Aquarius (Haken album)


Aquarius is the debut studio album by the progressive metal band Haken. Despite the band having released two previous demos, none of the multiple songs already recorded were re-released on this album. A 22 minute medley of the whole album, except for the song "Sun", was included in their live album L-1VE.
Aquarius was largely written on the piano by guitarist/keyboardist Richard Henshall and then developed with inputs by the rest of the band. Its tracks are generally longer, with the shortest track being just under 7 minutes and the longest being nearly 17. It is a concept album about a mermaid, discovered by a fisherman and sold to a circus, whose blood is the only thing capable of saving the human race from a flood resulting from global warming issues. She ultimately dies for mankind's sake.
The album artwork was created by Dennis Sibeijn, who has also worked with 3, Job for a Cowboy, and See You Next Tuesday, among others.

Reception

The reception of this album was generally positive.
Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic praised it as the strongest prog album yet to come out in the 2010s. Classic Rock Magazine featured the song "Eternal Rain" as a free track of the day on 15 April 2010. The small review given was positive, calling it "interesting music from a young London band who combine jazz, metal and prog, delivered with excellent musicianship."

Track listing

Personnel

;Haken
;Additional musicians
;Production and design