Best Prog Metal Albums - please advise!!

Evan wrote: Here's my list.  Pretty good representation of styles & time periods.  1. Dream Theater - Scenes from a Memory Metropolis Part II 2. Opeth - Still Life 3. Atheist - Elements 4. Queensryche - Operation: Mindcrime 5. Iron Maiden - Seventh Son of a Seventh Son 6. Ayreon - The Human Equation 7. Devin Townsend - Terria 8. Tool - Lateralus 9. Dream Theater - Images and Words 10. Pain of Salvation - The Perfect Element Part I

I won't add the same bands that have already been mentioned as they will indeed be worthy purchases.

Edited by progmetalhead - June 15 2009 at 10:12

Green Shield Stamp wrote: To me,  this feels like a previously hidden door has just been opened to reveal a room full of priceless treasure!

Except it's not priceless, just overpriced.

Mr ProgFreak wrote:

Well pretty much anything from Dream Theater's or Pain of Salvation's discography should please you.

Ayreon is very good, and if you're into more power metal type stuff, try Symphony X.

If you can get yourself to try prog metal with growled vocals (not all the time), try Opeth.

I'm mostly a symphonic prog fan (Genesis, Yes, etc.), and I could tolerate Mikael Akefeldt's incredible growl.
If you try Opeth, get Still Life or Watershed first.

1- Liquid Tension Experiment (1) (for a progressive instrumental and experiment approach)
2- Magellan (Test of Wills) (really orginal soft and melodic prog metal)
3- Orenda (a Tale of A Tortured soul) (very close to Dream Theater and excellent)
4- Pain of Salvation (Remedy Lane) (the most original band difficult to put in a category)
5- Riverside (Rapid Eye Movement) (Best polish metal band)
6- Threshold (Wounderland) (Great singing by this great band)
7- MInd's Eye (A Gentlemen's Hurricane) (one of the best new concept prog metal)
8- Circus Maximus (1st Chapter) (very good new band)
9- Mindlfow (Just the tho of us) (a original and good complex prog metal)
10- Seventh Wonder (Mercy Falls) (another very good new prog metal)

Another plug for Kayo dot, particularly if you are a larks tounge/starless era fan of King Crimson. choirs of the eye is my single favorite piece of recorded music. but its far from traditional prog metal so you're not really getting a taste for the genre as much as simply doing yourself a favor. . .

Green Shield Stamp wrote: This is all excellent - thank you so much.    I doubt whether I will be able to limit my initial exploration to 10 albums.  From your recommendations, it looks like 100 albums would be needed to sample the best of the genre.    Please keep the recommendations coming.    I have already ordered 'Watershed' by Opeth (if I like it, I will buy 'Blackwater Park' and 'Still Life' very soon) and also 'Light of Day, Day of Darkness' by Green Carnation, based on opinions given in this thread.    I think Sieges Even, Pain of Salvation and Riverside will figure on my next  Amazon order. I will start to read up on all of recommendations that have so far been given (band biographies, album reviews etc).    To me,  this feels like a previously hidden door has just been opened to reveal a room full of priceless treasure!

Not that my opinion will matter much in the plethora of other recommended albums, but to add to the recommendations:

1. Metropolis Pt. 2; Scenes from a Memory by Dream Theater (got me into prog metal!!!)
2. Isa by Enslaved (for black metal)
3. Blackwater Park by Opeth (for death metal)
4. V: The New Mythology Suite by Symphony X (for power metal)
5. The Black Halo by Kamelot (for symphonic metal)
6. I by Meshuggah (for tech metal)
7. In a Flesh Aquarium by Unexpect (for avant-garde metal)
8. Second Life Syndrome by Riverside (for psychedelic metal)
9. Lateralus by Tool (for post-metal)

Those are my personal favs from the various styles of prog metal. Maybe I'm a conformist in my taste for metal after all, judging by the way those albums are rated.


Edited by Isa - June 16 2009 at 13:45