In July 2007, Haken showcased their music for the very first time to a packed out London bar with a great response, followed the next week by a sold out show at The Peel in Kingston. Within months of this double-debut performance, Haken were billed in support of Riverside (Inside Out) at Camden's prestigious Underworld. Haken continued performing sets to packed houses throughout London and on UK tours in support of cult metal bands King's X (Inside Out), Bigelf (Custard Records), and To-Mera.
One of Haken's demo tracks was featured on the cover CD for the second issue of 'Classic Rock Presents Prog' magazine in 2009.
Haken meld metal with progressive rock, drawing influences from contemporary bands like Dream Theater and IQ as well as "old school" icons Genesis and Queen.
_Aquarius_ is Haken's debut release - a 72 minute, larger than life conceptual sci-fi/fantasy work filled with bombastic keyboard flourishes, stunning vocals, and lethal guitarwork. The album was recorded in Germany at Spacelab Studios (Delain, Everon, Wolverine) and mastered in Germany at Eroc's Mastering Ranch. The stunning artwork is by Dennis Sibeijn at Damn Engine created to tie in with the Aquarius story.
Early on in the writing process for the album, Haken were contacted by the Laser's Edge Group who later signed the band to their specialist progressive metal label Sensory Records, through which _Aquarius-
_ was released worldwide in March 2010
Rob Kachluba - Hell Hound.
'I am totally blown away. Haken is the best thing to happen to progressive metal in many, many years. Hailing from England, this relatively young band has unleashed a masterpiece.'
In their brief existence, HAKEN have become highly respected within the British metal and progressive communities. Their unique and imaginative genre-bending approach to music has garnered praise from all corners of the globe and they are becoming more widely known in The States and across Europe with interest beginning to develop in Japan and Australia.
They played a high profile show with the legendary Freak Kitchen at the London Underworld in November 2011.
They played the new UK Prog Metal Fused Festival with Vanden Plas and Threshold in April 2011 and a sell out warm up HEADLINE show for this festival at the HOUSE of PROGRESSION in Kingston Upon Thames with To-Mera - 25 March.
HAKEN played at MONKEYFEST 2011 in the UK on July 2_2011 with Guthrie Govan, Rob Chapman and Andy James.
HAKEN played on the same bill as Dream Theater at Loreley in Germany at NIGHT of the PROG VI on July 9 - 2011, along with Anathema, Vanden Plas and IQ. There were lots of HAKEN T-shirts in the front and they had the best show so far to a generous and enthusiastic crowd, culminating with a standing ovation.. A beautiful weekend of great friends and great progressive music.
HAKEN made their highly well received USA debut at CENTER STAGE in Atlanta as part of the prestigious PROGPOWER USA XII in September 2011 alongside some legendary bands including Therion, Sanctuary, Vanden Plas, Evergrey, Forbidden, Labyrinthe and Ihsahn.
They headlined Day One of GENERATION PROG with Exivious in Nurnberg - Sep 23 - 24, 2011.
Haken are billed to play a great prog show at THE ASSEMBLY in Leamington Spa on Nov 27, 2011, with Arena and Touchstone.
AQUARIUS continues to take the progmetal world community by storm -
inspiring passionate debate on the established prog and metal forums around the World and was progarchives no1 album of 2010.
VISIONS, their second concept album, will be released on October 24th 2011 on The Sensory Label [Laser’s Edge]. They have aimed to raise the bar with their composition and their playing and move up to the next level. Pre release copies sold exculsively at PROGPOWER USA XII in Atlanta and GENERATION PROG in Nuremberg ahve already received critical claim and placed them at the top of The Progarchives 2011 a prog album chart
A track from VISIONS will be on the free CD in issue 21 of Classic Rock presents Prog 21 out in late November 2011, along with an interview and album review.
HAKEN has an official website THE POINT OF NO RETURN - A big appreciative HAKEN thank you goes out to Richard Jouen for designing and running this site so passionately and professionally:
http://www.hakenmusic.com/
hakenmusic@hotmail.co.uk
Sleeping Thoughts Wake
Haken Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
in which she lies,
raindrops on the windowpane
keep her awake.
Shades of her mind
shape the world she sees.
Lost in fading daylight,
Tears of fire cascade from the sea,
the sound falling through the earth
pulls me to its core.
Free me from this black hole,
help me regain control of my reality.
