Introduction
Recorded at London’s O2 forum, Liveforms is an impressive record of Haken’s An Evening With… trek. With the band performing two sets each night, the first half of the show found Haken playing their seventh studio album – 2023’s stunning Fauna – in full, while the second half saw the band return to air a selection of hits and deep cuts from across their flawless back catalogue.
The Package
The album is available on limited double vinyl through the band’s own Bandcamp page (featuring only the Fauna portion of the set), as well as a more widely available 3 CD / Blu Ray box set, which offers the complete show as well as some bonus interview content. The package, with its stunning Dan Goldsworthy art; fold-out, five-panel digipack; and twelve-page booklet; looks fantastic, and it’s clear that real thought and care went into the presentation – even down to having a different design for each of the discs.
The blu ray portion of the set is the real prize. Let’s face it, Haken – a band whose attention to detail is well known – were never going to miss the chance to present their live show in the best possible light, and it’s amazing just how crisp, clear, and well-edited the visuals are. With plenty of dynamic in the cuts to keep things interesting, the shots nevertheless linger long enough for the home viewer to be able to enjoy the action both onstage and off, and it’s a joy to watch.
The audio, meanwhile, is absolutely pristine on both CD and blu ray, with the latter boasting 24/48 stereo and DTS Master Audio 5.1 versions. For those with the requisite equipment, the 5.1 is undoubtedly the way to go, with the mix neatly spreading the band’s various elements across the channels. It’s not as immersive as, say, the best Steven Wilson mix (few things are, in fairness), but it’s damned impressive, and there’s a clear separation between the instruments, ensuring that the home listener gets to fully appreciate just how multifaceted the Haken sound truly is.
All of this makes this gorgeous, generous box set an essential addition to any Haken fan’s collection.
Disc one / vinyl edition / Blu Ray Set 1
Disc one of the box set and the double vinyl contain identical track listings, with both featuring Fauna played in its entirety and (the introduction excepted) in order. Honestly, were this the only content the album had to offer, it would be a stunning 75-minutes or so of entertainment and the gorgeous vinyl edition is more than worth picking up, even in the absence of all the other great material found in the box set.
It opens with the short, enigmatic mood piece, The Last Lullaby (originally a bonus track), which has the whole crowd clapping and chanting along to tribal rhythms and dreamy synth – the applause ramping up to reach a peak as the band arrive on stage. It’s a mesmerising start that does little to prepare the listener for the darkly compelling riffing of Taurus. A potent rocker which sits comfortably alongside the likes of Riverside in the progressive firmament, it offers soaring vocals and stabbing rhythms, reminding you just what a devastating live act Haken can be.
The set continues with the whimsical prog meanderings of Nightingale, which has more than a hint of vintage Genesis about its multi-tiered musical musings, before a hulking great riff snaps us back to the present with dextrous ease. As perfect an example as you could wish of Haken’s ability to bridge influences and even eras of prog, Nightingale is a masterclass in dynamic and expressive musicianship, and it is beautifully rendered here.
The band continue to explore a range of influences with The Alphabet Of Me, a rhythmically nimble piece that feels strikingly modern compared to Nightingale and yet still very much of a piece with the set. A reminder of Raymond Hearne’s deft presence behind the kit, it finds the band walking roughshod over a wealth of styles until they land comfortably on lead break delivered via trumpet, which has the entire crowd cheering. Keeping the pace taut, Sempiternal Beings allows Ross Jenning’s perpetually awe-inspiring vocals to weave between a series of tightly wound riffs, the track slowly building towards a veritable tsunami of guitars.
With Ross demanding that the audience keep the party going, the explosive Beneath The White Rainbow does exactly that although, as with all the pieces here, it’s not without its twists and turns. The opening riff, propulsive as it is, gives way to a calmer, jazz-infused section, although the next riff is never far behind. It’s another daring piece, and the sheer technical precision of the stair-stepping mid-section is breathtaking. Surely this is a band at the very peak of their not inconsiderable powers, and we should be grateful that Haken thought to capture it all with such startling quality for the audience to enjoy at home.
