HAKEN — The Mountain (review)

Album · 2013 · Progressive Metal

5/5 · 2013-09-22
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The Mountain (2013) is the third full-length album by UK progressive metal act Haken. If you haven't heard of these guys by now then I'm sure you're either a newbie to metal and/or progressive music or been living under a rock for the last few years. Ever since they released their debut album Aquarius (2010) the band has been going down a storm in most circles, which continued with the release of Visions (2011). Sure, like all the biggest bands out there they've got their share of detractors but I've seen more people acknowledging Haken as one of the best progressive metal bands of their generation. Having rated both their previous albums with top tier scores that's definitely an opinion this reviewer shares. Logic says that at some point Haken is going to deliver a release that doesn't make it up to the standard they've set for themselves and here they are in 2013 with a new album that bears a new logo and very different art style to its predecessors. Are these changes merely cosmetic or do they reflect that the music itself has changed in some way? Well, the answer is yes and no.

Let's start with the no. No, the music found on The Mountain is still very recognisable as the work of Haken. But also yes, because although they've never be afraid to mix and match their progressive metal with other genres, most notably the obvious candidate of progressive rock, The Mountain represents their most balanced work between the light and heavy music that they've released thus far. Of course, depending on who you ask, you could get told that Haken was always like that or perhaps even that they aren't a metal band at all (which is complete twaddle which likely stems from the metal elitists). They've always been an opinion divider on just about every level imaginable. The Mountain is however much less obviously metal orientated than their past work. But like Visions before it wasn't Aquarius II, The Mountain isn't Visions II, but another step on Haken’s musical journey. This is, and I believe others will agree with me here, one of the most important reasons that Haken have earned the high regard that they enjoy. They've never had to rehash their prior work to put out a new album, each one so far feels fresh and more exciting than other longer running progressive bands could hope to be (as much as I love them I’m looking primarily at Dream Theater here).

To continue along this train of thought the most major difference is that The Mountain is less symphonic than either Aquarius or Visions. Elements of symphonic metal can still be heard here and there though. The heavy riffs of the album sound heavier than ever when they hit despite the increased presence of progressive rock in the album, and as always the band draws on various ideas outside their business as usual including a cappella vocals in Cockroach King and Because it’s There, the latter of which they even sounds like some sort of hymn. There’s also a minor return of the growls heard on Aquarius albeit in backing vocal form during Pareidolia while musically you can also expect to hear orchestral and jazzy bits.

These descriptions seem to have been building up to saying that in the quality sense Haken hasn’t changed. But this is a yes and no answer as well. While I would easily count the majority of the album as some of their best work, with special mention to the epic Cockroach King as well as Atlas Stone and Pareidolia, there are also a few songs that only really work when taken in context of the whole album, whereas the songs of Aquarius and Visions worked in whatever way you wished to take them. The songs I’m referring to are mostly the shorter ones like opener The Path or As Death Embraces. Nice enough songs but they seem like filler next to the others. I also haven’t been able to appreciate closer Somebody quite as much as the choice cuts.

So back to the yes and no; yes because this is still overall a really awesome album from Haken that continues to show their progression as a band, but also no, because it’s the first full-length that has fallen (ever so slightly, mind) short of my standards for a top tier rating, although I have to be fair, in some senses this is their best album, so it’s a difficult one to rate. Haken didn’t quite reach the peak of their mountain, but as they climbed up most of the slope the album isn’t disappointing in any way. But at the end of the day I have to settle for a higher end exceptional tier rating. I love it, and I’m sure anyone who loved their past work will love it too, but as with many albums we love there are some minor flaws which suggest that it isn’t quite as good as it could be.

93/100

(Originally written for Heavy Metal Haven: http://metaltube.freeforums.org/haken-the-mountain-t3186.html)