prog beyond Tom Sawyer
December 12, 2018 1:30 PM Subscribe
I'm officially in my late thirties and have decided it's time to get into progressive rock music. I was thinking of doing a deep dive into Rush to start, what's a good album to check out first? Or is Rush a hopelessly obvious choice and there's a better gateway artist? Blow me away!
I personally prefer King Crimson also and would start at the start there with In the Court of the Crimson King.
I guess the traditional toe-dip-in-the-water for Rush is Moving Pictures probably.
posted by cmm at 1:43 PM on December 12, 2018 [2 favorites]
I guess the traditional toe-dip-in-the-water for Rush is Moving Pictures probably.
posted by cmm at 1:43 PM on December 12, 2018 [2 favorites]
I strongly feel that the album you are looking for is Close to the Edge by Yes.
It's three tracks. Each track is long, has a bunch of sections, is completely over-the-top, and is rad. It's also got that silly "interested in eastern religions and Lord of the Rings" element common to a lot of classic hippiedom. Also, just, so prog.
posted by Rinku at 1:44 PM on December 12, 2018 [12 favorites]
It's three tracks. Each track is long, has a bunch of sections, is completely over-the-top, and is rad. It's also got that silly "interested in eastern religions and Lord of the Rings" element common to a lot of classic hippiedom. Also, just, so prog.
posted by Rinku at 1:44 PM on December 12, 2018 [12 favorites]
A few years ago I thought it would be funny to listen to Hawkwind. I had always been kind of interested in them because I am a nerdo and I read a lot of Michael Moorcock when I was younger. (They did several albums with Moorcock, including Warrior on the Edge of Time and Chronicle of the Balck Sword.) And guess what? Hawkwind is fantastic! They started me down a prog path from which there is perhaps no return.
That said, I can't stand Rush or Genesis or Yes, so you may be very different from me.
But really, Hawkwind!
posted by Kafkaesque at 1:46 PM on December 12, 2018 [5 favorites]
That said, I can't stand Rush or Genesis or Yes, so you may be very different from me.
But really, Hawkwind!
posted by Kafkaesque at 1:46 PM on December 12, 2018 [5 favorites]
My gateway drug for Rush was the album Grace Under Pressure.
posted by 4ster at 1:46 PM on December 12, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by 4ster at 1:46 PM on December 12, 2018 [2 favorites]
Exit stage left. Rush sounds good in the studio, they sound incredible live.
posted by so fucking future at 1:49 PM on December 12, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by so fucking future at 1:49 PM on December 12, 2018 [4 favorites]
Here's something you might find useful.
posted by kevinbelt at 1:50 PM on December 12, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by kevinbelt at 1:50 PM on December 12, 2018 [1 favorite]
For Rush, try this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSToKcbWz1k
A good use of eleven+ minutes...
SandPine
posted by sandpine at 1:59 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSToKcbWz1k
A good use of eleven+ minutes...
SandPine
posted by sandpine at 1:59 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
the people have spoken: King Crimson is the brilliant apogee of all that is 'prog rock'. Yes had some very good albums in the early years.
and technically Rush is mathrock ;)
posted by supermedusa at 2:03 PM on December 12, 2018 [2 favorites]
and technically Rush is mathrock ;)
posted by supermedusa at 2:03 PM on December 12, 2018 [2 favorites]
Definitely would also suggest Yes or King Crimson as a better gateway artist, although that has more to do with personal preference than anything. For Yes, I'd recommend Fragile or Close to the Edge, and for King Crimson I'd either recommend In The Court of the Crimson King (more whimsical) or Red (more rock-centered).
posted by saladin at 2:05 PM on December 12, 2018
posted by saladin at 2:05 PM on December 12, 2018
I'd suggest Yes to start. I love guitar too much to love Emerson Lake and Palmer, but they were fun. I came to Rush after they'd done a number of albums; musicianship off the charts, but Geddy Lee's voice is very hard to take.
This is a fun take from AV Club, before The Onion was bought by Kinja: A guide to the best (and a bit of the worst) of prog rock.
As a Yes fan, I enjoyed this fun interview with their (awesome, late) bass player, Chris Squire.
posted by conscious matter at 2:21 PM on December 12, 2018 [4 favorites]
This is a fun take from AV Club, before The Onion was bought by Kinja: A guide to the best (and a bit of the worst) of prog rock.
