HAKEN’S Vocalist ROSS JENNINGS Discusses “Troika” Debut Album: “A Lot Of The Music And Lyrics I’ve Written In The Past Have Come From An Intellectual Place, And I Just Had The Urge To Write From An Emotional Place.”

When the collaboration between Neal Morse, Nick D’Virgilio, and Ross Jennings was announced, prog fans worldwide received the unexpected association with great excitement. Even though we already know the outstanding results that the partnership between Morse and D’Virgilio usually provides, the presence of Ross Jennings, vocalist for prog-metal powerhouse Haken and Novena, gave the project an unpredictable and exciting appeal.

From the beginning, it was announced that “Troika”, the trio’s debut album, started with Neal writing some acoustic songs that he thought would benefit from the use of strong vocal harmonies. Even so, several aspects remained to be known, so contributor Brian Masso had the opportunity to talk with Ross Jennings about this new project that led him to work side by side with some of the musicians that have inspired him to be the outstanding artist he is today.

In their conversation, they talked about how busy he has been for the last couple of years participating in different projects and the reception of his solo debut album, “A Shadow Of My Future Self”. They also spoke about how “Troika” came to life, how he felt when he was invited to participate with such legendary prog musicians as Morse and D’Virgilio and the overall sound direction of the album. In addition, they chatted about how Jennings wanted to create an album with a country and singer/songwriter vibe before he was invited to participate and if he already had some songs prepared. Also, they discussed the songwriting and recording process and how he felt for not recording with everyone in the same room. Besides, they talked about what it means for him to portray themes related to interpersonal relationships through his solo album and with “Troika”. Finally, Ross mentioned briefly what the future holds for Haken and Novena, among other topics.

Listen to their very informative conversation below, and make sure to follow Sonic Perspectives on Facebook, Flipboard and Twitter, and subscribe to our YouTube channel to be notified about new content we publish on a daily basis.