Sleeping thoughts wake,
my visions oppressing me.
Trapped inside this raging mind,
drawn between opposing worlds,
she abhorred her lost soul.
Tears of earth cascade from the sea,
the sound falling through the fire
pulls me to its core.
Splintered, sragmented heart,
spirits are torn apart.
She lost her reality,
sleeping thoughts wake
and entered her fantasy.
Where am I?
What is this feeling?
My sleeping thoughts awakening.
When will my conscious thoughts sleep?
I'm alive in my dreams,
in my dreams I am free.
Wonders I have never heard,
I see a magical world below.
Let your senses become one.
For the first time I am now awake.
I don't want to go, this is not the end.
When can I return? Will I see you again?
Drawn back to this wretched world,
she abhorred her lost soul.
Tears of sea cascade from the earth and fire,
falling through the sound pulls me to its core.
This is not the end...
The lyrics to Haken's song Sleeping Thoughts Wake depict a person's journey through their dreams, which have become intermingled with their waking reality. The shades of grey that shape her room and the raindrops on the windowpane become metaphors for the shades of her mind and the tears of fire cascade from the sea, representing the tumultuous emotions she feels as she struggles to regain control of her reality. The lyrics suggest a struggle between opposing worlds, with the singer feeling trapped and torn apart spiritually as she tries to reconcile her dreams with her waking life.
The song portrays the journey of self-discovery and the struggle to find one's place in a world that can be both beautiful and terrifying at the same time. The lyrics suggest that the singer is both fascinated by and fearful of her inner world, which becomes a place where she can escape but also get lost. The song creates a powerful atmosphere of hope, fear, and vulnerability, as it explores the contrast between the dreamlike and the real world.
Line by Line Meaning
Shades of grey shape the room
The room is dimly lit and the colors are muted, making it feel gloomy.
in which she lies,
The person being referred to is lying in the room described in the previous line.
raindrops on the windowpane
The sound of raindrops hitting the window is audible in the room.
keep her awake.
The person in the room is having a hard time falling asleep due to the sound of the rain and potentially other factors.
Shades of her mind
The person's state of mind is similar to the room described earlier, with her thoughts being unclear and hard to make sense of.
shape the world she sees.
The person's perceptions of the world are colored by what's going on in her mind, making her view of reality skewed.
Lost in fading daylight,
The person is feeling lost, as if the things she relied on to guide her are disappearing.
she entered her dreams.
The person has started to dream, potentially as a way of escaping reality.
Tears of fire cascade from the sea,
The image of fiery tears coming from the sea is being depicted, invoking feelings of sadness and chaos.
the sound falling through the earth
The sound being produced by the fiery tears seems to be going through the ground beneath them.
pulls me to its core.
The person speaking feels pulled to the core of the earth by this sound, as if it has a profound effect on them.
Free me from this black hole,
The person is feeling trapped and wants to be freed from their negative emotions and experiences.
help me regain control of my reality.
The person wants to feel like their reality isn't being dictated by their thoughts and emotions but rather that they have agency over it.
Sleeping thoughts wake,
The person is feeling like the thoughts they've been trying to suppress or ignore are starting to resurface.
my visions oppressing me.
The person's mental images and inner world are overwhelming them and making it difficult for them to function normally.
Trapped inside this raging mind,
The person is feeling trapped inside their own head, with their thoughts being tumultuous and hard to control.
drawn between opposing worlds,
The person feels torn between two different ways of seeing reality or two different courses of action.
she abhorred her lost soul.
The person hates the fact that they feel like they've lost themselves - whether that means losing their identity or their sense of control over their life.
Tears of earth cascade from the sea,
Another image of tears is being used to convey sadness and a sense of loss.
the sound falling through the fire
The sound we were previously introduced to seems to be affecting fire in some way, producing a reaction that can be heard.
pulls me to its core.
The same sense of being pulled towards the core of the earth is being invoked here again.
Splintered, fragmented heart,
The person's heart is described as broken into pieces, implying emotional turmoil.
spirits are torn apart.
The person is experiencing internal conflict that is affecting their emotional and mental wellbeing.
She lost her reality,
The person is questioning the nature of reality and perhaps feels disconnected from it in some way.
sleeping thoughts wake
The person's suppressed thoughts are starting to emerge, likely causing them anxiety or distress.
and entered her fantasy.
