Blog 12 Progressive Rock

Progressive rock also called “prog” rock, takes several characteristics from traditional rock n’ roll and adds a few of its own. Progressive rock mimics rock n’ roll in the sense that the instrumentation is the same. Progressive rock still uses the electric guitar and emphasizes singing. The creative use of technology is probably more evident in progressive rock than any other subgenre, because the layering of separate tracks was necessary to create that psychedelic effect. That is a unique feature of “prog” rock. The time of progressive rock was a time of experimentation and individuality.

The radical sense of thinking is first introduced by a mouse inside a light bulb as the album cover. The band uses a lot of synthesizes to create that “psychedelic” sound. It is a very long introduction that really establishes the tone for the entire recording. In comparison to the music the voices of the singers are relatively soft and smooth which emphasizes the music or places the music as the focal point for listeners. This is another common characteristic of “prog” rock, it is influenced by art music, and the music here reflects this. The first song played was actually taking about war and fighting. In the 1970’s was the time of the Vietnam War. Progressive rock entailed was known to be acknowledgements of the war as well as attacks against the war.