Providing a little relief from the musical contortions, the next two tracks are shorter and sweeter – the sonic gymnastics of Island In The Clouds and the “heavy metal love song” Lovebite, with its DTP-esque riffing and 80s pop vibes paving the way for the epic, 11-minute monster, Elephants Never Forget – a near-miraculous merging of everything from Supertramp and Genesis to Devin Townsend and pulsing disco beats. As insane as it sounds on paper, it proves to be absolutely immense and only provides further evidence of the band’s remarkable skills. It leaves the airy, synth-led Eyes Of Ebony to wrap things up, the track building to a suitably majestic conclusion, leaving the audience to nurse their shattered senses in advance of the second set.
Note: During the actual performance, this first set ended with Crystallised. However, for reasons of space, it is omitted entirely from the vinyl edition and is included on the third disc of the box set.
Discs 2 & 3
The second and third discs found in this set find the band exploring their extensive back catalogue, with a further eleven tracks on offer. It opens with Puzzle Box, a Vector highlight that takes on new life in the live environment. With a gritty performance from Ross and the band continuing to underscore the fact that they are one of the tightest units currently treading the boards, it makes for one hell of an opening, even in the wake of the epic Fauna. Then, following an emotionally charged Earthrise, we get to The Cockroach King – a longtime favourite that never fails to delight. A highlight from enigmatic album The Mountain, it’s part prog metal, part opera and, with the crowd eagerly moshing along, it remains as delightfully kooky as when it was first released.
Opting for something a little more straightforward in its heaviness, The instrumental Nil By Mouth is a masterclass in dynamic prog metal, before the funky pulse of 1985 appears like some nylon-lit clash of Harold Faltermyer, John Carpenter, and Yes. Punishing, but with a great melody, it’s just one of those tracks that works its way under the skin, its understated vocal neatly contrasting with the band’s instrumental gymnastics.
The band shoot forward in time, next, to dig into the Virus album for an intense version of The Strain. One of those tracks that underscores the superlative abilities of drummer Ray Hearne, it’s one of the band’s more concise assaults, although it does feature the eerie art rock coda of Strainwreck, which more or less doubles its run time. Another shorter piece Canary Yellow has a lovely sense of melancholy that recalls the later works of the late, great Anathema, providing a moment of calm before the band unleash the show’s gripping finale – a stunning Drowning In The Flood, which takes on a grungy aspect in the live environment that brings the mighty Headswim to mind.
Disc 3 comprises just two tracks – Crystallised from the first set and show closer Visions. However, with both pieces clocking in at around the 18-minute mark, the disc provides a neat showcase of the band’s most expansive material.
Opening the disc, Crystallised (ported over from its original position closing the Fauna set) is an absolute treat, perfectly summarising the band’s sonic diversity in eighteen glorious minutes. It’s all here – heavy riffs, whimsical moments, a cappella sections, touches of jazz, all played with such joie de vivre that you barely notice the song’s length. Recalling the artistry of early Genesis, it’s a stunning thrill-ride that, for all its intense musicianship, never loses sight of the song that lies at its core. It is a truly breathtaking piece, and it will leave you in awe at the sheer breadth of Haken’s ambition.
The album wraps up with Visions, a similarly lengthy piece that emerges from a huge orchestral backdrop (the audience singing along) to become one of the most band’s most cinematic pieces. With huge elastic riffs – in places recalling Devin Townsend’s work, at other points nodding to The Doors – Visions is another example of the band’s unique ability to grab the audience’s attention and to hold it, to the extent that, when the song finally runs its course, you find yourself wondering where on earth the time went.
Final thoughts
If only all boxsets could be like this. With three CDs covering the entire show (albeit slightly reordered) and the blu ray providing unlimited access to the whole night, this set is the ultimate Haken live experience. With great artwork (thank you Dan Goldsworthy), stunning production values, a photo booklet and a slip case, Live Forms really does set the bar for how live releases should be, and that’s before we even get to the outstanding content.
As for the music, on Liveforms, Haken stake a claim for being one of the most imaginative prog bands currently treading the boards. Their passion for the form, their enthusiasm on stage, and the sheer skill with which they carve out these fantastic pieces of music is nothing short of astonishing, and it takes a special kind of skill to play for three hours and make it feel like half that, even at the remove of watching at home. With this beautifully played and recorded set you can feel the excitement of the crowd and it’s impossible not to be swept right along with them. If you’re a fan of Haken, a fan of prog… hell, if you are a fan of music in general, you deserve this set in your collection. Grab a copy now and lose yourself in the world of Haken. 10/10
