It’s late after you had a party and now you’re tired. You have some guests who don’t get the hint. Which prog rock album would you play to make them leave?

Personally I think it's one of the best albums ever made, but I'm not really sure what the general public thinks.

A) 60s thru 80s B) 90s thru 2000s C) 2010-current day D) Honestly a mix of 2 E) I really really mean All Prog ever.

Hey everyone! So after the song tournament went so well, I'm starting the next tournament - an artist tournament! We're starting with 72 artists and narrowing it down to the subreddit's favorite progressive rock artist.

Here's the format:

Round 1: 72 total, 12 groups of 6, 4 advance

Round 2: 48 total, 8 groups of 6, 4 advance

Rounds 3, on: 32 total, single elimination bracket

In this thread, nominate your favorite progressive rock artists to make the tournament in the comments.

We're doing this like r/musicsurvivor. Here's how to nominate your artists.

• Read through the comments or Control-F to make sure the artist you'd like to nominate hasn't already been nominated.
• If your song hasn't been nominated, type a comment formatted "Artist Name." (self-explanatory, I know).
• Only include one nomination per comment. You can comment unlimited times, though.
• Upvote the comments with artists you'd like to make the tournament. Don't downvote artists you don't like, please. And remember, this is the "your favorite" not "most progressive" artist tournament.
• The 72 artists with the most upvotes will be the contenders for our tournament.
• The following artists are banned - please don't nominate them: Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, Rush.
• I'll check back in a couple days to count the upvotes and make the groups for the first round of the tournament.
• I encourage you to nominate obscure, borderline, or otherwise unconventional prog. Anything that gets the upvotes can make the tournament - music is subjective! Italian prog, fusion, Zeppelin, Radiohead, progressive death metal, whatever, it's welcome here. This isn't the place to be snobby about what is or isn't "prog" enough - the voters can decide that.
• I'll determine what is or isn't an artist by their ProgArchives page (or if they don't have one, by their RateYourMusic page.) For example, "Frank Zappa" and "Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention" will be counted as the same artist for the tournament, but "Porcupine Tree" and "Steven Wilson" will be counted as unique artists.

Looking forward to seeing what you guys nominate! See you in a couple days.

My top 10

• King Crimson
• Änglagård (Sweden)
• Ars Nova (Japan)
• Porcupine Tree
• Yes 1970-1974
• Genesis 1970-1975
• Van der Graaf Generator 1970-1976
• Gentle Giant 1970-1977
• Ange 1972-1978 (France)
• Mike Oldfield 1973-1978, and for Amarok (1990) which is one of my favourite albums

Hey everyone! I really had a great time running this tournament and want to thank you all for participating. Without further ado, the winner of the tournament is...

CLOSE TO THE EDGE!

It won 879 votes, of 56.42% in the final. All I have to say about this is "YES!"

There's no shame in second place either for SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND, which received 679 votes, or 43.58% of the vote. A noble exit for Floyd.

The third place matchup might have even been more stacked than the final - the winner of that poll is...

SUPPER'S READY!

It won 430 votes. or 51.62%, narrowly beating out STARLESS, which got 4th.

Here are the full results:

(1) Yes - Close to the Edge

(2) Pink Floyd - Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V)

(3) Genesis - Supper's Ready

(4) King Crimson - Starless

5th - 8th place (ordered by vote percent):

Pink Floyd - Dogs

King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man

Rush - La Villa Strangiato

Pink Floyd - Echoes

9th - 16th place (ordered by vote percent):

Yes - Roundabout

Genesis - Firth of Fifth

Rush - YYZ

Pink Floyd - Time

Yes - Heart of the Sunrise

Rush - 2112

Pink Floyd - Pigs (Three Different Ones)

Rush - Tom Sawyer

17th - 32nd place (ordered by vote percent):

Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick

Pink Floyd - Brain Damage/Eclipse

Genesis - Dancing With The Moonlit Knight

Rush - Xanadu

Yes - And You And I

King Crimson - Epitaph

Yes - Long Distance Runaround

Genesis - The Cinema Show

King Crimson - Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part 1

King Crimson - I Talk To The Wind

Pink Floyd - The Great Gig in the Sky

Yes - Siberian Khatru

Porcupine Tree - Anesthetize

Emerson, Lake, and Palmer - Tarkus

The Beatles - A Day in the Life

King Crimson - Indiscipline

33rd - 64th place (eliminated in 3rd group round):

65th - 96th place (eliminated in 2nd group round):

97th - 144th place (eliminated in 1st group round):

Big thanks to u/PinkHeno for making this Spotify playlist of all the songs!

Also, people in the comments were asking for the bracket, so here it is, in a kind of weird format due to me running this tournament in an Excel spreadsheet:

That was fun! Going to start the next tournament - a "Your Favorite Prog Artist Tournament" - tomorrow. But there's gonna be a twist - since King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, Pink Floyd, and Rush win these every time, they won't be eligible for the tournament.

Instead, starting tomorrow, we will be having a survivor-style tournament with JUST those five, where you'll vote for your least favorite, and one artist will be eliminated at a time until we get a winner. After that, we can proceed to the real thing - a 72 artist group/knockout tournament like this one.

This tournament has taken forever - literally, seasons have passed me by - but I had a great time and I'm excited to move on to the next one! Thank you so much for participating!

Good evening, folks of r/progrockmusic! What a round it was last time for letter S!

Supper’s Ready by Genesis came out on top and won the spot for S. There was so many good songs to choose from. What’s crazy… is we still have yet to put a single Rush song on the board!

Well, today is letter T, let’s see what’s in store, there’s a lot of good picks I can think of, so let’s get this started! Good luck, and maybe we can even get a modern prog song on here to change things up! It’s time for my daily look through my vinyl collection and see what starts with T haha. Have fun!

The list so far:

A: And You and I by Yes

B: Breathe (in the Air) by Pink Floyd

C: Close to the Edge by Yes

D: Dancing With the Moonlit Knight by Genesis

E: Epitaph by King Crimson

F: Firth of Fifth by Genesis

G: Gates of Delirium by Yes

H: Heart of the Sunrise by Yes

I: In the Cage by Genesis

J: Just the Same by Gentle Giant

K: Karn Evil 9 by Emerson, Lake & Palmer

L: Lady Fantasy by Camel

M: The Musical Box by Genesis

N: Nine Feet Underground by Caravan

O: One More Red Nightmare by King Crimson

P: Proclamation by Gentle Giant

Q: Question by The Moody Blues

R: Roundabout by Yes

S: Supper’s Ready by Genesis

T:

U:

V:

W:

X:

Y:

Z:

Evening, r/progrockmusic! Today, it’s time for the letter L to be decided. Last time was the letter K. The winner for that round was drum roll… Karn Evil 9 by Emerson Lake and Palmer… by quite a bit this time. Now, what will be the winner this time. Unlike last round, I can’t imagine what it might be, so let’s see some good picks for L. Maybe a new artist that hasn’t been on the list yet? That would be fun.

Well, without further ado, comment your favorite prog rock songs that start with the letter L!

The list so far:

A: And You and I by Yes

B: Breathe (in the Air) by Pink Floyd

C: Close to the Edge by Yes

D: Dancing with the Moonlit Knight by Genesis

E: Epitaph by King Crimson

F: Firth of Fifth by Genesis

G: Gates of Delirium by Yes

H: Heart of the Sunrise by Yes

I: In the Cage by Genesis

J: Just the Same by Gentle Giant

K: Karn Evil 9 by Emerson Lake and Palmer

L:

M:

N:

O:

P:

Q:

R:

S:

T:

U:

V:

W:

X:

Y:

Z:

Good evening, folks of r/progrockmusic! And welcome back! Tonight we’ve reached the letter R?

