HAKEN, one of progressive music’s most exciting bands, recently announced details of their much-anticipated fifth studio album titled ‘Vector’, due for release on October 26th, 2018. The album was produced by the band themselves, and recorded & mixed by Adam ‘Nolly’ Getgood (Periphery, Devin Townsend Project), with the artwork once again being handled by Blacklake.
Following the announcement of North American tour dates this Autumn, the band are pleased to reveal European & Latin American live dates in support of the new album for 2019. The band comments: “We’re thrilled to be bringing our ‘Vector Studies’ tour to Europe. We had immense fun celebrating our 10 year anniversary across Europe in 2017 with incredible turnouts and warm receptions. This time around we will be focusing on performing tracks from our new album ‘Vector’ along with some live favourites of ours. For your health and wellbeing, the good doctor prescribes you some live Haken. ”
The band add on the Latin America shows: “A visit to South America has been long overdue. Many of our dedicated South American fans have made epic trips around the world to experience our shows in Europe and North America and now we’re ecstatic to reveal we will finally be returning the favour! See you in January! As for Mexico City and Cruise To The Edge, well… we cannot wait to return!”
The full list of dates is as follows:
Latin America 2019
26th January – Teatro Teleton, Santiago, Chile
27th January – Groove, Buenos Aires, Argentina
29th January – Caricoa Club, Sao Paolo, Brazil
30th January – Auditorio Centro De La Amistad Peruano China, Lima, Peru
1st February – Lunar, Mexico City, Mexico
Europe 2019
15th February – Academy 3, Manchester, UK
16th February – St Luke’s, Glasgow, UK
17th February – The Fleece, Bristol, UK
19th February – Essigfabrik, Cologne, Germany
20th February – Batschkapp, Frankfurt, Germany
21st February – Übel & Gefährlich, Hamburg, Germany
22nd February – Lille Vega, Copenhagen, Denmark
23rd February – John Dee, Oslo, Norway
24th February – Debaser Strand, Stockholm, Sweden
26th February – Columbia Theater, Berlin, Germany
27th February – Kwadrat, Krakow, Poland
28th February – A38, Budapest, Hungary
2nd March – Szene, Vienna, Austria
3rd March – Futurum, Prague, Czech Republic
4th March – Conne Island, Leipzig, Germany
6th March – Im Wizemann, Stuttgart, Germany
7th March – Backstage Halle, Munich, Germany
8th March – Kiff, Aarau, Switzerland
9th March – Magazzini Generali, Milan, Italy
10th March – Transbordeur, Lyon, France
12th March – Mon Live, Madrid, Spain
13th March – Kafe Antzokia, Bilbao, Spain
14th March – La Maroquinerie, Paris, France
15th March – De Boerderij, Zoetermeer, Netherlands
16th March – Islington Assembly Hall, London, UK
23rd March – Tavastia, Helsinki, Finland
‘Vector’ will be available as Limited edition 2CD Mediabook (including instrumental versions), Gatefold vinyl 2LP + CD, Standard CD Jewelcase & as a digital download. Pre-order now here: https://haken.lnk.to/Vector
Track-listing
1. Clear
2. The Good Doctor
3. Puzzle Box
4. Veil
5. Nil By Mouth
6. Host
7. A Cell Divides
To celebrate the announcement of the new album, the band ran a competition for one lucky fan’s artwork to be etched into the fourth side of the vinyl version of the record. They invited people to submit their own version of the Rorshach test ink-blot which graces the album cover, and the winner was revealed as Shakoor Bukhuth aka SHAUN BEYOND.
Since their inception in 2007, Haken have shown over four previous studio albums, one EP and a live release that they never stand still, merely satisfied to rely on past triumphs. Rather, Haken always look for ways to challenge themselves as musicians and artists, and also to keep the listeners on their collective toes. “We don’t like to make simple music,” laughs vocalist Ross Jennings. “We always aim to defy expectations, and I believe we’ve surpassed what we aimed to achieve with our new album.”