As a Yes fan, I enjoyed this fun interview with their (awesome, late) bass player, Chris Squire.
posted by conscious matter at 2:21 PM on December 12, 2018 [4 favorites]
Many people are not aware of the vast left wing conspiracy of European musicians who played in such bands as Matching Mole and Henry Cow, bands who either, like, actually became later prog-inflected projects like The Art Bears and News From Babel or were just generally sort of influential on things like the Raincoats' Moving.
Basically anything involving Fred Frith, Dagmar Krause or Rock In Opposition is of interest.
I feel like these are at the sharp and squeaky end of prog rather than the vast and cosmic.
posted by Frowner at 2:37 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
Basically anything involving Fred Frith, Dagmar Krause or Rock In Opposition is of interest.
I feel like these are at the sharp and squeaky end of prog rather than the vast and cosmic.
posted by Frowner at 2:37 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
Wind & Wuthering was my prog gateway. I enjoy Yes et al now but I needed Genesis to soften me up for them.
posted by prize bull octorok at 2:40 PM on December 12, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by prize bull octorok at 2:40 PM on December 12, 2018 [1 favorite]
2112 is the pinnacle of Rush's prog rock, followed by Hemispheres and Permanent Waves.
posted by JamesBay at 2:52 PM on December 12, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by JamesBay at 2:52 PM on December 12, 2018 [5 favorites]
Are you specifically interested in '70s era prog? If so Rush isn't a bad choice. They're one of the big names along with the likes of King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, Jethro Tull, Pink Floyd, and so on.
If you are more interested in hearing modern prog music then I'd point you at Steven Wilson/Porcupine Tree as a good entry point.
Where you should really be looking is Prog Archives. It is the definitive resource for prog rock enthusiasts. The site might look a little long in the tooth, but it is very functional. They keep a list of the most popular prog artists over the last 24 hours which is a good place to go exploring. They also have a list of the the top rated albums that you could probably just work your way down. It has a bias towards the older stuff since they have more reviews, but the site has great filters for you to manipulate the list by sub-genre, release date, and country of origin. You can also click on any of the sub-genres to get a definition and the top albums in that category. This is the Crossover Prog section, which consists of prog that has connections to popular music. It's the most beginner friendly sub-genre since the music you will find in there is either from musicians that also make pop music or the prog itself broke into the mainstream at some point.
posted by forbiddencabinet at 3:08 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
If you are more interested in hearing modern prog music then I'd point you at Steven Wilson/Porcupine Tree as a good entry point.
Where you should really be looking is Prog Archives. It is the definitive resource for prog rock enthusiasts. The site might look a little long in the tooth, but it is very functional. They keep a list of the most popular prog artists over the last 24 hours which is a good place to go exploring. They also have a list of the the top rated albums that you could probably just work your way down. It has a bias towards the older stuff since they have more reviews, but the site has great filters for you to manipulate the list by sub-genre, release date, and country of origin. You can also click on any of the sub-genres to get a definition and the top albums in that category. This is the Crossover Prog section, which consists of prog that has connections to popular music. It's the most beginner friendly sub-genre since the music you will find in there is either from musicians that also make pop music or the prog itself broke into the mainstream at some point.
posted by forbiddencabinet at 3:08 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
Echoing the idea that King Crimson is not only objectively better than Rush, but the PERFECT prog gateway.
And don't let's forget Eno's solo work, or his work with Fripp, like the incredible "No Pussyfooting."
Hawkwind is a great suggestion, too. The more you listen to them, the more you understand how vastly influential they were. They sit at the EXACT crossroads of "classic rock," prog, psychedelia, and metal, so they serve as an entry point for all of those genres.
posted by Dr. Wu at 3:22 PM on December 12, 2018
And don't let's forget Eno's solo work, or his work with Fripp, like the incredible "No Pussyfooting."