I had very little idea what Q would look like because not many songs start with it. But it seems like Question by The Moody Blues came out on top. I’m running out of things to say in these little snipets, so let’s just see what we have for today!

What is r/progrockmusic’s favorite song that begins with the letter R?

A: And You and I by Yes

B: Breathe (in the Air) by Pink Floyd

C: Close to the Edge by Yes

D: Dancing With the Moonlit Knight by Genesis

E: Epitaph by King Crimson

F: Firth of Fifth by Genesis

G: Gates of Delirium by Yes

H: Heart of the Sunrise by Yes

I: In the Cage by Genesis

J: Just the Same by Gentle Giant

K: Karn Evil 9 by Emerson, Lake & Palmer

L: Lady Fantasy by Camel

M: The Musical Box by Genesis

N: Nine Feet Underground by Caravan

O: One More Red Nightmare by King Crimson

P: Proclamation by Gentle Giant

Q: Question by The Moody Blues

R:

S:

T:

U:

V:

W:

X:

Y:

Z:

Here we are. 96 artists, two months, and we're gonna find a winner. (Yeah, I expanded the field... because I felt like it!)

Remember, no Yes, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Genesis, or Rush.

These are the lucky artists that made the tournament:

Unfortunately, these guys were just barely left out:

Adrian Belew is on the second list as a mistake - he's in the tournament.

Then I arranged the 96 competitors into sixteen groups of 6.

Four of six will advance to the second round - where there will be sixteen groups of four, a total of 64. Only two of four will advance from that round to a 32-artist single-elimination bracket.

One last thing: for this tournament, I'm adding a new component! The day before each round, I'm hoping people will write an introduction to the artists in the next day's polls.

This can include suggested starter songs and albums, your backstory with the artist, why you love them, a description of their style, a "for fans of," or whatever else you want. Someone in a previous comment section gave me this idea, and while I forgot your username, just comment here and I'll give you credit for the idea.

Then, I'll take my favorite introductions (ideally there will be at least one for each artist) and I'll put them in the poll thread so everybody has context on who the artists are. I'll give you credit, of course!

These are the artists in tomorrow's polls - I encourage you to write a quick introduction in the comments, and hopefully that will convince some people to vote for your artist:

• Jethro Tull
• Electric Light Orchestra
• Led Zeppelin
• Uriah Heep
• UK
• Cardiacs
• Camel
• Nektar
• The Dear Hunter
• Steely Dan
• Oceansize
• Wishbone Ash

Just do your absolute favorites and don't feel the need to write paragraphs or any introduction at all! I hope this tournament can help everyone find new great music, because prog is pretty limitless!

Looking forward to seeing who you crown as the 6th best greatest prog artist of all time!

We've made it to the final! Both the third place match and the final are today, so look for the other poll once you've voted. Also, please upvote so more people can see the poll and vote.

Here are the results from yesterday's semifinals:

Advanced: Yes - Close to the Edge (615 votes / 57.26%)

Eliminated: King Crimson - Starless (459 votes / 42.74%)

The road ahead for King Crimson is Starless and Bible Black - they're eliminated.

Advanced: Pink Floyd - Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V) (817 votes / 55.62%)

Eliminated: Genesis - Supper's Ready (652 votes / 44.38%)

Walking across the sitting room, I turn the television off. Sitting beside you, I look into your eyes... Now there's a look in your eyes, like black holes in the sky. Shine on you crazy diamond!

Goodbye Genesis, we're down to two.

What's gonna win - the emotional minimalist masterpiece or the epic that throws everything it's got at you in a speedy 18 minute runtime? Will CTTE avenge its finals loss in the album tournament or repeat that fate?

Also, please don't complain about Pink Floyd being here. SOYCD beat out 142 songs to make it here in polls of prog fans. It deserves everything. Your complaining about it being here is just as valid as someone else saying the same about Close to the Edge. You have the right not to like it, but not to judge other people for liking it.

