a nostalgic homage to the early days of generation X. There's undoubtedly original content here though besides that facet. On 'Earthrise' they avoid being outright radio music, which is a bit of a showpiece for the band as that song sounds like it's trying its best to be mainstream and yet that hint of heaviness at the back keeps it from reaching the surface. The main melody on 'Red Giant', that repeats in an ethereal space in the middle of the song, is sticky as hell and shows the band in full mourning mode, in a journey that had been all high-paced action and bright so far.

The band also shows they've got a certain depth about them in the lyrics, here the chorus to 'The Endless Knot': "We need a story to believe in, we need a hero to prevail. We need a challenge we can overcome, it takes a tragedy to make us one". Considering how pseudo-philosophical and abstract lyrics in prog will often be, that's a very nice addition of meaningful, concrete messages as the words add their power to the music. Also the last track culminates in a sort of grand finale, ending a distinctly melancholic song on a positive note full of hope. So the album offers the listener a tangible base, with direction and purpose, rather than a mere collection of aimless prog wankery.

All in all this album has a bit of a special feel to it, because of how totally self-conscious it is about its endeavor and how it involves the listener and gets them in on the act. The production is quite stellar, with the vocals in particular superbly mixed in (especially luscious on the harmonies). The element of variety here is certainly nice, between electronic drum samples, loads of synth textures, the 8-string guitars, or the various registers of the voice. For criticism, again it is likely culpable of being too much of a homage album to 80's music.

Haken hail all the way from London in the United Kingdom and play a style of progressive metal that swings from a much lighter progressive rock sound to the much heavier progressive metal style which draws heavily upon bands such as Porcupine Tree to the more the recent sounds of Opeth and Fates Warning.

Haken’s latest album ‘Affinity’, is the 4th full studio album by the band and follows the 2013 album ‘The Mountain’ and is also the first album to feature new bassist, Conner Green, who has replaced long term bassist Thomas MacLean. Once more, the production for ‘Affinity’ has been conducted by the band themselves under the guidance of heavy metal mastermind, Jens Bogren who’s resumé would take too long to mention here and between them, have turned ‘Affinity’ into a solid sounding progressive album. At times, ‘Affinity’ begins to border on hero worship with a very modern sound given the 80’s treatment, the guitars of Richard Henshall and Charlie Griffiths combining forces with the bass and keyboards of Green and Diego Tejeida bringing back memories of 80’s-era Rush, Genesis, Yes and Toto. In true progressive metal form, ‘Affinity’ is beautifully mixed and is one of the best sonically sounding progressive metal albums that you will hear from 2016, each instrument can be heard clearly and precisely, allowing you to enjoy, dissect and appreciate every part.

It isn’t just the sound of ‘Affinity’ which is very reminiscent of the 1980’s, it is the whole package. From the minimalistic album cover, simple block colours and the ‘Doctor Who’ styled font which all give elements of that impending sci-fi sound that begins to emanate from the album the second that begins to play. As an album, ‘Affinity’ isn’t strictly a concept album, however, the songs are all linked with the common theme of technology and how our relationship is dependently intertwined within it and as the R2-D2 bleeps and bloops of ‘Affinity.exe’ build up to a crescendo which soon gives way to ‘Initiate’, the albums first real official track and you suddenly get a big slice of what ‘Affinity’ is going to be about.

As you would expect from an album of this technicality, the vocals of Ross Jennings are excellent, yet very clinical. However, Jennings suffers from what a lot of progressive metal vocalists do and that is that the vocals appear to be extremely constrained. Each rise and fall in the vocal melody seems to have been meticulously planned, thus giving the feeling that the vocals lose their power, impact and debatably their soul as the voice is used an instrument as opposed to a mouthpiece. However, to be so highly critical of Jennings would be taking away from what a decent vocalist he actually is, his vocals on ‘Lapse’ and in particular ‘Earthrise’ provide the perfect paint to the musical outlines, but it is ‘The Architect’, the centrepiece which steals the show and ultimately makes the album, clocking in at a mighty 15:40, ‘The Architect’ is an utter tour de force and manages to push its way to the forefront through the growling vocals of Einar Solberg, the vocalist from Norwegian prog metallers, Leprous.

As an album ‘Affinity’ is extremely well written, it is melodic and catchy with each song easily able to draw you in with musicianship that is second to none. In particular, credit is due for the soundscapes and keyboard parts from Tejeida which are excellent and manage to add to the overall ambient feel with no gaps in the sound from the complex time changes. The overall 80’s vibe on the album manages to give a familiar sound with a great modern twist, this would appease to the current fans of Haken, whilst attracting brand new followers with their interesting sound. ‘Affinity’ is a good album and definitely worth a listen as it is one of the best progressive metal albums that you will hear in 2016. Don’t waste your time and money on the latest Dream Theater album, buy ‘Affinity’ instead, it is significantly better.