Hawkwind is a great suggestion, too. The more you listen to them, the more you understand how vastly influential they were. They sit at the EXACT crossroads of "classic rock," prog, psychedelia, and metal, so they serve as an entry point for all of those genres.
posted by Dr. Wu at 3:22 PM on December 12, 2018
The essential starting points (in my opinion):
Rush, Permanent Waves
Genesis, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
King Crimson, Discipline
Jethro Tull, Aqualung
Yes, Close to the Edge
The reason I chose these albums instead of others by the same groups is that I think they are the best intersection of prog-ness and accessibility for new fans.
posted by Daily Alice at 3:22 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
Rush, Permanent Waves
Genesis, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
King Crimson, Discipline
Jethro Tull, Aqualung
Yes, Close to the Edge
The reason I chose these albums instead of others by the same groups is that I think they are the best intersection of prog-ness and accessibility for new fans.
posted by Daily Alice at 3:22 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
Dream Theater is called progressive metal but they are not that metal. Try A Life Left Behind or Wither and see if they scratch the itch..
posted by a humble nudibranch at 3:29 PM on December 12, 2018
posted by a humble nudibranch at 3:29 PM on December 12, 2018
These are easy access to the genre albums as they're not all lengthy prog songs:
Yes - Fragile (their best album fwiw)
Genesis - Nursery Cryme
posted by ihaveyourfoot at 3:36 PM on December 12, 2018 [1 favorite]
Yes - Fragile (their best album fwiw)
Genesis - Nursery Cryme
posted by ihaveyourfoot at 3:36 PM on December 12, 2018 [1 favorite]
For Rush, I'd say start with Farewell to Kings for really-proggy and then listen to the next four albums (Hemispheres, Permanent Waves, Moving Pictures and Signals) to hear them get progressively less proggy (though that is my favorite era of Rush).
If you like that, and afterwards the stalwarts like King Crimson, Yes, or Genesis, you may want to stretch a bit (but not too much), and for that there are lesser-known bands like Gentle Giant, Magma, early Spock's Beard, etc, that still rock out and are very accessible. From there you can branch out into Rock-in-Opposition/Art Rock or Jazz Fusion or other experimental genres, if you wish.
Should you decide that this is something you want to dig deep on, try the Strawberry Bricks website. It concentrates on prog's 'classical' period - you'll get more names than you can shake a stick at. Also, like jazz has Blue Note and other labels that specialize, try Cuneiform Records' lineup of artists if you decide to go down the RIO/Art Rock path. Also, if you later go down the fusion/jazzrock path, there are a bunch of new artists out there that are really mixing the Big Band sound with amplified guitars and rhythm section like early Chicago or Blood, Sweat and Tears or IQ, and kicking ass. Bands like Kuhn Fu, Kneebody, Troyka, or Snarky Puppy as a starter. Prog and prog-adjacent music is actually a really big world, and you should find tons to delight your ears, whatever your tastes.
posted by eclectist at 3:47 PM on December 12, 2018
If you like that, and afterwards the stalwarts like King Crimson, Yes, or Genesis, you may want to stretch a bit (but not too much), and for that there are lesser-known bands like Gentle Giant, Magma, early Spock's Beard, etc, that still rock out and are very accessible. From there you can branch out into Rock-in-Opposition/Art Rock or Jazz Fusion or other experimental genres, if you wish.
Should you decide that this is something you want to dig deep on, try the Strawberry Bricks website. It concentrates on prog's 'classical' period - you'll get more names than you can shake a stick at. Also, like jazz has Blue Note and other labels that specialize, try Cuneiform Records' lineup of artists if you decide to go down the RIO/Art Rock path. Also, if you later go down the fusion/jazzrock path, there are a bunch of new artists out there that are really mixing the Big Band sound with amplified guitars and rhythm section like early Chicago or Blood, Sweat and Tears or IQ, and kicking ass. Bands like Kuhn Fu, Kneebody, Troyka, or Snarky Puppy as a starter. Prog and prog-adjacent music is actually a really big world, and you should find tons to delight your ears, whatever your tastes.
posted by eclectist at 3:47 PM on December 12, 2018
If you want to try early pre-prog stuff, there's The Soft Machine - their later work was very much prog.
posted by pipeski at 4:02 PM on December 12, 2018
posted by pipeski at 4:02 PM on December 12, 2018
Rush is great, Yes is great, King Crimson is great, etc. etc. etc. You'll get no dissent from me on these points.
But I'm here with the likely unpopular view that the greatest prog album of all time is The Mars Volta's debut album De-Loused in the Comatorium.
posted by sinfony at 4:03 PM on December 12, 2018 [4 favorites]
But I'm here with the likely unpopular view that the greatest prog album of all time is The Mars Volta's debut album De-Loused in the Comatorium.
posted by sinfony at 4:03 PM on December 12, 2018 [4 favorites]
I would argue that Radiohead is also a prog rock group, notably OK Computer, Kid A and Amnesiac.
posted by JamesBay at 4:43 PM on December 12, 2018
posted by JamesBay at 4:43 PM on December 12, 2018
I suggest that you might also try Be Bop Deluxe, starting with Sunburst Finish, which is available in full on Youtube.
