AFFINITY

af·fin·i·ty əˈfinədē/ noun

-noun: affinity; plural noun: affinities -a spontaneous or natural liking or sympathy for someone or something.

Well, as a lover of all that is prog, I unequivocally experienced a spontaneous and/or natural liking to Haken's latest opus Affinity.

What is perhaps most striking to me is this fairly young band's ability to construct enjoyable songs, rather than virtuosic, boring, exercises-in-musical-masturbation jam sessions (post-Portnoy Dream Theater). After a couple weeks of constant rotation, a thought kept popping into my mind, "this is what Dream Theater should sound like at the latter stage of their careers." But they don't; and these guys do. I'm not complaining.

Affinity has class, soul, brevity, diversity and (arguably my favorite aspect) a pretty damn cool (but not obnoxious or cheesy) 80s vibe. And the album doesn't meander or trail off near the halfway mark; if anything the diversity of soundscapes accelerate to the absolutely beautiful, perfect close, "Bound By Gravity."

These guys seem to be even more on top of their craft than the confidence displayed on the masterpiece The Mountain. They should be very proud of this album. I'm very happy I recently found them. Give it a shot; you'll be happy too.

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