I swear, that reprisal of *1985* ‘s chorus at 3:17 could split the sky in two. In my opinion, it’s the emotional and thematic climax of the entire album.
The reprisal of Initiate's riff in the outro of Bound By Gravity has a similar feel to me and just speaks to how great Affinity as a full album experience, and more than just a collection of songs - so many bands don't bother with that type of detail, so I always appreciate when it's done :)
Absolutely love it... it's so hard to pick a favorite Haken album, they're all great but, gun to my head I'd have to say Affinity every time. Such a transcendent piece of work
@Fernando Soto that feels like a closing to act 1. It is a really nice way to end the first half of the album. This is the climax, and bound by gravity is the resolution
@@adamkoyn792 Agree. I´m an hardcore Haken fan and I love every album, but Affinity has a special place in my heart. I love every song. Every song is a masterpiece to me. I can´t say how many time I´ve listened it.
"We need a story to believe in. We need a hero to prevail. We need a challenge we can overcome. It takes a tragedy to make us one." Taking this as my generation motto.
i have a fear the lyrics were sarcastic. "We need a story to believe in (without stories we can't function, we shouldn't), we need a hero to prevail (without a hero we can't prevail, we shouldn't) [...] it takes a tragedy to make us one (we unite _only_ when shit hits the fan, we shouldn't"
@@GeorgeTsiros I wouldn't say they're sarcastic; they're directly pointing-out our flaws. The only things that make us unify as a species is when bad shit happens to all of us on equal terms. We're constantly in a loop of "us vs them." When the "them" is an adversary we can all agree to defeat, we team-up to do it; but afterward, we go back to creating new "thems" to butt heads with, and it's usually the people who were previously on the same team. Very Meshuggah-style lyrics about the flaws in humanity. This song really reminds me of Dancers to a Discordant System, almost like a sequel to it.
+Spencer Whiting I get the same feeling with a bit from Squarer for Maud by National Health... it's around 4:05 to 4:59 ... I wish that part repeated for like the rest of forever. Probably it's how short these bits are that makes them so appealing.
+Spencer Whiting Yes, spot on, that's like dub metal prog step :-) an entirely new genre waiting for Haken to pioneer.... cant wait for the album, pre-ordered.
+Osman Cea it happens to me too, whenever I listen to "Frail" by Ihsahn. There's a *SHORT, SHORT* section (1:28 - 1:36) that's just P E R F E C T, aaand of course it only lasts a few seconds fuuuuuck.. Alright bye guys, I'm off mixing a 20 hour loop of that riff
The more I listen to 'Haken, the more I realise that neo-progressive music lives, and breaths a very heavy breath....of fresh heaviness that leads me back to CTTE every year they are on the cruise...they are the best show I think !!!!! And man , they kick your ass...from start to finish, some of the best live drumming I've EVER heard, and the guitar player is fuckin brilliant !!!!! scary, well I guess all of them did a remarkable job of blowing my 63 year old mind. what a wonderful, and bright surprise these guys are for me at this age, discovery of new bands all the time...some better than others, but still....Thank you Haken from the bottom of my heart, for working so very hard for these past years of your lives, creating a live expierence that not many can match, and I've seen so many great bands, fortunately in my days on this planet . So stay with the flow for as much time as we have left together.....hugs of Love go out to every person who reads this, because time is precious right about now.....xoxoxo
+Cristian Jailander Orozco now in charge of being my ringtone. Needless to say, had to reduce the ringtone volume to avoid the risk of killing the innocent bystanders with overprogressiveness.
Unbelievable. I thought these guys were phenomenal a few years ago and they still get better. Will be listening to this album a couple times right away. This sounds so far like an album destined to be a classic.
my son introduced me to this band only recently.without a doubt one of the best sounding bands all around .vocals and harmonies give goosebumps and the music leaves you wanting more .good job boyz!keep the music coming ...please!
I think Dream Theater is getting old. Seen them live recently and it was somewhat boring. I'm young so I don't have the nostalgy maybe... But I'm not sure it's the problem here, Steven Wilson and King Crimson were a completely different story.