The person has entered a world of fantasy or imagination, potentially as a way of escaping their reality.
Where am I?
The person seems disoriented and confused about where they are, potentially because they're in the midst of a dream or a mental breakdown.
What is this feeling?
The person is experiencing strong emotions that they're having trouble making sense of or dealing with.
My sleeping thoughts awakening.
The person's suppressed thoughts are coming to the surface and causing them distress.
When will my conscious thoughts sleep?
The person is wondering when they'll be able to stop thinking and worrying and instead find peace and calmness in their thoughts.
I'm alive in my dreams,
The person feels more alive and vibrant in their dreams than they do in their waking life.
in my dreams I am free.
The person is able to escape their problems and issues when they enter their dream world and feel free for a while.
Wonders I have never heard,
The person is experiencing things they've never experienced before or things that feel otherworldly or magical to them.
I see a magical world below.
The person is imagining a fantastical world that feels more vivid and real than their mundane reality.
Let your senses become one.
The person is encouraging themselves or someone else to be truly present in the moment and pay attention to their senses and surroundings.
For the first time I am now awake.
The person feels like they're finally becoming truly conscious and aware of their surroundings and inner self.
I don't want to go, this is not the end.
The person is enjoying the dream or the imaginative world they've entered and doesn't want to leave it behind.
When can I return? Will I see you again?
The person is hoping to return to this fantastical world or this dream state and is wondering if they'll be able to do so and who they'll encounter there.
Drawn back to this wretched world,
The person is feeling pulled back to their mundane reality, which they view as unpleasant or wretched.
she abhorred her lost soul.
The person continues to hate the fact that they feel disconnected from their sense of self or from reality in general.
Tears of sea cascade from the earth and fire,
A mix of elements is being depicted - saltwater tears are coming from earth (the ground) and fire.
falling through the sound pulls me to its core.
The sound we've been introduced to seems to have a magnetic effect on the person, pulling them towards the core of the earth again.
This is not the end...
The song ends on an ellipsis, perhaps suggesting that the person's story or struggle isn't over yet and there's more to come.
Contributed by Isaiah A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Cody Beinert
Haken, I just want to let you know that you have been making amazing and unique music your entire damn career, even if the music quality bad. You are amazingly talented, every one of you, and don't stop making amazing music! Can't wait for Vector!
James Christian
@Lockheed Thank you Haken for replying.
Lockheed
Pal. This isn’t Haken who uploaded this. It some random who got ahold of the Demo
Thomas Bromme
I miss so much the contrast between the dark doom atmosphere and the joyful one (like the middle part of this song, the polka in celestial elixir, beginning of streams and the circus part in blind... I love that really much!!!)
Gabriel Blacklock
Best song on this album. They really need to do a remake of this one!
Axel V
Beautiful ! I want a new version like you have made with snow !!!!!
Thomas Bromme
same same. a pity that this song will never be popular among a lot of Haken fans :/ it is , for an early song, genius!
Bepo on Drums
Axel Bopp I think the same every time I listen to it!
NUGGet3562
My freaking gosh...... this is amazing. I think it'd be awesome if they redid this whole album. Not like Darkest Light, Earthlings, and Crystallised (although those are masterpieces, I love them). But like just play these songs like they were originally, but with better production and all that stuff. This music is so sick, and I wish they didn't ignore it. Don't know what I mean by that? You can go to the Haken website and actually try to buy this album. It's on there, but it's not for sale. 😢
Thomas Bromme
NUGGet3562 but have you read what the band said about their development during all those years. they changed a lot and in the beginning everything seemed possible, the tracks where long (maybe even too long in their opinion) and full of ideas. so they tried to concentrate the songs. watch the length of the tracks on the demo and aquarius compared to affinity or vector. compare for example streams with in memoriam or the good doctor. then you can see the main line of development of Haken. in my opinion the most of the new things are still genius. although I miss a lot of things that were on the demo and on aquarius and (except a bit in the mountain) never came back. therefore new interesting things entered the 6th dimension of Haken universe.
so again I have to agree with you. it's a big pity that aquarius is the only well produced existing album in this old style and the demo is a masterpiece with bad sound quality. although I have to agree with Haken when they say there is a bit too much in some songs (especially snow).
Haken should rerecord this song and the following! but they should do it in the way they would like to do now like with the restoration album. otherwise they cannot be creative with the material. and that would be not progressive at all!