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 5:02 PM on December 12, 2018
posted by Multicellular Exothermic at 5:02 PM on December 12, 2018
If you are doing Prog, go bold. The life lesson of progressive rock is that everything worth doing risks making you look ridiculous, and you should do it anyway. Yessongs is BOLD, and it's where I started when I was 14 years old a long time ago. A triple-disk live album (at least on vinyl) that starts with the final minutes of Stravinsky's Firebird Suite melding into the opening chords of Siberian Khatru. Because obviously Yes is the natural inheritor of perhaps the greatest 20th Century classical composer.
For sheer fist-pumping hilarious glory, start at the end of the album with Starship Trooper. Stick around for the rave-up in the final four-minutes: lots of premier guitar-face from Steve Howe on his double-neck and Rick Wakeman in ankle-length fully-sequined cape surrounded by a billion keyboards.
There may be "bad" songs on this album -- according to some killjoy somewhere -- but there's not one boring one among them. No one else sounds like Yes. Even later versions of Yes don't sound like them at this splendiferous moment.
posted by ferdydurke at 5:03 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
For sheer fist-pumping hilarious glory, start at the end of the album with Starship Trooper. Stick around for the rave-up in the final four-minutes: lots of premier guitar-face from Steve Howe on his double-neck and Rick Wakeman in ankle-length fully-sequined cape surrounded by a billion keyboards.
There may be "bad" songs on this album -- according to some killjoy somewhere -- but there's not one boring one among them. No one else sounds like Yes. Even later versions of Yes don't sound like them at this splendiferous moment.
posted by ferdydurke at 5:03 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
I’m a weirdo but my gateway to Prog Rock (and eventual Rush immersion) was ELP’s take on “Pictures At An Exhibition”. Really fun if you know Mussorgsky’s original.
posted by armoir from antproof case at 5:05 PM on December 12, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by armoir from antproof case at 5:05 PM on December 12, 2018 [1 favorite]
Early Genesis forever. Foxtrot, Selling England by the Pound, Nursery Cryme.
posted by soren_lorensen at 5:07 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by soren_lorensen at 5:07 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
King Crimson and Killing Joke.
Rush is a love them or hate them kind of deal, I personally can't stand them but they definitely have their devotees.
posted by bile and syntax at 5:52 PM on December 12, 2018
Rush is a love them or hate them kind of deal, I personally can't stand them but they definitely have their devotees.
posted by bile and syntax at 5:52 PM on December 12, 2018
If you want something more modern, for proggish-heavy yet melodic stuff, check out Porcupine Tree, Opeth & Steven Wilson’s solo albums.
Mike Keneally’s album Dancing is jazzy in places but also has a loud prog bent to it.
There was one album by “Supergroup” UK (Bill Bruford, John Welton, Alan Holdsworth & Eddie Jonson) called In The Dead Of Night & the title track is a masterpiece.
Has anyone mentioned Gentle Giant yet? They’re an oddball admixture of prog-rock & medieval folk music. Lots of odd time signatures.
I will also pile on with Genesis The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway & Yes Close To The Edge.
Off the beaten track, if you can find it, The Shaming of the True by Kevin Gilbert was a really masterful tribute to his favorite prog rock inspirations & it has a great storeyline & some of the best biting sarcasm ever put to music.
Not necessarily”prog,” but intricate musically complex & layered records: Grace by Jeff Buckley and Spilt Milk by Jellyfish. They’re both 5-dimensional soundscapes of wonderment.
posted by Devils Rancher at 6:59 PM on December 12, 2018
Mike Keneally’s album Dancing is jazzy in places but also has a loud prog bent to it.
There was one album by “Supergroup” UK (Bill Bruford, John Welton, Alan Holdsworth & Eddie Jonson) called In The Dead Of Night & the title track is a masterpiece.
Has anyone mentioned Gentle Giant yet? They’re an oddball admixture of prog-rock & medieval folk music. Lots of odd time signatures.
I will also pile on with Genesis The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway & Yes Close To The Edge.
