guitarmy Posted August 11, 2008 Share Posted August 11, 2008 So tell me something... What makes a band progressive? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bustle In My Hedgerow Posted August 11, 2008 Share Posted August 11, 2008 Progressive rock incorporates classical, jazz, and worldly elements into its music whereas the dominating American rock genre at the time was predominantly rooted in blues and country. The music is usually not just based on a chorus and simple melody, there are usually various solos and the music and lyrics themselves are almost always abstract and narrative-like. Concept albums were a big part of progressive rock in the 60s and 70s and electronic instruments were incorporated. There is also a visual art element to some of it.. The Beatle's Sgt Pepper, Pink Floyd covers were experimental at the time, the Brain Salad Surgery cover, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leddy Posted August 11, 2008 Share Posted August 11, 2008 Progressive rock incorporates classical, jazz, and worldly elements into its music whereas the dominating American rock genre at the time was predominantly rooted in blues and country. The music is usually not just based on a chorus and simple melody, there are usually various solos and the music and lyrics themselves are almost always abstract and narrative-like. Concept albums were a big part of progressive rock in the 60s and 70s and electronic instruments were incorporated. There is also a visual art element to some of it.. The Beatle's Sgt Pepper, Pink Floyd covers were experimental at the time, the Brain Salad Surgery cover, etc. Yes I agree to an extent, but then that would make Zeppelin a Progressive group, yet they are not considered part of it although some of their stuff could be considered prog, but I do know where your coming from. I love Yes and Rush, Yes to me are the ultimate prog Rock band, while Rush remain a rock outfit but with lots of prog elements, diff time signatures and not always sticking to common time etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JethroTull Posted August 11, 2008 Share Posted August 11, 2008 So tell me something... What makes a band progressive? Where's Jahfin when you need him? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LedNoodle Posted August 12, 2008 Author Share Posted August 12, 2008 So tell me something... What makes a band progressive? If the words "Jam", "Bluesy", "Loose", or "simple" can be used to describe it, it ain't prog rock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alwizard03 Posted August 12, 2008 Share Posted August 12, 2008 Triumvirat = ELP clone, but they're good. Van Der Graaf Generator = Peter Hamill is nuts Spartacus from 1975 was my favorite Triumvirat LP saw them open for Fleetwood Mac just before Stevie and Lindsey joined Really like the band heard they are back together. I am a big Yes fan also Genises, ELP , Tull , King Crimson , Pink Floyd , and Kansas . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cletus Posted August 12, 2008 Share Posted August 12, 2008 I love Yes and Rush, Yes to me are the ultimate prog Rock band, while Rush remain a rock outfit but with lots of prog elements, diff time signatures and not always sticking to common time etc. I agree. I don't think of Rush as being pure prog. But they're still one of my faves. I'm starting to get into Peter Hammill's solo output(I love VDGG). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tophat Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 Genesis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reids Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 Me too. I also love Jethro Tull. I have tried ELP a couple of times, but I just can't get into them. The only song that does anything for me is Lucky Man. Have you heard "Fanfare for the Common Man"??? ABC used it for their Wide World of Sports programs in the 70s and 80s. I could just hear Jason playing drums to that one. R Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GAC64 Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 ELP - Yes, although have you seen Greg Lake lately? Yes - Absolutely. John Anderson's voice is second only to RP. King Crimson - The original prog band. Robert Fripp is a genius Supertramp - Gotta pass on this one. Good early stuff, but "Dreamer?" Asia - Not so much. Have to put this one in the "Blind Faith" category. We needed more. Now some others you may want to listen to if you haven't already. UK - Around in 76, 77 and 78. Had Bill Bruford (drums), Alan Holdsworth (guitar), Eddie Jobson (keys and violin) and John Wetton (bass, vocals). They did some dynamic stuff. Also, Alan Parsons Project. The legendary Pink Floyd producer steps out from behind the mixing board and gives us a great couple of albums. I still love "I Robot" to this day. The opening bass line to "Wouldn't Want to Be Like You" is awesome. Great bands! I've seen ELP, Yes, UK, Holdsworth, Tull with Eddie Jobson, Genesis( late 70's ), Gentle Giant and the Dixie Dregs. All were great live shows! Wish more today played like these bands. Still listen to all these bands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cletus Posted August 14, 2008 Share Posted August 14, 2008 This site considers Led Zeppelin prog. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chef free Posted August 15, 2008 Share Posted August 15, 2008 Some bands are very close to the dividing line between Progressive and Rock, Zep is just barely over the fence on the rock side. Rush is just on the progressive side and Queen is pretty close too. Other great bands defy catagorization like Floyd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jarlaxle 56 Posted August 17, 2008 Share Posted August 17, 2008 I'm loving Porcupine Tree, just picked up "Fear of A Blank Planet", Steven Wilson sure knows how to make a fucking record. I think it should be mandatory that if you want to make a CD you gotta learn how to mix and master it yourself, like Steve Wilson Bottom line: Great Progressive Rock, sounds very much like a modern version of Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swede Posted August 19, 2008 Share Posted August 19, 2008 Sometimes the term "Progressive Blues" is used. I'd guess Zep could fit into that as well as "Hard Rock" or "Progressive Rock". That's my own thoughts in the matter, though. At www.allmusic.com Zep is described with the following terms: Genre: Rock Styles: Blues-Rock, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Arena Rock, British Metal, British Blues, Album Rock Below is some of the different terms described by www.allmusic.com Prog Rock/Art Rock Progressive rock and art rock are two almost interchangeable terms describing a mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility. The differences between prog-rock and art rock are often slight in practice, but do exist. Prog-rock tends to be more traditionally melodic (even when multi-sectioned compositions replace normal song structures), more literary (poetry or sci-fi/fantasy novels), and more oriented toward classically trained instrumental technique (with the exception of Pink Floyd). Art rock is more likely to have experimental or avant-garde influences, placing novel sonic texture above prog-rock's symphonic ambitions. Both styles are intrinsically album-based, taking advantage of the format's capacity for longer, more complex compositions and extended instrumental explorations. In fact, many prog bands were fond of crafting concept albums that made unified statements, usually telling an epic story or tackling a grand overarching theme. In addition to pushing rock's technical and compositional boundaries, prog-rock was also arguably the first arena where synthesizers and electronic textures became indispensable parts of a rock ensemble. The earliest rumblings of progressive and art rock could be heard in the poetry of Bob Dylan and conceptually unified albums like the Mothers of Invention's Freak Out! and the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, all of which suggested that rock was more than just teenagers' music and should be taken seriously as an art form. Prog-rock began to emerge out of the British psychedelic scene in 1967, specifically a strain of classical/symphonic rock led by the Nice, Procol Harum, and the Moody Blues (Days of Future Passed). King Crimson's 1969 debut In the Court of the Crimson King firmly established the concept of progressive rock, and a quirky, eclectic scene was taking shape in Canterbury, led by the jazzy psychedelia of the Soft Machine. Prog-rock became a commercial force in the early '70s, with Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Yes, Jethro Tull, Genesis, and Pink Floyd leading the way. Meanwhile, a more avant-garde scene (dubbed Kraut-rock) was developing in Germany, and eccentric, unclassifiable bands continued to emerge in the U.K. By the mid-'70s, a backlash was beginning to set in; prog-rock sometimes mistook bombast for majesty, and its far-reaching ambition and concern with artistic legitimacy could make for overblown, pretentious music. Its heyday soon came to an end with the advent of punk, which explicitly repudiated prog's excesses and aimed to return rock & roll to its immediate, visceral roots. Still, prog-rock didn't completely go away. A number of AOR bands used prog ideas in more concise songs; plus, Pink Floyd, Yes, and Genesis all had number one singles in the '80s by retooling their approaches. A small cult of neo-prog bands catered to faithful audiences who still liked grandiose concepts and flashy technique; the first was Marillion, and many more popped up in the late '80s and early '90s. Album Rock During the '70s, FM radio stations gradually diluted the freewheeling innovations of pirate radio and early FM stations. Theoretically, the new