Also please don't crosspost this to r/pinkfloyd or r/yesband. I would have to redo the poll.

I'll make my pick in the comments. Excited for the next tournament to start!

Hello again r/progrockmusic; we’ve reached letter J on the list. For the letter I, it was a bit confusing. The number one pick was The Court of The Crimson King which does NOT start with an I. So that unfortunately did not win. With one vote above Indiscipline, the song that won the letter I spot… was In The Cage by Genesis. Now, moving on to the next letter is J. Let’s see what happens! Maybe we can get a less known band to win this time. Or will it once again be dominated by Yes and Genesis.

The list thus far:

A: And You and I by Yes

B: Breathe (in the Air) by Pink Floyd

C: Close to the Edge by Yes

D: Dancing with the Moonlit Knight by Genesis

E: Epitaph by King Crimson

F: Firth of Fifth by Genesis

G: Gates of Delirium by Yes

H: Heart of The Sunrise by Yes

I: In The Cage by Genesis

J:

K:

L:

M:

N:

O:

P:

Q:

R:

S:

T:

U:

V:

W:

X:

Y:

Z:

Good evening, folks of r/progrockmusic, and once again, we’re here to decide a song for the next letter. Today is letter P!

This marks the first King Crimson song to be added onto the list, with One More Red Nightmare. There’s a lot of bands still not on the list, so let’s see if we can get some more good additions! So without further ado, once again. Let’s get these songs commented! What shall the next song be on the list?

The list so far:

A: And You and I by Yes

B: Breathe (in the Air) by Pink Floyd

C: Close to the Edge by Yes

D: Dancing With the Moonlight Knight

E: Epitaph by King Crimson

F: Firth of Fifth by Genesis

G: Gates of Delirium by Yes

H: Heart of the Sunrise by Yes

I: In the Cage by Genesis

J: Just the Same by Gentle Giant

K: Karn Evil 9 by Emerson, Lake & Palmer

L: Lady Fantasy by Camel

M: The Musical Box by Genesis

N: Nine Feet Underground by Caravan

O: One More Red Nightmare by King Crimson

P:

Q:

R:

S:

T:

U:

V:

W:

X:

Y:

Z:

THE FINAL FOUR. Yes. King Crimson. Genesis. Pink Floyd. Today we're gonna find out which two make the final tomorrow.

Look for the other poll once you've voted! Also, please upvote so more people can see the poll and vote.

Here are the results of yesterday's matchups:

Advanced: Genesis - Supper's Ready (742 votes / 52.48%)

Eliminated: Pink Floyd - Dogs (672 votes / 47.52%)

Dogs was dragged down in the end, dragged down by the 🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿🗿.

Advanced: Pink Floyd - Shine On You Crazy Diamond (665 votes / 60.45%)

Eliminated: Rush - La Villa Strangiato (435 votes / 39.55%)

Everyone's favorite trio from Canada has been eliminated from the tournament :(

Here's the bracket for the semifinals:

Please don't vote unless you've heard both songs. I can't enforce this rule, but I trust that y'all will follow it.

Here's a link to the Spotify playlist made for the tournament by u/PinkHeno. (Thank you!!!)

I know it's difficult to vote between two songs of drastically different lengths - remember to avoid bias toward longer songs. Brevity is an asset, too!

Seeds (in division/overall):

Genesis - Supper's Ready 4/14

Pink Floyd - Shine On You Crazy Diamond 1/2

I'll leave my thoughts in the comments. Excited to see your choice!

Good evening, folks of r/progrockmusic! One letter closer to the end! We only have four letters after V!

Yesterday, Us and Them by Pink Floyd won without much competition, and today, with the letter V, I don’t have many guesses as to who will come out on top. Not too many songs starting with V.

Now then, what is r/progrockmusic’s favorite prog rock song that begins with the letter V?

