Prog-metal & prog-rock recommendations?

ElectricWiz said:
You may have heard them and hated them, but The Mars Volta is about as prog (to me) as it gets, and is amazing. One of my favorite bands right now. A cross between Zeppelin, Santana, and psychedelia. I'm not a Santana fan, so take that part lightly. Just that there's a latin vibe in the rhythm section. Hard to describe, but pretty much balls out heavy. I hope you'll give it a shot if you haven't already. A simply fantastic band. Both records (plus the new live one) are worth owning, but I'd start with De-Loused in the Comatorium if you've never heard them, as it's more accessible. As a little sales pitch, I know Mikael from Opeth digs them, and I can ever hear a bit of an influence on Ghost Reveries to that end.

I'm surprised that I NEVER see anybody mention them here, as they are about as old-school, and heavy as it gets. Trust me man....

You'll have to listen to samples at Amazon, as their website is focused on the new live album just now, and so only has some clips of that, and that doesn't really sell the studio stuff.
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I've never heard a note. But if the great Ghost Reveries is influenced by them, then they are a must! Thanks again.

And coming from you, it's sure to be of the highest quality. :D
 
tsorl said:
Be sure to check out Ark - Burn The Sun. Probably my favorite prog metal album, it even has some sort of an AOR twist thanks to Jorn Lande's awesome vocals. Technically flawless but still emotional and "warm" stuff. Some samples here.
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this album is smoking. Jørn Lande is a vocal genius, and his other projects are just as good.

Also +1 for Communic, Fates Warning, Redemption (first album), Mars Volta, Lanfear - Zero Poems, Porcupine Tree, and EVERYTHING Wyvern stated.
 
Damn me!
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I forgot totally about Redemption an Ark. Ark is probably one of the freshest things coming in prog in the last 10 years. Also I forgot Spastic Ink. All those bands have 2 albums so far and all of them are worth to check.

NP: Joe Satriani - 'Lifestyle'
 
SoundMaster said:
I've never heard a note. But if the great Ghost Reveries is influenced by them, then they are a must! Thanks again.

And coming from you, it's sure to be of the highest quality. :D
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Well, it's the psychedelic parts of Ghost Reveries, the atmospheric noise, that is the influence, methinks. But that said, you'll love these guys.
 
Just to add two bands.

Sieges Even - A Sense of Change [prog-rock and technical]
- The Art of Navigating by the Stars [released this year and more song oriented]

Zero Hour - The Towers of Avarice
 
Hawk said:
Sieges Even - A Sense of Change [prog-rock and technical]
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Seconded. BTW, they´ll be playing in Essen on January 12th, but I haven´t decided yet whether I´ll go or not.

Anyone who has a lot of time on his/her hands, should also check out this thread:

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=150277

Other than the thread-title might suggest, it´s not restricted the "rare prog from early 70s" and it´s now nearing 1,300 posts!

One recommendation I´d like to add, though not "typical" progressive metal (yet progressive metal nevertheless), is "Terrestrials" by Atrox - currently my alltime favourite album. Definitely a unique album and one of the most unusual I´ve heard so far (especially vocal-wise), though I could also imagine it´s too unusual for many people because of the vocals.

OK, two more:
Nektar (prog rock, started in the early 70s and have just released a live-DVD of a concert recorded in Germany earlier this year which was also shown on German TV)
Toxik (technical metal, especially their second album "Think This")
 
Eldritch also might be worth mentioning, coming from Italy. They're like the missing link between Watchtower and Dream Theater, without the useless wankery. Thrashy/Power/Prog metal if you like. I particularly like Headquake and El Nino.

=> I forgot in my previous post this great ressource when it comes to prog rock/metal : http://www.progarchives.com/ (they have MP3s for lots of bands)

For example you can listen to one Eldritch song here : http://www.progarchives.com/Progressive_rock_discography_BAND.asp?band_id=758
 
Yeah, progarchives.com is an excellent source of prog. I discovered a ton of bands from that site back when I was on high speed internet. They offer a lot of mp3s on some really rare bands. Soundmaster would probably go nuts on that site. I know I did when I first found it.

NP: Icarus Witch - Capture the Magic
 
Fangface said:
As for newer bands, my pick is Lanfear. Best power/prog band I've discovered these last few years! Also Communic, Anubis Gate, Beyond Twilight, Pagan's Mind and Redemption.
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I haven't heard Lanfear, but I definitely second Pagans Mind and Redemption. Both of their latest discs are absolutely masterpieces, though the two bands couldn't be more different in style. I also suggest Vanden Plas as well, and they would be a good "starter" band for peolpe getting into prog stuff. Vanden Plas has a good marriage between musicality and melody. Their transitions between movements in their songs are so smooth and melodic, you don't realize you are listening to prog.
Lastly, as far as classic Prog metal goes, if there is ONE must have it is Dream Theater's "Images and Words." I am not really a big DT fan, but that disc is incredible.

Bryant
 
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