So Haken is a new band to me, but apparently they have a lengthy discography - which I was not familiar with coming in to the listening of this album (which may be a good thing). Before I say anything further I should point out that my taste in metal usually runs the continuum of the classics, and early 90's death metal. I am also more of a guy that will pull out Bestial Raids before I would ever consider 99% of most of the "modern" metal that is out there. And yet - this album drew me in.

Make no mistake, this album is about as "modern" as metal gets while giving smooth nods to the history of progressive rock. These guys are excellent musicians, and for all of the djent like filler on the album, it is brief enough that it doesn't ruin the experience. One of the strong points of the album is the seamless transitions, and all of those cliché djent parts end up being used primarily as such. If the band made the identity of their songs based on heavy breakdowns, this album would be pure shit. But they don't, and the song writing is really smart, and they are sick musicians - so everything works out.

Will the album ironically come across as dated because of their linear approach to the heavy side of things? Probably - and so it loses some of its luster. But I feel I wouldn't have approached the album objectively if I had focused on that. Accepting the heavier parts for what they are (filler), opens up the album as a masterpiece in progressive metal/rock. The album is decidedly happy, and I'm cool with that because it's happy in a way that old Yes or Rush would have conveyed - and that's always welcome to any fan of old prog rock, such as myself. I would have given the album a stronger score if the band could somehow make the metal parts more their own, and less contrived. Essentially, all they need to do is ditch the Meshuggah parts and then, they will really be on to something special. Still, this is a sweet, and atmospheric listen that the part of me which wants to get away from blasts and screams, joyfully embraces.

Haken would appear ideal to cover the man vs. machine theme in a concept-styled album. Their lavish journeys throughout “Aquarius” and “Visions” were more soundtracks to stories than songs stitched together to form a collective opus, and thus I naturally anticipated “Affinity” to tickle my prog spot. Part of Haken’s appeal comes from their diverse musical background; they are not firmly rooted in progressive metal, but use it as a catalyst to instill other influences, often to superb degrees. “Affinity,” according to the band, was mostly inspired by prog from the 80s and that time period’s general bullshit, hence the cover art that looks stripped from the box of an Atari game. The record is a throwback to prog of that era, as mentioned, only they manage to drop down a peg from the reversion process. As much as I enjoy Haken’s mannerisms, “Affinity” is an underwhelming experience.

The theme is standardization. Haken’s progressive metal/rock style is in full form, but a lot of the adventure of their prior works is sterilized for a more traditional approach. Take, for instance, the innovative keyboard work, a focal point of the band’s pursuits, that appears scaled back compared to its usual role, probably to make way for songs that are more like typical prog than Haken’s usual dish. I don’t recall the guitar work leaning on modern progressive metal chugs and notations to such a degree, and generally a piece like “Initiate” or “Earthrise” does just a basic routine without truly grasping the artistic depth of, say, “Eternal Rain” or “Portals.” Granted, the big, multifaceted templates appear in the album’s longer tracks, and it’s no surprise they lead the charge. “The Architect,” in particular, is fifteen minutes of Haken in true form, not to mention its harsh vocal section is wonderfully placed and hits like a hammer.

Moments of foreign genres crashing into the music do not appear as smooth and fluid as a past epic like “Celestial Elixir,” instead dialing back on this exploration for a safer, more convenient approach. A notable example of this working appears in the synth pop section of “1985,” which is a massive force that keeps the record above water. The dreary chorus, driving riffs, and strange avenues upon which it travels during its nine-minute voyage rekindle the tinder that makes Haken the leader of the progressive metal pack. However, they seem comfortable drifting towards the pack, as that seems to be the coding scheme around these cuts. I can’t tell you a thing about “Red Giant” or “Lapse” unless I’m hearing it, and there are other parts here and there that could use a little spice. “Bound by Gravity,” though, is the first Haken track I’ve heard that convincingly sucks: A paltry, spacy ballad with nothing but wasted time to show for nine minutes of prog doodling. This is like watching paint dry.

Haken strength is writing detailed tracks which feature multiple musical webs and ideas intertwining to create a singular, complex entity. Half the numbers on “Affinity” perceptively drift away from this texture and become basic, run-of-the-mill prog rock/metal cuts that are way below the creativity of which Haken is adept. Maybe this is a path worthy of credit, as they seem to nail down “The Endless Knot,” and thus prove capable of exploiting its fruits, but the other songs are just songs, doing song things and song stuff. It is, then, no surprise that the longer, more developed tunes are the takeaway points worth praising; they are far more enticing than the deprived numbers. At day’s end, “Affinity” has enough to save itself by the skin of its teeth, despite its clunky paradigm shift.

This review was written for: www.Thrashpit.com