Their fifth studio record sees the band going in a heavier direction with the music. “We’ve always had a heavy influence”, explains guitarist Charlie Griffiths, “but it was obvious from the riffs that were naturally coming out of us early in the writing process that this would be a more metal album. These are some of the most riff driven songs we’ve ever written.” As is usual, Haken produced the album themselves, but for the first time they have enlisted Adam ‘Nolly’ Getgood during the recording and mixing stages. Formerly bassist with Periphery, in the last couple of years he has built a reputation as a fine producer. “We produced the album ourselves, as we always do,” insists Jennings. “But we’re fans of what Adam has done with Periphery, Sikth and Devin Townsend. He has a great reputation for the heavier end of our genre”.
But if this album is musically heavy, then there’s an underlying theme running through the seven songs which is certainly esoteric and fascinating. “The scene is set with the track The Good Doctor, which was a really fun song. Musically it feels like a logical step from ‘Affinity’, but lyrically it’s a bit more theatrical and about as ‘rock opera’ as Haken has ever got”, explains Griffiths. “It’s about a Doctor with an intriguing, perhaps sinister interest in a particular patient. From there the story enters the point-of-view of the patient – who appears to be catatonic, but his mind is sparking with what could be memories, or delusions brought on by the treatment he’s receiving – we leave this up to the listeners to decide. Although we don’t want to give too much away, people who are familiar with our back catalogue will have fun discovering further clues we’ve planted throughout the album. And that’s the challenge for the fans – to find out for themselves their own meaning for ‘Vector’ as an album”.
The band also recently announced North American co-headline dates alongside Norway’s LEPROUS, and label-mates BENT KNEE, in what is an all InsideOutMusic bill. These will be the first live shows in support of Vector, and you can find the full list of dates below:
Haken & Leprous with Bent Knee:
October 30th – The Crofoot Ballroom, Pontiac, MI
October 31st– Opera House, Toronto, ON
November 1st – Astral, Montreal, QC
November 2nd– Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA
November 3rd – Highline Ballroom, New York, NY
November 4th – The Sinclair, Boston, MA
November 6th – Soundstage, Baltimore, MD
November 7th – Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro, NC
November 8th – The Orpheum, Tampa, FL
November – 9th Revolution, Fort Lauderdale, FL
November 10th – The Plaza Live, Orlando, FL
November 11th – Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA
November 13th – Gas Monkey, Dallas, TX
November 14th – Barracuda, Austin, TX
November 16th – Crescent Ballroom, Phoenix, AZ
November 17th – Glasshouse, Pomona, CA
November 18th – August Hall, San Francisco, CA
November 19th – Hawthorne Theatre, Portland, OR
November 20th – The Crocodile, Seattle, WA
November 21st – Rickshaw Theater, Vancouver, BC
November 23rd – Metro Music Hall, Salt Lake City, UT
November 24th – Bluebird Theater, Denver, CO
November 25th – Granada Theater, Lawrence, KS
November 26th – Delmar Hall, St Louis, MO
November 27th – Exit/In, Nashville, TN
November 29th – Rex Theater, Pittsburgh, PA
November 30th – Beachland Ballroom, Cleveland, OH
December 1st – Bottom Lounge, Chicago, IL
Ben Bloom – Guitar
Grant Schroff- Drums
Karl Olsen – Percussion
Jason Gray- Bass
Nathan Spicer – Keys
Scott Morning – Trumpet
Art Brown – Tenor Sax, Flute
Elijah Clark – Trombone
PÄR LINDH was scheduled to perform a special solo piano performance at ProgDay 2017. Unfortunately, travel issues prevented him from making the show. We’re happy to invite him back to ProgDay 2018.
PÄR LINDH’s musical career stretches back to 1977 when he formed Antenna Baroque. In 1979 he founded the symphonic trio Vincebus Ereptum. But with the changing musical times, he spent his following years as organist, classical pianist, harpsichordist, and drummer. While successful, he missed the calling of progressive rock.
