Your top 5 prog metal albums?

[KevShmev]

Taylor Swift - Speak Now
Taylor Swift - 1989
Taylor Swift - Lover
Taylor Swift - Folklore
Taylor Swift - Fearless (Taylor's Version)

Hilarious   

"I would not have majored in music because when music becomes technical for me I don't like that part of it. I can't read music." -Taylor Swift

The list of musicians who cannot read music who made it big in the business is not short.  Just goes to show you that reading music isn't a requirement when people as talented as Eddie Van Halen, Steve Howe, Taylor Swift and Eric Clapton, none of whom can read music, were still wildly successful regardless.

[emtee]

Some great mentions so far. Really love Redemption and I think Pagans Mind is deserving also.


DT- AWAKE
DT- I&W
OPETH- GHOST REVERIES
RUSH- HEMISPHERES
FATES WARNING- DISCONNECTED

I had to leave off SO many I love.

[Zantera]

The obsession for Taylor Swift on this forum is quite funny when her name keeps popping up in every thread

[Architeuthis]

The obsession for Taylor Swift on this forum is quite funny when her name keeps popping up in every thread

I've wondered that too, I see her name all the time around these parts. 
I wonder what she'd think if she knew this, or if she knows of DT..

Back to the main topic.
1. Dream Theater - ToT
2. Iron Maiden - Dance of Death
3. Symphony X - Iconoclast
4. Queensryche - Operation Mindcrime
5. Mike lepond's - Silent Assassins 

I was going to include Rush 2112, but I don't really consider them metal. Even Queensryche is borderline.

[KevShmev]

The obsession for Taylor Swift on this forum is quite funny when her name keeps popping up in every thread

I've wondered that too, I see her name all the time around these parts. 
I wonder what she'd think if she knew this, or if she knows of DT..

I think "obsession" is a bit over of an overstatement.  Sure, she is talked about more here than probably any other non-rock artist on this forum lately, and I will admit to instigating quite a bit of it lately as I am still a relatively new fan, but it's not exactly unusual for some to discuss arguably the biggest music artist in the world right now (or someone who, at the very least, is in the conversation). 

Moving on from that, I would be shocked if she is familiar with DT.  Maybe she saw their name on the sheet of nominations the two years they got nominated for a Grammy, but past a passing glance of their band name, I'd be surprised.  Prog and/or metal does not seem to be anywhere in her background, and I even saw an interview with her where she talked about her song All Too Well, which started off at about 10 minutes before she got it down to just under 6 for the album and she stated (her words), "You can't put a 10-minute song on an album."   So yeah, I doubt she listens to much prog metal, if any.

[Crow]

I just think it's incredibly funny to pollute threads like this with Swiftposting

[bobzor]

FATES WARNING- DISCONNECTED

An individual with fine taste, I see. Great album with a very dark atmosphere somehow. One of my top-tier choices for Fates.

I am not an Opeth guy at all, but it's interesting how many of their albums are mentioned in this thread. Maybe I should try again. Had Blackwater Park at some point but I just thought it was boring.

[jammindude]

I’m not sure I can contribute to this thread. I sometimes find myself at a loss for where the line between progressive rock and progressive metal lies.

[Peter Mc]

Dream Theater - Images and Words
Queensryche - Operation : Mindcrime
Dream Theater Scenes From A Memory
Rush - Counterparts
Tool - Lateralus

Honourable mentions to

Opeth - Blackwater Park and Ghost Reveries
Tool - Aenima
Rush - Power Windows
Liquid Tension Experiment 1&2
Dream Theater - Awake

[KevShmev]

I’m not sure I can contribute to this thread. I sometimes find myself at a loss for where the line between progressive rock and progressive metal lies.

For sure. I am seeing Queensryche's name a lot in this thread, but I think they are routinely mislabeled as metal when they are more hard rock than anything, which of course brings us back to that line to which you referred.  Think of it this way: Master of Puppets is as progressive as any album 'Ryche made in the 80's, and far more metal as well, yet people are listing some of Queensryche''s 80's albums here and I don't think I have seen Master of Puppets listed once (unless I overlooked it).

[HOF]

I’m not sure I can contribute to this thread. I sometimes find myself at a loss for where the line between progressive rock and progressive metal lies.

For sure. I am seeing Queensryche's name a lot in this thread, but I think they are routinely mislabeled as metal when they are more hard rock than anything, which of course brings us back to that line to which you referred.  Think of it this way: Master of Puppets is as progressive as any album 'Ryche made in the 80's, and far more metal as well, yet people are listing some of Queensryche''s 80's albums here and I don't think I have seen Master of Puppets listed once (unless I overlooked it).

