what's the best Female Prog band?
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Category: Progressive Music Lounges
Forum Name: Prog Music Lounge
Forum Description: General progressive music discussions
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=25934
Printed Date: January 22 2025 at 16:00
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Topic: what's the best Female Prog band?
Posted By: necromancing777
Subject: what's the best Female Prog band?
Date Posted: July 09 2006 at 20:44
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It's no surprise that prog music over the last 30+ years has been male dominated. But I want to know what some of your favorite 'female' prog bands are (i.e. prog bands w/female vocals). Maybe there's some new bands out there I haven't come across yet, just waiting to be discovered.
Here's my short list of some female prog bands I find noteworthy and enjoyable (all listed here on prog archives):
Mostly Autumn
Magenta
Renaissance
Curved Air
The Gathering
Karnataka
Iona
Glass Hammer
Nightwish ------------- 
"Your progressive hypocrites hand out their trash, But it was mine in the first place, so I'll burn it to ash." |
Replies:
Posted By: bhikkhu
Date Posted: July 09 2006 at 20:46
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Renaissance is the only one I've ever heard. I do like Kate Bush, but she's prog related. ------------- a.k.a. H.T. http://riekels.wordpress.com" rel="nofollow - http://riekels.wordpress.com |
Posted By: memowakeman
Date Posted: July 09 2006 at 20:51
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maybe you`re asking for the best female vocalist...
there aren`t so many female bands i think, now im thinkin only of Ars Nova, great band !!" ------------- Follow me on twitter @memowakeman |
Posted By: Fassbinder
Date Posted: July 09 2006 at 21:00
| If you are talking about female vocalists then I can recommend you Spirogyra (Barbara Gaskin - vocals), a British Prog-folk band from the earlier 70's. |
Posted By: Fassbinder
Date Posted: July 09 2006 at 21:08
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Look also at these polls:
http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1673&KW=female&PID=29407#29407 - http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1673&KW=female&PID=29407#29407
http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=81&KW=female&PID=527#527 - http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=81&KW=female&PID=527#527
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Posted By: honganji
Date Posted: July 09 2006 at 23:54
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In case of all female musicians' band, I like Rosalia. |
Posted By: micky
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 00:09
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Apoteosi and Saint Just as welll but Renaissance of course above all.... ------------- The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip |
Posted By: micky
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 00:09
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all female.....Ars Nova!!!
------------- The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip |
Posted By: Ivan_Melgar_M
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 00:17
Soon will be here, outstanding band.
Iván ------------- 
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Posted By: DarioIndjic
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 00:20
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Ars Nova
------------- Ars longa , vita brevis |
Posted By: micky
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 00:29
hahah...whoa... ------------- The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip |
Ivan_Melgar_M wrote:Posted By: verslibre
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 00:45
Aside from Naomi Miura's composition on King's Boards did any of their albums ever make it onto CD? ------------- https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_ipg=50&_sop=1&_rdc=1&_ssn=musicosm" rel="nofollow - eBay |
Posted By: verslibre
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 00:45
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Another vote for Ars Nova here!
------------- https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_ipg=50&_sop=1&_rdc=1&_ssn=musicosm" rel="nofollow - eBay |
Posted By: honganji
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 02:34
King's Board is omnibus album by keyborad-oriented progressive rock songs. This was released in 1990.
Miura has played in Rosalia, Ars Nova etc, but she hasn't stayed for long time in one group
 |
Posted By: Pneubauer
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 02:48
Bæbes?  |
Posted By: aspinosa
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 08:35
| Bacamarte from Brazil, it is in the top 20 symphonic. |
Posted By: Trickster F.
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 08:50
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In The Woods... ftw.
-- Ivan ------------- sig |
Posted By: Kotro
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 09:36
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Ars Nova for an all-female bad.
Mostly Autumn and, to an extent, Pure Reason Revoulution for female vocals.
Medieval Babes is something else... But Miranda Sex Garden are worth considering. ------------- Bigger on the inside. |
Posted By: Dragon Phoenix
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 09:38
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Not mentioned yet: Earth and Fire (Jerney Kaagman).
