Visions
Visions asks for a considerable amount of time, then makes a good case for taking it. Haken's second album is full of long songs, changing rhythms and detailed instrumental playing, but it also has clear melodies and a strong sense of direction. The technical work is impressive because it helps the songs develop.
Nocturnal Conspiracy is an early highlight. The band move between heavy sections and quieter passages with enough purpose to keep the changes involving. Ross Jennings gives the music a clear vocal focus, bringing warmth to arrangements that could otherwise become a little remote. There is plenty of complexity, yet the song's melodic ideas remain easy to recognise.
The shorter pieces give the album useful variety. Portals concentrates on instrumental interplay, letting the musicians push the arrangement forward without a vocal line at the centre. Shapeshifter and Deathless provide more room for atmosphere and direct singing. Their quieter character matters: it gives the heavier sections elsewhere a contrast that another run of riffs would not provide.
Everything leads towards the closing title track. At more than twenty minutes, Visions could easily become a collection of separate passages waiting for an ending. Instead, the returning ideas give its changing sections a common purpose. Guitars and keyboards take prominent roles, but the strongest moments come from the relationship between the instrumental movement and the vocal themes. The conclusion feels connected to the album around it.
Its scale will still limit the audience. A seventy-minute concept record with this much activity requires attention, and some of the playful sound effects can interrupt the mood. Haken's theatrical side is also quite pronounced. Those qualities are part of the band's personality, but they will not become less noticeable simply because the playing is excellent.
For listeners who enjoy melodic progressive metal, the balance is very convincing. Visions has enough character in its smaller songs to support the large finale, rather than existing only to reach it. Nocturnal Conspiracy and Deathless offer strong entry points, while the complete record rewards the longer commitment.