Hmmm. I’m not a big metal head, but Queensryche not being metal seems a pretty narrow definition of metal to me. That’s like saying Iron Maiden isn’t metal. At least through Mindcrime, but Empire still sounds like metal to me and Promised Land still feels too heavy in parts to be just rock or hard rock.

[Dedalus]

I’m not sure I can contribute to this thread. I sometimes find myself at a loss for where the line between progressive rock and progressive metal lies.

For sure. I am seeing Queensryche's name a lot in this thread, but I think they are routinely mislabeled as metal when they are more hard rock than anything, which of course brings us back to that line to which you referred.  Think of it this way: Master of Puppets is as progressive as any album 'Ryche made in the 80's, and far more metal as well, yet people are listing some of Queensryche''s 80's albums here and I don't think I have seen Master of Puppets listed once (unless I overlooked it).

Hmmm. I’m not a big metal head, but Queensryche not being metal seems a pretty narrow definition of metal to me. That’s like saying Iron Maiden isn’t metal. At least through Mindcrime, but Empire still sounds like metal to me and Promised Land still feels too heavy in parts to be just rock or hard rock.

I always thought that selling Queensrÿche as prog metal in a world where there are records like Images & Words and Awake was a problem.
When you are a teenager just maddened by DT and discover that one of the parents of prog metal is QR you are eager to meet the band. So listen to records like The Warning, Rage for Order, Empire and it's kind of hard not to be disappointed. 

It was like that for me. I needed more time to really enjoy QR.

Evidently it makes sense to connect the band to the prog metal. However, post-DT you expect something else when you go to hear the band. 

[HOF]

I’m not sure I can contribute to this thread. I sometimes find myself at a loss for where the line between progressive rock and progressive metal lies.

For sure. I am seeing Queensryche's name a lot in this thread, but I think they are routinely mislabeled as metal when they are more hard rock than anything, which of course brings us back to that line to which you referred.  Think of it this way: Master of Puppets is as progressive as any album 'Ryche made in the 80's, and far more metal as well, yet people are listing some of Queensryche''s 80's albums here and I don't think I have seen Master of Puppets listed once (unless I overlooked it).

Hmmm. I’m not a big metal head, but Queensryche not being metal seems a pretty narrow definition of metal to me. That’s like saying Iron Maiden isn’t metal. At least through Mindcrime, but Empire still sounds like metal to me and Promised Land still feels too heavy in parts to be just rock or hard rock.

I always thought that selling Queensrÿche as prog metal in a world where there are records like Images & Words and Awake was a problem.
When you are a teenager just maddened by DT and discover that one of the parents of prog metal is QR you are eager to meet the band. So listen to records like The Warning, Rage for Order, Empire and it's kind of hard not to be disappointed. 

It was like that for me. I needed more time to really enjoy QR.

Evidently it makes sense to connect the band to the prog metal. However, post-DT you expect something else when you go to hear the band. 

I mean, they were part of a group of originators of the genre, but they weren’t like DT in a lot of ways. They were a metal band who expanded metal in a way that was progressive, moreso than they were what prog metal became with bands like Dream Theater. But DT certainly took a lot of cues from QR.

It’s kind of like how heavy metal existed long before Metallica. If you listen to Zeppelin or Deep Purple or Black Sabbath you are hearing the building blocks for what the genre would become. But you’re not going to hear much that sounds like modern metal post-Metallica.

[Dedalus]

I mean, they were part of a group of originators of the genre, but they weren’t like DT in a lot of ways. They were a metal band who expanded metal in a way that was progressive, moreso than they were what prog metal became with bands like Dream Theater. But DT certainly took a lot of cues from QR.

It’s kind of like how heavy metal existed long before Metallica. If you listen to Zeppelin or Deep Purple or Black Sabbath you are hearing the building blocks for what the genre would become. But you’re not going to hear much that sounds like modern metal post-Metallica.

You're right!

I just think  the "Oh, do you like DT? So listen to QR" should be "Do you like DT? Listen to QR too, but don't expect to find the same sound"

EDIT: Of course, what I'm saying was about a world that doesn't exist anymore: without internet and a lot of difficulty in getting access to the albums.

[Peter Mc]

I mean, they were part of a group of originators of the genre, but they weren’t like DT in a lot of ways. They were a metal band who expanded metal in a way that was progressive, moreso than they were what prog metal became with bands like Dream Theater. But DT certainly took a lot of cues from QR.

