Is Prog really Prog?

 

I think songs like 'Love You To' suggest Beatles had similar ideas back in the mid 60s too. It has unfortunately not been built upon over the years.  Understandably so, because it's a difficult middle to attain. It is melody that makes Indian music alluring in spite of its relative stability. I do not find Western melody so attractive and it is rather the underlying harmony that speaks to me much more. I cannot comment on other Eastern traditions with which my experience is either limited or null.

 

But barring any major new developments, I see the studio album becoming redundant and the live experience being the main means to access music.  It is not altogether bad because the luxury of being able to listen to music over and over on record pampers us. So maybe if we had to attend a gig to experience new music, we would value it more.  And since live puts a premium on performance rather than composition, it is also easier to justify playing highly derivative music so long as it is well performed.

Prog is supposed to mean Progressive and in that sense it is supposed to be away from the norm and exploring

new avenues. Some people will look at Prog with a cynical grin and quote the leading forefathers of the genre such as King Crimson, Jethro Tull, Pink Floyd etc. We will be reminded of the ridiculously long songs and let us not forget the Wizards, unicorns etc and THAT Cloak (Wakeman I refer) - I download a lot of Prog, but I have noticed that Progressive is used heavily in the Dance/House genre. There are some certain bands in the Neo-Prog genre which really inspire me (i.e. Airbag and Frost), but most of the genre infuriates me as they all sound so bland and remind me of those dreaded 80s prog bands (Sorry if I I have offended anyone - Just being honest) - Most Neo-Prog bands immediately point to bands such as IQ and Pallas, meaning they sound very similar with the swirling keyboards and the crystal clear vocals and the inspiring lyrics. I couldn't stand Pendragon's 80s and 90s output, but when Nick (Band leader) finally decided to PROGRESS from earlier material, he did it for his own sanity and there was the dreaded thought of the die-hard original fans being upset of the sudden change. "Pure", the album in question, acquired a new recruit in me and the follow up "Passion" was similar in style. The band became a lot heavier in the same way that Porcupine Tree escaped The pyschedelic and spacy sounds of the mid 90s before releasing their 2 most accessible albums (Stupid Dream and Lightbulb Sun) before bringing in a heavier sound for "In Absentia" and the following albums. I have noticed that some top name Prog bands will release a trilogy of albums that are not too far away in terms of style of music. The most recent band I can think of is a favourite of mine in Riverside from Poland. Is this progressing? To be honest, I don't really care. I loved all of their first three albums, and I am so aware that Riverside could do a totally different progressive album, and in fact, they kind of already have. Well, their Singer Mariusz Duda released the beautiful albums that are in the form of Lunatic Soul. Steve Wilson is another who can completely progress to one extreme of music to another, but what are the chances of Porcupine Tree releasing a Bass Communion album, or releasing a full length album withTim Bowness handling all the vocals. Ugh!! That would be dreadful, but it would probably be considered Progressive too.Many fans would walk away disappointed.

Pink Floyds Dark Side of the Moon (A Masterpiece of course) was followed up by the equally impressive Wish you were here. If you release an album that is so special and appealing, it is logical and common sense to release a follow-up in the same frame of mind but adding extra special appeal to satisfy the current fan and at the same time to try and expand.. Prog Music should not mean having to change for the sake of it. OK, Pop music and X Factor stuff will always rely on Cuteness, cheesy lyrics and monotonous rhythms that appeal mostly to teenage girls and younger hence it will never be involved with Prog. To be honest, I think that too much is made of the word Prog, and it should just be treated in the same way as the term "Rock" We only have to look at the term Metal in the days of Black Sabbath to Judas Priest etc (Bands I grew up with). BUT when Thrash metal, Speed, Doom etc came along around in the 1980s, I would not claim to liking the term Heavy Metal, and was more comfortable (And still am) with the term Hard Rock. In the 70s, I couldn't really differentiate between Heavy Metal and Hard Rock as it was all the same in the early days. To sum it all up, when I was a teenager in the 70s, my all-time favourite Rock band was Status Quo, who were regarded as a Progressive band. Well, they had progressed from a horrible Flower Power Pop sound of the 60s. During the 70s, they kept their sound to a stable 12 bar blues boogie sound which the fans loved. However, when the band started to lose original members, and with the release of a completely different type of album (In the Army Now) I lost faith in the band forevernore, although they will always hold a special place in my heart for my early upbringing. Prog is no longer reliant on 15 minute plus songs (Although it still frequents), or songs of serpents etc, and most intriguingly too, does not have to have mellotrons, keyboards etc which determined the 70s Prog sounds of Genesis,Floyd,Yes etc etc. When you look at it, Prog appeals to 40-60 year olds as well as the 18-25 year olds. It caters for Hard Rock, Jazz, Blues as well. Its good at least that we are now more using the term Prog Rock as opposedf to Progressive Rock. To finalise, Prog now has many sub-genres i.e. Crossover, Symphonic, Eclectic, Experimental-Post Metal, Symphonic, Prog Metal, Prog Folk, Heavy Prog, Neo Prog, Pyschedelic, Canterbury etc etc.

I only heard of most of these terms within the past eight or so years. Dream Theater, a Prog Metal band, are always going to sound like Dream Theater otherwise they will lose many fans. They will always be a Prog Metal Band, so for them to progress, should they re-invent their sound to be a Crossover Prog band? Of Course not. Prog is only a word, and that word just includes many of our favourite bands. Prog fans can get so wound up about issues such as this whereas Metal fans dont give a feck.

 

I have recently assumed that you either come from the Pink Floyd tree (Pyschedelic) or the Genesis tree (Symphonic) as an example. Fans who like Pink Floyd will like Porcupine Tree, Riverside, RPWL, Supercomet, Airbag etc because the music at times sounds like Pink Floyd at times. As with Genesis, there are the IQs, Marillion, Pallas etc where influences come to the fore. However, Pink Floyd have had their time, and today there are many great tribute bands that play the music of Pink  Floyd miles better than the classic line up (RIP Rick Wright). What happens today  when legends like Floyd try to progress? They, well, Dave Gilmour anyway, will release albums with bands like The Orb, which go into obscurity overnight. The so called legendary bands cannot progress anymore. They will maybe release a new track or two to satisfy the fans, but it is always the case of GOING BACK to their heyday and playing the favourites. As I mentioned in my previous post, some Prog bands release trilogies of albums that sound the same before exploring new structures. The question is, how many albums can a Progressive band produce before it does not progress anymore, but just gets to the stage of just being another Rock album.

The sound formed from Blues Rock, Freak Beat, Classical & Folk sources.

The relative primitivism of the 1) instruments 2) Studio eqipment and the Engineers & 3) the pressing plants

resulted in a sound that [despite the moog synths etc] was more 'natural' and ?organic. But of course had what we refer to as an identifiable Melody and Hook [a lot of the time].

 

Present Prog :

arising out from the various styles of Indie Rock, and post Rave/Techno era., and not forgetting the bands who were styled as Neo-Psyche., along with the Advanced Quality of  Music Production., has resulted in a Prog Sound distinct from the original Forms.

The sound being more Generic., very sophisticated and more Polished.

But seemingly owning less Melodic content, and without the necessary Hooks.

 

And. To note: There are many More bands now practising the style, than ever before.

 

So finding the Nuggets is moreso awkward [that suits your own tastes] and requires sites such as ProgArchives to give some Direction. Along with the myriad Blogs about etc.

 

So : Prog has Progressed. Whether you like the progression or not., whether you appreciate it, results in much dialogue.