The 80s..the worst era for prog. - Progressive Rock Music Forum

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smartpatrol View Drop Down

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Posted: May 16 2012 at 10:16

Awesome

Chris S

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Posted: May 16 2012 at 00:48

The 80's was phooking fenomenal......King Crimson especially, Talking Heads, Kate Bush, Rush, Genesis, Yes.....ahh I rest my case...

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smartpatrol View Drop Down

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Posted: May 16 2012 at 00:35

RoyFairbank wrote:

The 80s may not have been good for prog as such. I love 80s production though. Cavernous, explosive drums and synths galore...... Great stuff. It made crappy music sound good and good music sound crappy. I wish it could have lasted forever.

cstack3

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Posted: May 16 2012 at 00:24

I love this post, thanks!! Clap

It wasn't ALL bad in the '80s....I was a gigging musician, playing originals and covers, and really enjoyed the energy and creativity of radio-hit bands like The Police, Men at Work, The Eurythmics, etc.

Fripp & Co. were tearing up the world with Roland synth-guitars, Adrian Belew had his own side-projects that were stellar, the recording & performance technology kept getting better and better, and cheaper and cheaper....

As far as "prog," well, we all know how little quality was coming out of many of our favorite artists....however, there was much musical growth. Some of the best fusion concerts I saw were in that era, including Al Dimeola and Pat Metheny (both employing the Roland synth technology), Chick Corea lighting it up with Frank Gambale, and numerous others.

It was evolutionary....music videos, bands coming from faraway lands, feature movies like Sting's "Dream of the Blue Turtle," etc. The prog wasn't even close to the product of the 1970's, but it probably will never be again.

RoyFairbank View Drop Down

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Posted: May 11 2012 at 16:47

The 80s may not have been good for prog as such. I love 80s production though. Cavernous, explosive drums and synths galore...... Great stuff. It made crappy music sound good and good music sound crappy. I wish it could have lasted forever.

smartpatrol View Drop Down

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Posted: May 11 2012 at 15:53

Great 80s prog albums:

Permanent Waves
Moving Pictures
Signals
Grace Under pressure
Duke
Abacab
Genesis
Discipline
Three of a perfect Pair
A Little man and a House and the Whole World Window
Peter gabriel III
Peter Gabriel IV
So

Edited by smartpatrol - May 11 2012 at 15:55

firstlensman View Drop Down

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Posted: May 11 2012 at 15:13

I've reconciled with Marillion only in the last 10 years.

Rush was good but it nowhere near matched 2112 and Hemispheres.

Didn't "discover" IQ until Subterranea.

Yeah, it was a dead time.

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smartpatrol View Drop Down

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Posted: April 15 2012 at 02:03

Well, most bands did go a little less prog, but with Rush, they were still prog, just incorperating more sounds and influences, and King Crimson was still as progressive as ever!

Edited by smartpatrol - May 11 2012 at 16:13

cacha71

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Posted: March 07 2012 at 09:46

^ I know what you mean, it has a couple of ballads which I'm not so keen on, either. If you like your prog heavy, I suggest you try Armaghedon
http://www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=16810
They also released a good album in 2008 called Stem
http://www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=21613

http://www.last.fm/group/Progressive+Folk

Sagichim

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Posted: March 06 2012 at 14:51

Long ago i heard their debut and didn't like it so much, it wasn't so heavy.
But i heard a couple of songs from their second and liked it more.
What's their best album?

cacha71

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Posted: March 06 2012 at 13:57

kenethlevine wrote:

cacha71 wrote:

Surprised nobody has mentioned Eloy. They released a couple of decent albums in the 80s, most notably Planets (1981), Time To Turn (1982) and Metromania (1984) However, my personal favourite is:

Celelalte Cuvinte - Celelalte Cuvinte (1987)

I mentioned Eloy several pages back, thus supporting my theory that nobody reads my posts Cry

but do tell us more about Cetelalte

Actually I did wade through the posts - all 11 pages of them, sorry I didn't spot that, my bad!!

