Aphelion is the seventh studio album by Norwegian progressive metal band Leprous, released on 27 August 2021 via Inside Out Music.

During the recording process, longtime collaborator Raphael Weinroth-Browne was involved for the third time in row, contributing with additional cello.

[2][3][4] Einar Solberg's original idea for the album title was Adapt, "more than anything because we had very much in mind the vital situation in which we currently find ourselves and with which we have been living for a year and a half.

"[7] The cover artwork, photographed by Øystein Aspelund and graphic-designed by Elena Sigida, is described as "a pyramid in the middle of a Norwegian landscape and at night".

He also pointed out the advantages and challenges for the band when adapting to the pandemic, saying that they were able to do a lot of streams and record and compose music and that touring wasn't "the only thing we can do.

[5] They have also planned a tour in December that will also celebrate the 20th anniversary of the band's inception, along with the possibility of releasing their demos.

[7] The final track "Nighttime Disguise" was written with the help of fans, who bought tickets to watch the band throughout a week as they streamed the process of creating a song based on parameters (such as the time signature, the vocal style, the dynamics, the key, the tempo and the instrumentation) that had previously been chosen by the fans via a poll.

[11] The album's pre-release singles "Running Low" and "The Silent Revelation" debuted on 25 June and 30 July 2021, respectively.

The album touches on prog, djent, pop, funk, trip hop and electronica, but the result is much greater than the sum of its parts.

"[23] Andrea C., reviewing for Tuonela Magazine, says that the band "continues its journey into all-clean-singing/rock territories with their upcoming album, “Aphelion.” The band's seventh studio effort comes on the heels of 2019's highly acclaimed “Pitfalls” and pretty much follows the same path of delivering unique and fascinating melodies that toe the line between heavy rock and synth-pop.

For a band that developed their identity within their own sound, it’s amazing to see they can still make such a diverse album covering all their elements.

From incredibly technical compositions, aggressive riffs & intricate vocal lines to deep, emotional and personal lyrics, Aphelion manages to give everything a Leprous fan would want.

"[25] Radio Metal explains in a moderately positive review, "The fundamentals of Aphelion were developed during the previous exercise.