What the Hell Is...?: Prog Rock

What the hell is ‘prog rock’???

It’s a term that’s been around forever, and may seem to have lost all relevance today, 25 years into the new millennium - a relic of another generation’s music, now hopelessly out of date and out of style.

But there’s a lot more going on here than most people realize. Progressive rock represented an unprecedented leap in the sophistication of popular music, empowering an entire generation to redefine what music could do and mean. It borrowed freely from classical music, jazz, and the experimental avant garde, taking up epic themes from mythology, literary, sci-fi - anything its early practitioners could get their hands on - all while exploring new technology to the fullest.

It’s the story of Yes, Jethro Tull, and Genesis; King Crimson, and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. Rush. Pink Floyd. Kansas. It’s a rich and interesting story, covered in summary in this WTH short read - one that we hope will leave the reader wanting to know more!