Off the beaten track, if you can find it, The Shaming of the True by Kevin Gilbert was a really masterful tribute to his favorite prog rock inspirations & it has a great storeyline & some of the best biting sarcasm ever put to music.
Not necessarily”prog,” but intricate musically complex & layered records: Grace by Jeff Buckley and Spilt Milk by Jellyfish. They’re both 5-dimensional soundscapes of wonderment.
posted by Devils Rancher at 6:59 PM on December 12, 2018
Typos: UK were Bruford, Wetton, Holdsworth & Jobson.
posted by Devils Rancher at 7:25 PM on December 12, 2018
posted by Devils Rancher at 7:25 PM on December 12, 2018
I'll second (or fifteenth, or whatever we're up to now) people who have mentioned King Crimson above. One thing that I think makes them such a common touch point is that they are at the intersection of a number of different things that people label "prog." There's the intricacy, the odd meters, the more expansive harmonization. But they are less given to other features that turn other listeners off, like the pastoral elements of the Cambridge scene bands, the allusions to fantasy literature, and certain tendencies towards narratives and concept albums that can become bloated.
KC tended to make intricate, ambitious music, but deliver it in a more direct, unpretentious mode than their prog contemporaries. And in that way, there's a kind of back door influence on many more recent bands that grew out of the punk and hardcore movements, but began expanding their musical palates. Sometimes those bands got called "math rock," though it seems to be a prerequisite of being a "math rock" band that you think "math rock" is a stupid name and completely disavow the whole idea. (Similar things could be said for many "post rock" bands, who also have some prog influences to them.) So at any rate, if the more direct sound of King Crimson appeals to you, you might also check out some of these bands:
Don Caballero
Rodan
Battles
Pele
Sleeping People
Chon
The Bulletproof Tiger
Tortoise
Faraquet
Polvo
Slint
Are these "prog" bands? To people devoted to that distinction, probably not. But they are descendants of prog in something like the way that Rush were.
posted by el_lupino at 9:31 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
KC tended to make intricate, ambitious music, but deliver it in a more direct, unpretentious mode than their prog contemporaries. And in that way, there's a kind of back door influence on many more recent bands that grew out of the punk and hardcore movements, but began expanding their musical palates. Sometimes those bands got called "math rock," though it seems to be a prerequisite of being a "math rock" band that you think "math rock" is a stupid name and completely disavow the whole idea. (Similar things could be said for many "post rock" bands, who also have some prog influences to them.) So at any rate, if the more direct sound of King Crimson appeals to you, you might also check out some of these bands:
Don Caballero
Rodan
Battles
Pele
Sleeping People
Chon
The Bulletproof Tiger
Tortoise
Faraquet
Polvo
Slint
Are these "prog" bands? To people devoted to that distinction, probably not. But they are descendants of prog in something like the way that Rush were.
posted by el_lupino at 9:31 PM on December 12, 2018 [3 favorites]
You could go two different ways with this question, at least to me:
If you want more prog outside of the Rushsphere, I'd check out Yes, ELP, early Genesis, Hawkwind, and early Marillion. If you want more metal to your Prog, check out Borknagar.
If you want to explore more Rush, and want a decent intro to the band, I'd go no further than the excellent documentary on the band, called Beyond the Lighted Stage. It's currently streaming through Netflix, at least in the USA.
posted by spinifex23 at 10:09 PM on December 12, 2018
If you want more prog outside of the Rushsphere, I'd check out Yes, ELP, early Genesis, Hawkwind, and early Marillion. If you want more metal to your Prog, check out Borknagar.
If you want to explore more Rush, and want a decent intro to the band, I'd go no further than the excellent documentary on the band, called Beyond the Lighted Stage. It's currently streaming through Netflix, at least in the USA.
posted by spinifex23 at 10:09 PM on December 12, 2018
Damn, no love for Uriah Heep yet? True 70s wizard-oriented prog - Rainbow Demon, The Wizard.
For Rush I agree that A Farewell to Kings is a grand place to start, but I also have a lot of love for their early-mid 80s phase with Moving Pictures and Power Windows. Also nthing the recommendations for Hawkwind's Warrior on the Edge of Time, and Space Ritual is worth checking out as well (it's a bit looser and more sprawling than WotEoT).
If you've ever wondered what Demis Roussos and Vangelis were doing before being famous as individuals, the answer is that they were doing Greek prog under the name Aphrodite's Child and it is glorious: The Four Horsemen from their 1972 album 666.
