The Start of the Neo Prog Era

It started with ATTWT, and Dukes Travels & Dukes End, perfected with Second Home By the Sea. Yes, they were a pale imitation of themselves. However, it was also a part of a period which saw a lot of tribute bands, especially Genesis tribute bands. Neo Prog bands were tribute bands that did not want to do covers.

All Neo stuff is not bad. Some stuff in the Script had some small micro innovations in the Prog spirit. I do not see a problem in gaining influence and inspiration from older bands. However, for those who define Prog by its fusion with other styles (not me necessarily), Neo was not this and it was probably pretty noticeable to a lot of people. I remember a couple Marillion guys were interviewed on the radio once when passing through Buffalo. Someone calling in asked them why they sounded like Old Genesis, and the Marillion guys got immediately defensive, denying much of an influence. The keyboardist insisted he was much more influenced by Yes. I thought it was odd at the time that Old Genesis as an influence could be a negative thing. The real question is what the music achieves.

For me, Neo-Prog got real boring, as it either avoided doing instrumental stuff, or did very bland instrumentals with synth atmospherics worthy of anyone's time on an elevator.

The second Machiavel album (1977) is also an early example.

ClaudeV wrote: Neo-Prog is an invention by some purists. It does not exist. All those 80's bands were prog forced to put a few pop songs in there for record companies to bbe happy.

All genre labels are such inventions; the music can happily live without them, and the question of "existence" is always a question about how we like to talk rather than what's really in the music. This doesn't make neo-prog any less useful or fitting as a genre label than any other.

I think neo-prog is associated with a certain attitude of starting something new that is distinctly different from other musical trends of the time but makes very conscious reference to more classic prog (which at that time was frowned upon). I found this attitude pretty explicitly in Marillion for the first time, but I may not know earlier contenders. Surely, in my view, the label should not apply to bands that were around for a long time already in 1980, because regardless of how their music sounded at that time (or be it even 1976), this was not their attitude.

PS: I came across Saga before Marillion but I think that the conscious reference element wasn't as strong in their music; they wanted to do their own thing entirely. I love Anyone's Daughter but in the framework of the neo-prog discussion I'm afraid that they came late to the party (if as an extremely welcome guest) rather than being part of the creation of a new movement.


Edited by Lewian - September 18 2017 at 05:21

If you count Saga as neo-prog, than Kingdom of Madness by Magnum should be a neo-prog record, or the debut by Toto.

Cristi wrote: Kingsnake wrote: I guess the whole, Twelfth Night/Pendragon/Pallas/Marillion-movement count as neoprog, also because other neoproggers base their sound on those bands. you forgot about IQ who released music before Pendragon and Pallas.

I believe Vienna by Ultravox both album and song hade some impact on neo progs sound aesthetics as did other new romantics act. Midge Ure era Ultravox reminds me of the pathos of Pallas and Marillion

Edited by Icarium - September 18 2017 at 10:10

Vienna is such a great album...but I must say that I've never thought of Ultravox as a prog band or even affiliated with the scene.

early Split Enz?

progrockdeepcuts wrote: early Split Enz?

Mental Notes (1976) is an excellent album, but I wouldn't call it neo prog.  To me it doesn't sound like they're trying to emulate any 70's prog bands, it has it's own style

Well, according to Wikipedia which you should always take with a grain of salt, neo-prog took lots of influence from Genesis, Camel and Pink Floyd with touches of funk, punk and hard rock.