------------- Blog this: http://artrock2006.blogspot.com |
Posted By: Clark Ashton
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 09:54
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Necromancing, or anyone else interested in female fronted prog, check out
http://www.musicaldiscoveries.com/ - http://www.musicaldiscoveries.com/
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Posted By: Asyte2c00
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 11:15
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Rennaissance
Curved Air
Stream of Passion
Lacuna Coil
Pretenders
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Posted By: progmar
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 11:21
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Ars Nova - I saw them live at the ProgSol Festival 2003 in Bellach/Switzerland. However, during this gig they played with an male drummer, which was just sensational!! ------------- Music washes away from the soul the dust of every-day life. Berthold Auerbach |
Posted By: Asyte2c00
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 11:22
I do not understand what is so special about Ars Nova. It seems evryone loves them, when in truth, a much more talented prog rock outfits that deserve to be discussed on PA.
Imo, They have experienced unwarranted popularity on this site.
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Posted By: Garion81
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 11:34
Why does everyone leave IZZ off the list. Is it becasue the female vocalists are not the lead vocalists all the time. This is great band with a lot of great music. Last year at Calprog they covered Close to the Edge and did it well.
 ------------- 
"What are you going to do when that damn thing rusts?" |
Posted By: Politician
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 11:52
| There have been literally hundreds of excellent female-fronted progressive bands from around the world over the years - I can think of several dozen from Japan alone. The most important and long-lasting were probably RENAISSANCE (with Annie Haslam and Jane Relf, UK), CURVED AIR (with Sonja-Kristina Linwood, UK), AMON DÜÜL II (with Renate Knaup-Krötenschwanz, Germany), MAGMA (with Stella Vander, France), HENRY COW (with Dagmar Krause and Georgie Born, UK) and MALICORNE (with Marie Yacoub, France). |
Posted By: cold103
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 14:19
My pick is definitely After Forever. How can anyone not mention After Forever? 
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Posted By: Dirk
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 14:30
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^Because they are not in the archives (yet). But i agree , they are pretty good in their genre a lot better than Nightwish IMO. I picked up some albums from Aries, Interpose and the Trees lately, since they have not been mentioned already and i like them all i'll submit these. Reading this thread it's seems i have to check out Ars Nova. |
Posted By: Drew
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 14:34
Kittie?
 ------------- |
Posted By: MikeEnRegalia
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 14:58
What a shame ... you don't know what you're missing! ------------- https://awesomeprog.com/release-polls/pa/aoty-2024/vote" rel="nofollow - 2024 Release Poll Listened to: 
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Posted By: Trickster F.
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 15:03
Exactly! Without Evanescence and Lacuna Coil one can not claim his musical diet is complete~!
 -- Ivan ------------- sig |
Posted By: Eetu Pellonpaa
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 15:21
PAATOS 
CURVED AIR seems to be a great band with a female lead singer too, but I have just found their early works, and some of their repertoire is still unkonw to me. I like that sometimes Sonja even streches out of the normal feminine context (like their performance of "Propositions" at Belgian TV). She realy can afford to do that!
 RENAISSANCE is nice band, but there are many more obscurer folk acts with great female vocals, TREES, some FAIRPORT CONVENTION, TUDOR LODGE, SPIROGYRA, EMTIDI and CAROL OF HARVEST come into my mind now. I believe Sean would know many such bands more!
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Posted By: sm sm
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 15:24
The Great Kat?, Arch Enemy?, Spice Girls?, Paris Hilton?, the Simpson sisters? With terrific male musicians behind Annie Haslam, Renaissance made quite a few good recordings.
They make a couple of stinkers too in the late seventies with Cameral Camera. |
Posted By: progadicto
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 15:49
U R right!! I almost forget Miranda Sex Garden... So many years without listen their albums... ------------- ... E N E L B U N K E R... |
Posted By: progadicto
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 15:51
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And don't forget the brilliant, beautiful and raw DIAMANDA GALAS... you have to listen THE SPORT LIFE (with John Paul Jones)... Dunwich has female vocals too... and I also love TORI AMOS...
