Five best albums for someone brand new to prog

Saperlipopette! wrote: Logan wrote: This should be my last post at PA for a long while (promised my wife I would try to stop posting and visiting here) You'll be missed - but it's a good thing that the people in your offline life wants your attention and presence:)

Agreed, you’ll be missed, try not to stay away forever🙂

Logan wrote: This should be my last post at PA for a long while (promised my wife I would try to stop posting and visiting here)

You'll be missed - but it's a good thing that the people in your offline life wants your attention and presence:)

Logan wrote: ^ I cannot agree with "Well, Swans and Magma would be more disliked by a prog noob than those you dislike" as surely it depends on the noob.

I'm living proof as I was a fan of Swans (and The Residents) long before VdGG and Camel. I wrote off the latter band as safe and boring for the longest time, simply didn't connect with the former - and Gentle Giant came across as too precious and quirky. Weird in the wrong sort of way. But I loved Univers Zero immediately.

A few years ago, I introduced a guy in his late teens - whose father was into jazz - to Art Zoyd, Gong, Can... He loved all that stuff but found Genesis and the likes corny and cringe (like an anachronism). Most people actually do. Had I tried with Spocks Beard, Dream Theater, Marillion and Kansas - I would have lost all credibility. But luckily for me I don't like any of them.

To me there's also a difference with "someone brand new to prog" and a "prog noob". The former is more of a blank slate and might just as well react like the guy I described (it's really not that uncommon outside of the PA-universe), while I think of the latter as someone in PA's "Introduce Yourself" section. Someone you at least know is somewhat predisposed to enjoy Prog Rock.

Edited by Saperlipopette! - June 19 2025 at 23:52

^^ I read your post too, so I was not sure why you were agreeing with his post (which I believe would be proved wrong with a reasonably comprehensive study, maybe someone would like to fund it?) especially after my earlier response to him. And I also brought up age in my first post. Anyway, I gotcha now. One should consider various factors with demographics. What is accessible depends on the individual. For instance, Prog Metal and Neo-Prog commonly is not easily accessible, or at least not enjoyable, to me. Of course some albums are more likely to work for many for others. And by the way, I think some Swans music could be very accessible to a great many. Since I mentioned To Be Kind, maybe this cover of its song "A Little God in My Hands" might appeal to some young Prog noob or prog boob somewhere:



Fun! I think.

And shame on me for still posting, but I don't want to leave this forum on an unclear or negative note (wanted to let people know I would not be around in case anyone is concerned, as I have been when others have disappeared). Thanks for the response.

Edited by Logan - June 19 2025 at 23:32

Logan wrote: ^ I cannot agree with "Well, Swans and Magma would be more disliked by a prog noob than those you dislike" as surely it depends on the noob. More likely perhaps, but not definitely. Anyway, I suspect my point was lost. Doesn't matter. EDIT: Okay, it does matter to me, and I will try to explain again. I was not trying to say that my list would work better, but I was choosing examples that did not work for me and mentioning others that I acknowledged as being potentially problematic. Different people like different things and I think as much as possible that one should try to cater the choices to the recipients tastes. I surely believe that some would react better to, say, Swans than Dream Theater depending on what they are into.

I think I understood your point and actually mentioned how much it would depend on the noob's tastes and listening up to that point. I used Grumpy's post as a starting up and probably should have stated in terms of what my be perceived as 'accessible" or not. Basing this off my perception of what most (subjectively) of the prog fans I am aware of (really this site and the Internet in general).

I think age and generation is another factor. A 20 year old noob today is going to be quite different from the 20 year old noob in the early 70's. The whole experience of listening to late 60's rock and it's development to having listened to the music from the last 10 years.

I believe that there is no best 5 albums. We all have our suggestions. All different. My first was based on the assumption of could capture 'popular' elements of prog over 55 years in 5 albums, which is really impossible. My second 5 was less so on adventurous, but diversity in what are elements of prog that I am guessing might be of interest today. Again, really impossible in 5 albums and hardly definitive.

^ I cannot agree with "Well, Swans and Magma would be more disliked by a prog noob than those you dislike" as surely it depends on the noob.

More likely perhaps, but not definitely. Anyway, I suspect my point was lost. Doesn't matter. EDIT: Okay, it does matter to me, and I will try to explain again. I was not trying to say that my list would work better, but I was choosing examples that did not work for me and mentioning others that I acknowledged as being potentially problematic. Different people like different things and I think as much as possible that one should try to cater the choices to the recipients tastes. I surely believe that some would react better to, say, Swans than Dream Theater depending on what they are into.

Maybe the ratings don't mean much and maybe those people are not Prog noobs (I know some people who have said that Swans is not Prog anyway), but here are some of the ratings for Swans and DT at rateyourmusic (and not saying that RYM users are typical):

https://rateyourmusic.com/artist/dream-theater
https://rateyourmusic.com/artist/swans

Birthing is the number 1 album for 2025 with 7,351 ratings and a 3.97 rating.
Parasomnia is at #345 with a 3.35 and 2,089 ratings .