One of their best songs. The lyrics are so good, and that final chorus gives me chills. Also, the dubstep portion is so seamless I didn't even notice it upon first listen.
My gosh, you have to compare what they have achieved, they sound SO SOLID. Btw, this is the first album they compose as a group, this is HAKEN. I'm so proud of 'em
Oh god... The genre discussions made it to a Haken video. Please... Don't even try to label this band. Any label you'd put on Haken, wouldn't be enough to honor the sheer versatile genius of this band.
+Rolf Eijgenraam Certainly progressive and metal are about as close as you can get. Sometimes progressive and rock. It just depends on the track for sure.
4:32 Second voices lyrics: Close your eyes Stand your ground Face the wind Don't look back Lift your sails to ascend Find the strength within yourself Close your eyes Stand your ground Face the wind Don't look back Lift your sails to ascend See this through until the end
This just sounds like the best 80's synth/rock you'll ever hear. If you watched any 80's or early 90's Cyberpunk anime, you have heard this song before. I'm thinking that is what they were going for on Affinity. Hell the song 1985 sounds like a Rocky training montage! Great Band.
I love all Haken tracks. I don't get why people continuously look for differences between albums to pick on, I can't see how you can't like all albums they made so far. Every album is different so far. They've grown aswell, where the focus on music is different. I personally think Aquarius/Visions had a lot of depth in the loose instrumental sections. You can see that a lot of attention went to the theme and poetry of the album. This made this album great for me, where I thought the whole structure of the albums was still lacking a bit. (There were also parts where i was not that much engaged with what was going on). The writing in affinity is arguable 'smarter'. I like affinity because it shows how much they've grown in building/breaking down songs. I feel like i'm throughout more engaged because there are hardly 'filler' parts like there are in older albums. On the other hand there is less focus on emotionally suprising 'jams' and 'conclusions' to tracks from what i've heard so far. Both albums sound like Haken in the end and are great.
I hate electronics "effects" on prog music....but one more time I'm impressed by the great work and harmony in this Haken sound. it's unique and fabulous.
***** hate is not the word, but I don't like when techno fx are used all the time only to say "hey! I had this and 've not used before" like the Terry Bozzio syndrome hahaha. BUT AGAIN ALL THE ALBUM IS AWESOME, and have a unique sound. Great work.
Haken is gettin crazier and crazier. Affinity has the most complex songs to date. Very odd, heavy, djentish, need several listens to understand what's going on. Wow, just wow.
oh man perfect music to play video games lyrics and instrumental fits perfectly, wasn't expecting this from haken I think I will like the mountain more but this is promising
+Efe Öztürk I'm really sad to admit this, but me too. I had some hope after listening the last few albums that the new one would be AMAZING. But turns out that I personally didn't dig it much for the lack of instrumental parts, the length and monotony of the album. I've always been the biggest DT fanboy, trust me. Although, Affinity was so excellent, I was actually sad that the album was over when it was finished
After a brief refresher, I hereby state, that my great sympathy towards Ross' voice was already deep even before the formation of Haken. He sounds so much like Jon Andreson the the glorious formation Yes, which happens to be one of the influential bands in my formative years (neraly 17 years ago!).
+Sean Fatestar I've been wondering this for a while because I see it on quite a few videos that aren't djent. I think they believe if they call everything djent then people will start respecting the shitty music they like.
I swear, that reprisal of *1985* ‘s chorus at 3:17 could split the sky in two. In my opinion, it’s the emotional and thematic climax of the entire album.
The reprisal of Initiate's riff in the outro of Bound By Gravity has a similar feel to me and just speaks to how great Affinity as a full album experience, and more than just a collection of songs - so many bands don't bother with that type of detail, so I always appreciate when it's done :)
Absolutely love it... it's so hard to pick a favorite Haken album, they're all great but, gun to my head I'd have to say Affinity every time. Such a transcendent piece of work
@Fernando Soto that feels like a closing to act 1. It is a really nice way to end the first half of the album. This is the climax, and bound by gravity is the resolution
@@phoenixaki3458 And the reprisal of Initiates melody in the Architect is good to
@@adamkoyn792 Agree. I´m an hardcore Haken fan and I love every album, but Affinity has a special place in my heart. I love every song. Every song is a masterpiece to me. I can´t say how many time I´ve listened it.
