Your favourite prog voice?

musicbandit wrote: I can't vote here but I'd probably vote for Peter Gabriel in Genesis (I don't think he's a great singer song-writer apart from the melting face album).. Not on the list, I'd vote for Phil Collins, Roger Hodgson from Supertramp, and David Surkamp from Pavlov's Dog. Also, isn't Bob Marley probably the greatest vocalist ever?:) I've tried enjoying Van Der Graaf but I can't seem to like them. Are people who like Hamill (or Van Der....) depressed or angry because I can't find anything enjoyable in his singing at all! I also think the music is very unmelodic. Perhaps I'll change my opinion sometime and eat my words.  On a slightly different subject, I sold most of my Magma cds recently because I decided that I just wasn't enjoying them very much. The musicians are impressive but the music is generally too repetitive and not very enjoyable. I think most Magma fans say they like the music because they like to show off to people. The only studio album I've kept from them is Attak which is brilliant. I think Magma's music generally suffers from uninspired 'song'-writing. Finally, how can anyone say that red is a five star album. Just like they're first album, it seriously suffers because of the long improvisation track. Because of this, I could only give these albums 4 stars at most.

I'm not depressed or angry in the slightest, and they're my favorite band. The melodies are there; I honestly found them to be some of the most memorable lines from any prog group. Even after first listen, they stuck with me. Sure it's not sunshine and rainbows, but there's plenty of other music out there for that. Hammill knew what he wanted to communicate and what it would take to get that point across. I do understand it's an acquired taste though, so no judgment if you're not digging it now, or even ever.

As for Red, I think it comes down to personal preference on whether or not you like Providence or not. I personally do and strongly dislike Moonchild, so it's not an issue with improvisation itself. It's just a track that's meant to be listened to atmospherically; the dark, claustrophobic mood is an exceptional compliment to the other tracks. It also is a great segue from One More Red Nightmare into Starless.

I wrote a review for it a while ago that expounds on this point further. Lengthy, but if you're that curious why people find this to be a true masterpiece deserving highest marks, here's the link: http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=895044