Feeling a little under-dressed...

[IncogNeato]

I am having a great time in my journey digging into old prog. I'm 47 and when I explore music, I tend to look backwards, not necessarily for the new thing.

I look to places like ProgressiveEars for more information on these bands and for the most part I completely enjoy my perusing of the forums.

Sometimes, though, I feel like a 3rd grader who's just walked into a room full of PhD's. HAHA! The depth of knowledge here is just unreal. I don't think I'll ever catch up, but thank you all for being here!

I registered for this forum a long time ago and have posted sporadically over the years. I usually end up overwhelmed and taking a long break. But I'm gonna try and NOT do that this time.

[alucard]

^As Dante's inscription to l'inferno : "Those who enter here, loose all hope!"
:-)

[Poisoned Youth]

Do you have a question?

Honestly, we hope people who join don't get intimidated or turned off by the regulars. This place is well-established, so it can feel difficult to "break in".

But one thing missing on PE over the last 5 years from my perspective are people who post to the group asking questions or looking for recommendations. And that is very much welcome here.

[IncogNeato]

Thanks, yeah. I have tons of questions. But I need to organize them in my head.

As you can see, I created my profile over 4 years ago...but have only posted just over 100 times. My knowledge of prog is rudimentary, at best. I know the big names well; Genesis, Yes, Rush, Pink Floyd, Kansas. Over the last several years I have done some light exploring of other names I heard in passing like Gentle Giant, Jethro Tull, and King Crimson.

I went through a prog metal phase in the late 90s/early 00s and was all into Dream Theater, Spock's Beard, Chroma Key, The Gathering and Enchant.

Now, what I am trying to do is really dig into 70s prog. I'm getting best-of CDs (I still buy CDs) from bands like Camel, VDGG, Eloy, etc.

My first question would be: What is some good "dark" prog? Someone recommended Anekdoten and Kayo Dot to me a year or so ago, and I love them. Any suggestions?

[thedunno]

I recognize that the level of knowledge on progressive rock or music in general displayed by some can sometimes feel a bit intimidating.

At the same time thats also one of the attractions of this forum. There are so many people who have heared just about everything but also lots of musicians participate. It gave me some insights and feedback I would never have gotten on another spot on the internet.

Apart from that this forum is very well moderated. Although there are often lengthy discussions with opposing opinions it almost always stays civil.

Just a great spot to waste your time on.

[thedunno]

For a dark, but rather obscure, prog suggestion try the Norwegian band Thule.

They live 300 kms above the polar circle and their music is as dark as the polar night.

[IncogNeato]

Yeah, folks seem to be pretty even-keel here.

I'm a musician myself (vocalist/writer), though I have never had the privilege of participating in a prog project. Mostly I've just done rock and metal.

Checking out Thule on Spotify now...thanks!

[IncogNeato]

My case is similar. I joined back when it was still a Yahoo group or "club" as they were called back then, and was a member for a few years when it switched over to what is now called PEv2. I was mostly a lurker and occasional poster but was away for a long time due to health reasons. I don't feel overwhelmed or intimated by the extremely knowledgeable or by the regulars.
I view it more as a learning opportunity.

Hope you're feeling better.

[Poisoned Youth]

My first question would be: What is some good "dark" prog? Someone recommended Anekdoten and Kayo Dot to me a year or so ago, and I love them. Any suggestions?

Univers Zero is a darker, chamber style group from Belgium. They had their heyday back in the late 70s and early 80s. Ceux du dehors and Heresie are widely considered favorites.

Since you mentioned Anekdoten, Anglagard is one of the most widely regarded "modern" progressive bands from the last 25 years. Their music is darker in texture, but is very familiar and pleasant at the same time, drawing off folk themes, organic instrumentation, and nods to 70s symph bands.

[IncogNeato]

Anglagard & Univers Zero; got it. Thanks!

[rcarlberg]

Anglagard & Univers Zero; got it.