If you're interested in more modern prog-oriented stuff, Opeth's recent material is on the prog/metal boundary and I particularly enjoy their 2014 album Pale Communion. It's got a real Moody Blues feel: Eternal Rains Will Come.
Talking of which, also no love for the Moodies themselves yet? They had a seven-album run from 1967-1972 (Days of Future Passed, In Search of the Lost Chord, On the Threshold of a Dream, To Our Children's Children's Children, A Question of Balance, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour and The Seventh Soujourn) and they're all progtastic and accessible in equal measure.
Finally, and I'm totally biased on this one, my partner's band (Poncho Pilots) do modern prog with a comedy element, including a 15-minute song about battling an evil wizard which I'm very fond of.
posted by terretu at 12:03 AM on December 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
For Rush I agree that A Farewell to Kings is a grand place to start, but I also have a lot of love for their early-mid 80s phase with Moving Pictures and Power Windows. Also nthing the recommendations for Hawkwind's Warrior on the Edge of Time, and Space Ritual is worth checking out as well (it's a bit looser and more sprawling than WotEoT).
If you've ever wondered what Demis Roussos and Vangelis were doing before being famous as individuals, the answer is that they were doing Greek prog under the name Aphrodite's Child and it is glorious: The Four Horsemen from their 1972 album 666.
If you're interested in more modern prog-oriented stuff, Opeth's recent material is on the prog/metal boundary and I particularly enjoy their 2014 album Pale Communion. It's got a real Moody Blues feel: Eternal Rains Will Come.
Talking of which, also no love for the Moodies themselves yet? They had a seven-album run from 1967-1972 (Days of Future Passed, In Search of the Lost Chord, On the Threshold of a Dream, To Our Children's Children's Children, A Question of Balance, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour and The Seventh Soujourn) and they're all progtastic and accessible in equal measure.
Finally, and I'm totally biased on this one, my partner's band (Poncho Pilots) do modern prog with a comedy element, including a 15-minute song about battling an evil wizard which I'm very fond of.
posted by terretu at 12:03 AM on December 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
I tell myself that my prog phase was long ago and is well behind me, but then I discover King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. Check out Nonagon Infinity, Murder of the Universe, Flying Microtonal Banana, etc. etc. They put out five albums last year. There's a knowing wink in the song and album titles and subject matter, but the musicianship is seriously next level.
posted by whuppy at 5:33 AM on December 13, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by whuppy at 5:33 AM on December 13, 2018 [2 favorites]
I've always loved the classical/symphonic/prog feel of The Moody Blues' "Days of Future Passed". Can anyone recommend others with that unique blend?
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 6:57 AM on December 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 6:57 AM on December 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
Mentions of Gentle Giant and The Moody Blues are reminding me that I once made an uninitiated friend a mixed CD* that I'm pretty sure I entitled "It Turns Out You Love Prog Rock And Always Have," which I'm pretty sure included the following (incomplete) list of songs:
Genesis - Watcher of the Skies
Genesis - Carpet Crawlers
Genesis - Down and Out
Aphrodite's Child - Do It
Aphrodite's Child - Aliamont
Electric Light Orchestra - New World Rising/Ocean Breakup Reprise
Pink Floyd - Echoes
Pink Floyd - Sheep
Jethro Tull - We Used to Know
Queen - Death on Two Legs
Heart - Sing Child
The Moody Blues - Gypsy
Neil Young - A Man Needs a Maid
Gentle Giant - Plain Truth
Gentle Giant - Peel the Paint
Nick Drake - River Man
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Toccata
The Dixie Dregs - Holiday
Electric Prunes - General Confessional
Edgar Winter - Frankenstein
King Crimson - Lark's Tongues in Aspic, Part Two
King Crimson - Starless
King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man
Styx - Fooling Yourself
Brian Eno - No One Receiving
Blue Oyster Cult - Don't Fear The Reaper
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - 1983
Roxy Music - If There Is Something
Yes - Heart of the Sunrise
Yes - Starship Trooper
Yes - Astral Traveller
Yes - And You and I (the studio run-through version on the Close to the Edge reissue).
It's admittedly not very precise, but I leave it here in case it spurs any future reader's interest in pursuing any of this music, which all rules so hard.
