The last thread on this was made in 2003. So I decided just to start a new one over the amazing genre of progressive metal. What are you favorite prog bands and please feel more than courteous to recommend some more artist.

The prog bands I listen to are;

Rush
Dream Theater
Opeth (prog death metal)
Into Eternity
Circle II Circle
Eidolon
Queensryche
Richard Andersson's Space Odyssey

All that I've really listened to is Andromeda, Hammers Of Misfortune and Opeth. I like what I've heard so far, however.

into eternity aren't really progressive.... the riffs are nothing new the vocals are nothing new but they are a fucking awesome band catchy as hell go buy it now.

Yes they are! I'm listening to their new album now, and I'm falling in love. Amazing guitars and bass, but I don't know if the drummer is legitimate. If he is legit then he is one of the fastest double kickers out there.

Any thing similar to these guys, preferred with more heavy vocals.

Ive never heard a "prog" band that was actually progressive...

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Just listen to fucking 70's hard rock. That shit kicks ass.

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Yes, it does. But (most of) it isn't progressive.

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For bands similar to the ones you mentioned, I really like Fates Warning. I haven't heard much of their stuff from the past 15 years, but what I have heard I've very much enjoyed. No Exit is one of my favorite albums ever.

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Agreed! Listen to Kansas you cock chugger!

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i listen to these prog metal bands:

cynic
watchtower
behold the arctopus
death
quo vadis
opeth
extol (old)
into eternity
aletheian
kamelot
spastic ink
kekal
theory in practice
dream theater
rush
pain of salvation
unexpect
control denied
symphony x
atheist
twisted into form
spiral architect
pestilence (spheres era)
nocturnus
between the buried and me
necrophagist
odious mortem
tholus
queensryche
power of omens
zero hour
fifth season

just to name a few............. i am heavily into this style, so if you any questions regarding it ask me!

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Dream theater is the best! Other prog-metal bands are shit! It's joke

I don't listen to prog, but a couple of bands who seemed nice are Adagio and Beyond Twilight (at least the first album, I haven't listened to the other ones but I was told they're not as good).

what do you mean???

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How in the name of everything pure is Between the Buried and Me a prog metal band!?!?!? Or Into Eternity for that matter!

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...That none of them are progressive...

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that wasn't very helpful, care to elaborate?

i guess i should have said what bands in particular do you mean arent progressive that are normally labeled as progressive?

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All of them. They do nothing to progress or further or push forward anything.

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you're missing the point.

progressive means that unlike other bands they don't just make an entire song from one or two basic riffs, the PROGRESS through several, sometimes complicated riffs while PROGRESSING through many obscure time signatures, unlike others who normally play only in a 4/4 time.

see?

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SYMPHONY X ,dream theater (though i prefer them when they were less metal), and Nevermore

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Direwolf, Mike Lerner from Behold... The Arctopus' side project, is pretty good prog'.

Alarum
Linear Sphere

Fear Factory were progressive as much you won't like to admit it.

Gorguts are avantgarde, but then avant' is like a twisted form of prog'. In a fairly horrific analogy, prog' is to avant' as Einstein is to Hitler. Both geniuses. Although the flaw with the analogy is that I find it hard to appreciate the work of Hitler. I guess it can be more difficult to appreciate avant' over prog' in general, but you do get the odd Hitler fan out there.

Being musically progressive is the same as being politically progressive, so it doesn't necessarily have to consist of much complicated stuff, just a sense of vision.

And saying vocals are nothing new is a bit silly, the voice is an instrument with it's own and characteristics and limitations, like harp and violin or guitar, and most people find vocals effects tasteless as it is.

Meshuggah
Martyr

I could go on with a list of bands we usually find conservative in approach, but I guess I have to conclude most bands do have a progressive element. Just some focus more on it than others.

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very nicely put.

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I guess that makes sense.
But it also makes it the dumbest genre name since indie rock.

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No it is totally different.

About 60% of Indie bands have major record labels. Can they explain theirselves?

...No...they're both stupid fucking names.

If they have record label deals, they aren't indie rock.

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That maybe true. Which is why most progressive metal bands stick with prog, or is that just the fan base that calls them prog? Do they even consider theirselves progressive metal?

some do some don't

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explain.
If you understand that it's called progressive because they "progress"
than why is it stupid?

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I found an excellent band by the name of Pagans Mind and i bought the Cds "Enigmatic:calling" and "Celestial Entrance" both are very fine albums

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Great band <3

A buddy of mine just introduced them to me. Too bad I'm stuck on Ulver, Agalloch and now Arcturus.

Sic, your definition of prog pertains to the bands that tend to receive the label today, but Progressive music is traditionally defined as any music drawing characteristics from multiple different styles and genres. The waltzs and odd time signatures of classical, the polyrhythms of some world music, the song structures and melodies more complex than the traditional, conceptual lyrical and musical ideas, and the common use of leitmotif (recurring musical themes) throughout an album.

This is why some people have a problem with bands like BTBAM and the like being called progressive. They may have odd times and complex somg structures, but they are missing so much more of what it means to be progressive. Its not really as literal as the name implies.

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there's a definitely a "sound' to progrock and BTBAM is not it.

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It's funny to think of Between the Buried and Me as prog metal, or prog anything.

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dysrhythmia owns.

