Soen is a Swedish
progressive metal
Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral ...
supergroup. Their debut album ''
Cognitive
Cognition refers to "the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thought ...
'' was released on 15 February 2012.
History
Initially formed in 2004, it was in May 2010 that the formation of Soen was announced. The original lineup consisted of former
Opeth drummer
Martin Lopez Martin may refer to:
Places
* Martin City (disambiguation)
* Martin County (disambiguation)
* Martin Township (disambiguation)
Antarctica
* Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land
* Port Martin, Adelie Land
* Point Martin, South Orkney Islands
Austral ...
, ex-
Death
Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
,
Testament
A testament is a document that the author has sworn to be true. In law it usually means last will and testament.
Testament or The Testament can also refer to:
Books
* ''Testament'' (comic book), a 2005 comic book
* ''Testament'', a thriller nov ...
and
Sadus
Sadus is an American thrash metal band from Antioch, California, active from 1985 to 2015, and reunited in 2017. Originally a quartet, the band's sound fuses thrash metal with death metal, featuring highly technical musicianship. They are kno ...
bassist
Steve Di Giorgio
Steve Di Giorgio (born November 7, 1967) is an American bass guitarist. He is known for working with numerous heavy metal bands such as Sadus (of whom he was one of the co-founders), Death, Testament, Megadeth, Sebastian Bach, Iced Earth, Autop ...
, Willowtree vocalist Joel Ekelöf and guitarist Joakim Platbarzdis.
The group's first song, "Fraccions", was released on the band's official website in October 2010. Their first video, for the song "Savia", was posted on their Facebook page in February 2012.
Their second video is a moody acoustic version of the song "Ideate". The band's third video is for the song "Delenda".
Drummer Martin Lopez has described Soen's music as "melodic, heavy, intricate and very different than everything else."
Their debut, ''Cognitive'', was released in February 2012 receiving positive critical reception. The members' technical proficiency was praised the most, though many reviewers noted extreme stylistic similarities to the music of
Tool
A tool is an object that can extend an individual's ability to modify features of the surrounding environment or help them accomplish a particular task. Although many animals use simple tools, only human beings, whose use of stone tools dates ba ...
.
Martin Lopez commented on the Tool similarity: "We are inspired by Tool but I consider them not only a band but a genre. Besides that, I really don't think there's anything to argue about, we make good music whoever it would remind you of. Some people tend to dislike rather than like and are looking for faults instead of seeing music for what it is, good or bad".
[Interview with Martin Lopez](_blank)
by Grande-Rock.com retrieved on 15 March 2012.
''
Cognitive
Cognition refers to "the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thought ...
'' was released on Spinefarm records on 15 February 2012. The album was mixed by
David Bottrill
David Bottrill is a Canadian record producer. He has won three Grammys. Formerly, he owned Rattlebox Studios in Toronto, Ontario with producer Brian Moncarz. Moneen, Basia Lyjak, and The Getaway Plan are among the artists to have recorded at t ...
(Tool, Coheed and Cambria,
Silverchair
Silverchair were an Australian rock band, which formed in 1992 as Innocent Criminals in Newcastle, New South Wales, with Ben Gillies on drums, Daniel Johns on vocals and guitars, and Chris Joannou on bass guitar. The group got their big break ...
,
Smashing Pumpkins
Smash may refer to:
People
* Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler
* Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above.
* DJ Smash, DJ and music producer
Ar ...
,
Muse
In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the ...
, etc.) and mastered by João Carvalho. There is also a bonus track on the Japanese edition called "Writhen".
Soen's second album, ''
Tellurian'' was released on 4 November 2014. The album was produced by Platbarzdis, mixed again by
David Bottrill
David Bottrill is a Canadian record producer. He has won three Grammys. Formerly, he owned Rattlebox Studios in Toronto, Ontario with producer Brian Moncarz. Moneen, Basia Lyjak, and The Getaway Plan are among the artists to have recorded at t ...
and mastered at Bob Ludwig's Gateway setup in the U.S. by Adam Ayan. ''
Lykaia
In Ancient Greece, the Lykaia ( el, Λυκαία) was an archaic festival with a secret ritual on the slopes of Mount Lykaion ("Wolf Mountain"), the tallest peak in rustic Arcadia. The rituals and myths of this primitive rite of passage centered ...
'' is the third album released by Soen on 3 February 2017. The whole album was recorded using analog equipment.
''
Lotus
Lotus may refer to:
Plants
*Lotus (plant), various botanical taxa commonly known as lotus, particularly:
** ''Lotus'' (genus), a genus of terrestrial plants in the family Fabaceae
**Lotus flower, a symbolically important aquatic Asian plant also ...
'' is the fourth album released by Soen on 1 February 2019.
Their fifth album, ''Imperial'', was released on 29 January 2021.
Members
Current members
*
Martín López – drums, percussion (2010–present)
* Joel Ekelöf – vocals (2010–present)
* Lars Åhlund – keyboards, guitars, backing vocals (2014–present)
* Cody Lee Ford – guitars, backing vocals (2018–present)
* Oleksii 'Zlatoyar' Kobel – bass (2020–present)
Former members
*
Steve Di Giorgio
Steve Di Giorgio (born November 7, 1967) is an American bass guitarist. He is known for working with numerous heavy metal bands such as Sadus (of whom he was one of the co-founders), Death, Testament, Megadeth, Sebastian Bach, Iced Earth, Autop ...
– bass (2010–2013)
* Joakim Platbarzdis – guitars (2010–2015)
* Stefan Stenberg – bass (2013–2020)
* Marcus Jidell – guitars (2015–2018)
Session members
* Christian Andolf – bass
* Inti Oyarzún – bass
Timeline
Discography
Studio albums
Live albums
Singles and music videos
* "Savia" (2012)
* "Delenda" (2012)
* "Tabula Rasa" (2014)
* "The Words" (2014)
* "Lucidity" (2017)
* "Opal" (2017)
* "Rival" (2018)
* "Martyrs" (2018)
* "Lotus" (2019)
* "Covenant" (2019)
* "Antagonist" (2020)
* "Monarch" (2020)
* "Illusion" (2021)
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Heavy metal supergroups
Musical groups established in 2010
Musical quartets
Swedish progressive metal musical groups
2010 establishments in Sweden