VISIONS

Haken is a band that has grown on me over time. I wasn't 100% on board when I first discovered them, but over time they grew on me. By the time Visions was released, I was ready and waiting to see what they would do next. Nothing could've prepared me for what I was about to experience. I was intrigued after the first few seconds, and never at any point in the album did I get bored. Visions is a concept album built around an idea the singer, Ross Jennings, came up with that was inspired by a dream he had one night. The main character of the album dreams of his own murder in his childhood, and spends the years up to his adulthood in paranoid fear and preparation of what he believes is an eventuality that he must try to somehow prevent. It is an intriguing concept, and the music is no less intriguing. Especially notable is the usage of wildly electric keyboard sounds ? there were a number of times I thought "I've heard a lot of keyboards, but I don't think I've ever heard anyone use a sound like that before." The album is symphonic, heavy, electric, driving, ecclectic, and very exciting - from start to finish this album is excellence.