"We need a story to believe in. We need a hero to prevail. We need a challenge we can overcome. It takes a tragedy to make us one."
Taking this as my generation motto.
i fear it is meant as sarcasm
@@GeorgeTsiros same, it's saying "we need a story to believe in, we need a hero to prevail" etc because it's simpler than the truth
they are so prog that they changed genre too, love it
+John Wayne I have placed my preorder just yesterday. I am not cancelling it. Thank you for the hint tho.
@@DeceptiveSS sounds like an evolved prog which the concept in itself is insane.....
“We need a story to believe in, we need a hero to prevail, we need a challenge we can overcome, it takes a tragedy to make us one”
i have a fear the lyrics were sarcastic. "We need a story to believe in (without stories we can't function, we shouldn't), we need a hero to prevail (without a hero we can't prevail, we shouldn't) [...] it takes a tragedy to make us one (we unite _only_ when shit hits the fan, we shouldn't"
@@GeorgeTsiros good interpretation.
@@johnward5404 thank you for your comment, i appreciate it
Reminds me of Watchmen.
@@GeorgeTsiros I wouldn't say they're sarcastic; they're directly pointing-out our flaws. The only things that make us unify as a species is when bad shit happens to all of us on equal terms. We're constantly in a loop of "us vs them." When the "them" is an adversary we can all agree to defeat, we team-up to do it; but afterward, we go back to creating new "thems" to butt heads with, and it's usually the people who were previously on the same team.
Very Meshuggah-style lyrics about the flaws in humanity. This song really reminds me of Dancers to a Discordant System, almost like a sequel to it.
What a time to be alive folks...
+Thiago Moreira 2016 is being a great year for Metal/Rock music :D
Only for Prog stuff.. Because mainstream and pop music is dead since late 80's.. 😥
I've been a Dream Theater fan for awhile now, and just discovered Haken. There's so much awesome to catch up on. I can't believe I've been missing out
Same. I'm now into Haken and Porcupine Tree.
@@berkefiliz3410 guys also checkout thank you scientist, kingcrow, native construct and distorted harmony
Yeah Haken is really the perfect follow up to DT, the guitars are very similar in all kind of way
I thought every Haken songs have monster vocals.
I am really impressed in realizing it's not true.
Maybe I should give them another chance.
This comment thread is great
*my recommendation: Symphony X
This band is the metal of the future
+Anderson Terra Nova Of progressive rock i think :)
+Alfredo Alcántara They're progressive metal.
+InsidAero They are just prog metal...
+Anderson Terra Nova They are just Haken.
+Anderson Terra Nova Not anymore... Not like this...
Perfect song, so much passion in this notes
Grande Danié grazie a te ho scoperto questa fantastica band. God bless you 🙏
Idem , grazie mille Daniele , ora ho pure peso i biglietti , speriamo si possa fare
That bit from 2:22 to 2:42 is about TEN EFFING MINUTES TOO SHORT
+Spencer Whiting I get the same feeling with a bit from Squarer for Maud by National Health... it's around 4:05 to 4:59 ... I wish that part repeated for like the rest of forever.
Probably it's how short these bits are that makes them so appealing.
+Spencer Whiting Yes, spot on, that's like dub metal prog step :-) an entirely new genre waiting for Haken to pioneer.... cant wait for the album, pre-ordered.
+Osman Cea it happens to me too, whenever I listen to "Frail" by Ihsahn. There's a *SHORT, SHORT* section (1:28 - 1:36) that's just P E R F E C T, aaand of course it only lasts a few seconds fuuuuuck..
Alright bye guys, I'm off mixing a 20 hour loop of that riff
Yes but more importantly is it bass, keys, both, or something else at the break ~2:33? I really want that sound!
They are the PROGdigy!
1:35 to 2:00 is probably my favorite part. Those progressive vocals are impressive.
The whole song is filthy tho lol
Esa parte me recuerda al estilo Dream Theather
Haken is love, is life.
i wonder what is your problem sir...
+antichristliche Aktion that escalated rather quick.
stop hating.
