The Traveller Across Dimensions


The Traveller Across Dimensions is the third studio album by Filipino indie folk/folk pop band Ben&Ben. The album was released on November 29, 2024, under Sony Music Philippines.

Background

More than three years after the success of their second album Pebble House, Vol. 1: Kuwaderno, Ben&Ben announced on social media that they will be releasing their third album on November 29, 2024. The album was then announced as being titled The Traveller Across Dimensions in a trailer released on their social media pages.
In October 2024, the band later revealed that the album is a concept album featuring the story of Liwanag, a fictional character who belongs to a race of inter-dimensional beings called the Travellers. Liwanag is on a quest to reach the Duyan Dimension, a place where all travellers achieve a state of perpetual inner peace. Liwanag must complete her lifecrest as she travels through the three dimensions of life: Light, Energy and Feel. The album's twelve tracks are a reflection of Liwanag's thoughts, feelings, and experiences as she journeys through each dimension.

Singles

The first single of the album "Could Be Something" was released on June 30, 2023. Lead vocalists Paolo and Miguel Guico revealed that they started writing the song when a fan approached them while eating at a place in Makati City and thanked them for making the fan believe in love again.
The second single of the album "Autumn" was released on November 24, 2023. The song is inspired by long-distance relationships, revealing that the song was written during their North American tour in Canada when the band's lead vocalist Paolo Guico felt lonely without his girlfriend.
The third single of the album "Courage" was released a week later. The band revealed that the song is about overcoming their past struggles and for their listeners, who are grappling with issues in varying situations such as bullying, academic setbacks, work-related stress, and financial burdens.
The fourth single of the album "Comets" was released on May 10, 2024. The song was written in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and was inspired by the band's losses that they have encountered in the past four years, like breakups, end of friendships, and end of professional relationships.
The fifth single of the album "Triumph" was released on October 18, 2024. The sound of Triumph described as arena rock, marked a shift from the overall indie folk and folk-pop sound in their previous albums produced.

Production

The band spent one or two days in brainstorming each song. Music producer Ziv then synthesized each band member's contribution to form an arrangement of the song, then the band would gradually revise the arrangement until its final revision.
Ben&Ben collaborated with animators from Puppeteers Studio to produce the music videos of the album's songs. The band explored using animation to experiment visual storytelling in their music videos and "to stray from the more reality-based music videos done so many of throughout career." In an interview, band member Miguel recalled that the animation and the music "completed each other", as they conceptualized using animation in their album during their songwriting process, which then influenced the rest of their production.

Reception

Elijah Pareño of Rolling Stone praised the instrumentation of the album's songs, but criticized that the album "lacks the emotional depth to make a convincing narrative" and the themes of its songs as a concept album were disorganized."

Personnel

Ben&Ben

  • Miguel Benjamin Guico – lead vocals, acoustic guitar
  • Paolo Benjamin Guico – lead vocals, acoustic guitar
  • Poch Barretto – lead guitar, backing vocals
  • Jam Villanueva – drums, backing vocals
  • Agnes Reoma – bass, backing vocals
  • Patricia Lasaten – keyboards, backing vocals
  • Toni Muñoz – percussion, lead vocals, backing vocals
  • Andrew de Pano – percussion, lead vocals, backing vocals
  • Keifer Cabugao – violin, backing vocals

Technical

  • Ziv – co-producer, saxophone
  • Petra Sihombing – co-producer
  • Jean-Paul Verona – co-producer, mixing engineer
  • Sam Marquez – co-producer
  • Tim Marquez – co-producer
  • Erika De Pano - additional vocals

Recording

  • Jacques Jenkins – mixing engineer
  • Moko Aguswan – mixing engineer
  • Waxie Joaquin – mixing and mastering engineer
  • Leon Zervos – mastering engineer
  • Daryl Reyes – recording engineer
  • David Lina – recording engineer
  • Rene Serna – recording engineer
  • Daniel Monong – recording engineer

Creative credits

  • Katrina Umatam – album art
  • Aurthur Mercader – album concept, story and creative direction
  • Puppeteer Animation Studios – album concept, story and creative direction
  • Jether Dane Guadalupe – co-creative direction
  • Amy Nayve – packaging design concept and execution, pop-up design
  • Pumapapel Design Studio – packaging design concept and execution