ENTER THE 5TH DIMENSION

-Before I start the review- Why is this demo named "Enter the 5th Dimension" here in Progarchives? It doesn't say anything regarding to it (or any other name) on the album sleeve I got from the band. As far as I know, this demo is either untitled or named Haken. Strange... anyhow, on with the review. Also, this is my first review and English isn't my first language, so I'm sorry if it's not too great. --------

Here we see a collection of songs made by the band in the years 2007 and 2008, a few years before releasing their highly acclaimed Aquarius that made me (and much other people) gain interest in the band in the first place. This demo was produced in one of the member's house rather than in a studio, so the production is pretty rough and the sound quality could be better, but it's still a highly enjoyable album. The overall sound is similar to the one in Aquarius, if less dark. The Dream Theater influence is pretty clear, but this is very far from being a DT clone. The sound is less "all over the place" in comparison to Aquarius, but there still are some funky circus-sounding parts (particularly in the first track, Blind, which happens to be one of my favorites) and even a short growl in the beginning (in that same song). I personally prefer the 2008 tracks (tracks 1-4) to the 2007 ones (5 and 6), but not by a long shot.

The score isn't perfect because I try to not be too generous with my five stars, and because not all tracks are on the same level, but it's still an excellent demo that does a good job at showing how were the roots of the band. Haken is a band I couldn't recommend more to anyone that even vaguely likes prog or has a good sense of music. 4 stars, which would be followed by a 5 star masterpiece.