Comments on Profile Post by Cspirou

Supposedly progressive rock music is highly structured like classical but with modern instruments. In theory I should like it. But it gets so goddamn annoying

Can someone make a recommendation to change my mind? Going to give King Crimson a try. Already heard too much Rush

Dixie Dregs— Odyssey is a favourite. Of course that could just mean you'll loathe it, but it's worth giving a shot :P

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qi5byvRoGe8

It is a rather wide genre. Try some Ozric Tentacles, Liquid Tension. Mastadon, Amorphis, Neurosis, Anathema, Buckethead, Praxis, Primus, Mr Bungle, Muse, NIN, Opeth...

@Poleepkwa Some groups I've actually not heard of there.Stealing some recommendations haha. But yeah, despite being a "subgenre" prog is just as massive and diffuse as any other because of the various interpretations thereof.

Buckethead counts as prog btw? Shit I've been into it for longer then I thought then :))

NiN I haven't really considered prog, but I totally see it. I think I can also see why a lot of techno sorts consider prog an influence (Daft Punk, M83...)

I gave Dixie Dregs a 10 second listen and it encompasses what I hate about prog. Oh gawd.

Going to listen to the whole track, but not starting well

No Genesis?

Go for Yes. It is Progressive Rock by the definition you posted and actually fun and moving to listen to. "Roundabout" broke through genres despite it being proggy.

Trent Reznor has mentioned a few times that they are inspired by progressive rock. I do not considered it a classic example of the genre. In my recommendations there are a lot of metal too.

@Lyander . Buckethead is Buckethead. More progressive in the early days with Praxis and Bill Laswell.

Always figured NIN was more Industrial, which in the modern sense is very much its own genre at this point. And hah, "Buckethead is Buckethead" really is the best way to describe it! I haven't been able to keep up with his work, but I am a fan of the old Giant Robot stuff and his earlier discography, tempted to check new ones out.

I too would consider NIN less rock and more electronic, but of you start looking at song structure's, concepts, I can see the similarities.

I have tired of all the subgenres when tagging stuff. Too many options!

Agreed, music is music and all that matters is finding stuff you like, regardless of how others see it (though I do admit having fun poking fun at the shit some friends like, and being poked fun at of course). Genres IMO serve to demarcate style and influence and help find recommendations though, so I can see why some gie a bother about it

@Lyander - you literally can't keep up with Buckethead's catalogue. One year he released over 100 albums and for the month of October he released an album per day.

His early albums are enough.

Genres are important though. If someone says "I like music" after listening to Nirvana and you tell them to listen to Garth Brooks next, they might be disappointed.

Fair point, should have specified my lack of giving a care about distinctions extends largely to really niche subgenres like nightcore etc.

Cspirou - I get it, man. There is a lot of horrible obnoxious prog out there. King Crimson is so good though. I suggest starting with In the Court of the Crimson King and then their second In the Wake of Poseidon.

Genesis is also a good rec. I suggest Selling England by the Pound and The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Do you like heavier music? If so check out Sleepytime Gorilla Museum Grand Opening and Closing. At times they're more metal but obviously influenced by King Crimson. I enjoy this album a lot.

There are so many bands that get labeled as prog or neoprog that I've just never been able to get into though such as Porcupine Tree, Ozric Tentacles, Marillion, etc..

King Crimson for sure is one of the best 'prog rock' bands. My favorite KC album is Discipline, which is their first with Adrian Belew. I also have enjoyed listening to Emerson, Lake, and Palmer. A lot of jazz fusion stuff is also kind of similar to my ear. If you're cool with going that way, check out Birds of Fire by the Mahavishnu Orchestra. Weather Report is also great, but less 'rock'.

@monacelli Good call on Birds of Fire! Another one that is a little more out there but has some fantastic music is Magma. Live and Kohntarkosz are good starting points.

Hmm, not sure I'd personally claim prog is like classical in the way you mentioned.

I think going into it with preconceived notions like that will make it more difficult to get into. Not that it's for everyone, of course.

What about prog rock do you not like specifically? Hard to recommend anything without knowing.

You might be OK with most of Opeth's "In Cauda Venenum." A few tracks are more proggy than others, some more just rock. Their "Pale Communion" album is worth checking out too, but noting each song is pretty different. Neither you can really judge based on one listen, let alone listening to only one or two songs.

How about "Jupiter" from Cave In? One of my all time favorites. I wouldn't label it primarily as prog rock, but it has some influences on a few tracks.

Or how about "The Mountain" from Haken? They definitely have a sort of poppy or silly vibe at time, but they are pretty good at interleaving an overall motif into their songs despite being eclectic.

Prog I think would be more like Impressionist or Romantic, but really it's just like taking all the musical eras, finding power tools in dad's shed, and throwing it all in a pine tree shaker to see what happens.

Perhaps heavier than "rock" but I'll throw them out there anyhow: Michael Romeo - War of the Worlds Pt. 1 and with a bit of folk thrown in: Lör - In Forgotten Sleep

I’d say only a few prog bands ever tried integrating classical structures into their music, mainly Yes and Emerson, Lake, and Palmer. King Crimson are more improvisational but sections of their second album are inspired by Holst. The other progressive bands just tend to be bands with a lot of instrumental prowess and a penchant for writing songs that are long or have complicated time signatures.

@Hands - I wouldn't say I went into progressive rock with any preconceived bias. Just that I saw that Dark Side of the Moon was one of the best selling albums of all time and gave it a listen to see why it was so popular. Also noticed my music geek friends were into Rush so I gave that a listen.

It wasn't until I heard a few albums that I looked up what made these groups 'progressive' and I read the following:

"Initially termed "progressive pop", the style was an outgrowth of psychedelic bands who abandoned standard pop traditions in favour of instrumentation and compositional techniques more frequently associated with jazz, folk, or classical music. "

Makes sense, but I get if this is wrong

I think that’s fair. King Crimson are more jazzy, Yes and ELP more classical, Genesis and Jethro Tull strongly inspired by English folk music.

Skip definitions. When proggy groups start fusing styles and techniques from different genres and create their own sound, you have to figure out for yourself if they are more jazzy, folky or rock oriented. When the Rock influence is dominant, by rule of their sound they are Prog Rock.

If you want everything at once you get Kinston Wall and find sonic bliss.

Maybe try Gentle Giant. Clasically trained players with complex arrangements but also rock too.

I almost recommended Gentle Giant earlier. But of a mixed bag at time but check out Octopus. There is a Steven Wilson remix out there.

Tons of good options already, but I'll second Jupiter by Cave In. That's just a great f'ing rock album.
Tilts more metal, but Cynic's Focus might be worthwhile. Perhaps the first two Mars Volta records if you're feeling adventurous and want some Afro-Cuban influence mixed in.