Most overrated/overhyped prog album(s)?

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 Pastmaster wrote:

 Jeffro wrote:

 Pastmaster wrote:

 Jeffro wrote:

 fredyair wrote:

Over rated for me is when an album is praised mostly because nobody understand what's going on in it. Making music complex for the sake of it sucks. For my taste and understanding albums like King Crimson's Red or Lark's Tongues in Aspic fall in that category. 

Why? I mean you're not the first person I've heard here that has said that or something to that effect. I just don't understand why. Is this some kind of reverse snobbery/elitism? Of all people, prog fans are supposed to like complexity, right?

And please don't say it's because it's self indulgent. All music, and all art really, is self indulgent. 

I agree with the guy, there's no point in having complex music if you don't have the songwriting skills to make it work. Somebody has to say it at some point, King Crimson were not good songwriters for the most part. I love Starless and Bible Black, because that album is where there was some better songwriting. The songs overall had more cohesion, as well as rarely being longer than they needed to be. Each instrument got to shine as well, with "We'll Let You Know" being one of the greatest instrumentals of all time imo.

Unfortunately, apart from a few songs scattered through their discography, they never got even close to that again.

But who's to say it  what does or doesn't work? What you think doesn't work, I might say works spectacularly. I listened to the song Free Form Guitar on Chicago's first album. It just sounds like noise to me. To others, it's art and it works. 

True, whether something works or not is completely subjective, but songwriting skills are objective just like complexity. I can't deny that the members of King Crimson could pull off technical and complex musicianship, just as I can't deny that The Beatles were great songwriters, while also thinking both bands are incredibly overrated and not being much of a fan of either band.

Well they're both revolutionary... the Beatles to prog music and King Crimson to the prog scene. Their albums vary per person, but their influence can't be set aside. Right?