Beginning with his return to Sweden in 1989, he resurrected his early symphonic spirit with a band called Manticore, built the Crimsonian Label studio, and chaired The Swedish Art Rock Society. In 1994 he released the first Pär Lindh Project album, Gothic Impressions. The rest, as they say, is history.
PÄR LINDH has a long-established reputation as a composer, master keyboardist, and musical interpreter. For his ProgDay appearance, PÄR will be performing solo and paying tribute to the late Keith Emerson and Greg Lake, performing music from ELP, the Pär Lindh Project, and more.
KING LLAMA at ProgDay 2018!
Photo Credit: Lauren Elle Jaye
This California instrumental fusion power trio came together with the idea of combining eclectic stylings from the history of adventurous music. What resulted is a mix of rock, jazz, funk, fusion, and a touch of hip-hop that brings to mind a range of music from King Crimson and Phish, to Yes and Rush. The band has toured extensively, taking their music from Illinois to Argentina, and honing their sound at individual shows and numerous festivals. KING LLAMA will be performing music from their album Return To Ox.
FRIDAY NIGHT PRESHOW: INTERSTELLAR OVERDRIVE with special guest JIMMY ROBINSON!
INTERSTELLAR OVERDRIVE is committed to presenting the full Pink Floyd audio/visual experience with music spanning the band’s entire history. This year’s pre-show will feature full album performances of Animals and Dark Side Of The Moon.
ProgDay attendees will remember ProgDay alumni JIMMY ROBINSON not only for his wonderful fusion band Woodenhead but also as a master guitarist known for his impressive and emotional performances on acoustic guitar. Jimmy will be opening the preshow with a 45-minute solo performance.
As part of the 2018 ProgDay Program, we are pleased to announce a FREE screening of a 30-minute segment of the upcoming feature documentary, Romantic Warriors 4 – Krautrock (Part 1), by Adele Schmidt and José Zegarra Holder. The screening is part of an IndieGoGo Fundraising Campaign that the filmmakers will launch in late August to raise finishing funds for the film. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers.
When: Saturday, September 1, 9:30 pm.
Where: Hotel Comfort Inn University Durham,
3508 Mt. Moriah Rd., Durham, NC 27707
Join PÄR LINDH, KING LLAMA, EDENSONG, OVRFWRD, GEPH, KARMIC JUGGERNAUT, ALEC K. REDFEARN & THE EYESORES, FERNANDO PERDOMO & THE OUT TO SEA BAND, PIXIE NINJA and SOFTEN THE GLARE for the twenty-fourth edition of ProgDay. ProgDay is a two day outdoor festival of progressive rock. ProgDay 2018 will take place on Saturday and Sunday, September 1st and 2nd, at Storybook Farm in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For more information, please visit us at www.progday.net.
Brussels, Belgium – “Monty” is the new album by Italian music artist Emiliano Deferrari, conceived, written and recorded in Brussels, Belgium, where he lives since 2015. The album was recorded between November 2016 and September 2017 at his Monty Studio. It was mixed in Valencia, Spain by Matteo Nahum, music composer, film scorer, and musical partner of Emiliano in their art-rock oriented project Nanaue. Finally, it was mastered in Brooklyn, NY by internationally acclaimed drummer, bass player, and sound engineer Nate Wood.
All songs are written by Emiliano with Italian lyrics. Emiliano plays all instruments heard on the tracks (piano and keys, fretless bass, drums, classical, acoustic and electric guitars, violins, pocket sax, voices, and programming), like on all his solo releases.
Matteo Nahum mixed creatively the album, indulging with some of his preferred effects and reverberations. Nate Wood mastered the album with a balance between deep bass and the subtle textures of cymbals. Great presence but no big compression, maintaining a coherent ratio between loudest and lower sounds, giving the album a jazzier listening experience. Three different masters were made for the CD/downloads, the vinyl and a special “mastered for iTunes” version. The cover photo for the album was shot by celebrated Italian visual artist Pietro Fortuna. The album is produced for Emiliano’s personal label Rattsburg Records.