Celelalte is a band from Romania who released their first and best album in 1987,

http://www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=16803

Generally Heavy Prog with a number of style changes throughout their career, from folk on the first album, to metal and alternative on later albums. Check out the samples on the artist page :-)

http://www.last.fm/group/Progressive+Folk

kenethlevine View Drop Down

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 18:47

I mentioned Eloy several pages back, thus supporting my theory that nobody reads my posts Cry

but do tell us more about Cetelalte

Evolver

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 17:56

While I would stop short of saying that the 80's were dismal for prog, they were something of lost years for the genre. Yes, after Drama, became very pop-ish. There was some prog in there, but it was hidden undar layers of slick pop. Genesis was... well, Genesis. Tull plugged along, but rarely hit the heights of the 70's.

At least some of these bands played their old stuff in concert. And Zappa, of course, was incredible in concert.

The new prog was out there, but pre-Internet, and with the major record labels completely uninterested, it was difficult to find, at least here in the U.S.

Even fusion was getting watered down. I was lucky enough to work in a record store, where I would hungrily devour the releases that came in from Cuneiform, and some of the more obscure fusion labels of the time.

Sure, prog was out there, butb finding it wasn't easy.

Trust me. I know what I'm doing.

akamaisondufromage View Drop Down

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 17:39

For someone who lived in Bath for 2 1/2 years he's not too hot on geography! North of London my arse!

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Slartibartfast View Drop Down

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 17:34

I'm sorry your font was too small. I couldn't read a damn thing. And could you please change the color of the text to white? Tongue

Edited by Slartibartfast - March 05 2012 at 17:34

Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened...

DaleHauskins View Drop Down

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 16:59

This professional Los Angeles Californian lead-rhythm guitarist was totally blessed in the 80's in progressive rock.

I was lucky to meet and hang out with Peter Gabriel in 1979 whilst playing in a prog band that live in Mr.Gabriel's pristine touristy beautifully built by the Romans in AD 43 little town called Bath;(In the south west,97 miles west of London ),while living for 2 1/2 years in West Norwood London,Gravesend,northwest Kent,Surrey and Dover after graduating high school in east Los Angeles.

In early 1980,I was truly blessed to be ask to join a Swiss progressive rock band from Lucerne Switzerland that just got a 5 album recording deal on Vertigo Phonogram Records called FLAME DREAM.

In the 80's these were the days when a major record label signed a progressive rock band;and gave tour support throughout Europe.

I witnessed many progressive rock band performing in Switzerland in the 80's such as Bonco,PFM,Shylock,OM,and soo many more...

In the 80's Swiss keyboardist,and hell of a gentleman,(including his dear father),amazing gifted keyboardist/Musician Patrick Moraz owned a very well known studio where many European progressive rock,and fusion bands recorded at his studio called Aquarius Studios such as Eloy,John McLaughlin,Bill Bruford,Shylock;and many many more.
Two of the best things that made Patrick's Aquarius Studios was amazingly clever & friendly French engineer Jean Ristori;and the huge custom Bösendorfer piano;(many prog bands recorded with that lovely instrument on their albums including FLAME DREAM.).

The 80's were seriously mega awesomeness for the Swiss progressive rock band I was in called FLAME DREAM.Having over 18 roadies,(not having much fun carrying up and down our 2 heavy anolog Mellotrons;and gigantic digital light show and PA.);using 4 semi trucks for touring + performing in huge venues throughout Italy,Germany;Switzerland;and Holland.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2-jG8q96eY
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flame_Dream

Edited by DaleHauskins - March 05 2012 at 19:24

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akamaisondufromage View Drop Down

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 15:31

*wipes tears from eyes, wipes nose*

Somewhere where there's no new music I guess.

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harmonium.ro View Drop Down

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 15:25

Gone to a better place... Wink

akamaisondufromage View Drop Down

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 15:17

Yes where is Wally ?

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harmonium.ro View Drop Down

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Posted: March 05 2012 at 14:22

^ actually Big Generator is awesome AOR, hardly anything to do with prog, but I'll agree with the general idea. Where's Walter when you need someone to squash the '80s haters...