Prog Recommendations/Featured albums

As this fresh 2024 debut from longstanding Finnish progressive metal band Kick the Giant kicked off with the title cut, the opening riff seemed a direct rip off of Ice Age (not to be confused with Iced Earth). With that opening, I was skeptical. But as the song proper got going, it was clear this was no clone. The second song, Statement, was a huge surprise, as the group successfully fuse two genres traditionally at odds with each other, prog and punk. Over the course of the rest of the album we plenty of soaring melodies leading to cheezy crescendos, plenty of derivative interjections, and even a blatant light up the bic and sway your shoulders ballad. On paper, this sounds like it ought to be mostly a pass, but it's all expertly executed and somehow avoids becoming too cliché, ultimately making for a great listen overall, even if there's really nothing new.