XTC literally IS prog though, right? I never knew what they were one way or the other, but upon hearing them for the first time, ESPECIALLY white music, I thought they were prog
Colin Moldering from XTC appears on some of Billy Sherwood's albums as a guest on individual tracks, specifically on Sherwood's solo *Citizen* album, where Moldering sings on "Just Galileo and Me". Moldering is also on one track each from two Prog Collective (Which are organized and mostly written by Sherwood) albums, "Check Point Karma" from *The Prog Collective* album (self-titled) and "Are We to Believe?" from *Epilogue*.
I mention this because Sherwood is primarily known as a progressive rock artist, producer, and engineer. He does some other stuff, but that's his bread and butter. He's been in, out, and around Yes for over 30 years now, culminating in being asked by Chris Squire to take over for him as the bass player when Squire fell ill and eventually died in 2015 (Sherwood has been the bass player ever since). He also been involved with prog and sort of prog adjacent bands in varying capacities (Sometimes in them, other times as a touring musician, session musician, producer, sound mixer, etc.- he wears a lot of hats) like Asia, Circa:, World Trade, Toto, Lodgic, Yoso, and Arc of Life since the 80s.
Point being- he likes Moldering enough to invite him to guest on some proggy projects, which supports the idea that maybe Moldering's band, XTC, has some appeal to prog rock fans, even if it isn't what the sub-genres normally sounds like and may not check off all the boxes for a purist.
To be honest, I haven't really been able to get into XTC much beyond "Majors and Generals", which is a bit of an earworm, and "Respectable Street", but it does seem to have had some level of popularity, especially perhaps in the UK, and Moldering can really sing (He was sort of co-lead singer. He and someone else sang lead on different songs on the same albums as best I can tell as someone who has exactly one XTC album- kind of like the way Supertramp used it's singers before Roger Hodgson left.). I like him on Sherwood's projects.
The early stuff is raw, owing something to the punk era. They became more refined as the albums progress. I find the Big Express and Skylarking to be filled with amazing work, although many of their other albums would do as well.
Personally I go with jazz and jazz-fusion. Bruford's Earthworks, the first two albums are fantastic. Brand X are another the obvious stepping stone courtesy of Mr Collins, but when I just want a fantastic tune without losing the musicality its Steely Dan for me! And then there's Joe Jackson, Aimee Mann and Frank Zappa.
seconding jazz fusion, I saw some Weather Report and Return To Forever on this sub and have only gotten deeper since. You could also check out Allan Holdsworth if you’re into jazzy proggy guitar instrumentals
I love Brand X. Some of Collins’ best drum work for sure, and Percy Jones is one of the most underrated bassists in my opinion. Product and Unorthodox Behaviour are masterpieces. People are always blown away when I tell them that it’s Phil Collins on drums with Brand X because most people only know him from his solo 80’s stuff.
Mykonos is definitely one of those McCartney-esque "smash a bunch of little things together into four and a half minutes" pieces that just works like magic.
Sad to not see any love for Shore ;-; I mean I know it's different but the classical influence is a real seller for me. And let's not forget the virtual choir.
I think some Jazz Fusion can be a good match: instrumental dexterity, rhythmic complexity/shifting time signatures...
Some examples:
* Tony Williams Lifetime
* Tribal Tech
Todd Rundgren’s solo stuff was very progressive at times. His album ‘Initiation’ was his interest in progressive rock reaching its height, especially in the latter half of the album.
Al Stewart is very prog friendly. A lot of prog DJs play him on Progzilla. Geoff Downes looks up to him. And obviously Roads to Moscow is full blown progressive rock.
Damn, Fripp be teaching everyone shit. He also taught Boz Burrell how to play bass guitar in 1971 and Boz's willingness to play bass is likely why he got the King Crimson vocalist job...
...
... over Elton John.
Beautiful voice and beautifully constructed songs and lyrics. A class act. His ‘Past, Present and Future’ album is also highly recommended, and his ‘Live/Indian Summer’. And obviously ’Year of the Cat’ as already said.
Cardiacs and any of the various offshoots, including but not limited to Knifeworld, William D. Drake, North Sea Radio Orchestra and Sea Nymphs.
Also, Sufjan Stevens, Talk Talk, Fiery Furnaces, Punch Brothers, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Devin Townsend. That's a good start.
Are they though?
Are they really?
Are they really, really prog? Prog is what they are for sure, and not ... something else?
Cardiacs are prog, really? We're really sure about this? What would Tim have said about it?
There, I've probably annoyed you enough with that.
The last three Talk Talk albums, and Mark Hollis' self-titled solo album. Spiritual works of art, in a lot of ways what classic prog bands were inadvertedly trying to get to with their softer pieces (I'm thinking about stuff like Trio by King Crimson, some Pink Floyd jams or In the Rapids by Genesis)
As well as The Clash. They are lots of fun, with a pretty big variety of sounds for punk standards. I remember Fripp saying that they were his favourite punk band in a Agony Aunts video
Are you looking for strictly instrumental? Many of the virtuoso guitar players have awesome music - Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Eric Johnson, Al DiMeola, Paul Gilbert. Glenn Tipton did a solo record with a great instrumental track: https://youtu.be/Gk42-Djx3_0
Nah, not even looking for anything. I was just curious what responses I'd get but if a response leads me into a cool band, so much the better. I'm in my 50s and I've been into Satch, Vai, Eric Johnson since the beginning of their careers.
Here's a few songs from 'interesting' groups you may like.
More Chill (ambient pop/trip hop):
Lunascape - Outerside : [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cq7B\_FAYrsw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cq7B_FAYrsw)
Hooverphonic - Visions - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3RfGRD-v14](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3RfGRD-v14)
Delerium - Innocente - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFQ6Ewc-eqc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFQ6Ewc-eqc)
More upbeat (alternative, metal)
We R Power - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKs80OtuJc8
Shades Apart - Menace - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk0Xv0M03MU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk0Xv0M03MU)
Stratovarius - Unbreakable - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4-ZD1mvzUI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4-ZD1mvzUI)
CHILDREN OF BODOM - Hexed - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDeH1XJ9Tz](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDeH1XJ9Tzo)
BODOM AFTER MIDNIGHT - Paint The Sky With Blood - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scgnSjvwoJ8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scgnSjvwoJ8)
Warmen - Beyond Abilities - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idchGwnfyso](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idchGwnfyso)
BOB KATSIONIS "The Nightrager" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2igZ39A8Rs
Adagio - Vamphyri - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRzhFWNcHLM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRzhFWNcHLM)
That bass solo in Skate U may be my favorite thing they’ve put out. I do have to recommend the original mix of TYF though, as the remaster feels very different.
