Simple Minds . . . Progressive?

Innovative: yes.

Do I like them? Yes.

Prog:  no.

IMHO: because they're too much song based. I think they're more like a warmblooded new wave band. They did have Peter Gabriel and Roxy Music as examples. But they're purely electronical (no acoustic instruments as I recall), don't have epics. They're not very far from prog, but not prog.

Still, it's hard to decide. For me it's clear though: great band, especially in the early days, but not prog.

fractalman wrote: I don't think it's fair to label Simple Minds as New Wave.  They are nothing like Devo, OMD, A-ha, Art of Noise, or Thomas Dolby.  Their music had depth and was often much darker in tone.  Furthermore, although they may not have composed the longer epics like Yes and Genesis, they do have several songs over 6 minutes long; especially between 1979 and 1982.  Heck, Street Fighting Years has six songs that are over 6 minutes long!  They're not The Beach Boys!

Hey, don't degrade the Beach Boys  . Listen to some of THEIR almost progressive tracks like Surf's Up and Heroes And Villains.  Brian Wilson's masterpiece Smile is almost prog .

And don't get me wrong: if I say new wave I'm not degrading the SM either. New wave is very broad and I think that the influences were there allright: the SM were children of their time. New wave is also Joy Division, The Cure and Cabaret Voltaire. But I have to admit: if you could them new wave, you could call them just as easily prog. Good point.

Maybe they were a genre of their own. But they did see a resemblance between themselves and U2 and Echo and The Bunnymen as well. Being positive sounds in an age of doom-mongering, I guess.

Let's have the inclkusion of the Culture Club , Human League , Duran Duran , Split Enz , The The , ABC, Heaven 17 also then.......

Need I say more?????

Let's stop this bleeping nonsense, Please!!!!!

that is an interesting poll

i like simple minds, and their street fighting years album nearly has  the prog style.

new gold dream is synth pop, while street fighting years is more atmospheric rock.

the fixx is more prog than simple minds though

fractalman wrote: Hey, I was admitting that the majority may well be right.  You don't have to be a jerk?!?!about it!  Besides, the only band that you mention below that is the same caliber as SM is Duran Duran (although, their new album was very disappointing). Sean Trane wrote: Let's have the inclkusion of the Culture Club , Human League , Duran Duran , Split Enz , The The , ABC, Heaven 17 also then....... Need I say more????? Let's stop this bleeping nonsense, Please!!!!!

Who is insisting on inclusion of SM?????

As I said in the other thread you posted in Bands Suggestions Forum , we have people insisting on band inclusion because they like prog and would like to have all of their tastes represented on this site. This is especially true for the younger generations who also monitor constantly the top 100 on the home page and are constantly worried about best of lists. I know , I was once young too!!!

True I do not like new wave bands !!!! They are responsible for the impoverishment of pop music with the awful rythm box-digital KB!!!! All those bands were concerned more with painting one fingernail black (or pink) than actually playing music , since it was all programmed in their synths. The early 80's were the sickest era as far as music is concerned. Late 80's a slight improvement and the 90's a big improvement.

I saw once Ultravox (around the Visage album era) and I saw five guys standing behind those synths pushing buttons and dancing behind it and that was it!!!!! For two hours!!!!!! Sure they took time to be synchronized and choreographed!!!! I went there as a bet with my-then-girlfriend as she wanted to convert me. I took her to see George Thorogood and The Destroyers and she danced rock'n roll for almost four hours, to the meanest sax-player/gunslinger on this side of the Pecos River! George was dripping sweat all over and when he spun around while playing his mean riffs , we were showered with his sweat (front row with our elbows on stage) but did not even feel it as we were all drenched anyway from our own and the neighbors. 

Lets George T & T D up for inclusion!!!! Just kidding of course.

She never once spoke of new wave groups again.

Yes Simple Minds were not the most typical new wave group and certainly not the worst either.... I would take them out in a class along with other early 80's bands such as XTC, Squeeze , InXS, Echo & Bunnymen, OMD , The Cure as rather more correct pop of the times.

If I remember well , they are scottish along with the Levellers and Big Country but simply not in the same league as Pallas (which is prog and BTW , I loathe Sentinel).

Except for Marillion's script the 80's were a lost decade even more so for prog than for the rest of rock. I was 19 and a newbie in University when Script came out! But I headed to the 60's for musical explorations.....

^ George Thorogood is the essence of Rock'n roll !!!

Although he has not aged that well , nowadays.

Of course the players are to blame for bad music , but for the first time in music history, those synths allowed kids to do "music" without even writing a note and not even knowing how to hit a key properly..... Those synths produced the same sound whether you pounded on the key or even touched feeebly with your toe. They were more of computers remembering patterns and repeating them endelessly should you wish it.

felixxx wrote: why dont we add Wham! They are so prog

Ignorance is bliss.