Haven of Echoes - Memento Vivere (2024) [Hi-Res]

Haven of Echoes is the collaboration between critically acclaimed musicians Paul Sadler (Spires/solo) and Andreas Hack (Frequency Drift) that puts sophisticated songwriting, thoughtful lyrics and emotional vocal performance to the fore. Best known as vocalist, guitarist and songwriter for celebrated UK based progressive metal act Spires, as well as an acclaimed solo artist, Paul possesses a haunting voice that ranges from silky smooth to harsh and anguished. His talent for inventive melodies and layered vocal composition takes center stage throughout the project. Andreas Hack is a musician from Germany whose former band Frequency Drift earned an international fan base with concerts all over Europe and released eight albums worldwide, which were enthusiastically received by fans and the press alike.

In 2022 they released their debut album “The Indifferent Stars”, to an overwhelmingly positive reception from critics and fans alike. Difficult to categorize, it is at once progressive yet accessible, familiar yet forward-thinking. An album that takes the listener on a self-reflective journey, exploring the simultaneously connected yet increasingly isolated world we inhabit. In September 2024 Haven of Echoes will release their sophomore effort, “Memento Vivere” on Construction Records. It will be released on CD, 180g black vinyl and 180g colored vinyl. It is an album that pushes stylistically further in all directions than its predecessor. Bolder, overtly progressive songwriting is combined with a more pronounced virtuosity, yet it never loses the accessible elements that made the first album such a critical and artistic success.

Once again, Andreas’ former bandmate, electric harpist Nerissa Schwarz enriches the music with a wide range of sounds, from eerie ambient soundscapes to energetic outbursts. Lyrically the album deals primarily with the theme of impermanence and the way in which we are all affected by the knowledge of our own mortality. All these elements are combined in a unique cinematic, gothic and truly progressive album, that despite its musical complexities remains relatable and honest, and will linger in the listener’s mind long after the music stops.

Paul Sadler about the first single: "Assimilation is perhaps the most complete example of what people can expect to find on the album, in the sense that it features an extremely catchy and relatively straight forward chorus, surrounded by progressive elements such as odd signatures and unusual instrumentation. It could therefore perhaps be seen as a microcosm of the album as a whole. Musically, the track floats between nostalgic melancholia and a cautious optimism, which is something I wanted to reflect lyrically. The song, and the album as a whole, deals with our own impermanence, yet on this track in particular I am trying to argue that perhaps there is a positive side to everything, including the death of ourselves and those around us, in the way it lends a sense of urgency and purpose to the limited time we are dubiously blessed with."