CLEMOFNAZARETH

Bob Moore

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SPECIAL COLLABORATOR: Prog Folk Researcher

Member since: 8/17/2005 • Forum posts: 4548 • Last visit: 1/13/2023 11:48:53 AM EST
Location: United States

Progressive Biography

My formative years were mostly in the 70s, so I have the advantage of having been around when some of the early progressive classics were still fairly new. As a teenager my favorite music was psychedelic/space (Jefferson Airplane, the Doors, Pink Floyd, David Bowie) and symphonic rock (Yes, Moody Blues), but also a lot of popular music like the Beach Boys, Chicago, and the Kinks.

Being from the American Midwest it was inevitable I would also be surrounded with some great blues-based music (Lynyrd Skynyrd, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Molly Hatchet), as well as a newer generation that leaned a bit closer to the experimental side (Bo-Deans, Jason & the Scorchers, R.E.M., Lone Justice, Cowboy Junkies), and even post-punk with social/folk tendencies (Jim Carroll, X, Joy Division, Concrete Blonde, Violent Femmes).

The bands who overlapped and expanded on these sounds for me don't seem to have a convenient genre name. Many of them are found here on the archives and some aren't. Those that are will often be found under the heading of Proto-prog or Prog-related. But I think if you asked them most of these guys would simply say they make music, regardless of the label. Spirit, Supertramp, the Decemberists, Faun Fables, Pererin, Beat Circus, Rasputina and After Crying all fit parts of this description and are among some of my favorites groups you'll find here. I'm also this site's official #1 Kansas fanboy.

These days my focus is primarily on progressive folk music. There are three characteristics of virtually all progressive folk that I find irresistible:

1) the stories told in the lyrics, which sometimes outshine the music itself;
2) heavy use of acoustic and often ethnic instruments, usually resulting in an earthy, natural and world-focused sound; and
3) an ever-present awareness of culture, history and traditions (both good and bad).

I think jazz fans share a similar joy in discovering that occasional gem at the back of a stack of dusty old records, the one that captures some musician or group engaged in a blatant act of full-frontal expression; or the modern equivalent where we have the opportunity to listen to tomorrow's discoveries today. There are certainly far worse ways to spend limited discretionary time and income.

Today there is an incredible body of progressive and art-related music available to old fans, as well as those just getting into prog music. This means there are many opportunities to listen to and appreciate the expressions of real artists, which means never having to spend your time or money on mass-produced pop drivel whose only message and goal is the separation of you from your hard-earned cash. My reviews are written with this in mind - that we all have limited income and even more importantly, that we all have a limited amount of time, and that we want to make sure it is spent productively and not listening to musical works by people who didn't even really try. Hopefully you'll find the few highly-rated works worthy of your time like I did.

peace

Reviews distribution by sub-genre

	Sub-genre	Nb of reviews	Avg rating
1	Prog Folk	347	3.16
2	Symphonic Prog	153	3.16
3	Crossover Prog	118	2.96
4	Eclectic Prog	94	3.00
5	Prog Related	50	2.72
6	Heavy Prog	37	2.68
7	Post Rock/Math rock	37	3.05
8	Proto-Prog	37	3.00
9	RIO/Avant-Prog	30	3.17
10	Psychedelic/Space Rock	29	3.28
11	Neo-Prog	18	3.22
12	Jazz Rock/Fusion	14	3.79
13	Experimental/Post Metal	14	2.71
14	Progressive Metal	9	3.00
15	Krautrock	5	2.80
16	Rock Progressivo Italiano	4	3.00
17	Various Genres	3	3.33
18	Indo-Prog/Raga Rock	3	4.00
19	Progressive Electronic	2	2.00
20	Zeuhl	2	4.00
21	Canterbury Scene	2	4.00
22	Tech/Extreme Prog Metal	2	3.00