If you find these two to your liking, there's a whole universe of RIO (Rock in Opposition) behind them. Perhaps a good introduction to the genre would be the Romantic Warriors II: About Rock in Opposition DVD.
http://www.zeitgeistmedia.tv/Zeitgei...rs_Series.html

[hFx]

My first question would be: What is some good "dark" prog? Someone recommended Anekdoten and Kayo Dot to me a year or so ago, and I love them. Any suggestions?

Dark instrumental prog!



(Those damned Swedes again )

[simon moon]

My first question would be: What is some good "dark" prog? Someone recommended Anekdoten and Kayo Dot to me a year or so ago, and I love them. Any suggestions?

I don't see you mention any Italian bands in your list...

Italy is considered one of the best countries when it comes to prog.

If you are looking for dark prog, give Il Balletto di Bronzo a listen. Their album from the 70's, "YS" is considered a classic of dark prog.

Also, "Zarathustra" by Museo Rosenbach is another classic of dark prog.

Others that can be considered dark:

Landberk from Sweden
Steve Wilson - The Raven that Refused to Sing
Morte Macabre from Sweden
Art Zoyd from France
Present from Belgium
Shub-Niggurath from France

[Zappathustra]

I sympathize with the OP. I've made a lot of effort to catch up with the terrifyingly huge amount of music out there. In vain, but it's a great journey. Everytime I listen to a newly found gem that fully thrills me, I am reminded of why I am doing this and feel grateful.

Despite the frustration...

[Zappathustra]

I would also like to add that I am certainly not in the knowledge-able category, and yet I find it very comfortable to ask whatever comes up in mind. There are patient and kind people here that always deliver.

[IncogNeato]

I sympathize with the OP. I've made a lot of effort to catch up with the terrifyingly huge amount of music out there. In vain, but it's a great journey. Everytime I listen to a newly found gem that fully thrills me, I am reminded of why I am doing this and feel grateful.

Despite the frustration...

I would also like to add that I am certainly not in the knowledge-able category, and yet I find it very comfortable to ask whatever comes up in mind. There are patient and kind people here that always deliver.

Yeah, I search and listen and hear so much good stuff. I know I'll likely never truly catch-up, and/or own all the music I want to own...but it's a hell of a ride.

[JKL2000]

If you're mostly interested in getting up to speed on older stuff, one of the main ways I learned about it was reading the Gibraltar Enyclopedia of Progressive Rock (over and over!). It's available to peruse here: https://www.gepr.net/ The thing is, I used to have a .TXT file of the whole thing that I had printed out, and I no longer can find the file. It was much easier to read that than this online version. And even though it was old, in a way that was good because it only dealt with older bands, not newer ones that were added.

Does anyone still have the .TXT file? And if not that, I'm trying to think of a good, printed prog reference book that doesn't just focus on one sub-genre. Though some of the sub-genre books can teach you a lot too.

[IncogNeato]

I don't see you mention any Italian bands in your list...

Italy is considered one of the best countries when it comes to prog.

If you are looking for dark prog, give Il Balletto di Bronzo a listen. Their album from the 70's, "YS" is considered a classic of dark prog.

Also, "Zarathustra" by Museo Rosenbach is another classic of dark prog.

Others that can be considered dark:

Landberk from Sweden
Steve Wilson - The Raven that Refused to Sing
Morte Macabre from Sweden
Art Zoyd from France
Present from Belgium
Shub-Niggurath from France

Thanks!!! Side note: I tend to prefer bands w/ vocals over all-instrumental bands.

[IncogNeato]

If you're mostly interested in getting up to speed on older stuff, one of the main ways I learned about it was reading the Gibraltar Enyclopedia of Progressive Rock (over and over!). It's available to peruse here: https://www.gepr.net/

Thanks!

[simon moon]

Thanks!

Also, Gnosis2000 is a very good research tool.

http://gnosis2000.net/cgi-bin/gnosearch.cgi

[Don Arnold]

Does anyone still have the .TXT file? And if not that, I'm trying to think of a good, printed prog reference book that doesn't just focus on one sub-genre. Though some of the sub-genre books can teach you a lot too.

Do you own, or have you heard of, Jerry Lucky's books on Prog? They're quite informative and offer a healthy overview of lots of bands. He has a website with reviews and commentary among other Prog tidbits. Here's his site in case you're interested:

http://www.jerrylucky.com/

[IncogNeato]

Thanks for the reference links, guys!

