Why did prog rock all but disappear?

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

Poll question: Why did prog rock all but disappear?

[Beware the Beast Man]

1. I heard it was because critics were jealous of the fact that many loved it

[Goldmund]

2. You like prog?

Check out my band: http://www.mixposure.com/suncrown

[enigmatic]

8. This is great stuff, folks

Seriously, check them out.

[Goldmund]

10. Thanks friend

:)

[dean_dem]

3. Musicians stopped using so much cocaine.

[DBoon]

4. Missing option: Marijuana use no longer in vogue ;)

Seriously, isn't Prog Rock coming back?

[Zuni]

5. the BFEE?

[Squeech]

6. Where do I start?

First of all, it's not that people can't learn to play that stuff-- consider that 12-year-old shredmaster somebody posted. He could cut all that shit easy, he just has to learn some different patterns.

But people can't afford the time it takes to write and rehearse it. If you were gonna start a Yes or Mahavishnu Orchestra today, you'd have to be independently wealthy, at least enough to feed and house five people for a year to get the enterprise up and running.

But I think the real reason is, not enough people (either among the musicians or among the fans) believe in progress as a guiding principle any more, and without that faith, the music just isn't gonna work-- it'll sound hokey, or derivative, or both. I just saw a group called Happy the Man, an American prog band from the '70s who recently re-formed and made a new CD-- and it was like they learned nothing between 1979 and today, they still inhabit a sound world triangulated between Genesis, Gentle Giant and Mike Oldfield, and they're perfectly happy there, and I thought it was pretty boring. (And I used to think there was no greater Gentle Giant fan than me.)

[blindpig]

34. Happy the Man!

Loved that band. They used to get lots of air play at TSU(Towson). In retrospect they were a 2nd tier band, I recently listened to their 1st 2 albums and they don't quite hold up compared to top notch stuff like Eno, King Crimson or Maravishnu. It was great in the day.

[chaska]

48. Well, I don't agree with everything you said, but they are a great band...

and check their website. I think they are back together again.

[progmom]

7. it seemed like there were a few who were rooting for its demise

:shrug:

i never did understand it.

[Zuni]

11. you mean plotting against it

or singling it out in an unfair way? :shrug:

[enigmatic]

9. It went out of style

Just like all the hair metal bands of the 80's, Disco in the 70's, and so on...

And if you want to get technical; Punk was a reaction both to the extreme prog/corporate rock excesses of that time as well..

[Initech]

12. It hasnt disappeared!

I'm going to a prog rock concert tonight (and tomorrow night) as a matter of fact - Porcupine Tree. Opening act: Robert Fripp of King Crimson.

[Beaverhausen]

13. I'll be at that show tomorrow night

:hi:

[Initech]

17. Both shows should be good!

I'm listening to Lightbulb Sun right now.

[MN ChimpH8R]

32. Saw PT here in Mpls

the day before Memorial Day. A friend of mine who does a prog synth thing ala Tangerine Dream opened. PT were great, though I was grumpyx( that they didn't play some of my favorite older tunes, especially "Radioactive Toy." Steven Wilson is an incredible guitarist, and the rest of the band is equally virtuosic. Have fun!!

[Initech]

37. What songs did they play in MPLS?

Just out of curiosity? I know they're playing about 2-3 tracks from Deadwing.

[Beaverhausen]

14. I say it's because radio can't play anything longer than 3 minutes

and most prog songs are, well, a bit longer than that.

But it is still out there for those who want to find it.

[Initech]

19. New Dream Theater album has a 24 minute song

I'd like to see the radio try and play that!

[Swede]

15. The reality of punk vs. the wizards and fairies of King Crimson.

Punk won out. I always thought there was room for both.

[mr_hat]

31. King Crimson's "Red" was more ferocious than most punk albums, IMO.

But then, it was intellectually ferocious as well. Can't have that.

[enigmatic]

33. You got it..

What a great album; I love Crimson in all it's different lineups..

[LifeDuringWartime]

36. the only thing i never understood about "Red"

why does "Starless and Bible Black" (the song) make a reappearance on an album that came out the same year as the album it originally came from?

[mr_hat]

38. It doesn't. The track is actually called "Starless" >

absent the "Bible Black." It does feel like another chapter, though.

[AngryAmish]

16. It was not interesting

Very self-indulgant and self-involved.

[progmom]

18. .

:cry:

[Beaverhausen]

20. and of course NO ONE popular now is self indulgent or self involved!!!

