Most influential Prog Bands

I'm going with Zappa. If you read through many of the classic Prog bands' liner notes, you will find that somewhere, he is connected!

OT Räihälä wrote: ...  Oh, and Moshkito: why do you always put three fullstops when one is enough? How can you afford so many? And have you thought about your carbon footprint? [Tongue in cheek mode off] It's a pain to read when there are one million needless fullstops.

Edited by moshkito - April 05 2012 at 08:44

OT Räihälä wrote: Vibrationbaby wrote: What about Nue!? nobody mentioned Nue! unless I'm going blind in my old age. They were copied by everyone from Hawkwind to Bowie. Never heard of Nue! Can't be that big influence... unless you're talking about Neu!  [neu] means [new] in German. Edit: Oh, and Moshkito: why do you always put three fullstops when one is enough? How can you afford so many? And have you thought about your carbon footprint? [Tongue in cheek mode off] It's a pain to read when there are one million needless fullstops.

Well excuse me. I think I know the meaning of the word. Anyway. If you listen to Opa-Loka off Hawkwind's Warrior On The Edge Of Time there is definitely some Neu ! influence. Lemmy even said it was drummers Alan  Powell and Simon King's idea  back in the seventies after he got sacked.

I dunno I don't think prog bands were " influenced "  by other prog bands except maybe offshoot bands like Flash. Maybe The Nice had some bearing on bands like Ekseption or Triumvirat but I don't even think that they were even listening to each other. I saw an interview with Ian Anderson back in the seventies and he came off to be only vaguely familiar with the music of Focus who occasionally could sound like JT because of Van Leer's flute. Progrock or art rock artists ( whatever you want to call them )  were influenced by other musicians outside of their early seventies phenomenom and there was a lot of original music happening back then where did bands like Gentle Giant, Gnidrolog, Egg or Soft machine find their roots? Not from prog bands Classical, medieval and Baroque composers ( particularily JS Bach ), rock groups  from the sixties primarily the Beatles and jazzmen formed the core of their "influences. The movement was even dubbed " Baroque & Roll " by someone at some point I don't think any electric guitar player can honestly say that they weren' "influenced " to some extent by Hendrix really. I just don't think any band put in ad in Melody Maker that said something like : " Hey man, ELP copycat band looking for a cat who can play keyboards exactly like Emerson man".

 Marillion is another band that everyone was comparing to Genesis and other dinosaur bands back in '83. I could never understand that. I can't see anything that the two bands have in common. marillion were just a band that became popular during an era where everybody was listening to new wave and top forty crap. I dunno. I think I'll just go and bash my head against the wall for a while. You guys read too much into prog when it's not really that complex at all.




Edited by Vibrationbaby - April 05 2012 at 09:40

Vibrationbaby wrote:  Marillion is another band that everyone was comparing to Genesis and other dinosaur bands back in '83. I could never understand that. I can't see anything that the two bands have in common. marillion were just a band that became popular during an era where everybody was listening to new wave and top forty crap. I dunno. I think I'll just go and bash my head against the wall for a while. You guys read too much into prog when it's not really that complex at all.

I agree entirely.  They were more influenced by Pink Floyd and Rush and this probably became even more evident once Fish left the band.  He just sort of sounded like Gabriel a bit but the music didn't have a whole lot in common with Genesis. 

As for influence in the 70s, I think some Italian prog rock bands have cited ELP as a major influence.  Triumvirat also mention ELP as an influence.  The Canterbury bands influenced each other, but that is understandable because it was a smaller scene, with the musicians shuttling between bands.  But I broadly agree that in the 70s, prog rock bands were influenced more by rock and classical music and less by other prog rock bands.

rogerthat wrote: Vibrationbaby wrote:  Marillion is another band that everyone was comparing to Genesis and other dinosaur bands back in '83. I could never understand that. I can't see anything that the two bands have in common. marillion were just a band that became popular during an era where everybody was listening to new wave and top forty crap. I dunno. I think I'll just go and bash my head against the wall for a while. You guys read too much into prog when it's not really that complex at all. I agree entirely.  They were more influenced by Pink Floyd and Rush and this probably became even more evident once Fish left the band.  He just sort of sounded like Gabriel a bit but the music didn't have a whole lot in common with Genesis.

Dean wrote: Snow Dog wrote: rogerthat wrote: Vibrationbaby wrote:  Marillion is another band that everyone was comparing to Genesis and other dinosaur bands back in '83. I could never understand that. I can't see anything that the two bands have in common. marillion were just a band that became popular during an era where everybody was listening to new wave and top forty crap. I dunno. I think I'll just go and bash my head against the wall for a while. You guys read too much into prog when it's not really that complex at all. I agree entirely.  They were more influenced by Pink Floyd and Rush and this probably became even more evident once Fish left the band.  He just sort of sounded like Gabriel a bit but the music didn't have a whole lot in common with Genesis.  I disagree. They did sound similar to Genesis. Take Grendel and The Web out of the equation and I don't think they did. Fish's vocal style was more influenced by Hammill than Gabriel

Nirvana were a very influential band.

rogerthat wrote: topographicbroadways wrote: When you think of the general music landscape today classic Prog actually had very little impact. Depends on what exactly you call classic prog.  The influence of Can, Kraftwerk, KC certainly extended to non prog music.  You mentioned Kurt Cobain, I think he mentioned Red album as an influence.  I think VDGG also influenced post punk bands but that is not really my territory and I cannot support that statement with any confidence.  Oh, and I don't think Pink Floyd even needs to be mentioned.

rogerthat wrote: topographicbroadways wrote: rogerthat wrote: topographicbroadways wrote: When you think of the general music landscape today classic Prog actually had very little impact. Depends on what exactly you call classic prog.  The influence of Can, Kraftwerk, KC certainly extended to non prog music.  You mentioned Kurt Cobain, I think he mentioned Red album as an influence.  I think VDGG also influenced post punk bands but that is not really my territory and I cannot support that statement with any confidence.  Oh, and I don't think Pink Floyd even needs to be mentioned.  I wouldn't argue with KC, Can and Kraftwerk having an influence definitely. Pink Floyd either. I think the bands that maintained elements of the early Psychedelic movement have translated best. Symphonic prog doesn't have much of a lasting effect was mostly my point I agree.  It may be heresy on this forum but symphonic is a rather limited concept, limited sound and of little use outside prog formats where such an epic feel is not necessary and sometimes not desirable.  So it could not have had lasting influence outside those bands that do want to carry on the symphonic sound.

iamathousandapples wrote: rogerthat wrote: Vibrationbaby wrote:  Marillion is another band that everyone was comparing to Genesis and other dinosaur bands back in '83. I could never understand that. I can't see anything that the two bands have in common. marillion were just a band that became popular during an era where everybody was listening to new wave and top forty crap. I dunno. I think I'll just go and bash my head against the wall for a while. You guys read too much into prog when it's not really that complex at all. I agree entirely.  They were more influenced by Pink Floyd and Rush and this probably became even more evident once Fish left the band.  He just sort of sounded like Gabriel a bit but the music didn't have a whole lot in common with Genesis.  As for influence in the 70s, I think some Italian prog rock bands have cited ELP as a major influence.  Triumvirat also mention ELP as an influence.  The Canterbury bands influenced each other, but that is understandable because it was a smaller scene, with the musicians shuttling between bands.  But I broadly agree that in the 70s, prog rock bands were influenced more by rock and classical music and less by other prog rock bands. That's because they lost their Genesis sound over the years. Their first two albums Fish practically aped Peter Gabriel and then Marillion slowly gained their own sound.

Edited by iamathousandapples - April 06 2012 at 16:21