As a Fates Warning fanboy I still like Awaken the Guardian a lot, but I don't consider it to be nearly as good as The Spectre Within. It's their first album that could be considered progressive, yeah, but other albums (Energetic Disassembly and Rage for Order) are far more deserving on that basis. Even though AtG has more elaborate vocal melodies and longer songs in general, the overall flow actually feels more straight-forward. For example, I wouldn't exactly call Epitaph a progressive song in its writing, as the riffs and melodies overlaid in the beginning fall on each other right on the bar. Despite that, the structure "verse-wise" (for lack of better term) has a lot going for it, starting with a slower verse but then really picking up with the "Lies!" verse, then going in a faster almost-speed-metally direction, then changing again altogether for the giant instrumental section, then to the trippy 70's-Priest-esque final verse, closing on one of the melodies from the beginning but with Arch actually singing it. Every couple minutes there's something completely different in the song.
On the other hand, the songs on Awaken the Guardian actually attempt moments where they'll introduce a new drum line midway through the riff's measure or go into more elaborate guitar/vocal harmonies, and it's undoubtedly a more technical effort, but there's minimal emotional/atmospheric variance. There's no chorus-less Epitaph or Pirates of the Underground, and there's no giant bridges deviating from the rest of the song like in The Apparition. Overall it's only more interesting from a strictly progressive standpoint, but in that case one would be better off listening to many of the Alder albums. In their attempt to make longer, more progressive songs they also even rid themselves of the short-and-sweet speed/power of Without a Trace and Kyrie Eleison. Exodus is the closing epic of its album and it still kind of falls closer to the verse/chorus side of things, with no giant exit (it's just a chorus repeat and fade) or even a significant change of pacing. All that is not to call AtG remotely bad, but The Spectre Within is godly. If it wasn't for a couple of instances where they make their influence from Iron Maiden and Mercyful Fate too obvious, I would say that it's perfect.
After Kara-Shehr
1. Agalloch - Ashes Against the Grain: 10
2. Amorphis - Tales from the Thousand Lakes: 29
3. Bathory - Blood Fire Death: 27
4. Celtic Frost - Morbid Tales: 11
5. Coroner - No More Color: 22
6. Death - Symbolic: 35
7. Dio - Holy Diver: 18
8. Dismember - Like an Ever Flowing Stream: 37
9. Fates Warning - Awaken the Guardian: 29
10. Iced Earth - Burnt Offerings: 21
11. Immortal - At the Heart of Winter: 23
12. Immortal - Pure Holocaust: 28
13. Iron Maiden - Iron Maiden: 5
14. Jag Panzer - Ample Destruction: 10
15. Manowar - Hail to England: 21
16. Megadeth - Killing Is My Business...: 36
17. Metal Church - Metal Church: 20
18. My Dying Bride - Turn Loose the Swans: 40
19. Nokturnal Mortum - The Voice of Steel: 12
20. Rainbow - Rising: 24
Rising/Hail to England/Symbolic
And lol @ '"singing"'. Go listen to Hexen for retro-thrash-typical screaming over third-rate Maiden melodies.