When faced with the challenge of writing his first ever solo album, Charlie Griffiths was only ever going to write about one thing. The discovery of the prehistoric tiktaalik gave scientists huge clues as to how fish evolved into mankind, and now the Haken guitarist has combined his passion for palaeontology and prog metal into a remarkable concept album. He talks to Prog about fossils, Serbian opera singers and why the world needs more Derek Shulmans.

Words: Phil Weller

Six-strings under the sea: Charlie Griffiths digs deeper.

Images: Ross Jennings

“People shouldn’t be shut off from a particular genre or vocal style; they should be open to everything.”

Solo albums are often an opportunity for musicians to step away from the traditions of their main band and explore new sounds and cultures. But when that main band’s palette is as broad as Haken’s, where do you go from there? The answer, according to guitarist Charlie Griffiths, is as far back as possible. Like The Ocean’s phanerozoic recordings, his solo debut Tiktaalika combines prehistory with progressive metal. It’s a record that throws all his influences into a vast prog metal melting pot and is galvanised by the restrictions he imposed on himself.

“My mentality was to try and do things a little differently to Haken,” Griffiths explains. “I limited myself to six-string guitars rather than the usual eight. As a result, my classic thrash side really came out, with inspiration from bands like Megadeth and Testament as well as Cynic-type fusion and tech metal influences.