Vancouver's Marianas Trench have reliably bridged the gap between taut pop anthems and knotty, high-flying rock-opera dramatics since the 2009 release of their sophomore album, Masterpiece Theatre. Now, more than five years on from their last record, 2019's Phantoms, they've announced their sixth studio album.
Haven arrives on August 30 via 604 Records. Featuring recent singles "A Normal Life," "Lightning and Thunder" and "I'm Not Getting Better," it was produced by resident vocal acrobat and composer Josh Ramsay, with additional contributions from the Vancouver Film Orchestra.
As per, Haven is a concept album. This time, they drew inspiration from Joseph Campbell's The Hero's Journey, a scholarly text outlining the arc of the classic quest narrative. "The more of a deep dive I did into the book, the more I was in awe of how much it applied to every story," Ramsay explained, using one of the plot points Campbell observes in every hero's journey to guide each track.
"This is what a year and a half of blood, sweat, tears, and untrimmed facial hair sounds like," guitarist Matt Webb added. "We set out to make this record with the goal of one-upping ourselves; to push the sonic envelope while incorporating a lifetime of inspiration, and the high gain, high energy, unfiltered and unapologetic Marianas sound that put us on the map, so long ago. We have grown so much during the making of this record, yet together in a room, creating and listening to music, we go backwards. We feel (and act) just like kids. Life is blissful and turbulent, but when we are together, it's safe. It's Haven. We hope you hear and feel it the same way we do."
The quartet will perform the new music live this fall on an extensive North American tour. Find the album tracklist, as well as the latest single, below.
Haven:
1. A Normal Life
2. Lightning and Thunder
3. I'm Not Getting Better
4. Down to You
5. Now or Never
6. Into the Storm
7. Ancient History
8. Stand and Fight
9. Turn and Run
10. Worlds Collide
11. Nights Like These
12. Remember Me By
13. Haven