Prog Bands, Artists and Genres Appreciation - Can Ambient be Progressive?

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Can Ambient be Progressive?

Printed From: Progarchives.com
Category: Progressive Music Lounges
Forum Name: Prog Bands, Artists and Genres Appreciation
Forum Description: Discuss specific prog bands and their members or a specific sub-genre
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=7591
Printed Date: November 29 2024 at 20:56
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 11.01 - http://www.webwizforums.com

Topic: Can Ambient be Progressive?

Posted By: Lachrymous
Subject: Can Ambient be Progressive?
Date Posted: June 15 2005 at 18:22

Okay, I'm curious about some of the specific classifications about what
constitutes progressive rock, or at least, what a band needs to do to be a
part of this site.

Now I'm a big fan of Brian Eno and he is the pioneer of ambient music.
His stuff form the 70s is amazing, very long epic minimalist songs with
mostly undetectable time signatures but are extremely innovative. Brian
Eno is one of Phil Collins' close friends, and Collins said in an interview
that Brian would write a handful of chords on a piece of paper, then cut
up the paper and use those cords in the order that he randomly put it
back together.

I know that progressive music is all about being inticately structures, but
alot of the epics are formulated from long, random, jam sessions (ie
middle section of PF's "Echoes" or the Apocalypse in 9/8 section of
"Supper's Ready" and ambient is all about being random and
unpredictable.

Final example: Tangerine Dream. They are included on this site as a prog
band, though I'm currently listening to one of my favorite albums "Zeit"
and it is a very ambient record.

Replies:

Posted By: DallasBryan
Date Posted: June 15 2005 at 19:46

Tangerine Dream and Brian Eno arent historically progressive rock. Tangerine Dream had a period from Statosfear to Force Majuere that they incorporated progressive rock beat with electronic synthesis. Although some of their other output hints at many things from rock to electronic to ambient, etc. The great Kosmiche music of europe is well represented by this time period.

Brian Eno is similar with his Another Green World being clearly progressive electronic rock and a few others around this time period hinting at this album which only includes several members that formed Brand X with out the Eno/Fripp influence. To dismiss much of this as progressive rock is to dismiss your head because you cant see your feet!