------------- ... E N E L B U N K E R... |
Posted By: micky
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 16:49
well thanks for sharing that hahahaha.... I do enjoy that type of logic... lots of people like this group but I don't...so it must be unwarranted popularity... good job buddy...  ------------- The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip |
Posted By: Baggiesfaninuk
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 17:15
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Pure Reason Revolution I don't think Nightwish qualify as prog - if so, you'd have to include Within Temptation, Lacuna Coil, Epica, After Forever, Leaves Eyes, The Sins of Thy Beloved, Theatre of Tragedy....etc, etc..etc. Great Gothic Rock / Symphonic Metal but prog? Nah! Anyway, best not say anymore as there's a whole thread devoted to the Nightwish debate.  ------------- My father was a beekeeper before me; his father was a beekeeper. I want to follow in their footsteps. And their footsteps were like this. (Runs screaming) "AAAAAAAH! I'm covered in beeeeees!" - Izzard |
Posted By: titico
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 19:10
| The best for me are Lacuna Coil and Nigthwish! :) |
Posted By: Ivan_Melgar_M
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 22:08
I'm a Miranda Sex Garden fan (As a fact I added them to Prog Archives last summer <http://www.progarchives.com/Progressive_rock_discography_BAND.asp?band_id=2214> ), but they are not an exclusively Female band, they had a female vocalist who is not other than the great Katharine Blake (Founder of Mediaeval Baebes) on lead vocals Jocelyn West (Replaced by Donna McKevitt in vocals, violin and viola), Kelly McCusker (Replaced by Hepzibah Sessa in vocals and keyboards) and much later the also Baebe Teresa Cassella /vocals and bass). But the band also played Ben Golomstock (Guitars, organ, bass, vocals) and Trevor Sharpe (Drums, percussion, bass). I thought we were talking about pure feminine bands, if not would have mentioned:
BTW: Mediaeval Baebes is an extraordinaire Celtic Gothic (Not Goth) Medieval inspired vocal band with a lot of reasons to be considered Progressive Rock if it wasn't for the lack of Rock component as in their predecessor Miranda Sex Garden, that's the reason why and even when I have all the info ready for their addition, still haven't decided, probably will go to Prog Related instead of Prog Folk unless their latest album has enough Rock blending as they have spoken. -------------
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Posted By: BaldFriede
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 22:57
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I thought this was a thread about bands that only have (or had) female
members. An excellent example was the Feminist Improvising Group, which
consisted of Georgie Born (cello), Lindsay Cooper (bassoon, saxes and oboe),
Irene Schweizer (piano), Maggie Nichols (vocals) and Sally Potter
(vocals). It is an open question whether their music could be called
prog, but Cooper and Born were involved with the Canterbury scene (both
were members of Henry Cow and appear on several albums of Canterbury
artists), and drummer Mani Neumeier was a member of the Irene Schweizer
trio before he founded Guru Guru.
-------------  BaldJean and I; I am the one in blue. |
Posted By: NotAProghead
Date Posted: July 10 2006 at 23:10
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MOSTLY AUTUMN,
QUIDAM (before Emila Derkowska departure)
APOTEOSI
ZAUBER
But in general, "this is a men's world". ------------- Who are you and who am I to say we know the reason why... (D. Gilmour) |
Posted By: razifa
Date Posted: July 11 2006 at 01:31
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Mine is:
NIGHTWISH
 ------------- ********** **razifa** ********** |
Posted By: lucas
Date Posted: July 12 2006 at 17:44
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IONA : all their albums are good, especially 'Beyond these shores'
Not prog but I think EVA CASSIDY (RIP) deserves a mention : she was equally gifted in playing blues, jazz and pop.