The list so far:

A: And You and I by Yes

B: Breathe (in the Air) by Pink Floyd

C: Close to the Edge by Yes

D: Dancing With the Moonlit Knight by Genesis

E: Epitaph by King Crimson

F: Firth of Fifth by Genesis

G: Gates of Delirium by Yes

H: Heart of the Sunrise by Yes

I: In the Cage by Genesis

J: Just the Same by Gentle Giant

K: Karn Evil 9 by Emerson, Lake & Palmer

L: Lady Fantasy by Camel

M: The Musical Box by Genesis

N: Nine Feet Underground by Caravan

O: One More Red Nightmare by King Crimson

P: Proclamation by Gentle Giant

Q: Question by The Moody Blues

R: Roundabout by Yes

S: Supper’s Ready by Genesis

T: Tarkus by Emerson, Lake & Palmer

U: Us and Them by Pink Floyd

V:

W:

X:

Y:

Z:

Hey everyone! During the song tournament, I decided to do an artist tournament next. But some commenters pointed out that it wouldn't be fun because a certain group of five artists would be guaranteed to win the top five spots. The consensus on this sub that these are the five best prog artists is overwhelming, even more so than the consensus on the best songs or albums.

But I felt like just excluding those artists would make the tournament just a competition for 6th place, which doesn't sound very fun. So instead, I decided to start off with a mini survivor competition (shoutout to r/musicsurvivor), a type of poll in which everyone votes for their least favorite, and one option is eliminated each round until there's a winner.

After this is over (over the weekend, or maybe Monday), I'll post a nomination thread so we can get the actual 72 artist competition underway - these five artists won't be included there. For the first time, I'll have no idea who will win.

For the next four days, vote for your least favorite of the artists in the poll, and the artist with the most votes will be eliminated.

I know it's hard to judge "artists" because there are so many criteria you could choose from. Personally, I go with "if I had to take one discography to a desert island, which would I choose?" But that certainly disadvantages artists with short discographies - there are pros and cons to every approach. I'm leaving that choice up to you - go with your gut, I guess!

Remember: VOTE FOR YOUR LEAST FAVORITE! I'll be back tomorrow with the second round!

Good evening, folks of r/progrockmusic, sorry for the three hour delay in the post. This time, Genesis won for the third time! With about sixty votes, The Musical Box takes the cake. I had very little idea of what to expect for M, but it seems Genesis pulls through. Today we’re voting on a song for the letter N, so look through your albums and check what favorites you have lined up! Just like the letter M, nothing very popular comes to mind instantly, so I’m excited to see what picks we have! So without further ado, proceed to the podium and vote. Hehe.

The list so far:

A: And You and I by Yes

B: Breathe (in the Air) by Pink Floyd

C: Close to the Edge by Yes

D: Dancing With the Moonlight Knight

E: Epitaph by King Crimson

F: Firth of Fifth by Genesis

G: Gates of Delirium by Yes

H: Heart of the Sunrise by Yes

I: In the Cage by Genesis

J: Just the Same by Gentle Giant

K: Karn Evil 9 by Emerson, Lake & Palmer

L: Lady Fantasy by Camel

M: The Musical Box by Genesis

N:

O:

P:

Q:

R:

S:

T:

U:

V:

W:

X:

Y:

Z:

I know A LOT of other female vocalists exist in the prog sphere, but I just wanted to showcase strong women who produce/release music this year in their own name 😇 there will be only one queen to be crowned, so... to your vote! 👸

Favorite songs of this subreddit (letter I)

Hello again r/progrockmusic; we’ve reached letter I on the list. Last time, Heart of The Sunrise won. The previous person to do the polls hasn’t done one in the past five days, so I decided it would be fun to continue it on. If the previous person would like to continue doing it, just message me and I’ll stop. But now, we are on the letter I! Let’s see some of your favorite prog songs starting with the letter I. Will it continue to be dominated by Yes, we shall see!