Baare
+Echtheitszertifikat Have yoi licked the cross this morning, plebeian?
The more I listen to 'Haken, the more I realise that neo-progressive music lives, and breaths a very heavy breath....of fresh heaviness that leads me back to CTTE every year they are on the cruise...they are the best show I think !!!!! And man , they kick your ass...from start to finish, some of the best live drumming I've EVER heard, and the guitar player is fuckin brilliant !!!!! scary, well I guess all of them did a remarkable job of blowing my 63 year old mind. what a wonderful, and bright surprise these guys are for me at this age, discovery of new bands all the time...some better than others, but still....Thank you Haken from the bottom of my heart, for working so very hard for these past years of your lives, creating a live expierence that not many can match, and I've seen so many great bands, fortunately in my days on this planet . So stay with the flow for as much time as we have left together.....hugs of Love go out to every person who reads this, because time is precious right about now.....xoxoxo
Prog Metal Dubstep. It's finally happened. I've been waiting for this for a long time.
Check out Metalstep. Dubstep remixes of famous metal songs
This is an old comment but listen to the algorithm if you want more dubsteppy prog stuff
Progstep maybe?
Check "The Algorithm"
@@DEM94 aka djent michel jarre
I think I speak for everyone when I say, this album is going to be fucking awesome.
You shouldn't speak for everyone, everyone has their own opinions. However, this is going to be an amazing album and fuck anyone who says otherwise :)
+Zojim4 Keep it up, you almost sounded like a human being at the start there.
Got "The Endless Knot" on "The Endless Loop"
+xukaniz After a few days i finally got time to do so. And God ! That song is so good !!!!
+xukaniz wait til you hear the full album, fuck cant stop listening.
totally was not expecting that dubstep drop! was actually really nice, god i love prog! take influences from everywhere! :D
2:22 MOTHER OF SYNCOPATION!
+Cristian Jailander Orozco now in charge of being my ringtone. Needless to say, had to reduce the ringtone volume to avoid the risk of killing the innocent bystanders with overprogressiveness.
HAKEN - is the best modern progrock band in the world! Fantasic album! I can't stop listening Affinity! Thanks a lot, brothers!
This band continues to blow me away. What blows me away more is the fact that they're not as popular as they should be.
Perfect song.
The verse, the chorus, the instrumental part, the "our design shifted frame by frame" part, the outro - MY GOD THAT OUTRO
dubstep meets Prog? Absolutely awesome. Can't wait for official release of "Affinity". Will be buying on Fri 29th !!
+PessimystX Some of Haken listen to jazz quite a lot, bound to be influenced by that. However, whatever the category, what a great track!
Unbelievable. I thought these guys were phenomenal a few years ago and they still get better. Will be listening to this album a couple times right away. This sounds so far like an album destined to be a classic.
my son introduced me to this band only recently.without a doubt one of the best sounding bands all around .vocals and harmonies give goosebumps and the music leaves you wanting more .good job boyz!keep the music coming ...please!
One of my favorites song of all my 47 years of life!
"it takes a tragedy to make us one" such a powerful line and very true.
whoever thought putting the lyrics pulse in polyrhythm with the instrumental was going to sound good is a genius
So when is Dream Theater opening for you guys on a world tour?
OH NO HE DIDN'T
oh yes he did :)
lol
I think Dream Theater is getting old. Seen them live recently and it was somewhat boring. I'm young so I don't have the nostalgy maybe... But I'm not sure it's the problem here, Steven Wilson and King Crimson were a completely different story.
make me smile
another great song from a awesome Progressive Metal band can't wait for the new album
One of their best songs. The lyrics are so good, and that final chorus gives me chills.
Also, the dubstep portion is so seamless I didn't even notice it upon first listen.
I absolutely love this song!
this sound, haken never ceases to astonish me!
My gosh, you have to compare what they have achieved, they sound SO SOLID. Btw, this is the first album they compose as a group, this is HAKEN.
I'm so proud of 'em
love the electronic dubstep metal break of the song... thats the way Haken, innovating mixing genres!
Haken went full Pendulum, and it was cool.
Blitz
Dat bass tho...