Swans' The Beggar from 2023 is ranked at #28 for 2023 with 3.68 and 10,853 ratings .
A View From the Top of the World is ranked at 1,186 for 2021 with a 3.22 from 2,092 ratings

Swans highest ranked overall album is Soundtracks for the Blind which is at #68 all-time for studio albums.. Dream Theater's highest ranked studio album overall is at 3,346.

For lives: Swans top ranked live is at #4 for live all-time, and Swans 2024 live is at #5 overall. Its next most popular is way down at #42. Dream Theater's top live is at #602 for all-time live. And it's next most popular seems to be at #717. Then #1,655.

And Magma has various very high ranking albums at RYM. Maybe those aren't Prog noobs, but it indicates to me that it is likely that some of those noobs might prefer Magma and/or Swans to, say, Spock's Beard and/or Dream Theater. I know I did when I had not explored much Prog. Okay, I wasn't a noob, but I was not very experienced either when I really delved into Prog in the 2000s.

But which is more likely to work better for more is not what I was trying to get at in either of my prior posts. It's about trying to take the individual's interests into account and considering various demographics. Some lists, as I tried to say, will work better for more.

By the way I love your adventurous list other than Discipline. Prog or not, adventurous or not, if that were replaced with Fishmans' 98.12.28 Otokotachi no wakare, Art Zoyd's Le mariage du ciel et de l'enfer, or Radiohead's Kid A, it would be amazing tastewise to me.

Edited by Logan - June 19 2025 at 22:47

Well, I suppose if you didn't want to alienate a person new to prog, it may be best to stick with the classics, and ones that actually hold a tune and have melody. I suggest...

Yes - The Yes Album
Jethro Tull - Aqualung
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
Genesis - A Trick of the Tail
Supertramp - Crime of the Century

A second fifth (and not doubling down on bands previously mentioned) would include...

King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King
Traffic - Low Spark of High Heeled Boys
Procol Harum - Live: In Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra
Caravan - In the Land of Grey and Pink
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Trilogy

^ I loved Vangelis in the 80s and still do. :)

Grumpyprogfan wrote: Logan wrote: Looking at some options, there are albums that have been mentioned that I would have disliked as a prog noob and still dislike, such as Dream Theater and Spock's Beard And Marillion is not really for me, nor is various Porcupine Tree. And I'm not a fan of Kansas or No Man. Well, Swans and Magma would be more disliked by a prog noob than those you dislike. Enjoy your long time off from posting.

I realised that it likely might very well be disliked, which is why I said "Of course some ogf that might put some off for ever." Typo on "of", of course. But I don't believe that that is necessarily true for a minute that it would be more disliked.   Have you noticed how well-rated Swans is at rateyourmusic, just curious? It depends on the individual, as well as the release you choose as an intro. My point was that what appeals to some will not to others and I used those like DT and SB as examples. Mine too are examples of things that might not appeal. My second list is what actually worked on 80s me. When I started to deeply delve into Prog in the 2000s I checked out Dream Theater and Spock's Beard and really, really disliked them.   Those are divisive, so are Swans and Magma. I did find Magma to like and had I known Swans then, I'm sure I would have liked some of it. I think the 90s Swans stuff would have appealed more to me. We are into a lot of very different stuff, of course, and so are others. There is no definitive list for everyone that will work, but of course some would be be likely to have more success than others generally. I would consider the demographics.

By the way, while we have had our differences, mostly miscommunication I feel (misunderstanding intent and nuance), I genuinely would be sorry to not see you at this forum any longer. My wife asked me to consider resigning my position from this site and leaving the site partially because she knew it was stressing me out. And I, and wife, am going through a really hard time due to other things. It does feel like this site has become a less friendly, warm and caring place sometimes, but maybe that's because I am not in a good place and I am projecting. Here or not, I sincerely wish you and this site well. :) I would not judge a person (mostly) on their tastes in music, but instead on if I think the person has a kind heart, a sensitive soul (so to speak), and a thoughtful disposition.

Edited by Logan - June 19 2025 at 18:10

This should be my last post at PA for a long while (promised my wife I would try to stop posting and visiting here)... I would rather cover a variety of styles and eras, and I do think it best to gear to someone's tastes (get to know what they like first, and consider the age of the noob).

Looking at some options, there are albums that have been mentioned that I would have disliked as a prog noob and still dislike, such as Dream Theater and Spock's Beard And Marillion is not really for me, nor is various Porcupine Tree. And I'm not a fan of Kansas or No Man. I actually don;t think of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon as very Prog-genre or Radiohead's In Rainbow's. And Close to the Edge might be seen as the "best", but I have never much liked it.

Regardless of whether I think of these as very Prog, maybe..

King Crimson - Red
Radiohead - OK Computer
Swans - To Be Kind
Magma - MDK
Soft Machine - Third

I would not necessarily hit them with the easiest stuff, which might set up the soft bigotry of low expectations. Of course some ogf that might put some off for ever.

Here's some of what what intrigued me as a teenager in the 80s that is in PA (when I first identified an interest in Prog/Progressive Rock).

Focus - Hamburger Concerto
Pink Floyd - Animals
Gryphon - Red Queen to Gryphon Three
Yes - Fragile
Tangerine Dream - Phaedra

Phaedra I would not really love until I was considerably older. I did like Rush's Hemispheres back then.