The list thus far:

A: And You and I by Yes

B: Breathe (in the Air) by Pink Floyd

C: Close to the Edge by Yes

D: Dancing with the Moonlit Knight by Genesis

E: Epitaph by King Crimson

F: Firth of Fifth by Genesis

G: Gates of Delirium by Yes

H: Heart of The Sunrise by Yes

I:

J:

K:

L:

M:

N:

O:

P:

Q:

R:

S:

T:

U:

V:

W:

X:

Y:

Z:

Also, just a side note, just looking for some honest feedback on this list so far. Much appreciated and thank you 😄

Hey everyone, it's time to start the round of 16! There will be two rounds a day, so look for the other poll once you've voted! Also, please upvote so more people can see the poll and vote.

The songs aren't divided by length anymore - this is the sixth of eight matchups in this round.

Here are the results of yesterday's second matchup:

Advanced: King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man (824 votes / 65.24%)

Eliminated: Pink Floyd - Pigs (Three Different Ones) (439 votes / 34.76%)

Hey there Pig Man, haha, charade you are!

Please don't vote unless you've heard both songs. I can't enforce this rule, but I trust that y'all will follow it.

Here's a link to the Spotify playlist made for the tournament by u/PinkHeno. (Thank you!!!)

I know it's difficult to vote between two songs of drastically different lengths - remember to avoid bias toward longer songs. Brevity is an asset, too!

Seeds (in division/overall):

Genesis - Firth of Fifth 3/11

Pink Floyd - Dogs 2/6

I'll leave my thoughts in the comments. Excited to see your choice!

Hey everyone! It's time to get the first round of the tournament underway! There will be two rounds a day, so look for the other poll once you've voted. Also, please upvote so more people can see the poll and vote.

This matchup is the first of sixteen groups in the first round. The top four highest vote-getters will advance to the next round.

In this tournament, it's ok to vote against artists you haven't heard. But I encourage you to check out a song or two of an artist that grabs your attention!

Jethro Tull

Subgenre: Progressive Folk

"I know who my vote will be for: Jethro Tull. Known for their eccentric frontman Ian Anderson and his flute skills, these guys have more than two decades of excellent albums, and most people only know them for their two big ones, Aqualung and Thick As A Brick. Aqualung and TAAB are both masterpieces, but personally not my favorites. It is hard to pick a favorite when they released a perfect album every year of the 70s. I'll try to name some good ones, though.

The Folk Trilogy - 1977-79

In these three years, Tull released arguably their best three albums: Songs From the Wood, Heavy Horses, and Stormwatch. These albums feature heavy folk influences, and classics like Heavy Horses, Hunting Girl, Dark Ages, Old Ghosts.... oh who am I kidding, everything off these albums are amazing!

The "Concept Albums" - Early-Mid 1970s

In the early 70s, Tull released their first big hit albums, namely the classics Aqualung and TAAB. After these two, they went on to release another concept album: A Passion Play. While not liked by everyone, A Passion Play features a ton of great intrumental parts and their magnum opus, The Story of the Hare Who Lost His Spectacles. Later, they would release another great album, Minstrel In the Gallery, which features the eponymous hit title track and a bunch of other amazing songs. Definitely give these albums a listen, they are spectacular.

Other Albums - 1970-80s

Some other great albums to mention are Benefit, Living In the Past, WarChild, Too Old To Rock And Roll, A, Broadsword and the Beast, and Crest of A Knave. These albums, while not very proggy, have a lot of amazing songs on them, do give them a listen!

I hope a lot of people will vote for them, as they are such a great band and are often overshadowed by the big name prog bands. If you have never listened to them, please take a look at some of the above albums."

from u/CommissarVorchevsky

Electric Light Orchestra

Subgenre - progressive pop/rock

"Ok, so everyone knows ELO (the Electric Light Orchestra), but their early albums are much different than the pop hits they are best known for (not that those are bad), and though they are not as out and out "prog" (in the typical sense) as many of the other bands in this tournament, I would highly recommend them. I think they are the rock band that best utilizes strings, and they have a very unique sound. Personally, their first four albums are my favourite, even though they include almost none of their hits. Also, if 80's music is your thing, check out their 1981 concept album "Time".

