Derek Sherinian hardly requires an introduction. Derek has played with KISS, Alice Cooper, Zakk Wylde, Dream Theater, Billy Idol, Slash, and scores of other incredible musicians. I first heard about Derek from his work with Dream Theater on the Falling into Infinity album, and he has since become one of my favorite keyboardists. Following his departure from …
We are honored here at Proglodytes to chat with the delightful Ché Aimee Dorval. You may have heard her collaborative work with Devin Townsend, first as a guest vocalist on his Ki album (on “Gato”, “Heaven Send”, and “Trainfire”) and then later as a co-writer on Casualties of Cool, which was released through a highly successful …
The anticipation was killing me. It was the first weekend in May, and that could only mean one thing: time for the road trip. Destination: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Objective: a serious dose of live progressive rock. It was finally time for the internationally renowned Rites of Spring Festival. For the past five years, my longtime best …
Sometimes, the worst thing that can happen to a talented underground band is they get noticed, particularly by a major record label. Still, where avant-pop geniuses Bent Knee were concerned, it was only a matter of time before they got noticed and a major label got involved. The Boston quintet has been hard at work, …
I knew I had to see Devin Townsend at Bogarts. I couldn’t really avoid it. Mastodon, Eagles of Death Metal. and Russian Circles were playing at the Taft, which would have been a given if any other band or group was playing, but Devin and I go way back. I remember first hearing Devin Townsend’s …
After much anticipation, progressive metal band Tool has finally released the name and tracklist for their new album, Pleistocene, which will be released in late 2018. Lead singer Mayneard James Keenan has said of the album, “We tried to do a conceptual album with Lateralus a few years ago, but this time we decided to really commit. …
This post has a distinct purpose: to help folks like me open their mind up to good music. Up until about 5 or 6 years ago, I refused to listen to anything that Genesis released after Peter Gabriel left. I was a Genesis purist, and as far as I wanted to see, Genesis were prog’s …
I am writing this post with a grateful heart for the last few days of my life. I have walked the decks of this massive engineering marvel, listening to amazing music and meeting incredible people, but carrying with me the names of those I love and those who made it possible for me to come. …
My day 3 officially started at midnight last night. I went to sleep at 3 am, because I didn’t want to miss anything. The problem was that we were supposed to have breakfast at 7:30 AM with Steve and Jo Hackett. My brain, understanding the gravity of the appointment, managed to wake up at 6:45 …
This day has been wild. I’ll just start it by saying that by some fluke of the universe, I just got to jam to Beatles tunes with Neal Morse and Brook Hansen at a piano in a small bar. So I’m still sort of in shock… An example of the magic that can happen on …
I’m writing this review at 1 am and a group of musicians from the various bands we’ve seen today are playing the entire Court of the Crimson King album in a Greg Lake tribute. They just finished a ridiculously awesome version of “21st Century Schizoid Man” by King Crimson, with the lead singer of District …
To all of our lovely readers: Thanks to an incredibly thoughtful surprise gift from my beloved friends and family, I was given the amazing opportunity to represent Proglodytes on Cruise to the Edge 2017. I will be reviewing each show I see and I will try to help you, our lovely readers, share with me …
2016 has been an intense year here in the United States and in the rest of the world. We’ve lost Prince, David Bowie, Alan Rickman, and our collective minds. And to make matters worse, we have a presidential election coming up next Tuesday. Election anxiety has been a very real phenomenon this year, and many Americans …
After 18 years of recording, the supergroup trio known as The Jelly Jam finally toured this summer for the first time ever in support of their new album, Profit. The tour was very small—only 8 shows confined to the northeast United States—and it wasn’t well publicized. The tour culminated with the final show on August …
Each year, Prog Magazine gives out awards for the movers and music makers in the progressive rock world. A number of categories are open for fan voting, while others are determined by the writers and editors of the magazine. What follows is a discussion by the Proglodytes team on the awards and who should win …
When I first heard that Peter Gabriel and Sting were touring together, I’ll admit that I was a bit skeptical of the billing. In my mind, I viewed Peter Gabriel as more thoughtful and ponderous and Sting as a little more poppy and “mainstream”. I then was made aware that the structure of the shows would …
Big Big Train has been enjoying some well deserved success lately. Starting with their acclaimed release The Underfall Yard in 2009, Big Big Train has only enjoyed more and more positive reception. I first heard them after reading an article on modern progressive epics (meaning longer songs). ‘The Underfall Yard’ is a 20-minute progressive epic, fitted …
To preface this review, I was a really big fan of Dream Theater as a teenager. As a musician, their technical ability inspired me. I used to sit out in the garage and play along on the drums, carefully counting out time signatures and working on copying fills. I started to fall out of love …
Since 2012, progressive rock fans have been able to participate in the Progressive Music Awards, which are sponsored by Prog Magazine. We are big fans of all the pageantry and revelry that comes with an award show, and so we decided to put together the first annual Proglodytes Music Awards. Most awards shows have standard … Continue reading
Ever since I first heard Gavin Wallace-Ailsworth play, I’ve been consistently impressed with his impressive chops and artistry. Whether he’s drumming with Bent Knee, Justice Cow, or recording his solo music, Gavin brings a vibrancy and incredible energy to everything he does. I had the great joy to catch up with Gavin, and ask him … Continue reading
This episode of Proglodytes is brought to you by The Bow Tie Guy. If you’re ready to up your style game and join a worldwide community of fashionable bow tie wearers, check out bethebowtieguy.com. They have a wide variety of bow ties, as well as a blog and a podcast all dedicated to helping you stand out … Continue reading
In an embarrassing display of lost focus, accountant Steve Schweitzer of Hoboken, NJ completely train-wrecked the drum solo from Dream Theater’s song “The Dance of Eternity” on his after-work commute last evening. Witnesses described Schweitzer becoming increasingly agitated as a missed beat from the 13/16 measure at 0:38 turned into three lost beats as the … Continue reading
Australia es el nuevo Inglaterra en cuanto a metal progresivo se refiere; Caligula’s Horse son quizás, junto a Ne Obliviscaris, el acto más reconocido del país. Desde su formación en el 2011 —por Sam Vallen y Jim Grey— han sabido como juntar y mantener a su lado una fanbase sólida que crece a pasos agigantados. … Continue reading
For many a season, progressive metal bands sprouted and attempted to take root under the penumbral gloom of Dream Theater, with band after band mimicking DT’s approach: Long form songs, extended instrumental passages, technical expertise, shifting time signatures and sometimes uninspired vocal lines. The Dream Theater approach seems to have perhaps shifted to a back-seat … Continue reading
One of the oldest jokes about progressive rock music is that it’s a genre specifically for dudes. In the BBC documentary on progressive rock, there is even a slightly humorous section where they interviewed progressive rock artists like Steve Howe and Robert Wyatt and they pointed out that women didn’t ever show up to their … Continue reading