* I'm assuming it was just song files on a CD, rather than an actual playable CD, because looking at this track listing that CD would have had to have been like 4 hours long.
posted by saladin at 9:53 AM on December 13, 2018
Genesis - Watcher of the Skies
Genesis - Carpet Crawlers
Genesis - Down and Out
Aphrodite's Child - Do It
Aphrodite's Child - Aliamont
Electric Light Orchestra - New World Rising/Ocean Breakup Reprise
Pink Floyd - Echoes
Pink Floyd - Sheep
Jethro Tull - We Used to Know
Queen - Death on Two Legs
Heart - Sing Child
The Moody Blues - Gypsy
Neil Young - A Man Needs a Maid
Gentle Giant - Plain Truth
Gentle Giant - Peel the Paint
Nick Drake - River Man
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Toccata
The Dixie Dregs - Holiday
Electric Prunes - General Confessional
Edgar Winter - Frankenstein
King Crimson - Lark's Tongues in Aspic, Part Two
King Crimson - Starless
King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man
Styx - Fooling Yourself
Brian Eno - No One Receiving
Blue Oyster Cult - Don't Fear The Reaper
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - 1983
Roxy Music - If There Is Something
Yes - Heart of the Sunrise
Yes - Starship Trooper
Yes - Astral Traveller
Yes - And You and I (the studio run-through version on the Close to the Edge reissue).
It's admittedly not very precise, but I leave it here in case it spurs any future reader's interest in pursuing any of this music, which all rules so hard.
* I'm assuming it was just song files on a CD, rather than an actual playable CD, because looking at this track listing that CD would have had to have been like 4 hours long.
posted by saladin at 9:53 AM on December 13, 2018
Looks like many of the bases are covered here.
If you like the melodic/symphonic style of The Moody Blues, I'd also recommend Procul Harum, especially their live album with The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. It's great.
In the other spectrum, for a more quirky experimental edge, Van Der Graff Generator, especially their epic suite 'A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers' from the album 'Pawn Hearts'. I find some of their other work uneven.
For branching out a bit, many of the classic English Folk-Rock bands like Pentangle, Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span, & The Strawbs have an intricate, kinda proggy mood to them. Like they wouldn't be kicked outta a Prog Bar.
posted by ovvl at 4:12 PM on December 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
If you like the melodic/symphonic style of The Moody Blues, I'd also recommend Procul Harum, especially their live album with The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. It's great.
In the other spectrum, for a more quirky experimental edge, Van Der Graff Generator, especially their epic suite 'A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers' from the album 'Pawn Hearts'. I find some of their other work uneven.
For branching out a bit, many of the classic English Folk-Rock bands like Pentangle, Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span, & The Strawbs have an intricate, kinda proggy mood to them. Like they wouldn't be kicked outta a Prog Bar.
posted by ovvl at 4:12 PM on December 13, 2018 [1 favorite]
Nobody's mentioned Cardiacs yet!
Jibber and Twitch
Nurses Whispering Verses
I Hold My Love in My Arms
Tarred and Feathered
posted by equalpants at 12:35 AM on December 14, 2018 [1 favorite]
Jibber and Twitch
Nurses Whispering Verses
I Hold My Love in My Arms
Tarred and Feathered
posted by equalpants at 12:35 AM on December 14, 2018 [1 favorite]
If you decide to check out the above mentioned Pawn Hearts - and you really should, it's amazing - please note that the band behind it is called Van der Graaf Generator.
posted by soundofsuburbia at 4:25 AM on December 14, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by soundofsuburbia at 4:25 AM on December 14, 2018 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: This is a very comprehensive and slightly overwhelming response! Thank you so much! I think King Crimson will be my starting point.
posted by cakelite at 9:06 AM on December 14, 2018
posted by cakelite at 9:06 AM on December 14, 2018
The reason I chose these albums instead of others by the same groups is that I think they are the best intersection of prog-ness and accessibility for new fans.
Agreed. I don't/can't listen to much Rush these days in spite of once upon a time being a superfan, but I still like Permanent Waves. Their high point, I think.
posted by JamesBay at 12:02 PM on December 14, 2018
Agreed. I don't/can't listen to much Rush these days in spite of once upon a time being a superfan, but I still like Permanent Waves. Their high point, I think.
posted by JamesBay at 12:02 PM on December 14, 2018
This thread is closed to new comments.
But to answer the actual question, King Crimson is objectively better than Rush.
posted by implied_otter at 1:40 PM on December 12, 2018 [4 favorites]