Prog bands with a cult following

I won't count the big name bands because even though most of them have some kind of a cult following aside from a larger more mainstream fanbase it can be hard to distinguish from the two (Genesis in general vs the PG/SH version of the band) or Yes. King Crimson were never a mainstream band so it's kind of hard to say about them but I suppose they do have a hardcore fanbase and obviously the same thing with Rush.

Anyway, here's a few that come to mind:

Gentle Giant
Crack The Sky
Rush (I'll put them here anyway)
VDGG
Magma (maybe)


That's really all I can think of. Maybe cult is not a good term to describe prog bands but in the case of Crack the Sky who are arguably even prog to begin with I think it fits. GG definitely seem to have some kind of cult following too but maybe it's because of the mystery that has built up because they never officially reformed.

Hey, I forgot about Cardiacs. I would agree with Comus also. Gong too probably but not sure about the others. Marillion has a strong following too like you say. In the US they are a cult band but probably a bit more mainstream in the UK.

^^^ You've listed many of the ones I thought of first.

But Secret Chiefs 3 is almost purely a cult band. There's like a couple of thousand (maybe more) die-hard worshippers from around the world - but not many care or know about them outside of that. Well, I'm kind of a fan on moderate side, I suppose.

The Residents, undoubtly. I personally only really care about their first 10-12 years, but I'm in communities where the fans go nuts about any new (crap) release by them.

Frank Zappa can be considered a huge cult artist, can't he? So many can't people can't stomach him at all, but thouasands of crazed fans are avid collectors who seemingly needs to own every single Zappa-related album in existence.

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard can do - and does exactly what they want, and the fans (myself included) eats up everything.

black midi were well on their way, but maybe they called it quits too soon.

In regards to Magma - who's obviously a cult band - I also think just about every other Zeuhl-band is part of that cult. Zeuhl is the actual cult maybe.

I also thought of Blue Öyster Cult, Hawkwind, Can, Amon Düül II, Faust, Captain Beefheart, Robert Wyatt, Goblin... The fans are crazy about them, but they are for a limited few.

Cult bands need a certain sense of impenetrable mystique (and otherness) to them, I think

Dream Theater
Todd Rundgren
Saga

...wait for it...

Marillion