It’s kind of like how heavy metal existed long before Metallica. If you listen to Zeppelin or Deep Purple or Black Sabbath you are hearing the building blocks for what the genre would become. But you’re not going to hear much that sounds like modern metal post-Metallica.

You're right!

I just think  the "Oh, do you like DT? So listen to QR" should be "Do you like DT? Listen to QR too, but don't expect to find the same sound"

EDIT: Of course, what I'm saying was about a world that doesn't exist anymore: without internet and a lot of difficulty in getting access to the albums.

The same could be said of lots of these bands though.  Dream Theater don’t sound like Tool but they are both prog metal, they don’t sound like Opeth but they are both prog metal (up to Watershed).

I think there’s an argument to be had as to whether QR are prog but they are certainly a metal band.  They are definitely trad metal, not modern metal but the big riffs, guitar solos, cheesy operatic high pitched vocals, they are all metal tropes of yesteryear.

Hard rock to me is Bon Jovi, AC/DC, Whitesnake, Guns N’ Roses, bands like that.

[Dedalus]

I mean, they were part of a group of originators of the genre, but they weren’t like DT in a lot of ways. They were a metal band who expanded metal in a way that was progressive, moreso than they were what prog metal became with bands like Dream Theater. But DT certainly took a lot of cues from QR.

It’s kind of like how heavy metal existed long before Metallica. If you listen to Zeppelin or Deep Purple or Black Sabbath you are hearing the building blocks for what the genre would become. But you’re not going to hear much that sounds like modern metal post-Metallica.

You're right!

I just think  the "Oh, do you like DT? So listen to QR" should be "Do you like DT? Listen to QR too, but don't expect to find the same sound"

EDIT: Of course, what I'm saying was about a world that doesn't exist anymore: without internet and a lot of difficulty in getting access to the albums.

The same could be said of lots of these bands though.  Dream Theater don’t sound like Tool but they are both prog metal, they don’t sound like Opeth but they are both prog metal (up to Watershed).

I think there’s an argument to be had as to whether QR are prog but they are certainly a metal band.  They are definitely trad metal, not modern metal but the big riffs, guitar solos, cheesy operatic high pitched vocals, they are all metal tropes of yesteryear.

Hard rock to me is Bon Jovi, AC/DC, Whitesnake, Guns N’ Roses, bands like that.

I didn't say anything about hard rock.

I just said that when I tried to listen to the band with an interest in prog metal I was disappointed, because for my ears at the time, accustomed to DT, QR was a "normal band".

I remember that when I listened to The Warning, I felt like it was a simple traditional metal record.

[Trav86]

Queensrÿche is more of a “progressive-rock influenced” metal band. As opposed to DT or Fates Warning which are “progressive-metal” bands.  I don’t think Queensrÿche is any more prog than 80s Metallica.

[Peter Mc]

There was an earlier post saying that QR were a hard rock band rather than a metal band.  Sorry that bit was not a direct reply to your post but to the initial post which first queried why QR were included.

[Dedalus]

There was an earlier post saying that QR were a hard rock band rather than a metal band.  Sorry that bit was not a direct reply to your post but to the initial post which first queried why QR were included.

Oh, you're right, Kev's post 

[Dedalus]

Queensrÿche is more of a “progressive-rock influenced” metal band. As opposed to DT or Fates Warning which are “progressive-metal” bands.  I don’t think Queensrÿche is any more prog than 80s Metallica.

At the same time that I was trying to QR I also met FW. I didn’t like Arch's Warning (I don’t like it until today).

Fortunately there were also No Exit, Perfect Symmetry and Parallels available   

[Trav86]

Queensrÿche is more of a “progressive-rock influenced” metal band. As opposed to DT or Fates Warning which are “progressive-metal” bands.  I don’t think Queensrÿche is any more prog than 80s Metallica.

At the same time that I was trying to QR I also met FW. I didn’t like Arch's Warning (I don’t like it until today).

Fortunately there were also No Exit, Perfect Symmetry and Parallels available   

I’m with you. I’ve never cared for the Arch era. And really, I’m not big on No Exit. But, Perfect Symmetry forward, awesome band!

[cramx3]

There's certainly a lot of grey area of what is considered "prog metal"

I personally listed Operation Mindcrime because it seems that is generally considered a prog metal album, even though I personally only find QR to be borderline prog rock/metal. 

I've honestly never considered Master of Puppets to be prog metal, but I can see why someone might.  To me, they just generally aren't consdered that even though there's certainly enough elements to lump them in.  It's kind of why I gave some honorable mentions, I was trying to keep my top 5 albums that are generally considered to be part of the genre and not fringe. 

[King Postwhore]

Kev, back in the day, Queensryche was metal. They progessed musically until Chris left.