Says Emiliano, “In 2016, after 1 year of life in Belgium, I started producing music with a new mood. I recorded and published 2 new singles with Nanaue, one of which, “As Love is Naked,” was featured on the English movie “Hanging In There” (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3822076/?ref_=ttsnd_snd_tt). During the recordings, I realized that my last solo work was dated 2010, and I had the urgency of a catharsis from some of my deepest emotions and fears. So I closed myself in the studio for long sessions of writing and improvising (heritage of my first moves in jazz). Most of the songs came out in less than a month, and for the first time in years, I used Italian lyrics. Then I started with a work of ‘selection’, ‘subtraction’, and recording instruments playing in a less conventional way (like the deconstructed and expressionist drums in the first tracks of the album, or combined with samples and drum-machine in the second part), and forcing myself on new territories (like the extensive use of fretless bass and electric piano clusters, counterbalanced by a sparse and rare use of guitar throughout the album). I also wanted to use the voice differently, to underline the visions showed with the lyrics. The lyrics are in general brief, with cut-ups and direct speech, helping to express the two moods of the album.”
As for the album’s concept, Emiliano explains, “The album describes a slow descent into hell, followed by a slow resurgence in search of a balance between the diverting forces, attitudes, and wills of a man. It is evidently an autobiographic representation of common states of mind of mankind. As always the place in which the album is recorded affects the music. The recording studio is placed inside the old Brussels cinema studios Sonart, in a room which still keeps the original audio isolation and some of the equipment. It was a great place to concentrate and listen to your deafening silence, in search of some of your monsters. After an experience like that, it is crucial to find your balance, to reset your mind and body. Meditation helps, but the tendency of building infinite layers of superstructures makes your exercises hard and frustrating. The last resort is surviving in light of this indispensable instability.
“Over the album sounds and instruments perform specific and recurrent characters of the play (the acoustic drums represent the human unpredictable touch, while the drum machines represent the mantras we use to fine-tune our weighted minds; brasses represent Brussels, or more precisely remind of the band’s parade of James Ensor’s ‘Christ’s Entry Into Brussels’. After all, it is quite easy to divide the album into two parts, the first musically jazzier and apparently improvised, while the second is mainly more rhythm driven, with recurrent chorus and mantras bringing to the last song ‘Fuoco’ (fire), the musical zenith of the album. There is also space for improvised drones (the short intro ‘Aria’, made with looped guitar effected with mellotron-like sounds), and a classical guitar piece, the eponymous ‘Monty’ (disturbed by field recordings of a tram).”
Everything was recorded and premixed by Emiliano in solitude. Tracks were passed to Matteo Nahum in Valencia, where he spent November and December 2017 mixing creatively. “He knows me very well, as we work together since 2008, and he could get the best of the tracks. I credit him in every song for his work at the mixing desk, as it was crucial for the album, like an added musician. As well crucial was the master by Nate Wood. I had already listened to his great masters of the albums of Donny McCaslin, Kneebody, and Tigran Hamasyan, so I am honored he accepted to work for ‘Monty’.”
When it came to finding a name and a visual identity for the album, “I had my studio in mind, and Monty is the nickname of Montgomery, the area of Brussels where the studio is. I wanted the cover to show what I could see every day from the window in front of the recording booth. Pietro Fortuna was so nice to shoot a photo for the cover and the Italian film-maker Alessandra Populin directed the video-clip of ‘Fuoco’.”
Emiliano was born in Genoa, Italy, in 1977. He started playing guitar at 6 and recording his own music at 11. He played and sang jazz, rock and world music with different bands in Italy. In 2005, after settling in Rome, he produced his first solo album “SO_LO” with Rattsburg Records, with good reviews. Since then he started touring Italy with his solo show with guitar, voice, and effects. Between 2007/2011, Emiliano toured as The Loop Duo with Adriano Arena, with guitars, voices and live loops, producing an album (THE LOOP DUO/BMA and Rattsburg, 2009). In 2009/2010, he produced a new EP (O.S.T./Rattsburg, 2009) and LP “LIGHT EARS” (Rattsburg 2010). Since 2008 he’s been working on the project Nanaue with Matteo Nahum. Between 2011 and 2017 they published 8 singles (Rattsburg Records and Gutenberg Music) and 1 album (Nanaue/Gutenberg Music, 2013) plus 3 recordings for tribute albums of Italian prog label Mellow Records. In 2014 Emiliano moved to Brussels, Belgium. In September 2017 he re-published his seminal album “Small Engines” (2002, Rattsburg).
