No thread about Haken yet? :O

[Akumu]

'cause I thought they were pretty awesome. There was one long instrumental section that was just... hypnotic. Nobody said a peep and it was magical.

I also loved their stage presence - their singer was SO into it.

 

[OrbWeaver]

Haken is magic. The set was all sorts of magic. They were pretty amazing live.

 

[zedowns]

There was a section during the new song where I just stood there staring with my jaw on the floor. What an incredible performance that was, and they need to be back as soon as possible so I can see the title track off Visions live!

 

[hoodaman]

I started going to progpower at 7 and have not missed a single one since then. Only 2 bands I've ever seen at Progpower have completely mesmerized me. Leprous last year and Haken this year. They were the brightest point amongst many bright points at the fest this year for me.

 

[Mardoch]

Like I mentioned in the cheers/jeers thread, I wasn't at all sure how their set would go given the nature of their album. They completely owned it though. I've had Haken songs stuck in my head since that time. Celestial Elixir and Eternal Rain were definite high points. Also, guitarist dancing a jig, great stuff. The vocals were so pure sounding and right on. I have absolutely no complaints about their set.

I hope they come back some day.

 

[Yonfon]

they were amazing live! (regret not buying any of their merch)

very all around nice guys too.

 

[J-Dubya 777]

Haken was one of my most anticpated sets. They delivered 110%! Add me to the list of people that would LOVE to see them come back, and do a longer set.

 

[Blondino]

Thanks guys. We had a blast! One of our most enjoyable shows to date, and easily the best crowd. Tom (bassist).

 

[sccaldwell]

Totally agree!!! I had VERY high expectations for their set, and they were exceeded by a LOOONG shot. Completely mesmerizing performance.

Also, while many bands have highly emotional lyrics, very few can channel that through the music itself. Even fewer can actually bring that across in a live performance. Haken's performance really hit me that way, and I haven't been as emotionally "moved" by a live band performance was seeing Pain of Salvation at ProgPower I, over ten years ago.

Tremendous thanks and kudos to the band....brilliant performance of incredible music by a bunch of really nice guys.

HAKEN FOR THE SHOWCASE AT PROGPOWER XIII!!!!!

Craig
P.S. Also, huge thanks to the Glenn for booking them!!! I likely would have never heard this amazing music otherwise!!!!!!

 

[Photino Decay]

I wasn't all that into them after listening to their CD, but it could have been that I was listening to it before going to bed so I was probably already half asleep... Nothing really stuck in my head...

Live, the sound was spot-on, there was plenty of energy, they played tight, and I was completely blown away. Another first-band-of-the-night mindblowing experience. Glenn seems to have a talent for this, and it looks like next year will continue the trend. He sure knows how to make you want to get to the venue bright and early or else regret it if you're a newbie and don't! (Which was what happened to me with Raintime. Never again!)

 

[DADRocks]

New cd is amazing, glad I dont have to wait a month to get it. It surprises me how they can release an album that has such great sound quality and other more popular artists on major labels can put out stuff with such below par sound. Keep it up Haken, you guys have a bright future ahead. Love the live set by the way.

 

[LunaTEKKE]

Loved, loved, loved Haken's performance, although it's certainly hard to describe the music! One moment they were crunchy...the next they were playing some odd sort of circus-type stuff...and the next sounded like something that would have been at home on Kansas' "Song for America" album.

Can't wait to dig into the new CD!

My only disappointment was that I missed the first few minutes of the set, as I needed to run back to my hotel room after the VP acoustic show. So much great music, so little time!

 

[KingsGene]

Magical live representations of the songs. I had my eyes closed most of the time sitting in my seat, really taking it all in. These guys are going to be big soon...

 

[Bamafan]

Obviously I am a little biased, since I thought enough of Aquarius to help sponsor Haken, but I was totally floored by their performance. With any music that complex, I always wonder "can they pull it off live?" As we all now know, Haken is truly blessed with virtuosos throughout the band. As was pointed out above, theirs was a magical performance. As an added bonus, they're all great guys! I'm going to make them an annual sponsorship bid.

 

[Bryan316]

Not a WOOHOOO kind of band. More of a "Drop this CD in and do some woodworking" kind of band. Bought both their discs. Very relaxing, very moodsetting.

Given the first disc about a listen and a half.

 

[Malaena]

Haken was definitely one of my favorites of the whole fest! Their set was so fun and full of energy! I only hope that I can see them again sometime soon and I wish I had gotten more time to chat with Tom at the Artmore!

Tom, you are so frickin' adorable! I hope you guys had a great time at the Aquarium!

 

[Akumu]

Tom, you are so frickin' adorable! I hope you guys had a great time at the Aquarium!

I liked the photoshop discussion.

 

[jhallum]

I, too, loved their set, definitely the best of the weekend! Hopefully I'll get a chance to see them again, someday!

 

[SkiBumMSP]

holy fuc...not only was there Progpower performance killer but after spinning Visons on my big system with sub on 11..this cd is amazing..huge DT Awake vibe on the 7 string crunch..this thing sounds massive:Smokin:

That set was just fucking amazing! Talk about one of the major surprises for me. I was thinking, after hearing their album, that no way could they pull that off live! Well, indeed they did!

As for the album - oh HELL YEAH! It there is an album that just about REQUIRES a good high-end rig to fully appreciate, friggan Visions is it! I spun it on my own rig and like damn! I think my chin got carpet burn from my jaw dropping to the floor after hearing that album for the first time (and that Voyager one is not very far behind!)

 

[LarryD]

Haken and Voyager both brought their game to this show .... absolutely amazing.

Both new discs are amazing as well with an emphasis on HAKEN !!!!!!


By the way --- during most of the sets, there was a woman on the floor just in front of the soundboard.... she was wearing a Sanctuary shirt and skirt at one point .... anyone know who she is from the board ??? Thanks in advance......