Soen’s Martin Lopez Talks Their Long-Awaited Australian Tour

Swedish prog metal heavyweights Soen are finally making their long-awaited Australian live debut this October – and according to drummer Martin Lopez, it’s a milestone the band have been trying to make happen for years.

Since forming in 2010, Soen have grown into one of modern progressive metal’s most revered acts, building a global following around their combination of crushing heaviness, intricate musicianship, cinematic atmosphere and deeply introspective songwriting.

SOEN – ‘Axis’

But despite touring extensively across the globe, Australia has remained conspicuously absent from their itinerary.

That will finally change next month when Soen touch down for headline shows in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, joined by homegrown prog favourites The Omnific.

Speaking to Music Feeds ahead of the tour, Lopez revealed getting Soen down under has been a long-running mission.

“It’s something that we’ve been pretty much trying every year for a long time now, without being successful at it,” he tells us.

“But it’s happening now and I’m really excited.”

Soen Are Finally Coming To Australia

While the upcoming shows will mark Soen’s first Australian tour as a band, Lopez himself is no stranger to our shores.

The drummer previously toured Australia during his tenure with Opeth – and despite the thousands of shows he’s played throughout his career, those visits apparently left a lasting impression.

“I have played so many shows in my life, they tend to just blur into one confusion,” Lopez laughs.

“But I still remember Australia very, very well. I remember the shows. I remember Sydney. I remember Melbourne, Brisbane. It was something special.”

This time around, Lopez will be returning with Soen and sharing the stage with Melbourne’s own The Omnific, who’ll be celebrating their 10th anniversary with a special set resurrecting songs that haven’t been performed live in years – and may never be played again.

Lopez says he’s particularly looking forward to watching the Aussie prog trio night after night.

“It’s always special when you get to see a band many times in a row,” he says. “I’m excited about seeing them, actually, every night.”

As for what punters can expect from Soen themselves?

“I think musically it’s going to be a special night,” Lopez says.

“For us being there for the first time… I think we’re going to be hopefully not overly excited – very excited, at least – about playing these shows.”

“But as we always say with Soen, it’s just about going there and connecting and having a lot of people who love music under the same roof.”

Expect A Career-Spanning Soen Setlist

With Aussie fans having waited more than a decade to finally see Soen on home soil, the band are also conscious that simply loading the set with their newest material probably isn’t going to cut it.

Lopez confirms their Australian setlist will take those long-suffering fans into consideration, with music spanning across Soen’s catalogue.

“For the people who [have been listening] for many years and haven’t seen us live, we’ve got to think about them too,” he says.

“Setlist is a big thing for all the albums, but it’s kind of tough.”

It’s an enviable problem to have after more than a decade of records, beginning with 2012 debut Cognitive and evolving through an increasingly expansive body of work.

Soen’s latest material has also been connecting with a new generation of listeners, with Lopez noticing a younger contingent increasingly showing up at their gigs.

“We see there’s a wave of younger people coming to the shows,” he says.

But he stresses that broadening the band’s audience can never become a consideration while actually creating the music.

“You can’t really write music thinking of things like that. You can only write whatever you feel is good, you know? And just hope for the best.”

“The Highlight Is Now”

After spending virtually his entire adult life playing music professionally, Lopez has an unusually simple answer when asked to nominate Soen’s greatest achievement.

The highlight, he says, is right now.

“I think the highlight is now, in terms of where we are,” Lopez reflects.

“We have families and [this] beautiful friendship within the band. We’re also successful, which gives us the opportunity to make a living out of this. So it’s just great.”

“I think gratitude is something that comes with age,” he continues. “We are lately really getting to enjoy and to realise how beautiful what we have built actually is.”

And rather than chasing some grand career milestone from here, Soen’s ambitions are centred on protecting exactly that: continuing to create music they believe in, connect with people and speak about things that matter to them.

“I think it is about the day by day,” Lopez says.

“I think it’s about keeping writing music that excites us, that inspires people, and keep talking about the matters we feel are important.”

“As long as we get to do that, we can’t really ask for much more.”

For Aussie fans, though, one particularly overdue box is finally about to be ticked.

Soen will make their Australian live debut alongside The Omnific this October, kicking off at Melbourne’s 170 Russell before heading to Sydney and Brisbane. Grab your tickets down below.