What makes people find Prog boring?

Guldbamsen wrote: Toaster Mantis wrote: By the way, Guldbamsen, interesting namedrop of Swans a page ago because a long while ago I saw someone on RateYourMusic in a review of To Be Kind remark that group is "basically Pink Floyd for goths" at this point in their career. The argument went that this was something very few people notice, because there's not much overlap between those two groups' target audiences. Yeah I see that a lot...but then again we all use our own collection as a reference point when trying to describe music. Ask a devout metal head and a reggae nut to describe any given album and you'll see two very different ways of arriving at the exact same place.  It can however be a little frustrating to witness all the youngsters out there who know absolutely nothing of what happened just 15 years earlier. It's often people that start heralding X album as something unequivocally new and edgy, and then it turns out to be the same old brand of post-rock from circa 1979.

I've noticed more that it's the mid/late 1970s that is the cut-off point for a lot of people into punk/indie/alternative rock, only paying attention to stuff before that if it was a major influence on those later music cultures. Most of the so-called innovations in rock music during the 1990s/2000s are just the results of 1980s indie rock reaching a larger audience, I think most of those artists weren't discovered by people outside of tiny subcultures until the 1990s.

NotAProghead wrote: I guess I like some prog , but there are lots of prog songs and albums that bore me to death. There are different reasons: 1. Lack of emotion. It's probably the main reason. Music is rather constructed than comes from the heart, as a result it is artificial and, yes, boring. 2. Lack of variety and writing skills. There are ideas but musicians fail to keep the listener's attention during the whole song (piece, album). 3. Lack of originality, lots of bands without their own sound. 4. Simple case, when I understand: music is great, but it's not my cup of tea. The length does not matter - almost side-long "Echoes" never seemed boring to me, while some 3-5 minute songs seem endless.

I think many prog bands have amazing melodies and better than many classic rock or pop bands. Even when I was very young and started listening to music and I wasn't very interested in complexity, experimentation, etc. and wanted something that was just easy to like instantly there were some prog bands that instantly caught my attention because of how great the melodies were. Then I started appreciating everything else.

same answer I've given over the last 10 years, probably earlier in this thread but too lazy to check, and the best answer there is.

Most music speaks to people on a level they can relate to. Music is emotional at its heart. Where prog loses many is its emphasis on the brain over the heart and many people, myself included, think it boring.  If I want my brain stimulated, I read a book not musings by dumb ass musicians, but if one wants wants the heart and sould stirred you could read some poetry but nothing does it better than music.  As I've often said the best prog aims not for the brain, or the intellect but the heart and soul and when done best it can hit harder and deeper than any 'lesser' form of music. Connecting not just with prissy fussy intellectuals but with midwestern housewives. Some did so, and they became the ones that reached levels of success that others could only dream of. Like Yes or even ELP with their inherent musical complexity. At the heart of it, they simply wrote great songs. They wrote music that anyone could relate to.


Edited by micky - November 28 2015 at 12:13

Meltdowner wrote: ^

easier said than done. That is why Yes is head and shoulders above anyone man.. they were one of the few. The only of the big ones IMO that could do so consistently.

Prog finds people boring.

A lot Prog unfortunately for me has become saturated with bands performing samey, samey, Rick Wakeman's constant whistling keys added by never ending guitar widling while lacking tunes, with blupblup steel sheet flapping sound blabbering nonstop bass through out keeping you from enjoying the pauses and tempos, not allowing any build ups for crescendos etc etc. . Also most vocalists are not that good, also some take too much importance on the lyrics (I for one, prefer not to be preached upon, don't care about the artist's philosophies or lack thereof) thus some of them forget the most important factor, the music!  

Edited by Kati - November 28 2015 at 15:43

micky wrote: progressive fans find prog boring... give us back our progressive music.  Not your frickin Flower Kings or Spock's Beard hahah

Believe me, there is much worse than either of those bands. I often click on albums on Progstreaming, and close the page after a few minutes. At least FK and SB are professional, and their albums do not sound as if they were recorded in their bedroom. Nowadays it is way too easy to record an album, and oversaturation is not doing the scene any favours.

Raff wrote: micky wrote: progressive fans find prog boring... give us back our progressive music.  Not your frickin Flower Kings or Spock's Beard hahah Believe me, there is much worse than either of those bands. I often click on albums on Progstreaming, and close the page after a few minutes. At least FK and SB are professional, and their albums do not sound as if they were recorded in their bedroom. Nowadays it is way too easy to record an album, and oversaturation is not doing the scene any favours.

Guldbamsen wrote: Love me some Hasse.....though on the sole Nya Ljudbolaget release. What a great album that was (and is). I was rather surprised to learn that he later on joined The Flower Kings. A big change in style.

I was lucky enough to see Flying Food Circus supporting The Flower Kings years ago. That was fun and I agree with Sonia, the fun aspect is a bit missing in prog.
Prog wasn't a plan back in the day and there was the secret! Pop was better too, for exactly the same reasons.