[Sturgeon's Lawyer]

I am having a great time in my journey digging into old prog.
...
I registered for this forum a long time ago and have posted sporadically over the years. I usually end up overwhelmed and taking a long break. But I'm gonna try and NOT do that this time.

As a 60-year-old who's been here about ten years, I completely understand. I still don't consider myself "knowledgeable" about progressive music. (Not that this keeps me from chiming in when a topic interests me!)

This has been a huge learning journey. I've acquired some new favorite bands over the years by following this and the previous version of PE.

[TCC]

Hi IncogNeato!.
I can only tell you this my friend:
Whatever your musical taste is now, will surely change as you get in touch / exposed to more groups and genres for example: this is a good place for it and more ... in my opinion!.

Happy hunting!.

Other good sites are:

- Italian Prog:
http://www.italianprog.com/welcome.htm

- Canterbury:
http://www.calyx-canterbury.fr/

- The Progressor:
http://www.progressor.net/

- Vintage Prog:
http://www.vintageprog.com/

- Krautrock:
http://www.krautrock.com/index.html

- Spanish Prog:
https://www.dlsi.ua.es/~inesta/Prog/index.html

- Jazz:
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/index.php?&width=320

Cheers,
Pura vida!.

[Scrotum Scissor]

My first question would be: What is some good "dark" prog? Someone recommended Anekdoten and Kayo Dot to me a year or so ago, and I love them. Any suggestions?

70s:

Jan Dukes de Grey - Mice and Rats In the Loft (1972) (British ex-folk group now diving into dramatic, esoteric rock with a theatrical bend)
Cervello - Melos (1973) (Italian fab band replacing keys with tuned percussion; one of the tightest, most aggressive "symph" rock from there)
Jumbo - Vietato ai Minori di 18 Anni? (1973) (Another fantastic Italian act, again more theatrical and "Bohemian")
Island - Pictures (1977) (Intricate, keysbased "expressionist" act from Switzerland with quite challenging lyrical imagery in English tongue)
Univers Zero - Heresie (1979) (You won't know what hit you!)

80s:

Art Bears - Winter Songs (1979/80) (Unlike anything else you've ever heard; precious creativity beyond 'normal')
Present - Le Poison Qui Rend Fou (1985) (Belgian through-composed avant-garde progressive, Incredible performance throughout)
Shub-Niggurath - Les Morts Vont Vite (1986) (French extremists, influenced by Penderecki, industrial noise, Magma, '74-era KCrimson)
Holy Toy - Why Not In Choir? (1987) (Norwegian 'post-progressive' industrial duo; highly refined but insanely sombre)
Lach'n Jonsson - Songs from Cities of Decay (Sånger Från Förfallets Städer) (Swedish one-man project with *full* band feeling and aura to die for)

90s:

Thule - Natt (1990) (Norwegian eschatologist activists from the North Cape [!], sometimes also darkly humourous)
Landberk - Riktigt Äkta (1992) (Swedish folky "symphonic" rock, very dedicated to finesse and refined atmosphere)
Änglagård - Epilog (Swedes again, more epic than Landberk but less immediately personal in approach; still amazing)
Discipline - Unfolded Like Staircase (Dramatic enactments of "symph rock" narratives, avoiding the sentimental)
Thinking Plague - In Extremis (An absolute classic of ultra-sophisticated, hyper-detailed, dark songworks)

00s and on:

Förträngt Hushållsarbete - Offret Om Att Älska (2003) (Deeply "mental", deeply powerful, deeply original and deeply complex)
Hokr - Hokrova Vila (2004) (Shattering sonic walls from a Czech group blasting right through the motions; from the VERY large Czech underground scene)
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - Of Natural History (2004) (Hardly any introduction necessary; just check it out - essential!)
Nil - Novo Sub Sole (2005) (Intense French combo with excellent female vox and a kind of futurist feel)
Time of Orchids - Sarcast While (2005) (As abstractly dense as their 'sister' band, Kayo Dot, but way more manic and melodic)




...And so many more at that.