stations did what the pioneers did — play album tracks instead of singles — but they soon relied on a set group of artists for their playlists. The one thing that tied all these Album Rock artists together was their dedication to the album as the vehicle for their music, plus their reliance on rock as the foundation of their music. That means album rock consisted of everything from heavy metal and Southern blues-rockers to prog-rock and singer/songwriters with supporting rock bands. It was fairly diverse, actually, but they all shared a certain artistic aesthetic and little bit of indulgence, plus their constant exposure on FM radio. These album rock bands ruled the '70s FM airwaves. They persevered into the '80s, but when album rock radio evolved into classic rock radio, fewer and fewer of their new albums hit the airwaves. By the '90s, album rock acts still turned out new albums, but their older material was heard on the radio — and usually in the reunion concerts these bands mounted. Hope that helps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoundRobin Posted August 19, 2008 Share Posted August 19, 2008 If the headbanger's have trouble and have no mosh pit, if the dancers can't find the beat, and girls don't like it, it may be progressive rock. For some odd reason, girls are a huge minority at these shows. For the life of me I can't figure it out. Does music play more to their emotional side than their analytical side of their brain? Go see King Crimson if you want to understand what I'm talking about. Look at any audience picture or folks standing in line waiting to get into the venue to see where I'm coming from. The lines are packed with overweight, spectacled bald men. Rocket scientist's with their thinking caps on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leddy Posted August 19, 2008 Share Posted August 19, 2008 Like Dream Theatre don't you think when the Vocalist starts up on The Eternal Light that the Chorus sounds like Genesis land of Confussion ?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yahyoubetcha Posted August 22, 2008 Share Posted August 22, 2008 Even though it's not easy to define exactly what progressive music is, some of these bands don't really seem to fit by any definition. I've always been a big fan of Heep and even Captain Beyond (at least the first album) but I can't see either one being considered progrock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xtazy Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 I think I'll get into Rush. What's the best album to start with? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chef free Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 2112 is the most important thing they ever did and an excellent place to start. My favorites are the Farewell the Kings and it's second half Hemispheres for the whole Cygnus X-1/Hemispheres suite. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xtazy Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 Thanks, I'll check that out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melanie_72 Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 Yep I like it! Genesis, Yes, Supertramp, ELO, Rush, Pink Floyd........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xtazy Posted September 14, 2008 Share Posted September 14, 2008 2112 is the most important thing they ever did and an excellent place to start. My favorites are the Farewell the Kings and it's second half Hemispheres for the whole Cygnus X-1/Hemispheres suite. Ok, I've listened to 2112 and it was absolutely great, now I want more! What do your recommend next? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jarlaxle 56 Posted September 14, 2008 Share Posted September 14, 2008 "Gordian Knot is a progressive rock/metal band directed by bass guitarist Sean Malone. At times its shifting lineup has included Steve Hackett of Genesis, Bill Bruford of King Crimson and Yes , Ron Jarzombek from Watchtower and Spastic Ink as well as Jim Matheos of Fates Warning, several of Malone's former bandmates from Cynic and John Myung from Dream Theater." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordian_Knot_(band) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ady Posted September 14, 2008 Share Posted September 14, 2008 Ok, I've listened to 2112 and it was absolutely great, now I want more! What do your recommend next? A Farewell to Kings is amazing, check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3FzGAy1gck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xtazy Posted September 14, 2008 Share Posted September 14, 2008 A Farewell to Kings is amazing, check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3FzGAy1gck Yep, awesome song. I'll try to find the whole album. I think this song has a second part, right? On another album? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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