Neo-prog
| Neo-progressive rock | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Early 1980s, England |
| Typical instruments | |
| Other topics | |
Neo-progressive rock (also known as neo-prog) is a subgenre of progressive rock, which developed in the UK and achieved popularity in the 1980s. Several bands from the genre have continued to record and tour.
Neo-progressive rock (or simply "neo-prog") is characterized by deeply emotional content, often delivered via dramatic lyrics and a generous use of imagery and theatricality on-stage. The music is mostly the product of careful composition, relying less heavily on improvised jamming. The subgenre relies very much on clean, melodic & emotional electric guitar solos, combined with keyboards. The main musical influences on the neo-prog genre are bands from the first wave of progressive rock such as early Genesis, Camel, and to a lesser extent, Van der Graaf Generator and Pink Floyd.Funk music, punk rock and hard rock were also influences on the genre.
In the book "The Progressive Rock Files", author Jerry Lucky dedicates a chapter to neo-progressive rock with the title "A Neo Beginning!", stating that this subgenre "surfaced in late 1981, bearing testimony to the lasting values of this musical form" of progressive rock, but distinguishing it from this main genre by going on to say that "Sure the sound was a bit different ... a little more bite, a little more eighties". Later in the same book, Jerry Lucky suggested that this subgenre of progressive rock peaked in the mid-1980s: "As 1984 dawned all of the British neo-progressive rock bands release material. Marillion's second Fugazi, Pallas' The Sentinel, Pendragon's Fly High Fall Far, Twelfth Night's Art and Illusion, Solstice's Silent Dance, Quasar's Fire in the Sky and plenty of others including records from Haze C'est La Vie, Craft, Mach One Lost For Words, BJH Victims of Circumstance, The Enid The Spell, and others".
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