Song recommendations (in chronological order):

10538 Overture: my favourite ELO song, and was once described as "a symphony of orgasms" by a friend who was high

1st Movement (Jumping Biz): fun little instrumental, actually quite proggy

Kuiama: I believe this is their longest song, at just over 11 minutes. A bit more traditional "rock" sounding, but still has that early ELO feel

In Old England Town: probably their heaviest song

Dreaming of 4000: like they crammed a sidelong epic into 5 minutes

Daybreaker: another catchy yet proggy instrumental, and another song that feels much longer than it is (in a good way)

Boy Blue: My favourite song off of their fourth album, but I recommend the whole album, as it is a concept album

Mr. Blue Sky: I'm sure most of you know this one, but just in case

Descriptions of the first 4 albums:

Their first album, No Answer, was front man Jeff Lynne's answer to the Beatles breaking up. He wanted to fill in the gap that was left and continue to push music in the direction that the Beatles had pioneered (you can probably hear it the most in Look At Me Now, which bears some resemblance to Eleanor Rigby). ELO is known for their string section, and while in their biggest hits the string section was mainly used to make the music catchy, this album features more classical/baroque inspired elements, and often jarring orchestration. My top picks from this album are 10538 Overture, 1st Movement (Jumping Biz), and Mr. Radio.

Their second album, ELO 2, is more "rock and roll" than the first one, and not as heavy on the use of strings. Top picks: Kuiama, In Old England Town

On the Third Day is their third album, and probably my favourite overall. Here their sound starts to transition slightly towards that of their most popular era. The songs are catchier, but still often weird and complex, featuring many different sections. Top picks: Dreaming of 4000, Oh No Not Susan, Bluebird is Dead, Daybreaker

Their fourth album, and first concept album, is called Eldorado. This album marks a big change in their sound, and by the next album, they are mostly finished reaching the sound they are best known for. The overall sound is more relaxed and less heavy. The vocals are much more polished and mellow in comparison to the harsh/distorted vocals on the first three albums. The strings are often used in a more upbeat/catchy fashion. Top picks: Listen to the whole album in order."

from u/TheAssCrackBandit

Led Zeppelin

Subgenre: Classic Hard Rock

"They were one of the first bands I really fell in love with and are still arguably my favourite band of all time. I will never forget the first time I heard the Mothership compilation in my dad's car- from the moment Good Times Bad Times kicked in I was hooked and I've been a fan ever since.

They started out as a fairly typical blues/rock band but quickly blossomed into something very different. Each member is an absolute master of their chosen instrument (or instruments in Jonesy's case) and their chemistry is absolutely mind-blowing- check out some of their live tracks for some inspired improvisations.

The sheer quality of all of the musicians and their talents as writers allowed them to tackle a bewildering variety of genres; as well as rock and blues, they covered folk, country/Americana, funk, Eastern, drone, rock and roll, prog, punk, pop, jazz, soul and even reggae (and probably more that I've forgotten). For me it's their versatility and constantly evolving approach to music that really makes them a prog band.

Their production was also consistently excellent, especially for the time: many of their songs still sound fresh even half a century after being recorded. They were also masters at using different production styles to match their changing sound: everything from different guitar tones and tunings to vocal effects and drum sounds.

For any prog fans needing an introduction, I would recommend some of their more classic prog-sounnding tracks: No Quarter, The Song Remains The Same, Achilles Last Stand, In The Light, and a certain track you might have heard of called Stairway To Heaven.