Metal back in the day wasn't the blast in the face as it is today.

[KevShmev]

I get that, and while not all metal sounds the same obviously, if you take 8-10 of the main metal bands of the 80's and put them in a playlist with a bunch of Queensryche songs from the 80's (even the most rocking ones) and put them on a shuffle, it really stands out how metal Queensryche really wasn't.  A friend of mine did this years ago when making a metal playlist and ended up taking all of the Queensryche songs off of it because they, in his words, clearly were not metal.  And I had to agree after being at his house once when he had it on and he was curious what I thought, and after a bit I was like, "yeah, everything else sounds metal, but Queensryche really doesn't."

The most metal thing about them really was Tate's vocals.  If you listen to the music, there is not much metal really at all.  Brief moments here and there, yes, but it's way more hard rock than metal, IMO.

[cramx3]

What about "hair metal" a lot of that stuff doesn't sound even like some of the 80s metal such as thrash. I feel like hair metal is more like hard rock these days but it was considered metal, so I just consider it a sub genre, like prog metal which I consider QR. I mean, even their newest album was kind of metal.

[KevShmev]

Yep, most of the material that falls under the "hair metal" banner was more rock than metal as well.  I often see it referred to as hair rock as well.

[jammindude]

It’s just funny to me because definitions seem to be changing all the time.

I walked into a record store in the 70s and there was an entire heavy-metal section.

Now....really stop and think about that.

There was an ENTIRE SECTION of the record store...in the 70s...labeled “heavy metal”.

What do you imagine was in that section? Black Sabbath and Judas Priest and nothing else?

[King Postwhore]

Their 1st 3 plus the ep definitely were. Empire was to Queensryche like the Black album was to Metallica.

[jammindude]

Oh, and DT owes more to Fates Warning than Queensryche. The world at large may not have heard of FW, but DT knew exactly who they were.

The first time someone showed me IAW, my first thought was, “These guys are TOTALLY ripping off Fates Warning!”

[TAC]

Regarding Queensryche and being progressive, I think they were only progressive during the EP-Warning-Rage For Order Era. They really "progressed" what normal metal was at the time. The EP was something totally new. It stretched the metal boundaries, and it is that reason why I consider them progressive.

But Operation Mindcrime is quite straight forward by comparison.

[HOF]

If QR seem less than metal it’s probably because their music has a lot of elements other than just crunchy riffs or up tempo rhythms and shredding solos. But that’s also what makes them progressive. They aren’t straight metal (though I think it’s pretty crazy to suggest they aren’t metal), but they deployed a metal aesthetic in different ways than say Maiden or Metallica.

I also think they are more progressive in the Pink Floyd sense (atmospheric and conceptual prog moreso than the kind with a bunch of key changes and odd time signature and extended instrumental passages).

[Trav86]

Oh, and DT owes more to Fates Warning than Queensryche. The world at large may not have heard of FW, but DT knew exactly who they were.

The first time someone showed me IAW, my first thought was, “These guys are TOTALLY ripping off Fates Warning!”

I&W is definitely more like Parallels than any QR album.

[HOF]

Oh, and DT owes more to Fates Warning than Queensryche. The world at large may not have heard of FW, but DT knew exactly who they were.

The first time someone showed me IAW, my first thought was, “These guys are TOTALLY ripping off Fates Warning!”

I&W is definitely more like Parallels than any QR album.

I think DT sound like QR mostly in the vocalist department, as well as just the general theatrics/operatic nature of some of the music. But I&W also has a similar production style as Empire. I knew QR before I ever heard DT, and I pretty closely associated them with each other from the first time I heard I&W. I heard FW later and the similarities there were also apparent though.

[TAC]

I also think they are more progressive in the Pink Floyd sense (atmospheric and conceptual prog moreso than the kind with a bunch of key changes and odd time signature and extended instrumental passages).

Eh, they made one album in their entire career that kind of feels has a Pink Floyd-ish influence.

[HOF]

I also think they are more progressive in the Pink Floyd sense (atmospheric and conceptual prog moreso than the kind with a bunch of key changes and odd time signature and extended instrumental passages).

Eh, they made one album in their entire career that kind of feels has a Pink Floyd-ish influence.

I'm more saying they are prog in the way that Pink Floyd are prog than that they sound like Pink Floyd. But I think the run from Mindcrime through Promised Land is pretty awash in PF influence. You have all the sound effects and dialogue throughout Mindcrime (that also show up on both subsequent albums). You have Michael Kamen's orchestration throughout that run as well. DeGarmo's solos also have a good bit of Gilmour in them.