Soen, the Swedish supergroup, ended the first leg of their 2022 European tour on May 29 at the Havana Club in Tel Aviv. The band ended in style with a phenomenal show playing to a packed crowd who were clearly hungry for music after a two-year covid drought.

As the lights dimmed, the band walked onstage. Lead guitarist Cody Lee Ford looked like everything Russel Brand dreamed of being; rhythm guitarist, keyboardist and backing vocalist Lars Åhlund looked like Thor wielding a Gibson Firebird (except when he switched it for a Flying V); bassist Oleksii Kobel is new to the band, but he fit right in, trading jokes and licks with the others while whipping his incredible dreadlocks. Drummer (and founding member) Martín López began beating out his polyrhythms and the band kicked off with “Monarch.” Vocalist Joel Ekelöf then came onstage looking not unlike Rob Halford (though later he switched the leather jacket for his more traditional dark blazer).

In terms of musical ability there is no question that the five band members are all at the top of their game. The musicians all come from extreme metal backgrounds but their sound is far from being merely fast riffs and growls. Lopez once described their heavy prog-rock sound as, “melodic, heavy, intricate and very different than everything else” and it is difficult to come up with a better description. They appear to have outgrown and evolved from their earlier days when they were dismissed as clones of Tool (in the past, Soen said that, they consider Tool, “not only a band, but a genre.”

This tour is in support of Soen’s latest album, “Imperial” which was released way back in January, 2021. The songs move effortlessly from heavy riffs to hammond keyboard block chords, to shimmering, echo-laden arpeggios to a sound verging on Southern blues rock. There is no screaming from Ekelöf, but rather his vocal style is controlled, versatile, and his range is quite impressive.

“Israel is a land of mystery,” Ekelöf said. “And the biggest mystery is how do you make that hummus so f&@#ing great.”

The hundreds of fans who ventured out on a hot and steamy Tel Aviv night joined in with every line of every song. Almost every song title is a single word, but the lyrics are complex, long and meaningful.

For me, one of the highlights was the opening of “Savia” when Kobel’s bass took the lead. The band as a whole were incredibly tight, the harmonies were perfect, and Åhlund moved seamlessly from the front of the stage to the back as he switched from guitar to keyboards (with a little bit of bongos for good measure).

Even after the encores of Lascivious, Sectarian and Lotus, and even though it was well past midnight, the crowd did not want to leave.

“This is such a wonderful end to our tour,” Ekelöf told the crowd. “There’s going to be more visits in the future. I promise you that.”

And it was clear that Tel Aviv looks forward to seeing the band on their next time through the city.

Before Soen took to the stage, Israeli band Artland kicked things off with their multimedia, melodic shredfest. The three guitarists, bassist and drummer, all originally from the former Soviet Union, showed off their phenomenal technical skills which were the equal of any international band. I look forward to one day seeing them share their melodies and textures, over complex rhythmic structures as a headline act.

The concert was put on by Progstage Productions. Since 2012, Progstage have brought over 120 international artists to Israel. Over the next few months, Progstage will also bring Alestorm, Arch Enemy and Three Days Grace to the Holy Land.

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