My favourite of their many excellent albums is Physical Graffiti. Across a double album, the variety of tracks on offer is staggering but the quality remains consistently high. It contains some of their best and most popular songs, such as Kashmir, In My Time Of Dying and Trampled Underfoot, as well as some underrated gems such as Custard Pie, The Rover and Down By The Seaside.

I hope you enjoy reading this, be sure to check these guys out if you're unfamiliar with them and I look forward to getting in to the tournament!"

from u/Lagiacrus7

Uriah Heep

**"**Okay, so Uriah Heep came out of the late 60s 'pub rock' scene with a sound very familiar to a certain Deep Purple.

In fact, Uriah Heep and Deep Purple once recorded in the same place in different rooms.

Their big success- and their prog rock years- came in the early 70s, where after their first two albums attracted attention, they released Look At Yourself in 1971- a brilliant heavy prog album and a very early metal album (Uriah Heep are often the forgotten band of 70s British Heavy Metal- they arguably did Rainbow before Rainbow existed). However their biggest success came later that year, when they released Demons and Wizards, another great album. They arguably peaked in 1972, with the release of 'The Magicians Birthday'.

After this, they slowly strayed away from more proggy ideas to more simpler hard rock/heavy metal, but throughout the many line-up changes the spirit has never left them, and they still release barnstormers to this day.

Their sound in their prog years was defined by the pseudo-operatic vocals of David Byron, the wahwah guitar of Mick Box and the compositions and hard, driving organ sound of Ken Hensley.

Top 5 Songs imo: Gypsy, Sunrise, The Magicians Birthday, July Morning, Shadows of Grief"

from u/ProgAdict102

U.K.

Subgenre: "Eclectic Prog"

"U.K. is a short-lived band that initially included John Wetton, Bill Bruford, Allan Holdsworth, and Eddie Jobson. Their first album, eponymously called U.K., is really good. For their second album, Danger Money, Bruford and Holdsworth left the band, and Terry Bozzio replaced Bruford on drums. I don't think this one is as good, and it's not on Spotify anyway. I mainly recommend their first album, which should appeal to fans of King Crimson and Asia, particularly when those bands had Wetton on vocals, as well as to fans of Jean-Luc Ponty's Enigmatic Ocean, which had Holdsworth on guitar."

from u/fduniho

Cardiacs

Subgenre: Avant-Garde/Progressive Punk/"Eclectic"/really one of a kind

"Cardiacs also definitely deserve a mention. Probably one of the most distinctive and intriguing acts to come out of the 80s and 90s, with some great usage of both technicality, charisma, and melody. Love them very dearly, if they and Nektar wind up sharing the same racket I’d probably lean towards them more."

from u/raythetruck

Cardiacs easy, the only Progressive Punk-Band i know of :)"one Cardiacs song contains more ideas than most other musicians' entire career" is my fave quote :)and please don't hesitate to buy their shit: https://alphabet-business-concern.bandcamp.com/because Tim Smith is still not well and could use a little help.

from u/hamageddon

Cardiacs are one of my favorite bands of all time. Most "avant-garde" bands seem to be weird for the sake of weird, but listening to Cardiacs I can tell that it's just their silly personality. The composition is probably a level above most other progressive music. The constant key changes that build tension, wacky chord progressions that somehow always end up where they began, and impossibly catchy melodies courtesy of Tim Smith define their sound. Sing to God is no question my favorite double album of all time. To check out their sound, listen to Fiery Gun Hand or Dirty Boy, the latter of which might just happen to be the greatest song ever written - you be the judge of that!

from u/Muzak_For_A_Nurse (yeah, me!)

Tomorrow's artists:

• Gentle Giant
• Queen
• Rick Wakeman
• Harmonium
• Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe
• Devin Townsend
• Emerson, Lake, and Palmer
• Haken
• Blue Oyster Cult
• Godspeed You! Black Emperor
• Robert Fripp
• Mastodon

I'll leave my thoughts in the comments. Excited to find out what you choose!

cobweb edge busy consist wild snow different detail nose lip

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact