PA's Top Prog albums schewed towards early days?

Well of course they are rated higher because of nostalgia, but why should that mean they don't deserve their place?

Welcome to PA, J. You ask an interesting question. Well, "prog" is a rock subgenre that is defined by how it sounded and what it achieved in the early 70s, when it had its best moment. Since PA was established everyone rated the classics first because they form the hardcore of (almost) anyone's interest in prog. However, as time passed, people started discovering and rating new prog too, which is why modern albums started getting good positions in the general chart. Once in a while someone starts a thread asking what the hell are those recent albums doing in the chart. 

Personally I think that we are now actually facing the opposite phenomenon: new bands being hyped too much and not deserving the positions they get in the general chart. I mean, Haken made the 32nd best prog album of all time, better than Mars Volta or PT (from the more representative modern bands)? But as I said that's just me.

I would give you the link on the Wayback Machine to see how the chart looked in 2005 or 2006, but unfortunately that website isn't working these days because of maintenance. But you can trust me whn I tell you that was very, very little modern prog compared to what we have these days.

jverweij wrote: so basically you are implying that in order for us as an audience to judge an album we actually need to wait a few years, to see where it stands? That is actually something I've not considered, and would certainly explain this :)

Yes. How well a piece of art stands the test of time is often one of the best indications of how well-crafted it really is. Anything can be hugely successful for five minutes, and then disappear when something equal replaces it. The best albums, probably, are those that are remembered fondly in many years to come.

Also, it's easier to analyse particular eras and movements retrospectively than it is when they're actually happening. There are a lot of trends and attributes that separate 60s music from 70s music, 70s from 80s, etc....... but at the time, people probably didn't notice as much...... because they weren't able to just look at the important things that happened, they had to live through it all. In 1969 people weren't talking about progressive rock much....... yet now, when they do, they often refer to that year.

I'm not sure about an album with as few as a dozen reviews making the top 100. 

No disrespect to the OP, but I'm always amused by those who come into our site and immediately want to change it.

I would actually prefer to be able to post reviews without a rating, but that situation isn't going to happen.

Hi J,

JS19 wrote: Easy Livin wrote: There are plenty of other sites where classic prog does not get a look in. No there aren't. I can't even think of one....

seventhsojourn wrote: Hi J,   I'm sorry your thread was moved with such zeal but that was probably my fault, although I'm not sure it deserved to be buried in the ''Help us improve the site'' section just because I am a stupid tit.    As well as inadvertently derailing your thread, I also feel I owe you and Easy Livin an apology for your apparent difference of opinions. I think his comments could actually have been directed at me since I, not you, alluded to the algorithm. My fault, sorry about that to both of you.

Chris, sorry you felt targeted in some way or another but it wasn't the case. The thread got moved because it was not a discussion on prog music but on PA as a site. Here it will be getting more exposure instead of being flooded under the many new threads opened on a regular basis in the Prog Music Lounge; that's the benefit of having dedicated subsections for specific issues.

As for Bob's comment on the algorithm, that wasn't a reply to your comment but to the general idea of the OP, about the general chart being schewed towards the classics. As for your comment, I think Bob would also agree that a dozen reviews aren't enough for a top 100 position. I certainly do. But as other cases in the last two years since the latest algorithm change have proved, once the hype reviews pass and critical reviews appear, the album will go down quite quickly. It's not perfect but it's not a disaster either.

harmonium.ro wrote: harmonium.ro wrote: I mean, Haken made the 32nd best prog album of all time, better than Mars Volta or PT (from the more representative modern bands)? Whoah, I don't know what happened but there's no Haken album in the top 100 anymore. I guess it goes to show the corrective prowess of the algorithm. One negative review and all that unanimity in hype was balanced.