VISIONS

After becoming completely enthralled with Haken's 2013 release, "The Mountain", I kept my eye out for copies of their earlier albums. Recently, I found "Visions" available locally, so it looks like I'll be working backwards through this band.

Apparently. "The Mountain" is no fluke. While I personally like it better, especially for the jazzy influences and Gentle Giant-like vocals they added. But this album is no lightweight either. Working on a base of Dream Theater influenced prog metal, these guys have come up with a unique blend of prog of all sorts.

While the most prevalent sound may be metal, it is not so overbearing as to make this a thrashing headbanger album. The elegant vocals and swirling complexity raise this far above most prog metal, and most modern bands in general.

This, like "The Mountain", is a joy to listen to from start to finish.