Sweden’s SOEN has been a regular face in progressive/alternative metal since releasing their debut full-length Cognitive back in 2012. Early on the group resembled both Tool and the metal side of Opeth while also channeling plenty of progressive rock. The comparisons to the latter made sense given founder Martin Lopez’s involvement on some of Opeth’s best known albums, but SOEN pushed in their own direction and in recent years have gone for a more streamlined mix of introspective melodies and heavy grooves. Their seventh full length Reliance continues the approach of the last couple of releases but reinforces some of the heaviness and low-end of the sound. At this point the group seems content to stick with this specific direction, but Reliance has the hooks to make it another worthy effort.
Let’s get this out of the way early, if you’ve been hoping that at some point SOEN will pivot back to the style of their first couple of albums and the more recent sound hasn’t clicked Reliance isn’t going to change your mind. The emphasis continues to be on heavier sections that transition into much softer and reflective melodies, but where its predecessor had more of a rock tone to it this time the band has brought back a considerable amount of the metal tonality while also expanding the melodies outwards. Opener “Primal” is a great example of this, as you have a big and booming groove that kicks things off but transitions into a much softer melody in between. Compared to Memorial the production is a lot fuller, making the weight of the low end pop out a lot more during the heavier sections while also letting the melodies soar when they need to. This along with the emphasis on making the softer, slower sections just as catchy as the room filling metal riffs plays a big role in why this album grabbed me more right off the bat. Songs like “Discordia” draw you in with their somber alternative/progressive rock melodies before moving into heavier almost djent leaning grooves, while “Indifferent” showcases SOEN can captivate even with just a piano. Like the past few albums, the arrangements aren’t nearly as prog oriented as the band’s earlier days and they do fall into a lot of patterns. This is especially noticeable when it comes to the way the songs transition between the heavy and melodic sides of the spectrum, which does make certain moments run together over repeat listens.
Vocalist Joel Ekelöf has one of those ranges that’s perfectly suited for more modern leaning progressive/alternative metal, as he moves from softer, airier pitches to much gruffer ones that have a noticeable hard rock slant. It’s the type of voice that would’ve easily primed SOEN for radio play a decade and a half ago, and the band continues to build a lot of their biggest choruses around Ekelöf’s soaring and powerful singing. Songs like “Huntress” and “Draconian” really stood out to me for this reason, as they showcase some incredible subdued moments that build naturally to singing that towers over the recording with a commanding presence. It’s this type of approach that gives SOEN crossover appeal between the worlds of rock and metal, and they continue to make great use of it.
SOEN is still utilizing a lot of the playbook they established a few albums back, but they’ve made some smart tweaks to the songwriting and production that made this latest effort stand out more. Admittedly the moves from soft to heavy do get formulaic, but when the hooks are this strong and so much has stuck with me over repeat listens that does make up for it a bit. This far into their career SOEN does feel comfortable though and I could see this particular style of theirs running out of steam without some curveballs at some point, but for now they’ve still got it. Reliance is available from Silver Lining Music.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg