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Just thought I would ask.
On top of that though, who are some of your favorites?
As well, What's your favorite album of the year so far?
Many people cited 2011 as the year of Prog, and I would admit that there were a cavalcade of releases that were/are pretty good. The new Anglagard and Big Big Train albums seem to be getting a lot of recognition (rightfully so).
Personally, my favorite so far seems to be "Map of the Past" by It Bites ("Fog Electric" by North Atlantic Oscillation is in a close 2nd though).
I like some stuff that you could call prog, but I have no idea what prog bands are doing these days.
I play in a prog band!
Haven't kept up to date with what else is being released, though.
Listened a bit to Trettioåriga Kriget recently (saw them live actually).
I'm a long time YES fan. King Crimson is also in there. DT. Spock's Beard, camel, Transatlantic. Flower Kings. Robert Fripp. I feel like I'm forgetting something ...
Gentle Giant, Van Der Graaf, Genesis :D
I thought Anglagard had split up! Good news that they've not. As far as contemporary prog goes, William D. Drake (ex Cardiacs, who are also amazing) is my favourite - as far as the classic stuff goes, +1 for King Crimson and Camel, but Van der Graaf Generator are some way out in front...
Also, honourable mentions for all of Robert Wyatt's output, Magma, Henry Cow, Le Orme, PFM...
(I used to play in a prog band, too :) )
I thought Anglagard had split up! Good news that they've not. As far as contemporary prog goes, William D. Drake (ex Cardiacs, who are also amazing) is my favourite - as far as the classic stuff goes, +1 for King Crimson and Camel, but Van der Graaf Generator are some way out in front...
Also, honourable mentions for all of Robert Wyatt's output, Magma, Henry Cow, Le Orme, PFM...
(I used to play in a prog band, too :) )
You reminded me. I also played in a dedicated Camel cover band. we only played Camel songs. The band was quite temporary though, made up of mostly band members from my main band (with another drummer).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rz8Hc26yK8
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I'm a long time YES fan. King Crimson is also in there. DT. Spock's Beard, camel, Transatlantic. Flower Kings. Robert Fripp. I feel like I'm forgetting something ...Gentle Giant, Van Der Graaf, Genesis :D
I was a little scared that no one had mentioned Genesis yet. :)
I'd personally like to throw Cynic and Frost* on there.
I'll have to check out Trettioåriga Kriget. I thoroughly enjoy some of Swedish Prog bands, namely Kaipa.
By the way, do you have a band page? Or some Youtube videos? I'm always interested in finding new stuff.
I have a friend who is Prog fan #1. Uh I am not a fan. With that said the one band he can put on that doesn't make me want to leave shortly after is Spock's Beard.
It sounds like your friend and myself would get along on a musical level. Spock's Beard is fun business. Neal Morse tends to be part of really good stuff.
I thought Anglagard had split up! Good news that they've not. As far as contemporary prog goes, William D. Drake (ex Cardiacs, who are also amazing) is my favourite - as far as the classic stuff goes, +1 for King Crimson and Camel, but Van der Graaf Generator are some way out in front...
Also, honourable mentions for all of Robert Wyatt's output, Magma, Henry Cow, Le Orme, PFM...
(I used to play in a prog band, too :) )
Yeah, I was a bit surprised to see the new album, which is very good by the way.
We used to have website but it was lost. We're planning on restoring it again though. Right now we're preparing to release stuff on bandcamp. We have a record on vinyl and CD though we're not signed on a label.
If you want Swedish progressive rock you should check out Samla Mammas Manna or Beardfish. Beardfish is great, we've had a few gigs together with them. Here's some Beardfish: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VYO-IaDpeE
A smaller band (bigger than us though, lol) is Klotet. You can hear one of their songs here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGLZeDqf254
This is a quality coverband, Lost in Rick's Wardrobe: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISor2vjchNw
Two members of Lost in Rick's Wardrobe are in my band Cirrus Winery. Lost in Rick's Wardrobe is on some hiatus or something at the moment, though, and nobody knows when they'll get back to playing again :(
Here're one of our songs if you're curious:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5oXvwpGAec&list=UUbobZXTwV7m3h8Zs5zj1RF Q&index=30&feature=plcp
Also. I want to reccomend a fairly unknown american band called Thinking Plague. They're something of an aquired taste: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjt5txjzP1k
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MARILLION!
(And Rush, and Yes, and King Crimson, and a little Dream Theatre, and Flower Kings, and Transatlantic, and SAGA...)
Greg
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If you end up getting a bandcamp page going, let me know. I really enjoyed the song you posted. It has a very classic feel to it; all the way from the instrumental choices, to the filtering/programming.
I'll have to check out Samla Mammas Manna, but I do enjoy Beardfish. I first was introduced to Beardfish through their album "Sleeping In Traffic: Part Two". I was listening to Morow a while back, and "The Hunter" came on, and I was quite intrigued. It is quite awesome that you were able to play together with them. :)
As well, Thinking Plague is very interesting, but definitely the acquired taste you mentioned it to be.
MARILLION!
(And Rush, and Yes, and King Crimson, and a little Dream Theatre, and Flower Kings, and Transatlantic, and SAGA...)
Greg
Haha, there is a lot of love for Marillion here (and in the Prog Community). Admittedly, the only song I can recall of the top of my head is "Lavender". Perhaps I should remedy that.
Haha, there is a lot of love for Marillion here (and in the Prog Community). Admittedly, the only song I can recall of the top of my head is "Lavender". Perhaps I should remedy that.
Well, if Lavender is the only song you know, my suggestion is start with the "Fish-era" (I.e. 80s) Marillion and work forward from there. The Marillion of today is not the same as the Marillion of the 80s (musically speaking - the line up hasn't changed since '89).
Greg
SlashCard: Cirrus Winery is aiming for a bandcamp and spotify release and hopefully itunes too.
Until then I guess I can advertise that my OTHER band has just released our stuff digitally. Killed by Koopa, a funk & prog inspired band that plays video game music covers in our own style:
http://killed-by-koopa.bandcamp.com/
MARILLION!
(And Rush, and Yes, and King Crimson, and a little Dream Theatre, and Flower Kings, and Transatlantic, and SAGA...)
Greg
Glad somebody mentioned SAGA.
and...
MARILLION!!
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Haha, there is a lot of love for Marillion here (and in the Prog Community). Admittedly, the only song I can recall of the top of my head is "Lavender". Perhaps I should remedy that.Well, if Lavender is the only song you know, my suggestion is start with the "Fish-era" (I.e. 80s) Marillion and work forward from there. The Marillion of today is not the same as the Marillion of the 80s (musically speaking - the line up hasn't changed since '89).
Greg
I'll certainly have to check it out then. Any specific album you would suggest to start with?
SlashCard: Cirrus Winery is aiming for a bandcamp and spotify release and hopefully itunes too.
Until then I guess I can advertise that my OTHER band has just released our stuff digitally. Killed by Koopa, a funk & prog inspired band that plays video game music covers in our own style:
http://killed-by-koopa.bandcamp.com/
Ok, that was some really fun stuff. :)
Not only was your Metroid cover pretty sweet, but your Lounge Jazz-esque version of Marble Zone was awesome.
Bravo!
SlashCard: Cirrus Winery is aiming for a bandcamp and spotify release and hopefully itunes too
That track you've got on YouTube is fantastic - nice mellotron, and I like the two female voices a lot.
You mention you've got an actual physical release (vinyl/CD) though - is that purchasable anywhere, or is it only available at gigs?
While I'm at it, I may as well mention the North Sea Radio Orchestra. Pretty different to, say, Spock's Beard, but a great band nonetheless
I used to be a huge prog fan. I stopped calling myself that when I found that some popular bands were more 'proggy' than many so-called progbands, Marillion being the main offender, and that nothing really comes close to the compositional variety that King Crimson, Frank Zappa and Gentle Giant had. Many of the bands referenced in this thread are in fact very repetitious.
Things I do find great: Banco del Mutuo Soccorso/PFM/Le Orme first few albums, VdGG early albums (up to Godbluff), Jethro Tull (up to Songs of the Wood), Yes (up to Fragile.. CttE and beyond lack a clear direction), Wigwam's Fairyport and Birth Control's Plastic People.
Non-prog bands (mostly modern stuff) that I find are 'proggier' than most 'progbands': RotoR, Tool, Soundgarden's last two albums, Cake, QotSA's Songs for the Deaf, Kyuss, Muse's first two albums, Deus Ex Machina and some Dutch bands nobody's like heard of (Spinvis, Heist and Racoon's first album).
One thing I won't do anymore is to call prog 'progressive'. Ah well, being critical is only likely getting me flamed here, so be it.
I used to be a huge prog fan. I stopped calling myself that when I found that some popular bands were more 'proggy' than many so-called progbands (...)
One thing I won't do anymore is to call prog 'progressive'. Ah well, being critical is only likely getting me flamed here, so be it.
No, fair point - there's a difference between rock that is progressive, i.e. trying to move music forward, and progressive rock, which is a genre with its own particular set of conventions. The two can coincide (and presumably did, when the phrase was coined), but often don't.
I do not have a problem with people trying to 'do' Genesis/Caravan circa 1972 all over again - that's a sound I like very much, and I want there to be more of it. All the same, I suppose it isn't progressive in the true sense of the wordand a lot of the stuff that really deserves the label doesn't get described as such.