I think the best female vocals are in :
folk/country (CLAVETO ARNEODO (from LI TROUBAIRES DI COUMBOSCURO), MADDY PRIOR, who has a brilliant solo career, MAIRE BRENNAN, JACQUI MCSHEE, SANDY DENNY, LINDA RONSTADT, EMMYLOU HARRIS, LUCINDA WILLIAMS, JONI MITCHELL)
black music [soul, gospel, Mbalax, vocal jazz] (ARETHA FRANKLIN, RANDY CRAWFORD, BETTY SWANN, CANDI STATON, ROBERTA FLACK, VIVIANE N'DOUR, MAVIS STAPLE, MAHALIA JACKSON, BILLIE HOLIDAY)
pop/rock (ANNIE LENNOX, ALANIS MORRISETTE, DEBORAH HARRY, NENA, DOLORES O'RIORDAN, BONNIE TYLER, TOYAH WILCOX, TORI AMOS, KATE BUSH, CHRISTINE MCVIE, JANIS JOPLIN)
world (HUONGH TANH, GLORIA ESTEFAN, CESARIA EVORA, LILA DOWNS) ------------- "Magma was the very first gothic rock band" (Didier Lockwood) |
Posted By: Rocktopus
Date Posted: July 12 2006 at 18:37
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Plenty of great female voices in prog folk: Pentangle's Jacqui Mc Shee is fantastic and new group Faun Fables is great as well. Canterbury band National Health's Amanda Parsons (only the debut) hasn't been mentioned yet. Other favorites: first Curved Air. Then the rest: Spirogyra, Pierrot Lunaire(on Gudrun), Comus, Trees, Kate Bush, Babe Ruth (and sometimes Renaissance). ------------- Over land and under ashes In the sunlight, see - it flashes Find a fly and eat his eye But don't believe in me Don't believe in me Don't believe in me |
Posted By: micky
Date Posted: July 12 2006 at 19:45
 ------------- The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip |
Posted By: fungusucantkill
Date Posted: July 12 2006 at 21:48
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ars nova for me -------------  
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Posted By: cuncuna
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 01:47
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Art Bears fan over her. Not all female band, but definitely their strength come from Dagmar Krause; she is the best singer on both genres. ------------- ¡Beware of the Bee! |
Posted By: BaldFriede
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 03:30
And Georgie Born (cello) and Lindsay Cooper (woodwind instruments) were members of the Art Bears too, so in fact three women in that band. ------------- BaldJean and I; I am the one in blue. |
Posted By: philippe
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 03:57
 I'm looking forward to here that stuff. I wonder what kind of sh*t they can play------------- 
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Posted By: lucas
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 06:30
Judging the inside by looking at the outside is what we call "prejudices" Philippe !
------------- "Magma was the very first gothic rock band" (Didier Lockwood) |
Posted By: Trickster F.
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 06:47
Philippe must have been thinking that they are only good in bed and kitchen!
   -- Ivan ------------- sig |
Posted By: philippe
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 07:38
the "aesthetic" of the outside really sucks, both are combined, the inside can't be better because the outside reveals bad tastes. -------------
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Posted By: Ivan_Melgar_M
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 13:31
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Phillippe it's obvious you haven't heard them, most of them are classically trained as singers, they play Gothic (Real Gothic or late Medieval, not that thing called Goth) and Renaissance music.
They have some of the best voices I ever heard and the aesthetics of their music is incredible as well as the elaborate complexity of their vocal work. Some of them play instruments in which they have been classicaly trained and even one of them is a recognized writter.
None of them is a top model or an ignorant beauty, this photo has been digitally altered by the label and I see nothing wrong if some of them are beautiful and intelligent. And I don't see why the aesthetics in the outside suck, they are all dressed in black in a computer generated forest.
They have at least the same right to be here as Fairport Convention but if I haven't added them is for the lack of Rock component not for lack of quality because they have more than enough quality and skills.
Better listen them before questioning their abbility as musicians.
Iván -------------
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Posted By: cuncuna
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 13:37
I have a joke about that. I don't like it, but a joke is a joke. So... A man and a woman are in a very passionated mood. They go to the bedroom, kissing and throuing thing as they pass. She looks at him and says: "Make me feel like a woman". He looks at her, slowly takes his shirt of, and then extend the shirt towards her and says: "Well, wash this". ------------- ¡Beware of the Bee! |
Posted By: cuncuna
Date Posted: July 14 2006 at 21:55
I've seen a lot of horrible covers with good music inside. ------------- ¡Beware of the Bee! |
Posted By: lucas
Date Posted: July 15 2006 at 07:09
That's the main problem with Philippe : he judges an album by its cover or by the music's label (neo-prog or metal-prog = sh*t for him) even before having listened to its content. And everything that isn't weird isn't prog for him. I respect his tastes in prog (electronic, krautrock, indo-rock) : I don't give my opinion on the albums he suggests to listen to if I haven't listened to them, but unfortunately this respect isn't reciprocal
 .Remember, Philippe, that "l'habit ne fait pas le moine" (clothes don't make the man). ------------- "Magma was the very first gothic rock band" (Didier Lockwood) |
Posted By: Rocktopus
Date Posted: July 15 2006 at 07:32
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Isn't this Mediævel Babes picture meant ironic? Or do they all actually want to look like the singer in Nightwish? Listened to some streams, and if they're anything to go by, they're easy listening 'relaxation' versions of folk-and mediaval songs, has as little to do in Progarchives as Secret Garden. ------------- Over land and under ashes In the sunlight, see - it flashes Find a fly and eat his eye But don't believe in me Don't believe in me Don't believe in me |
Posted By: philippe
Date Posted: July 15 2006 at 07:33
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Metal prog is self indulgent music for little heads. Art has to give me the appetite to live and experiment life... metal just gives me an image of obscenity, a destruction of the aesthetic and the victory of false musical manifestations guided by the cult of money and low instincts. It's the conformity of the worst. Neo-prog exists but not in metal territory. -------------
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Posted By: micky
Date Posted: July 15 2006 at 08:30
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so..... with that out of the way... who wants to talk about how great Ars Nova is? hahaha ------------- The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip |
Posted By: Ivan_Melgar_M
Date Posted: July 15 2006 at 15:15
Phillippe, you know I'm not aProg Metal fan, as a fact I like some metal bands and a few Prog Metal ones, but something may not give YOU the appetite to life and expériment life but can give OTHERS this appetite.