Cynic, Atheist, Xysma, Pestilence, Dan Swano,

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+ Affliction, Windham Hell, Nocturnus, Theory in Practice, Watchtower, Edge of Sanity, Pan.Thy.Monium, and Arsis.

All the prog metal bands I can think of right now, and they all kick ass.

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No.

BTBAM are prog, more so in the literal sense but prog nonetheless. If you can't hear that then your ears are retarted.

Cynic, BTBAM and some Opeth are really the only prog I can listen to. If we are calling Pestilence prog then yeah, them too.

Refer to my post above. They have a few elements of prog but I wouldnt label them progressive.

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I sure don't hear it with my ass. Just what is it to be "retarted" anyway? Do you mean retarded? Explain to me how the band in question is in any way, shape or form progressive. All I hear is a metalcore band that chugs more than all the trains in Grand Central Station. Sure, they change it up a lot, lots of melodic parts, lots of pretty generic sounding death metal parts... shit I can't say it lacks variety, but the band is over rated and not in the least bit progressive. The band doesn't build towards anything what so ever. Unlike many bands that are progressive, they lack any overall coherence, they don't build towards a larger picture. They sound to me like a metalcore band trying to sound different by throwing in as many random melodies into one song as possible. Did I mention that my distaste is so large for them that I once threw a beer bottle at them? Final thought: They are talented but lack the vision to reach their full potential.
I'm open to having my mind changed about this if you can convince me.

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Well obviously you are a bit biased giving that you have hurled projectiles at them, and LordofStorms is as well given that apparently we are retarded for not seeing things through his eyes (ears). But I agree with you Sweet Pizza about the feeling of a lack of direction. Albums like The Wall even up to today with albums like Pain of Salvations "BE", you get the feeling of a direction. The closest ive seen to this from BTBAM is Selkies if you take away the lame chug parts. LordofStorms, being progressive isnt just about technical genre melding, which is what BTBAM does. This isnt a bad thing at all, just only a very small part of what it means to fall under a progressive catagory.

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Fair enough. I'll concede to this argument, as I can see the vast difference in POS and BTBAM (I love both.).

Sweet Pizza, you lose when you have to resort to being so nit-picky about language. Also when you throw things at a band. Grow the fuck up.


No you're not. It's pretty obvious you've made up your mind, judging by what you posted.

Someone being civil in a discussion about metal?!?! Thanks LordofStorms, I really appreciate that!

Good to have another POS fan as well.

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after reading this arguement I decided to go back and listen to some BTBAM and actually thoroughly listen to it.

It is definatly progressive to a degree and has some more technical odd timing and signature parts.

It's less "metalcore" then you make it out to be, and all melodies or rhythms are actually far more technical then the average metal band or metalcore band, however the vocals throw it into a more metalcore/deathcore approach.

the chug riffs are'nt necessarily metalcore because metalcore bands don't use them, I find that the chug riffs and speedpicking and odd times, chords, and progressions, with various heavy vocals lead up to a climax to be settled down with a another somewhat technical jazzrock or something along that lines approach.

I actually Like BTBAM, they're a good band.

I understand that, but the way I look at it there is taking the progressive style and using that make unique and original music and there is what BTBAM does which is using the concepts of progressive music as their structure which kind of defeats the purpose.

I think the main issue is that Progressive as a genre isnt like other genres. Progressive is a set of ideas that dont have an actual "sound". When you think "Death Metal" you immediately think of a certain sound. But Progressive can be anything from Pink Floyd to Emerson Lake & Palmer to Yes to King Crimson all the way to Dream Theater and Opeth. All bands which sound radically different.

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Yes, I shouldn't of thrown anything at them. I don't disagree. This 2 years ago, if thats any consolation. Anyway...
Valtiel hit what I was trying to say dead on. I do have my mind pretty damn made up, but honestly, I'm clearly not as big of the band as you are so maybe you've heard something I haven't and can convince me otherwise. Sure, Between the Buried and Me has elements of progressive music, but that doesn't make them progressive. That would be the same as calling Emperor death metal because it has some similarities to death metal. As far as being nit-picky about language, I only was for a single sentence, on one thing that has bothered me since it started popping up. Why do people intentionally (seemingly at least) misspell retarded, especially when they are trying to call someone retarded? That was hardly the bulk of my arguement, which you failed to respond to.

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I felt no need to respond to the rest of your argument. Like I said it seems you've made your mind up. What am I(some random dude on a metal forum) going to point out in their music that you(some random dude on a metal forum) can't hear yourself.

I made the "ears are retarded" comment in jest. I see it didn't come off that way which is my fault. I'm new to prog metal and judging by the bands I've heard, BTBAM sounds very similar to a lot of them.

Katatonia are prog right? I'm listening to them now, good band.

Cynic is the shit, hands down!

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Anybody else ever hear of Poverty's No Crime? My dad gave me two of their albums a few days ago; they're similar to Dream Theater.

I feel that progressive isn't a genre in itself. It is a way to write songs, which musicians from any genre can adopt. Therefore it should be used as a prefix to the more dominant musical trait in the music. Like progressive black metal or progressive jazz metal.

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Listen to their last album, Colors.Metalcore chugfest?Leading to nothing?Hahaha.
If they they aren't progressive in any shape or form, then I refuse to call Opeth progressive.

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