Holy Crap!!!! Yet another masterpiece from one of the best bands on the planet!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh god... The genre discussions made it to a Haken video. Please... Don't even try to label this band. Any label you'd put on Haken, wouldn't be enough to honor the sheer versatile genius of this band.
What he said
Sounds like the definition of what prog should be. Maybe Haken is just Progressive³.
Progressive is the best label I think, like you said they have everything
+Rolf Eijgenraam Certainly progressive and metal are about as close as you can get. Sometimes progressive and rock. It just depends on the track for sure.
+Rolf Eijgenraam This is obviously prog metal djent-step, duh!
That's some Caligula's Horse vibe in the middle there. Great stuff.
I thought I was the only one feeling it
Only recently discovered the horse years after haken....2 very different bands imho.....yet on the same planet xxxxx
Their talent is limitless...
This Part from 2:18 to 3:18 is just amazing!!!!
For me the part between 0:00 and 5:51
4:32 Second voices lyrics:
Close your eyes
Stand your ground
Face the wind
Don't look back
Lift your sails to ascend
Find the strength within yourself
Close your eyes
Stand your ground
Face the wind
Don't look back
Lift your sails to ascend
See this through until the end
3:59 just brings chills to my spine. The chorus in this song is undeniably moving.
love the dubstep part, awesome song.
from another planet guys!! This music is from another planet!!
This album is sounding more and more to me like Diego's lovechild: and that is fine with me. :)
Wicked song.
This just sounds like the best 80's synth/rock you'll ever hear. If you watched any 80's or early 90's Cyberpunk anime, you have heard this song before. I'm thinking that is what they were going for on Affinity. Hell the song 1985 sounds like a Rocky training montage! Great Band.
The album of the year!!!
wait.. there si a year?
My anticipation for the album just went through the roof!
+thosava Just wait until you hear "1985".
+PeedgeMcDuck I now know what you meant. Oh my god what a song.
I love all Haken tracks. I don't get why people continuously look for differences between albums to pick on, I can't see how you can't like all albums they made so far. Every album is different so far. They've grown aswell, where the focus on music is different.
I personally think Aquarius/Visions had a lot of depth in the loose instrumental sections. You can see that a lot of attention went to the theme and poetry of the album. This made this album great for me, where I thought the whole structure of the albums was still lacking a bit. (There were also parts where i was not that much engaged with what was going on). The writing in affinity is arguable 'smarter'.
I like affinity because it shows how much they've grown in building/breaking down songs. I feel like i'm throughout more engaged because there are hardly 'filler' parts like there are in older albums. On the other hand there is less focus on emotionally suprising 'jams' and 'conclusions' to tracks from what i've heard so far.
Both albums sound like Haken in the end and are great.
This song is perfection.
Guys, seriously, this is on a whole another level. Amazing
incredible solo section! LOVE HAKEN
These lyrics are devastating... I LOVE IT
ONE BAND TO RULE THEM ALL!
I love how they are never afraid to try whatever the hell they want and just throw Celldweller in there
I hate electronics "effects" on prog music....but one more time I'm impressed by the great work and harmony in this Haken sound. it's unique and fabulous.
Why do you hate these sounds being used?
***** hate is not the word, but I don't like when techno fx are used all the time only to say "hey! I had this and 've not used before" like the Terry Bozzio syndrome hahaha. BUT AGAIN ALL THE ALBUM IS AWESOME, and have a unique sound. Great work.
haken still running the game after all this years
Love the groove and the drumming. Very cool song
This song becomes better and better after each listen
Haken is gettin crazier and crazier. Affinity has the most complex songs to date. Very odd, heavy, djentish, need several listens to understand what's going on. Wow, just wow.
my new band is here HAKEN for ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Both released tracks are absolutely phenomenal. Better believe I pre-ordered this shit. JUST TAKE MY MONEY ALREADY!!!!
oh man perfect music to play video games lyrics and instrumental fits perfectly, wasn't expecting this from haken I think I will like the mountain more but this is promising
Glorious!
I'm addicted to replay this song
They are BAAAAAACK! Run for cover!!!!!!
I totally replaced dream theater with haken. lovely work.