I respect your point of view and partially agree with it, that's why I don't buy many Prog Metal albums (POS is outstanding IMO and Fantomas is excellent), but the rest of the people are entitled to their personal taste also.
This is art, not an execat science.
Iván -------------
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Posted By: cuncuna
Date Posted: July 15 2006 at 19:35
Parameters... we need parameters. I would like to say the same thing about any band on any genre that sticks to the definition of the respective label. So, ELP like are self indulgent bands; Italian prog are self indulgent bands, Krautrock and Krautrock like are self indulgent. All of them can be pointed, if they match a certain criteria. I can think about a lot of prog bands that use that Baroque/Rock/Jazz mixture, with Hammond solos over a repetitive bass sequence, usually on somekind of a weird tempo. I can point Triumvirat and others as self indulgent on the keyboard work (I can hear them saying "what the hell, let's use those short Keith Emerson musical phrases, but let's use a flute on the left channel, to make it sound like something different). So, the self indulgent commentary can give us enough to write a book. I think I'm self indulgent, just listening to prog and convincing myself about how it is a wise choice, for prog is the best music la la la; now, I'm suddenly interested in Tujiko Noriko. ------------- ¡Beware of the Bee! |
Posted By: MikeEnRegalia
Date Posted: July 15 2006 at 19:41
Thanks for reminding me why it is better to leave this place behind. Many nice people, many ... well, "not so nice" people.  ------------- https://awesomeprog.com/release-polls/pa/aoty-2024/vote" rel="nofollow - 2024 Release Poll Listened to:
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Posted By: Forgotten Son
Date Posted: July 15 2006 at 21:23
Their aesthetics look pretty good from where I'm standing, Philippe.  |
Posted By: Sammus_the_hutt
Date Posted: July 16 2006 at 08:10
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or are the best female (fronted anyway) prog band! http://www.7thfloorband.com - www.7thfloorband.com or http://www.myspace.com/7thfloorband - www.myspace.com/7thfloorband ------------- Goodnight, Tonight, Im burning star 4 |
Posted By: GPFR
Date Posted: July 17 2006 at 10:40
Holy crap, I thought this was a joke at first, read the later comments, There... wow, I like that. But I don't think they'll be here soon, they don't sound very proggy to me. ------------- www.myspace.com/hail_peter 
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Posted By: Minkia
Date Posted: July 22 2006 at 15:54
| COLDPLAY: They're all girls in the band! |
Posted By: Ivan_Melgar_M
Date Posted: July 22 2006 at 19:01
At least as Proggy as Fairport Convention.
Iván -------------
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Posted By: micky
Date Posted: July 22 2006 at 19:04
damn right Ivan... besides.. just what the hell does proggy sound like anyway... ------------- The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip |
Posted By: markosherrera
Date Posted: October 14 2006 at 23:46
| sally oldfield,oratory,cadaveria,blood parade and many before mentioned. |
Posted By: DarioIndjic
Date Posted: October 15 2006 at 02:32
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Gathering ------------- Ars longa , vita brevis |
Posted By: Anthony
Date Posted: October 15 2006 at 05:25
Mostly Autumn  ------------- Future prosperity lies in the way you heal the world with love (Introitus - The hand that feeds you) |