2018 is the year of “Monty”! In support of his new solo release, Emiliano will work hard to perform the album live, recruiting a small group of talented musicians, able to improvise and to recreate both the brooding atmospheres and the uprising against the brink.
The video clip of “Fuoco”, the last song of the album, by Italian film-maker Alessandra Populin was filmed at Monty Studio and around in a “mad day out” in Brussels
Here’s what the press has said about Emiliano:
“For his debut, Genoese multi-instrumentalist Emiliano Deferrari, based in Rome for his musical activities, shows on more than one occasion brilliant skills as composer and performer, skills he could cultivate in his important past experiences…the voice works, the guitars work, the rhythms work, the mix works in this personal reflection in the form of music. Inspired, humble, really pleasant.” – Rockerilla
“You listen to the first song and you feel like falling down on an enchanted land between Genesis’ “the lamb” and the first Gabriel. With Gilmour’s Floydian guitars. Unknown land, sinuous and fascinating. Nanaue is a duo of composers and multi-instrumentalists, often active in completely different musical contexts, but when they go for art-rock, they adhere strictly to what it should be: a memory of a unique past melted altogether with the sounds of the future.” – Il Manifesto
We are pleased to announce the inaugural, 2019 On The Blue Cruise, featuring special performances by your host, Justin Hayward of The Moody Blues, along with one of the finest Classic Rock lineups in the history of our company. This incredible 5-night Classic Rock Cruise, sails from Miami, Florida February 10-15, 2019 for five days and nights, visiting Nassau/Paradise Island, Bahamas and the Private Isle of Labadee!
Expect all the great events and production that sets our cruises apart from the rest. This is going to be a cruise to remember, showcasing the talents of Justin and our featured Artists and Bands!
Our line-up rivals any in our history and includes not only Justin Hayward, but, The Zombies, Dave Mason, Steve Hackett, Al Stewart, Wishbone Ash, POCO, Vanilla Fudge, Colin Blunstone, Danny Seraphine from the band Chicago, Rick Derringer, Randy Hansen and our favorite Irish band, the Young Dubliners…with more to come soon!
We are delighted to announce that our home for the 2019 On the Blue Cruise is the magnificent Royal Caribbean, Mariner of the Seas. This is one of our favorite ships for Music Festivals at Sea because it has not just one, but two, huge music venues inside the ship. No chance of rainout on the concerts you don’t want to miss!
In addition, the Mariner is getting the biggest facelift in the history of Royal Caribbean Cruise Line. This is a stem to stern makeover of epic proportion…over $100 MILLION! Even better, they will be completing the renovation before we sail, giving us a pristine vessel for the kickoff of the inaugural On the Blue Cruise!
The new Mariner of the Seas has more ways to play, delicious new dining concepts and a few surprises to thrill even the boldest cruisers. Launch yourself into a virtual world on a new bungee trampoline experience — Sky Pad. Hang ten on the newly added FlowRider surf simulator or race down The Perfect Storm waterslides. Have a tiki-chic rendezvous over rum punches in The Bamboo Room or bond over family-style Tuscan eats at Jamie’s Italian by Jamie Oliver. This is going to be a “WOW” ship with some of the finest music and events featuring some of the greats in Classic Rock…what a show!
Tickets will go on sale to our past Moodies Cruise Alumni on Tuesday, March 6, 2018, at 2 pm Eastern. Alumni will receive an email prior to this date with their personalized booking link. Later in the month, our general on sale to new guests will open up at www.OnTheBlueCruise.com/booknow so be sure to grab your spot aboard!
On The Blue Cruise is a playground for the serious fan where music and a luxury cruise unite for the vacation of a lifetime.
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