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Haken, Nova Collective
Richard Henshall is acclaimed for his work as a founding member of progressive metal juggernaut HAKEN. The band has 5 full-length albums, 1 EP, and a Live DVD in their catalog, including the celebrated The Mountain (Inside Out Records, 2013), Vector (Sony/InsideOut, 2018), and their most recent offering, Virus (Inside Out Records, 2020).
HAKEN was awarded the 2019 UK Band of the Year at the Prestigious Prog Awards. In 2014, Henshall joined forces with Between the Buried and Me’s bassist Dan Briggs and Trioscapes/Cynic drummer Matt Lynch and formed Nova Collective. Together, they wrote the critically acclaimed album The Further Side, (Metal Blade, 2017) which draws influences from the likes of Chick Corea and the Mahavishnu Orchestra. In 2017, Henshall, alongside his HAKEN bandmates, featured in “Mike Portnoy’s Shattered Fortress”, performing the songs of Dream Theater for a year of very special shows around the world.
As a self-taught guitarist, Henshall was particularly inspired by the fretboard skills and contrasting techniques of players like Guthrie Govan, Robert Fripp, and Jonny Greenwood. His eclectic playing style ranges from dense polyrhythmic riffage to delicate minimalistic passages and everything in between. He was featured in Music Radar’s “11 best prog guitarist in the world right now” and Guitar World’s “15 of prog-rocks best guitarists through the years”.
Richard received his first Boden 8-string in 2014 and instantly fell in love with the fluency and versatility of the instrument. He has since been using a range of our instruments in the studio and on tours around the world with his various projects. In 2019, the multi-instrumentalist and composer completed work on his ambitious debut solo album, The Cocoon, which features Henshall’s trademark guitar and keyboard playing throughout and marks his debut performance as a lead vocalist.
The multi-layered, richly textured album represents four years of creative input from Henshall and draws inspiration from artists such as Bon Iver, Meshuggah, and Tigran Hamasyan, resulting in his most ambitious and eclectic work to date. World Prog Nation described it as “a complete creative exploration that defines the musical and creative identity of one of the most talented composers and musicians in progressive music today.”
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"Henshall has composed material which will not only find common ground with his established followers from his past efforts with Haken and Nova Collective but also bring in new fans with the more varied sound palate." - Victor J. Giol (The Prog Report) about Henshall's solo album The Cocoon
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