Damn you Jon Anderson!!!

[Goldmund]

35. I thought every piece of art worth its salt was.

Otherwise it's called "commercialism".

[AngryAmish]

41. Nope

[Goldmund]

44. Is that right?

[AngryAmish]

46. Yep

[patcox2]

21. Cause it was ponderous, man, freaking ponderous.

nt.

[patcox2]

22. Rock and Roll is sexual, not intellectual.

Prog rock was a pretentious bore. Give me the ramones over the talking heads any day or especially any night.

[Beaverhausen]

23. The Talking Heads prog?

:rofl:

[patcox2]

26. Might as well have been. Had the pretentious part down.

What part of them was punk, other than that they played at CBGBs where the real punk bands played?

[Beaverhausen]

27. Do you know what prog is?

Do you seriously compare The Talking Heads to a band like Yes?

[enigmatic]

24. The Talking Heads were a punk band

Trust me on this.

[patcox2]

28. I were there too, and they ain't punk.

I have more punk in my little toe, even now at my advanced age, then them weenies. Art school aesthetes make me puke.

[enigmatic]

29. I played in punk bands

during that time; by any stretch of the imagination, yeah, they were punk.

If you want to believe otherwise, knock yourself out, I guess..

[patcox2]

39. Style thing, I guess, punk of all things shouldn't be intellectualized.

IMHO, that is. Punk is the most DIY of art forms, isn't that part of the genre? Just never cared for them, T heads, I guess. I may not know the early stuff, but later they combined an annoying self-consious avant-gardism with a sellout to commercialism(burning down the house) that I just don't think represents the punk aesthetic at all.

[dean_dem]

25. Sweeping generalization of the week...

...can't it be both? Love the Ramones as well, but if all music had to sound like that, I'd probably take up another hobby.

[patcox2]

50. Okay, sometimes its spiritual, but it ain'tt intellectual.

Intellectual rock is an oxymoron. Intellectuals can rock, some rock has intelligent lyrics (not Rush, though, thats the most sophomoric "look at me, I read a philosophy book" crap ever recorded) but the soul of rock is animal and physical. That feeling that makes you want to jump up and dance and howl at the moon is not something you're gonna get by thinking about it, its something you get by feeling. If you have to think about it, your not doing it right, just like sex.

Rock is Dionysian, not Appolonian.

[Strawman]

30. Two words: Phil Collins n/t

[MirrorAshes]

40. Its still alive and well.

In fact, its thriving.

[bobthedrummer]

42. Most of it was done by ego-centric technical players, it didn't have any

soul, it was pretty boring and depressing. Now glam rock, that was cool, it survived and adapted.

[Maestro]

43. It's still around

Here is my iMix of my prog rock.



You can vote for it here. http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPublishedPlaylist?id=350659

[Donailin]

45. Don't know where you are but there is a huge progressive scene here

DC Suburbs. No one listens to the radio, but that doesn't mean there aren't amazing bands still making music, local or otherwise

Speaking of Which, Opeth comes out with a new CD this summer "Ghost Reveries" and Darkest Hour just put out a new DVD

[Initech]

51. Opeth rules!

Cant wait for their new album!

*prays for a good tour too*

[Donailin]

54. Opeth is without doubt

one of the most epic bands ever. They are CRUCIAL. I spent the last year studying their method. my sons got me into them a couple of years ago and that wasn't easy but once I got used to Michael's death growl, I was rewarded with sweet melodies from his angelic tenor. Michael Ackerfelt is a genius. We saw them at the 9:30 club winter before last. Opeth are the musician's musicians. Pretty difficult to listen to hallmark card trendy jingles on the radio after you get hooked on the 13 minute ensemble of acoustic and metal. Can you tell I love this band?

[RandomKoolzip]

47. Because punk taught music writers to be reactionary.

If you really want an answer to this question, seek out "Rock and the Pop Narcotic" by Joe Carducci.

[chaska]

49. Sorry, I've had this debate.... (addressed to no one in particular)

If you dislike progrock your taste in music is probably pretty limited. There's good and bad in all forms of music. It's just another flavor. I like it all.

[no name no slogan]

53. I like ELP, the Pistols, Yes, the Stooges, Crimso, The Clash

I've never understood the animosity. I like the old prog-dinosaur stuff and the unmusicianly punk stuff, too. It just depends on the mood.

"Can't we all just get along?" :shrug:

[njdemocrat106]

52. I blame punk rock

I don't hate punk, but I like prog-rock a lot better.