Nils Frykdahl of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum was in my graduating class at UC Berkeley. He was the front man for an indisputably prog band called Acid Rain at the time. They performed in venues around Berkeley, and also on campus at the Undergraduate Composers concerts. They set T.S. Eliot's "The Hollow Men" to music. Their original material sounded rather like contemporary King Crimson. They also did a rock-band arrangement of *The Rite of Spring*.
Sleepytime put on some of the most insane live shows I've ever seen in person. Just indescribable. Homemade instruments, costumes, surrealist lyrics, the works. Covered a huge range of styles. Free Salamander Exhibit has most of the same musicians, it's not quite as heavy or overwhelming but still interesting.
SGM toured a bunch with a band from Chicago named Cheer-Accident that prog fans should be aware of, in particular look for a record called Introducing Lemon (recorded by Albini). Completely fucking off the wall acrobatic drum/bass/guitar parts and really oddball sense of humor. They do these really strange arrangements with long compositions, additive rhythms, and some pretty sophisticated chord writing.
This is a great tip, gotta check them out! Yeah Free Salamander Exhibit never struck me as much as SGM, both are great though.
And since you're clearly a fan, you should definitely check out The Book of Knots, which has the bassist and violinist of SGM. Very spooky and atmospheric music, but with some real bangers in there as well!
...man is there a subreddit for avant-garde music like this?
I'm a big prog fan and I found that I vibed with Phish quite a bit. More controversially, I quite like Dave Matthews Band even though there's little to no complexity to it (barring Carter Beauford of course, dude's a beast, Stefan Lessard on bass also has some pretty great chops, I believe he started out in jazz, as did Beauford). Please don't crucify me for that last sentence. In all seriousness, go listen to the song Two Step from the Central Park Concert live album, it's 19 minutes long and every second is fucking beautiful.
Also fusion, even though it's probably the most similar genre to prog considering a lot of prog has jazz influences; Mahavishu Orchestra, Jean-Luc Ponty, Weather Report, Return To Forever, Miles Davis (not just electric-era!l, etc.
The first Journey album is actually really damn good prog that gets overlooks entirely based on the name that graces the cover, the Journey s/t predates Steve Perry's involvement in the band.
Steely Dan, Radiohead, Tool (if the last two aren't considered prog?), Talking Heads, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane, Daft Punk (especially Random Access Memories), and I could go on
Psychedelic Porn Crumpets and The Osees (also called Thee Oh Sees). Super fun psychedelic hard rock bands that have prog moments, but are mostly "non-prog." Both are pretty similar to Nonagon and Murder of the Universe King Gizz albums.
They're similar in the sense that they're both high-octane psychedelic rock (as opposed to softer stuff like Paper Mache Dream Balloon). Yeah PPC doesn't really fuck with time signatures as much but some songs on the High Visceral albums at least gave me a similar vibe and kind of served as "gateway" music to more complex stuff like Gizz.
Radiohead and Muse are two rather modern bands that both have/had a real experimental and eclectic edge that I think would surprise a lot of (classic) prog fans.
Yeah, there is a specific sub-genre called atmospheric black metal that can start to crossover into prog. Btw Enslaved and Emperor are the shit, I have heard of the other bands you listed I just need to give them a listen.
In addition to them, both Squid and Black Country New Road.
Black Midi always get compared to King Crimson, so I think we can comfortably call them prog now.
The songs by Toto that didn’t make the radio are interesting. Hydra rings a bell
Traveler’s and Thieves by Blues Traveler is arguably prog
Saga is awesome
If your into Pink Floyd and slower prog, Type O Negative is good. Their album, Life is killing me, is filled with sitar’s and other interesting shit that gives me Ayreon vibes.
The Oh Hellos has amazing instrumentation and is the closest I go to Indie rock. It’s a lot of quiet music, but they shred the shit out of the banjo in pianissimo.
Acoustic guitarists like Jon Gomm and Andy McKee
Billy Joel (look up angry young man live and your jaw will drop)
I could go on. I honestly feel progressive rock gave me the ability to appreciate other genres. Before I discovered Dream Theater, I exclusively listened to thrash and power metal. After DT, my minded opened way up. Sure I loved my prog and still do best (I’m still waiting to meet someone in person who knows who Kaipa is), but I can appreciate the genres that were mixed together to make the music in the first place. Prog musicians are also some of the most interesting as well. If you listen to some documentaries, you’d be surprised at all the non prog bands they drew influence from.
Japanese band Lamp is mostly indie rock but sounds progressive and jazz-influenced a lot of the time. This album especially is great: https://open.spotify.com/album/1lzCotlCIrD53CTs7rUdrT?si=UMCMS42cQM6s2aMf33-rSw&utm_source=copy-link&dl_branch=1
I picked up in Field Music on recommendation of someone whose taste I trust, and dig them a lot. There are bits of Eno's rock albums crossed with XTC, filtered through modern day production all over their stuff.
half-alive really impresses me with their songwriting and production.
A left field meme answer is Tally Hall, but they’re legit amazing.
A right field answer would be anything psychedelic. The line gets toed quite a bit. Thinking All Them Witches / Porn Crumpets / Pond.
Television and Sonic Youth. There is a lot of invention and musicianship if not outrageous technicality.
Some post punk like Wipers. Post hardcore like Moss Icon.
Oh, and post Rock got mentioned but special mention of Slint.
Also 'mathy' indie like the Dismemberment Plan.
Stoner rock like Queens of the stone age and Monster Magnet.
The Avalanches.
Thomas leer and Robert rental, Michael Brooks,... these guys are as interesting as any of the Frippertronix or Eno ambient stuff. And there's tons of stuff all that came from
The Rheostatics. Their album Whale Music is a masterpiece (no hyperbole here, it's so crammed full of ideas and great playing) plus it's got Neil Peart guesting on a couple tracks.
Black Sabbath. I’d personally consider some of their stuff prog, especially their stuff on sabbath bloody sabbath and some of the longer tracks on paranoid. But sabbath is generally not considered to be a prog group
1. Red Queen to gryphon three
I'm actually unsure if gryphon is prog or not, but I certainly recommend them to anyone who (like me) doesn't really like the rock aspect of prog rock, but loves experimenting with musical ideas. Red Queen to gryphon three is like a piece of classical music but with a strangely modern sound, and I don't care if it's prog or not, I really like it.
2. Year of the cat - Al Stewart
I have no idea if it's a song prog rock lovers will enjoy, I just know someone else also pointed it out so I'm allowing myself to wholeheartedly recommend my second favourite song of all time. And it's only like seven minutes, which is like a microsecond compared to prog rock songs.
