Haken detail 4th album Affinity

Haken have confirmed their fourth album Affinity will be released in April and issued a teaser video.

The band’s website gives full details of the release in the style of a 1980s home computer interface, which reveals Affinity will be out on April 29 via Inside Out.

It’s the follow-up to 2013 album The Mountain and their first new music since 2014 EP Restoration.

Vocalist Ross Jennings says: “It is the most collaborative we have ever been on an album. We wanted to develop and expand our sound by having every member contribute initial ideas from the very beginning of the process.

“It naturally takes longer to filter through the mass of material and fit it all together coherently, but this approach has helped to create something completely fresh.”

The band had previously trolled fans on Facebook by saying the album was called Verbatim, alongside an image of a Verbatim-branded CDR. They said: “Oh, sorry, we didn’t even tell you what our new album’s called. Please welcome Verbatim, our fourth album. And here’s the first copy.”

They later posted a fake tracklist which included a song clocking in at more than 50 minutes long. In fact, the longest song on Affinity is The Architect, which runs for just over 15 minutes.

Haken have also announced a European headline tour, which kicks off in London on May 26.

HAKEN AFFINITY TRACKLIST

  1. affinity.exe
  2. Initiate
  3. 1985
  4. Lapse
  5. The Architect
  6. Earthrise
  7. Red Giant
  8. The Endless Knot
  9. Bound By Gravity

HAKEN EUROPEAN TOUR 2016

May 26: London The Garage, UK
May 27: Zoetermeer Boerderij, Netherlands
May 29: Paris Divan du Monde, France
May 30: Pratteln Z7, Switzerland
May 31: Lyon Marche Gare, France
Jun 02: Barcelona Razz 2, Spain
Jun 03: Madrid Caracol, Spain
Jun 04: Minnuendo Festival, Spain
Jun 06: Milan Legend Club, Italy
Jun 07: Munich Backstage, Germany
Jun 08: Karlsruhe Substage, Germany
Jun 09: Aschaffenburg Colos Saal, Germany
Jun 10: Berlin Maschinenhaus, Germany
Jun 11: Warsaw Progresija, Poland
Jun 14: Stockholm Bryggarsalen, Sweden
Jun 15: Oslo John Dee, Norway
Jun 16: Copenhagen Spillestedet Stengade, Denmark
Jun 17: Hamburg Logo, Germany
Jun 18: Cologne Gebaude 9, Germany
Jun 19: Stone Free Festival, UK

Stef wrote close to 5,000 stories during his time as assistant online news editor and later as online news editor between 2014-2016. An accomplished reporter and journalist, Stef has written extensively for a number of UK newspapers and also played bass with UK rock favourites Logan. His favourite bands are Pixies and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Stef left the world of rock'n'roll news behind when he moved to his beloved Canada in 2016, but he started on his next 5000 stories in 2022.