I'll have to give my Kyuss albums another listen, as I never thought of them that way, but I'll draw the line at Muse. Not keen, personally, but different strokes, etc :)
RE: Kyuss, I find their last album (Circus) the most progressive. I can understand apprehension at including Muse in that list; they have moved further from 'prog' with each album, but I remember the song Citizen Erased in particular as having a progressive compositional structure; a departure from chorus-couplet-chorus-bridge, and some contrastive melodies between guitars and bass lines. Been a while since I gave it an attentive hearing though. As I recall, Muse was sometimes compared to Radiohead in their early days, which is more widely recognized as 'proggy'.
I'll admit, I fall for contrastive melodies the most. Odd time signatures are welcome. No band comes close to Zappa's Mothers though. And no band comes close to King Crimson in creating tension in music.
+1,000 for Zappa, although the band went through so many different incarnations. The album I like best is Uncle Meat, but my favourite band is the early '70s one with Ruth Underwood/George Duke, etc., where they go jazz-rock with a vengeance (I studied jazz at college and drove myself nuts trying to learn Frank's solos, with a conspicuous lack of success).
The mid/late 90s was a good time for proggy stuff - Radiohead, as you mentioned, and also Tortoise and their various side projects, which I'd describe as progressive, although it depends where you draw the line between prog rock/post rock/jazz rock, etc. Don't know whether you'd count bands like The Necks or Acoustic Ladyland... However, I'm drifting off topic.
Best King Crimson album? Red, I'd say. Starless and Bible Black as a close second.
SlashCard: Cirrus Winery is aiming for a bandcamp and spotify release and hopefully itunes tooThat track you've got on YouTube is fantastic - nice mellotron, and I like the two female voices a lot.
You mention you've got an actual physical release (vinyl/CD) though - is that purchasable anywhere, or is it only available at gigs?
While I'm at it, I may as well mention the North Sea Radio Orchestra. Pretty different to, say, Spock's Beard, but a great band nonetheless
We ship internationally. Send me a pm. We have vinyl and CD. When we made the vinyl record we got an excess amount cases, so CDs if you order can actually be delivered in a vinyl case with a small plastic CD folder inside if you want to. Looks nice :D
I'll certainly have to check it out then. Any specific album you would suggest to start with?
Lavender was from "Misplaced Childhood" so that's as good a place to start as any. I've seen it written that the first four albums (Mispalce Childhood was #3) were heavily Genesis-influenced (the good 70s stuff) but I don't hear it as much.
However, I'd also suggest "Brave", but that was with their "new" singer and they started moving in different directions. More "atmospheric" at times, more pop-oriented at others, but a great album, IMHO.
Greg
Fish LOVES you...all Praise FISH!!! :)
I like my Fish and Hogarth in equal measures. :)
Greg
I was a HUGE Jethro Tull fan through the '80s-- mostly their "golden age" from 1971-1978. I got into Yes, Rush, and King Crimson at that time too-- hair metal was popular, but didn't interest me all that much.
[and then I discovered Husker Du and Nine Inch Nails, and turned my back on prog for quite a while, but that's another story]
Recently, The Decemberists dipped their toes into Prog-- and did a great job! Their 2004 EP The Tain, the 11-minute track "The Island" from their 2006 album The Crane Wife, and their 2009 concept album The Hazards of Love all really channeled the spirit of Jethro Tull, in their multilayered melodies, instrumental riffs, and multi-movement suites.
If you haven't read it, Slate Magazine did a 5-part series on Prog Rock called "Prog Spring":
Just thought I would ask.
On top of that though, who are some of your favorites?
Off the top of my head:
Rush
Yes
Gentle Giant
Genesis
Echolyn
Spock's Beard
Flower Kings
Transatlantic
Flying Colors
Ice Age (first album)
Explorer's Club
Royal Hunt
Shadow Gallery
Evergrey
Coheed And Cambria
Blind Guardian
Frogg Cafe
Starcastle
Spooky Tooth
Queensryche (The Warning & Rage For Order)
As well, What's your favorite album of the year so far?
Coheed And Cambria, The Afterman Pt 1.
I cannot believe I forgot Kansas and Styx!
And Asia.
And Ayreon! And Symphony X!
Never heard Starcastle before, so made a point of listening to their second album earlier this week - quite reminiscent of Yes.
This is an odd one, though - Guruh Gypsy , from Indonesia. Starts off sort off sounding fairly prog-normal (towards the Genesis end of things), then goes all Gamelan about four minutes in. Then back again.
I heard a rumor that Limeylongears is secretly Robert Wyatt from The Soft Machine.
Word to the wise.