Dream Theaterı dinleyemiyorum artık bunlar yüzünden :D
me too
+Efe Öztürk I'm really sad to admit this, but me too. I had some hope after listening the last few albums that the new one would be AMAZING. But turns out that I personally didn't dig it much for the lack of instrumental parts, the length and monotony of the album. I've always been the biggest DT fanboy, trust me. Although, Affinity was so excellent, I was actually sad that the album was over when it was finished
+Efe Öztürk You're not the only one
Kimberly Mateluna I'm glad that I'm not the only one. These guys need more love.
it is really good! the beginning the middle everything. great job. I will enjoy the concert
Can't... stop... listening...
Bro this song is insane, can’t wait to see these guys live soon when they headline for Symphony X
this song blows my mind every time I hear it. from watching the live videos they also sound freakin amazing live, wonder what an actual show's like
That 1985 revisit is too good.
Love it. I didnt know this band before.
Killertrack! Fantastic!!
Do they have G. Govan on solo guitar now? Lol, that section is perfect, the whole song is great! I already know I'll love this album!
After a brief refresher, I hereby state, that my great sympathy towards Ross' voice was already deep even before the formation of Haken. He sounds so much like Jon Andreson the the glorious formation Yes, which happens to be one of the influential bands in my formative years (neraly 17 years ago!).
+Jaromir Bracki I'm curious, wich projects was Ross part from previously to Haken?
oh god this is gorgeous
The "our design" part reminds me of ' all is full of love' by Björk so much!!!
Amazing............. been stuck with this songs for months ... Can't get enough
You guys are crazy. You make your listeners keep interested always!
wow, this much more interesting than previous single, for me
I sure hope a kid doesn't get in trouble for playing this on a talent show
Only a satanist trying to manipulate everyone would play this at a talent show
I also sure hope he doesnt get called a (racist asian slur he dosent want to translate)
A guitar could never make sounds like these. This band must be faking it and so is that kid in that talent show.
@@hellodnmrk omg lol 😂 u watched Redditor vid and came here lol 😂 I did too
@@theslayergaming6756 I saw the og reddit then in my recommended I saw redditor vid on it.
REDDITOR IS SPYING ON ME
This is so good, can't wait for the album do drop in my mailbox
Now THAT was fucking incredible! That middle section, holy shit. And we haven't even heard 1985 or The Architect yet. So hyped!
+NegativeReaper I mean the full album is on RUclips now. Probably gonna be taken down lol
+Eric Cornwell I uploaded it on my other acc but got taken down within 12 hours ;)
Divine in all ways!
I've bought album this saturday. I don't have words to describe, how amazing it is. Thanks for your music and lot of inspiration.
Cool Tune... Very cool rytmic complexity...
THE DUBSTEP PART OH GOD
+Arty After I heard that I checked the online store and bought the album immediately... :-D
It was incredible.
I personally don't like dubstep but jeez that part hits so hard! AWESOME!!
Yeah. The jazz part was sick too.
I didn't say jazz but jeez. :D There is no jazz part anyway.
That might be one of the most tasteful solos I've ever heard.
Nice of you guys to post this on my birthday
YES. JUST. YES.
My hype for this album went through the roof.
See you in Montreal this Friday Haken!!! Can't wait!!
Fisrt time hearing this band...hooked right away! Amazing!
I love the solo
Oh ! Super cool !
What a great band. First song I heard from them, and I can already tell.
A song where the vocals actually is an interesting element of the song (especially in the first part). So groovey and genius!
Best album of 2016 as of now.
Mega rules!!! they are always pushing their boundaries!
These put on such a great show. Saw them with Devin Townsend and the Contortionist.
I don't get why people think this is djent. The notes are three octaves too high.
+Sean Fatestar they wish djent would be like that :D
It's not. Some prog metal is, some isn't.
+Sean Fatestar it doesn't matter what it is... just listen
Dude, SikTh were obliterating the fretboard back in 2002 and that was later called djent
+Sean Fatestar I've been wondering this for a while because I see it on quite a few videos that aren't djent. I think they believe if they call everything djent then people will start respecting the shitty music they like.