Renaissance - Ashes Are Burning Subgenre(s): Symphonic Prog, Prog Folk
Score: 85
Year: 1973
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 16th
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Listening to what many believe to be Renaissance's high water mark today, two things struck me. First and most simply, it really hit me how Annie Haslam's vocals draw so much love. The combination of the timbre of her voice, her phrasing, and the perfect match to the material makes this positively exquisite. Okay, so some of it might not have aged perfectly, occasionally sounding a little hippie-dippie, but damn, she sells it!
Secondly, I was thinking of how the word "symphonic" conveys grand music, full of comprehensive instrumentation and grand, intricate compositions while the word "folk" implies much the opposite; simplicity, basic instrumentation, and things stripped down to their more basic elements. But somehow in the prog world, groups often bring the subgenres of Symphonic Prog and Prog-folk seamlessly together, sometimes capturing the best of these disparate worlds in a beautifully coherent blend, completely erasing any potential conflict between the genres. This album, Ashes are Burning, may be the best ever example of that phenomenon.
Homunculus Res - Ecco l'impero dei doppi sensi Subgenre(s): Canterbury Scene
Score: 75
Year: 2023
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 12th (of 37 albums ranked so far)
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Don't let the name Homunculus Res, or their origins in Sicily fool you, this is not Rock Progressivo Italiano. Since their inception in 2013, Homunculus Res have been a solid Canterbury Scene prog band. In fact, on this 2023 release, at times they can get pretty twee, at one point sounding like a cross between the more whimsical side of Peter Gabriel-era Genesis and Herman's Hermits. That's actually kind of a clumsy way of saying they re really good at mixing hummable pop ditty melodies with progressive elements to come up with a unique king of English/Italian hybrid that really sounds like nothing else. That's a good thing, even if it sometimes comes across as prog-lite.
Renaissance - Ashes Are Burning Subgenre(s): Symphonic Prog, Prog Folk
Score: 85
Year: 1973
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 16th
Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.
Listening to what many believe to be Renaissance's high water mark today, two things struck me. First and most simply, it really hit me how Annie Haslam's vocals draw so much love. The combination of the timbre of her voice, her phrasing, and the perfect match to the material makes this positively exquisite. Okay, so some of it might not have aged perfectly, occasionally sounding a little hippie-dippie, but damn, she sells it!
Secondly, I was thinking of how the word "symphonic" conveys grand music, full of comprehensive instrumentation and grand, intricate compositions while the word "folk" implies much the opposite; simplicity, basic instrumentation, and things stripped down to their more basic elements. But somehow in the prog world, groups often bring the subgenres of Symphonic Prog and Prog-folk seamlessly together, sometimes capturing the best of these disparate worlds in a beautifully coherent blend, completely erasing any potential conflict between the genres. This album, Ashes are Burning, may be the best ever example of that phenomenon.
I have always believed this to be a much better album...
Renaissance - Ashes Are Burning Subgenre(s): Symphonic Prog, Prog Folk
Score: 85
Year: 1973
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 16th
Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.
Listening to what many believe to be Renaissance's high water mark today, two things struck me. First and most simply, it really hit me how Annie Haslam's vocals draw so much love. The combination of the timbre of her voice, her phrasing, and the perfect match to the material makes this positively exquisite. Okay, so some of it might not have aged perfectly, occasionally sounding a little hippie-dippie, but damn, she sells it!
Secondly, I was thinking of how the word "symphonic" conveys grand music, full of comprehensive instrumentation and grand, intricate compositions while the word "folk" implies much the opposite; simplicity, basic instrumentation, and things stripped down to their more basic elements. But somehow in the prog world, groups often bring the subgenres of Symphonic Prog and Prog-folk seamlessly together, sometimes capturing the best of these disparate worlds in a beautifully coherent blend, completely erasing any potential conflict between the genres. This album, Ashes are Burning, may be the best ever example of that phenomenon.
I have always believed this to be a much better album...
Kayak - See See the Sun Subgenre(s): Crossover Prog, Symphonic Prog
Score: 75
Year: 1973
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 34th
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Kayak were a Dutch (lyrics in English) crossover prog band whose first album had symphonic prog leanings. Song structures tend toward traditional verse/chorus, but the instrumentation and musicianship are well in line with the prog of the day. Adding to my enjoyment is the punchy, often Squire-like bass. I've given this two listens in the last couple days and the second was better than the first; a good sine that the album is likely to stick with me.
Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Darwin Subgenre(s): Rock Progressivo Italiano
Score: 85
Year: 1972
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 11th
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My focus has been so heavy on listening to all the great prog that I missed out on and trying to keep up with new prog, I've spent little time over the last year with those bona fide classics of the genre. Today, I for the first time in a long time spun this RPI classic. What a trip! As much as probably any prog album, this album takes the listener on a genuine journey. Darwin would be proud.
Wicked Minds - From the Purple Skies Subgenre(s): Heavy Prog
Score: 85
Year: 2004
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 9th
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Wicked Minds are generally listed as Heavy Prog, and that's as good a description as any, so long as you're willing to think of them as any brand of prog in the first place. If you're one of those people who think prog necessitates progressing (moving forward), then this will not be prog. Add that to the lack of elements we generally associate with prog even independent of breaking new ground, and I can see this not being worthy of the label for some.
Now that said, I'll say it's proggy enough for me, and in the end, labels be damned anyway, as I thoroughly dug the album no matter what you call it. This is actually a serious throwback album, with the opening title cut sounding like it could have been lifted directly from a classic Uriah Heep album (hooray for rock organ!). On the third cut, "Drifting," they go hard on folk rock which makes for a nice bit of variety. Later, they maneuver into some Vol IV-era Black Sabbath style doom metal. Vocalist J.C. Cinel is a perfect match for this music and I found myself also often intrigued by the rhythms and fills of drummer Andrea Concarotti. I'm calling this an upper echelon album, especially for the early 2000s.
Vranitor's Tenebarium - E.N.I.D. Subgenre(s): Heavy Prog
Score: 80
Year: 2023
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 16th
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This recent release is tons of dark, cinematic fun. It sits as heavy prog with occasional folk prog overtones, all evoking images of hooded, robed figures with hidden faces, pagan rituals, and Italian horror movie scenes.
Avantgardemusic.com says "File under occult prog, dungeon funk, and giallo italiano." That sums it up nicely!
Neuschwanstein - Battlement Subgenre(s): Symphonic Prog
Score: 80
Year: 1979
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 9th
Well, this seems to be the best Genesis album by a group not named Genesis. This despite being a German group with a French vocalist. But said vocalist, Frédéric Joos, is a near perfect sonic doppelganger for a young Peter Gabriel. Add the fairly English symphonic prog composition and I could not blame anyone for mistaking this for a Foxtrot-era Genesis album. Normally, I would knock an album down a few pegs for such blatant aping (see Starcastle as related to Yes), but this thing is really good. No negatives to report, just progtastic listening!
Anubis Gate - Interference Subgenre(s): Progressive Metal
Score: 75
Year: 2023
My Rank in Year as of this listen: 16th (of 41 racked so far)
In 2023, Anubis Gate brought us this nicely centerline progressive metal outing. Overall, it's a smooth affair, bringing plenty of soaring vocals and more poppy melodies than solid prog. I found it highly reminiscent of the smoother side of Threshold's catalog. A very nice listen if not particularly proggy or ground breaking. The formula, deftly executed, works quite well, although I personally thought it didn't quite hold my attention for the full hour-plus run time. But the high points are well worth the overall investment.
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