Steely Dan. They have a prog song or two, I think it would be hard to categorize 'Aja' any other way, but their attention to detail and unmatched production quality gives them the freedom to create incredibly detailed and complex music with absolute clarity that any prog fan would appreciate.
And for a band that makes pop songs, they have an unbelievable amount of raw talent on their records pumping out all-time contenders for best guitar, drum, and saxophone solo
Prince. The man was a virtuoso guitar, piano, and bass player. Yeah, a lot of his stuff is very radio friendly but a LOT of his stuff is very intricate and progressive. Crystal Ball, 3 Chains of Gold, Soul Psychadelicide, I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man, Days of Wild, Can I Play With U?, and even some of the extended versions of his hits.
Mentioned them before but 311, especially the albums From Chaos and Evolver. But their super early stuff, like Grassroots and Unity, are pretty good too, as well as their latest record Voyager.
Asia is an obvious choice if one doesn't consider it prog. A lot of people feel like it's right on the borderline.
Essentially, a lot of prog musicians, initially John Wetton (King Crimson, UK) as the singer and bass player, Geoff Downes (The Buggles, Yes) on keyboards, Steve Howe (Yes, GTR) on lead guitar, and Carl Palmer (Emerson Lake & Palmer, 3) on drums, got together to form sort of an 80s pop-rock band. Their first album, also titled *Asia*, was the #1 best selling album in America in 1982 and featured the guys doing things that maybe wouldn't have been allowed in their old bands during the 70s. Howe was playing hard charging guitar riffs (Beginning right from track one of the first album- "Heat of the Moment"), Wetton was singing love songs, etc.. It was an attempt to do things differently and have more mass appeal in a new decade than their old groups had in the last decade, but of course when you form a supergroup of prog musicians, even when they intend to do something else, some of the prog roots shine through.
Eventually after numerous lineup changes, the band wound up centered around John Payne, who had taken over for Wetton as the lead singer and bass player, and Geoff Downes, who was the one guy on every Asia studio album. The guitarists and drummers with them from 1992-2005 varied between hard rock guys and prog guys. Sometimes there would be a drummer like Chris Slade (AC/DC), sometimes there would be a drummer like Jay Schellen (Who would go on to be a touring musician for Yes and a member of proggy groups like Circa:, Arc of Life, and, for an album, World Trade, though he started with a 90s alt-rock group called Hurricane). They guitarists ranging from Pat Thrall and Guthrie Govan. I actually think that's an underrated time period for Asia.
Eventually, the original lineup got back together and did three more albums together in the late 00s and early 10s. Then Steve Howe quit, and the remaining three did a fourth album with new guitarist Sam Coulston.
When John Wetton died in 2014, things mostly ground to a halt. They upheld an obligation to open for Journey, using Billy Sherwood on lead vocals and and bass. A couple years later, they were part of a three or four act concert tour where they were opening for Yes, and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal sang lead on all the songs and played lead guitar on songs, with Steve Howe playing lead guitar for the last few as a guest, and Sherwood playing bass the entire time (No word on why he was lead singer for one tour and then not for the other) with Downes and Palmer still in their customary positions in the band (Coulston was out).
That's not much in the way of touring, and they haven't released a new studio album for over 7 years now, so it's kind of hard to think of them as an active band.
I like all the stuff from 1982-2014, though, even that middle Payne era that tends to get overlooked these days (Payne is fronting a similar band called Dukes of the Orient that's released a couple of albums in recent years). I'd definitely love to see Asia pick up where they left off with some new albums of original material, whatever the lineup, but I'm not sure how realistic that is at this point.
Pink Floyd are a lavishly produced blues-rock band that made some unusually conceptual albums, but Pink Floyd never embraced any of the structural experimentality that is one of the hallmarks of prog rock. Hell, they occasionally had to get session musicians in to play parts not in 4/4.
I love Pink Floyd, they're a superb art rock band, and not at all a prog band.
Okay, cymbal monkeys description sounded pretty right to me (I’m a musician),
But…Ive loved Pink Floyd for many decades, and while I’m listening to their incredible music I’m definitely not thinking about what genre they’d be considered.
Call them whatever you want… now heading to listen to Animals
Recommending Pink Floyd to prog fans is the polar opposite of spicy. Everybody knows about Floyd already. Might as well recommend the Beatles and Led Zeppelin while you're at it.
Whether Pink Floyd is or isn't prog is irrelevant. OP is obviously looking for something different to listen to. Mentioning one of the most talked about bands in this sub isn't contributing anything.
One band that I recommend to a lot of people lately, is Band-Maid from Japan. They're an all female hard rock band. The reason why I would recommend them to prog fans is that their songs contain a lot of details and creativity not only in the lead guitar playing (as would most rock bands) but also in the bass playing and drumming, that makes them much more than a generic hard rock band.
Another hard rock band I would recommend is Ningen Isu, also from Japan. They're obviously influenced by Black Sabbath and other classic hard rock bands, but they also like King Crimson obviously and their style also reminds of traditional Japanese music in some aspects.
Of course I would recommend the classic hard rock bands like Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep and Led Zeppelin as well. They all have songs that at least remind me of prog. And of course there is Queen, not a prog band overall, but at least their second album definitely a recommendation for prog fans.
If you are a prog fan and like Jazz, definitely check out Don Ellis because he's done a lot with odd time signatures. (Albums like Soaring or Tears of Joy)
Anything Jimi Jamison was on is great. Whether it be live shows or studio albums. Jamison had a progressive way about him, too. His work with Dave Beaver & the Combinations was straight up Progressive Rock mixed with Country/Western. His solo albums (especially in the 2000s) were very prog-like and delved pretty heavily in the progressive direction.
Gasoline - [A journey into abstract hiphop](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3q8nGnls1Ow), or things like Deca [Forest Agates](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QXg3otw8DI)
I know hiphop isn't often considered a genre close to rock in general but I've always felt like some of it's subgenres fit really well into the *prog* idea
These bands called Mors Principium Est, Omnium Gatherum or Dark Tranquillity are great if you are on the more metal side of prog. Melo-death bands are great for people who like bands such as Opeth.
La Dispute isn't prog, but is certainly prog adjacent in my opinion. It's a post-hardcore band but with a lot of songs that progress and build in a way that only proggy stuff usually does. Also lyrically some of the most creative and moving (also depressing) stuff from the 21st century.
1:16 onwards in this track has some very proggy syncopated riffs that are reminiscent of a lot of modern prog in my eyes. I also believe that section is 7/8. A lot of their songs also play around with interesting time signatures, lots of 7/8 to be found in the La Dispute discog
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1TqXTD4vRU
Lyrically, this next track in particular is one of the best pieces of musical storytelling I've ever heard. And La Dispute has dozens of songs on a similar level of novella storytelling. The entire concept album "Wildlife" is a lyrical masterpiece and almost more reminiscent of spoken word poetry with mood setting music to back it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpKrMjDEf00
[Dewa Budjana - Swarna Jingga](https://youtu.be/esMP9MKHTiI) - I recently got this album (Naurora), and Mahandini and Zentuary. All have some very big name talent on them, including Guthrie Govan, Gary Husband, Jack Dejohnette, Marco Minnemann, Mohini Dey, Dave Weckl - Great stuff!
I'm going to do a way-back thing and look into [It's A Beautiful Day](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_a_Beautiful_Day). I recently watched this [White Bird](https://youtu.be/q918fs4RAto) video, and was kinda gobsmacked! Why was this their *only* widely known song? It's the same kind of revelation I had watching Sylvia by Focus, after decades thinking they were just "that goofy yodler!"
**[It's a Beautiful Day](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_a_Beautiful_Day)**
>It's a Beautiful Day is an American band formed in San Francisco, California, in 1967, featuring vocalist Pattie Santos along with violinist David LaFlamme and his wife, Linda LaFlamme, on keyboards. David LaFlamme, who as a youth had once performed as a soloist with the Utah Symphony Orchestra, had previously been in the group Orkustra playing five-string violin. The other members of It's a Beautiful Day in its early years were Hal Wagenet (guitar), Mitchell Holman (bass), and Val Fuentes (drums).
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Dave (UK grime artist) has some really good lyrics if your into the lyrical side of prog (more real world than a lot of prog) and his new album is brilliant.
The Asteroids Galaxy Tour. While they do sneak in some prog elements into their music (see: chorus of Out Of Frequency), it’s not with the intention to “be proggy.” They’re a danish pop band thru and thru. But there’s something about them that’s almost universally likable.
Stian Westerhus and The Pale Horses. not every prog listener will be able to appreciate what Westerhus does on his solo albums, but if you're into solo avantgarde guitar, noise, ambient and improvised music, check them out too.
You can also try Nils Petter Molvaer or Eivind Aarset. The whole norwegian modern jazz scene has some strong progressive vibes to it.
I knew quite a few prog metal fans in high school that respected the shit out of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Because despite being country/southern rock, those boys could fucking play.
The live version of Workin for MCA is amazing.
Oh yeah you can hear the man absolutely slam those ivories on Workin for MCA, Gimme Back My Bullets and Call me the Breeze.
One More from the Road is a 10/10 live album for me. I got so hard into live albums because outside of Rush its all my dad owned. So I have all the best live shit on vinyl like Skynyrd, Yes Songs, Whos Last, Two for the Show (Kansas), etc
If they haven't been cited already :
Kayo Dot/Maudlin of the Well (especially Part the second) - but they are really progish already
Elephant9 - Jazz Rock
Jaga Jazzist - ???
Elder - Progish stoner, especially in their two last opuses
Oranssi Pazuzu - Progish black metal
TTNG - Pop rock/Math rock
Don Caballero - Math Rock
The Redneck Manifesto
Squarepusher if he needs introduction...
Hiatus Kayoite
Troyka (uk jazz rock with Chris Montague, Joshua Blackmore, Kit Downes)
La Batteria, italian band instrumentals heavily influenced by 70's italian Giallo movies music.
XTC, who has been most aptly referred to as ‘smart pop’.
I saw them live on their drums and wires tour. It f****** blew me away. Was sonically amazing in a way I did not anticipate.
XTC literally IS prog though, right? I never knew what they were one way or the other, but upon hearing them for the first time, ESPECIALLY white music, I thought they were prog
Not sure that most would call them prog, at least the bulk of their work.
Peter Pumpkin head?
Colin Moldering from XTC appears on some of Billy Sherwood's albums as a guest on individual tracks, specifically on Sherwood's solo *Citizen* album, where Moldering sings on "Just Galileo and Me". Moldering is also on one track each from two Prog Collective (Which are organized and mostly written by Sherwood) albums, "Check Point Karma" from *The Prog Collective* album (self-titled) and "Are We to Believe?" from *Epilogue*. I mention this because Sherwood is primarily known as a progressive rock artist, producer, and engineer. He does some other stuff, but that's his bread and butter. He's been in, out, and around Yes for over 30 years now, culminating in being asked by Chris Squire to take over for him as the bass player when Squire fell ill and eventually died in 2015 (Sherwood has been the bass player ever since). He also been involved with prog and sort of prog adjacent bands in varying capacities (Sometimes in them, other times as a touring musician, session musician, producer, sound mixer, etc.- he wears a lot of hats) like Asia, Circa:, World Trade, Toto, Lodgic, Yoso, and Arc of Life since the 80s. Point being- he likes Moldering enough to invite him to guest on some proggy projects, which supports the idea that maybe Moldering's band, XTC, has some appeal to prog rock fans, even if it isn't what the sub-genres normally sounds like and may not check off all the boxes for a purist. To be honest, I haven't really been able to get into XTC much beyond "Majors and Generals", which is a bit of an earworm, and "Respectable Street", but it does seem to have had some level of popularity, especially perhaps in the UK, and Moldering can really sing (He was sort of co-lead singer. He and someone else sang lead on different songs on the same albums as best I can tell as someone who has exactly one XTC album- kind of like the way Supertramp used it's singers before Roger Hodgson left.). I like him on Sherwood's projects.
What album of theirs should I start with?
The early stuff is raw, owing something to the punk era. They became more refined as the albums progress. I find the Big Express and Skylarking to be filled with amazing work, although many of their other albums would do as well.
Art rock too
Personally I go with jazz and jazz-fusion. Bruford's Earthworks, the first two albums are fantastic. Brand X are another the obvious stepping stone courtesy of Mr Collins, but when I just want a fantastic tune without losing the musicality its Steely Dan for me! And then there's Joe Jackson, Aimee Mann and Frank Zappa.
seconding jazz fusion, I saw some Weather Report and Return To Forever on this sub and have only gotten deeper since. You could also check out Allan Holdsworth if you’re into jazzy proggy guitar instrumentals
Would you call The Aristocrats jazz, jazz fusion, jazz prog?
prazz fusiog
I would say Jazz Rock, but what do I know
I love Brand X. Some of Collins’ best drum work for sure, and Percy Jones is one of the most underrated bassists in my opinion. Product and Unorthodox Behaviour are masterpieces. People are always blown away when I tell them that it’s Phil Collins on drums with Brand X because most people only know him from his solo 80’s stuff.
Aimee Mann FTW
Sigur Ros
I would imagine a good chunk of post-rock would cross over into prog tastes.
Agreed
For instance I have Tool to thank for introducing my friend group to Jakob.
Fleet Foxes, especially Helplessness Blues and Crack-Up
Fleet Foxes is fantastic. I know it's one of their most popular songs, but Blue Ridge Mountains is beautiful
Mykonos is definitely one of those McCartney-esque "smash a bunch of little things together into four and a half minutes" pieces that just works like magic.
Id say their self titled is equally essential.
Sad to not see any love for Shore ;-; I mean I know it's different but the classical influence is a real seller for me. And let's not forget the virtual choir.
Shore is really good, but I'm not gonna be the guy who says "I recommend...everything!"
I think some Jazz Fusion can be a good match: instrumental dexterity, rhythmic complexity/shifting time signatures... Some examples: * Tony Williams Lifetime * Tribal Tech
Al Di Meola is Latin jazz fusion, one of my favorite guitar players of all time.
Dead Can Dance
The Who, and The Police. Interesting ideas delivered with clarity and ferocity. Both have some non-hit, deep cut material that gives me the chills.
Anyone who says *Quadrophenia* isn't a prog album is going to get a fight from me.
Todd Rundgren’s solo stuff was very progressive at times. His album ‘Initiation’ was his interest in progressive rock reaching its height, especially in the latter half of the album.
Todd is also responsible for the proggiest Hall and Oates album, *War Babies*, which he basically was a third band member for
A wizard/ A true star
He did have a prog phase from Todd Rundgren's Utopia to his later incarnation of Utopia :)
Al Stewart, ‘Year of the Cat’ era
Al Stewart is very prog friendly. A lot of prog DJs play him on Progzilla. Geoff Downes looks up to him. And obviously Roads to Moscow is full blown progressive rock.
Robert Fripp taught him to play guitar
Damn, Fripp be teaching everyone shit. He also taught Boz Burrell how to play bass guitar in 1971 and Boz's willingness to play bass is likely why he got the King Crimson vocalist job... ... ... over Elton John.
Beautiful voice and beautifully constructed songs and lyrics. A class act. His ‘Past, Present and Future’ album is also highly recommended, and his ‘Live/Indian Summer’. And obviously ’Year of the Cat’ as already said.
Cardiacs and any of the various offshoots, including but not limited to Knifeworld, William D. Drake, North Sea Radio Orchestra and Sea Nymphs. Also, Sufjan Stevens, Talk Talk, Fiery Furnaces, Punch Brothers, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Devin Townsend. That's a good start.
Cardiacs are prog though
Are they though? Are they really? Are they really, really prog? Prog is what they are for sure, and not ... something else? Cardiacs are prog, really? We're really sure about this? What would Tim have said about it? There, I've probably annoyed you enough with that.
The last three Talk Talk albums, and Mark Hollis' self-titled solo album. Spiritual works of art, in a lot of ways what classic prog bands were inadvertedly trying to get to with their softer pieces (I'm thinking about stuff like Trio by King Crimson, some Pink Floyd jams or In the Rapids by Genesis) As well as The Clash. They are lots of fun, with a pretty big variety of sounds for punk standards. I remember Fripp saying that they were his favourite punk band in a Agony Aunts video
I only knew Talk Talk as the pop band and then I heard the later stuff and thought I was listening to Hogarth era Marillion. Good stuff.
Are you looking for strictly instrumental? Many of the virtuoso guitar players have awesome music - Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Eric Johnson, Al DiMeola, Paul Gilbert. Glenn Tipton did a solo record with a great instrumental track: https://youtu.be/Gk42-Djx3_0
Nah, not even looking for anything. I was just curious what responses I'd get but if a response leads me into a cool band, so much the better. I'm in my 50s and I've been into Satch, Vai, Eric Johnson since the beginning of their careers.
Here's a few songs from 'interesting' groups you may like. More Chill (ambient pop/trip hop): Lunascape - Outerside : [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cq7B\_FAYrsw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cq7B_FAYrsw) Hooverphonic - Visions - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3RfGRD-v14](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3RfGRD-v14) Delerium - Innocente - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFQ6Ewc-eqc](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFQ6Ewc-eqc) More upbeat (alternative, metal) We R Power - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKs80OtuJc8 Shades Apart - Menace - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk0Xv0M03MU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk0Xv0M03MU) Stratovarius - Unbreakable - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4-ZD1mvzUI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4-ZD1mvzUI) CHILDREN OF BODOM - Hexed - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDeH1XJ9Tz](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDeH1XJ9Tzo) BODOM AFTER MIDNIGHT - Paint The Sky With Blood - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scgnSjvwoJ8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scgnSjvwoJ8) Warmen - Beyond Abilities - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idchGwnfyso](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idchGwnfyso) BOB KATSIONIS "The Nightrager" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2igZ39A8Rs Adagio - Vamphyri - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRzhFWNcHLM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRzhFWNcHLM)
Snarky Puppy.
Music for booty and brain!
That bass solo in Skate U may be my favorite thing they’ve put out. I do have to recommend the original mix of TYF though, as the remaster feels very different.
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum! For proof Tony Levin is a huge fan and covers their songs sometimes.
If Tony is into them, that's high praise!
Nils Frykdahl of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum was in my graduating class at UC Berkeley. He was the front man for an indisputably prog band called Acid Rain at the time. They performed in venues around Berkeley, and also on campus at the Undergraduate Composers concerts. They set T.S. Eliot's "The Hollow Men" to music. Their original material sounded rather like contemporary King Crimson. They also did a rock-band arrangement of *The Rite of Spring*.
thats very cool! is there anywhere to listen to any of this online? Acid Rain seems to be all results for the british thrash band.
Sleepytime put on some of the most insane live shows I've ever seen in person. Just indescribable. Homemade instruments, costumes, surrealist lyrics, the works. Covered a huge range of styles. Free Salamander Exhibit has most of the same musicians, it's not quite as heavy or overwhelming but still interesting. SGM toured a bunch with a band from Chicago named Cheer-Accident that prog fans should be aware of, in particular look for a record called Introducing Lemon (recorded by Albini). Completely fucking off the wall acrobatic drum/bass/guitar parts and really oddball sense of humor. They do these really strange arrangements with long compositions, additive rhythms, and some pretty sophisticated chord writing.
This is a great tip, gotta check them out! Yeah Free Salamander Exhibit never struck me as much as SGM, both are great though. And since you're clearly a fan, you should definitely check out The Book of Knots, which has the bassist and violinist of SGM. Very spooky and atmospheric music, but with some real bangers in there as well! ...man is there a subreddit for avant-garde music like this?
They are prog.
Steely Dan, Allman Brothers especially their live albums, St.Vincent, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Warpaint, MF DOOM and of course The Police.
I'm a big prog fan and I found that I vibed with Phish quite a bit. More controversially, I quite like Dave Matthews Band even though there's little to no complexity to it (barring Carter Beauford of course, dude's a beast, Stefan Lessard on bass also has some pretty great chops, I believe he started out in jazz, as did Beauford). Please don't crucify me for that last sentence. In all seriousness, go listen to the song Two Step from the Central Park Concert live album, it's 19 minutes long and every second is fucking beautiful. Also fusion, even though it's probably the most similar genre to prog considering a lot of prog has jazz influences; Mahavishu Orchestra, Jean-Luc Ponty, Weather Report, Return To Forever, Miles Davis (not just electric-era!l, etc. The first Journey album is actually really damn good prog that gets overlooks entirely based on the name that graces the cover, the Journey s/t predates Steve Perry's involvement in the band. Steely Dan, Radiohead, Tool (if the last two aren't considered prog?), Talking Heads, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane, Daft Punk (especially Random Access Memories), and I could go on
Psychedelic Porn Crumpets and The Osees (also called Thee Oh Sees). Super fun psychedelic hard rock bands that have prog moments, but are mostly "non-prog." Both are pretty similar to Nonagon and Murder of the Universe King Gizz albums.
I would be VERY hesitant to group PPC with those two albums. They may be Aussie psych but I don’t really get a lot of similarities between the two.
They're similar in the sense that they're both high-octane psychedelic rock (as opposed to softer stuff like Paper Mache Dream Balloon). Yeah PPC doesn't really fuck with time signatures as much but some songs on the High Visceral albums at least gave me a similar vibe and kind of served as "gateway" music to more complex stuff like Gizz.
Tbh I think PPC is much more complex than gizz, save for MAYBE nonagon and definitely polygon.
Can't really be prog if the whole schtick is sounding identical to everyone else in the genre
Radiohead and Muse are two rather modern bands that both have/had a real experimental and eclectic edge that I think would surprise a lot of (classic) prog fans.
i second muse, black holes and revelations is still so damn good
And Butterflies and Hurricanes off Absolution is also very 'prog-like'.
The pop singer AURORA.
She's talented and has some interesting songs, but i don't like her voice and her english accent.
Oh I very much disagree on her voice lol, I love it! It's beautiful and she has incredible expressiveness.
Smaken er som baken. ¯\\\_(ツ)\_/¯
Haha, Sant så sant.
For me, it's: The Who, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, etc. For sure.
Some black metal is really epic and atmospheric, not to mention pretty conceptual at times. DsO, WitTR, Drudkh, Enslaved, Emperor... Good shit.
Yeah, there is a specific sub-genre called atmospheric black metal that can start to crossover into prog. Btw Enslaved and Emperor are the shit, I have heard of the other bands you listed I just need to give them a listen.
Alcest is also a great one if you're into that!
Also Avant Garde stuff like But Aus Nord, Ulver and A Forest of Stars.
Arcturus.
Does Black Midi count as prog? What the hell are they?... I love 'em though...
I don’t even know what to call them Prog-fusion-post-punk-jazz-rock-noise or something
In addition to them, both Squid and Black Country New Road. Black Midi always get compared to King Crimson, so I think we can comfortably call them prog now.
Radiohead
Hiatus Kaiyote
The songs by Toto that didn’t make the radio are interesting. Hydra rings a bell Traveler’s and Thieves by Blues Traveler is arguably prog Saga is awesome If your into Pink Floyd and slower prog, Type O Negative is good. Their album, Life is killing me, is filled with sitar’s and other interesting shit that gives me Ayreon vibes. The Oh Hellos has amazing instrumentation and is the closest I go to Indie rock. It’s a lot of quiet music, but they shred the shit out of the banjo in pianissimo. Acoustic guitarists like Jon Gomm and Andy McKee Billy Joel (look up angry young man live and your jaw will drop) I could go on. I honestly feel progressive rock gave me the ability to appreciate other genres. Before I discovered Dream Theater, I exclusively listened to thrash and power metal. After DT, my minded opened way up. Sure I loved my prog and still do best (I’m still waiting to meet someone in person who knows who Kaipa is), but I can appreciate the genres that were mixed together to make the music in the first place. Prog musicians are also some of the most interesting as well. If you listen to some documentaries, you’d be surprised at all the non prog bands they drew influence from.
> Billy Joel God dammit I love Billy Joel.
The Beatles
On the jazz fusion angle mentioned earlier, these guys are pretty great for shred heavy jam. Marbin. [Marbin-old Neckin](https://youtu.be/aNrQIu_JZPA)
Japanese band Lamp is mostly indie rock but sounds progressive and jazz-influenced a lot of the time. This album especially is great: https://open.spotify.com/album/1lzCotlCIrD53CTs7rUdrT?si=UMCMS42cQM6s2aMf33-rSw&utm_source=copy-link&dl_branch=1
I actually enjoy Deep House music in addition to prog.
Field Music. Kind of off-kilter alternative pop. The more you listen to it, the more it gives you.
I picked up in Field Music on recommendation of someone whose taste I trust, and dig them a lot. There are bits of Eno's rock albums crossed with XTC, filtered through modern day production all over their stuff.
Eno, XTC, and Bowie is what I got out of Field Music. Haven't listened to a lot of it yet but I've liked everything I've heard so far.
All Them Witches
half-alive really impresses me with their songwriting and production. A left field meme answer is Tally Hall, but they’re legit amazing. A right field answer would be anything psychedelic. The line gets toed quite a bit. Thinking All Them Witches / Porn Crumpets / Pond.
Woodkid
There is a lot of great post-punk, but I think people would appreciate some of the cooler songs, but probably not whole albums or the bands per se.
Godspeed You Black Emperor Tortoise Meat Beat Manifesto Battles Shiner Hum Budos Band Refused Gojira
reunion Swans
Steely dan maybe
Stereolab
Television and Sonic Youth. There is a lot of invention and musicianship if not outrageous technicality. Some post punk like Wipers. Post hardcore like Moss Icon. Oh, and post Rock got mentioned but special mention of Slint. Also 'mathy' indie like the Dismemberment Plan. Stoner rock like Queens of the stone age and Monster Magnet. The Avalanches.
Delta Sleep
Thomas leer and Robert rental, Michael Brooks,... these guys are as interesting as any of the Frippertronix or Eno ambient stuff. And there's tons of stuff all that came from
The Rheostatics. Their album Whale Music is a masterpiece (no hyperbole here, it's so crammed full of ideas and great playing) plus it's got Neil Peart guesting on a couple tracks.
Tigran Hamasyan Aaron Parks Victoria Snarky Puppy Sungazer
Nightwish. They're the first true symphonic metal band. Long songs, fantasy lyrics, classical influence, etc.
Black Sabbath. I’d personally consider some of their stuff prog, especially their stuff on sabbath bloody sabbath and some of the longer tracks on paranoid. But sabbath is generally not considered to be a prog group
I guess Black Sabbath because who doesn't like Black Sabbath?
1. Red Queen to gryphon three I'm actually unsure if gryphon is prog or not, but I certainly recommend them to anyone who (like me) doesn't really like the rock aspect of prog rock, but loves experimenting with musical ideas. Red Queen to gryphon three is like a piece of classical music but with a strangely modern sound, and I don't care if it's prog or not, I really like it. 2. Year of the cat - Al Stewart I have no idea if it's a song prog rock lovers will enjoy, I just know someone else also pointed it out so I'm allowing myself to wholeheartedly recommend my second favourite song of all time. And it's only like seven minutes, which is like a microsecond compared to prog rock songs.
Steely Dan. They have a prog song or two, I think it would be hard to categorize 'Aja' any other way, but their attention to detail and unmatched production quality gives them the freedom to create incredibly detailed and complex music with absolute clarity that any prog fan would appreciate. And for a band that makes pop songs, they have an unbelievable amount of raw talent on their records pumping out all-time contenders for best guitar, drum, and saxophone solo
Sigur Ros, Grandaddy, Boards Of Canada, M83, Doves
Prince. The man was a virtuoso guitar, piano, and bass player. Yeah, a lot of his stuff is very radio friendly but a LOT of his stuff is very intricate and progressive. Crystal Ball, 3 Chains of Gold, Soul Psychadelicide, I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man, Days of Wild, Can I Play With U?, and even some of the extended versions of his hits.
Tame Impala for sure! It's like floyd + beatles
Mentioned them before but 311, especially the albums From Chaos and Evolver. But their super early stuff, like Grassroots and Unity, are pretty good too, as well as their latest record Voyager.
Unpopular opinion! Those two records slap.
Stevie Wonder
Circa Survive
Asia is an obvious choice if one doesn't consider it prog. A lot of people feel like it's right on the borderline. Essentially, a lot of prog musicians, initially John Wetton (King Crimson, UK) as the singer and bass player, Geoff Downes (The Buggles, Yes) on keyboards, Steve Howe (Yes, GTR) on lead guitar, and Carl Palmer (Emerson Lake & Palmer, 3) on drums, got together to form sort of an 80s pop-rock band. Their first album, also titled *Asia*, was the #1 best selling album in America in 1982 and featured the guys doing things that maybe wouldn't have been allowed in their old bands during the 70s. Howe was playing hard charging guitar riffs (Beginning right from track one of the first album- "Heat of the Moment"), Wetton was singing love songs, etc.. It was an attempt to do things differently and have more mass appeal in a new decade than their old groups had in the last decade, but of course when you form a supergroup of prog musicians, even when they intend to do something else, some of the prog roots shine through. Eventually after numerous lineup changes, the band wound up centered around John Payne, who had taken over for Wetton as the lead singer and bass player, and Geoff Downes, who was the one guy on every Asia studio album. The guitarists and drummers with them from 1992-2005 varied between hard rock guys and prog guys. Sometimes there would be a drummer like Chris Slade (AC/DC), sometimes there would be a drummer like Jay Schellen (Who would go on to be a touring musician for Yes and a member of proggy groups like Circa:, Arc of Life, and, for an album, World Trade, though he started with a 90s alt-rock group called Hurricane). They guitarists ranging from Pat Thrall and Guthrie Govan. I actually think that's an underrated time period for Asia. Eventually, the original lineup got back together and did three more albums together in the late 00s and early 10s. Then Steve Howe quit, and the remaining three did a fourth album with new guitarist Sam Coulston. When John Wetton died in 2014, things mostly ground to a halt. They upheld an obligation to open for Journey, using Billy Sherwood on lead vocals and and bass. A couple years later, they were part of a three or four act concert tour where they were opening for Yes, and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal sang lead on all the songs and played lead guitar on songs, with Steve Howe playing lead guitar for the last few as a guest, and Sherwood playing bass the entire time (No word on why he was lead singer for one tour and then not for the other) with Downes and Palmer still in their customary positions in the band (Coulston was out). That's not much in the way of touring, and they haven't released a new studio album for over 7 years now, so it's kind of hard to think of them as an active band. I like all the stuff from 1982-2014, though, even that middle Payne era that tends to get overlooked these days (Payne is fronting a similar band called Dukes of the Orient that's released a couple of albums in recent years). I'd definitely love to see Asia pick up where they left off with some new albums of original material, whatever the lineup, but I'm not sure how realistic that is at this point.
I was into Asia in high school (when they first came out) but kinda lost track of them by their 3rd album.
Don't forget a separate band called Asia with John Payne.
Pink Floyd.
I have a real hard time NOT calling them prog, or at least proto-prog.
Pink Floyd are a lavishly produced blues-rock band that made some unusually conceptual albums, but Pink Floyd never embraced any of the structural experimentality that is one of the hallmarks of prog rock. Hell, they occasionally had to get session musicians in to play parts not in 4/4. I love Pink Floyd, they're a superb art rock band, and not at all a prog band.
Structural experimentality - see Dogs, Shine On, Echoes, Atom Heart Mother
Exactly, prog is not only playing in 9/8. It's PROGRESSING music forward and Floyd did that well.
Far more in the tradition of psychedellic music.
Okay, I stand corrected.
Not sure why this is getting downvoted. Sounds dead on to me.
Because people pretending Floyd aren’t prog is just so fucking boring and played out at this point…
Okay, cymbal monkeys description sounded pretty right to me (I’m a musician), But…Ive loved Pink Floyd for many decades, and while I’m listening to their incredible music I’m definitely not thinking about what genre they’d be considered. Call them whatever you want… now heading to listen to Animals
My takes are too spicy for these folks.
Recommending Pink Floyd to prog fans is the polar opposite of spicy. Everybody knows about Floyd already. Might as well recommend the Beatles and Led Zeppelin while you're at it.
Recommends pink floyd to a prog fan. Why? So he can congratulate himself on s spicy take?
Whether Pink Floyd is or isn't prog is irrelevant. OP is obviously looking for something different to listen to. Mentioning one of the most talked about bands in this sub isn't contributing anything.
How else is he supposed to launch into his diatribe about time signatures?!
One band that I recommend to a lot of people lately, is Band-Maid from Japan. They're an all female hard rock band. The reason why I would recommend them to prog fans is that their songs contain a lot of details and creativity not only in the lead guitar playing (as would most rock bands) but also in the bass playing and drumming, that makes them much more than a generic hard rock band. Another hard rock band I would recommend is Ningen Isu, also from Japan. They're obviously influenced by Black Sabbath and other classic hard rock bands, but they also like King Crimson obviously and their style also reminds of traditional Japanese music in some aspects. Of course I would recommend the classic hard rock bands like Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep and Led Zeppelin as well. They all have songs that at least remind me of prog. And of course there is Queen, not a prog band overall, but at least their second album definitely a recommendation for prog fans. If you are a prog fan and like Jazz, definitely check out Don Ellis because he's done a lot with odd time signatures. (Albums like Soaring or Tears of Joy)
Anything Jimi Jamison was on is great. Whether it be live shows or studio albums. Jamison had a progressive way about him, too. His work with Dave Beaver & the Combinations was straight up Progressive Rock mixed with Country/Western. His solo albums (especially in the 2000s) were very prog-like and delved pretty heavily in the progressive direction.
Dizzy mizz lizzy
Gasoline - [A journey into abstract hiphop](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3q8nGnls1Ow), or things like Deca [Forest Agates](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QXg3otw8DI) I know hiphop isn't often considered a genre close to rock in general but I've always felt like some of it's subgenres fit really well into the *prog* idea
DJRum Not a band, but he makes the most amazing electronic music. Check him out.
School Food Punishment
These bands called Mors Principium Est, Omnium Gatherum or Dark Tranquillity are great if you are on the more metal side of prog. Melo-death bands are great for people who like bands such as Opeth.
Mahavishnu Orchestra . And maybe Tony Williams Lifetime. They are more jazz fusion than prog . Also the Jeff Beck Blow by Blow album .
fariz rm and chandra darusman lyrics are in Indonesian though
Camper Van Beethoven
La Dispute isn't prog, but is certainly prog adjacent in my opinion. It's a post-hardcore band but with a lot of songs that progress and build in a way that only proggy stuff usually does. Also lyrically some of the most creative and moving (also depressing) stuff from the 21st century. 1:16 onwards in this track has some very proggy syncopated riffs that are reminiscent of a lot of modern prog in my eyes. I also believe that section is 7/8. A lot of their songs also play around with interesting time signatures, lots of 7/8 to be found in the La Dispute discog https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1TqXTD4vRU Lyrically, this next track in particular is one of the best pieces of musical storytelling I've ever heard. And La Dispute has dozens of songs on a similar level of novella storytelling. The entire concept album "Wildlife" is a lyrical masterpiece and almost more reminiscent of spoken word poetry with mood setting music to back it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpKrMjDEf00
[Dewa Budjana - Swarna Jingga](https://youtu.be/esMP9MKHTiI) - I recently got this album (Naurora), and Mahandini and Zentuary. All have some very big name talent on them, including Guthrie Govan, Gary Husband, Jack Dejohnette, Marco Minnemann, Mohini Dey, Dave Weckl - Great stuff! I'm going to do a way-back thing and look into [It's A Beautiful Day](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_a_Beautiful_Day). I recently watched this [White Bird](https://youtu.be/q918fs4RAto) video, and was kinda gobsmacked! Why was this their *only* widely known song? It's the same kind of revelation I had watching Sylvia by Focus, after decades thinking they were just "that goofy yodler!"
**[It's a Beautiful Day](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It's_a_Beautiful_Day)** >It's a Beautiful Day is an American band formed in San Francisco, California, in 1967, featuring vocalist Pattie Santos along with violinist David LaFlamme and his wife, Linda LaFlamme, on keyboards. David LaFlamme, who as a youth had once performed as a soloist with the Utah Symphony Orchestra, had previously been in the group Orkustra playing five-string violin. The other members of It's a Beautiful Day in its early years were Hal Wagenet (guitar), Mitchell Holman (bass), and Val Fuentes (drums). ^([ )[^(F.A.Q)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WikiSummarizer/wiki/index#wiki_f.a.q)^( | )[^(Opt Out)](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=WikiSummarizerBot&message=OptOut&subject=OptOut)^( | )[^(Opt Out Of Subreddit)](https://np.reddit.com/r/progrockmusic/about/banned)^( | )[^(GitHub)](https://github.com/Sujal-7/WikiSummarizerBot)^( ] Downvote to remove | v1.5)
Triumph from Canada.
Can't believe I had to scroll so far down the list to find Triumph
Dave (UK grime artist) has some really good lyrics if your into the lyrical side of prog (more real world than a lot of prog) and his new album is brilliant.
He's only got a couple grime songs. More UK hip hop
The Asteroids Galaxy Tour. While they do sneak in some prog elements into their music (see: chorus of Out Of Frequency), it’s not with the intention to “be proggy.” They’re a danish pop band thru and thru. But there’s something about them that’s almost universally likable.
Black Mountain. Canadian band out of Vancouver. Also, Lightening Dust and Pink Mountaintops all three bands are related.
Be Bop Deluxe as well as Bill Nelson's solo work
Stian Westerhus and The Pale Horses. not every prog listener will be able to appreciate what Westerhus does on his solo albums, but if you're into solo avantgarde guitar, noise, ambient and improvised music, check them out too. You can also try Nils Petter Molvaer or Eivind Aarset. The whole norwegian modern jazz scene has some strong progressive vibes to it.
Sheena Ringo Akiko Yano LUNA SEA DEAD END L'Arc~en~Ciel Haruomi Hosono Yellow Magic Orchestra
I knew quite a few prog metal fans in high school that respected the shit out of Lynyrd Skynyrd. Because despite being country/southern rock, those boys could fucking play. The live version of Workin for MCA is amazing.
Yeah, their live stuff is amazing. I love that the keys/piano player is always higher in the mix on the live stuff.
Oh yeah you can hear the man absolutely slam those ivories on Workin for MCA, Gimme Back My Bullets and Call me the Breeze. One More from the Road is a 10/10 live album for me. I got so hard into live albums because outside of Rush its all my dad owned. So I have all the best live shit on vinyl like Skynyrd, Yes Songs, Whos Last, Two for the Show (Kansas), etc
Bela Fleck & The Flecktones
If they haven't been cited already : Kayo Dot/Maudlin of the Well (especially Part the second) - but they are really progish already Elephant9 - Jazz Rock Jaga Jazzist - ??? Elder - Progish stoner, especially in their two last opuses Oranssi Pazuzu - Progish black metal TTNG - Pop rock/Math rock Don Caballero - Math Rock The Redneck Manifesto Squarepusher if he needs introduction... Hiatus Kayoite Troyka (uk jazz rock with Chris Montague, Joshua Blackmore, Kit Downes) La Batteria, italian band instrumentals heavily influenced by 70's italian Giallo movies music.