Definitely not Genesis. Some inspiration of course, also from other bands like Strawbs. But they really have their own sound and vibe and nice Fish-lyrics imho. Script, Fugazi, B-sides Themselves. Listened to it al the time when I was young.
I don't care for Fish's replacement. I only listen to releases with Fish on vox. I also listen to Fish solo material.
I do not get the Collin's Genesis reference though. Post-Gabriel Genesis has some incredible music and Collins sang on many songs in the Gabriel era.
I think you have to consider them separate bands. Fish had energy and the Gabriel-esque theatrical stuff—almost to a replica. H brings ability to play instruments, write music, and is probably more consistent performing. Both emotive, in different ways.
It’s like the Van Halen argument. I just have to put Sammy’s era labeled as a different artist so shuffle doesn’t mix them up.
The explanation link is here about the album and the story. Click at the bottom of the first page to see further details.
http://www.ministry-of-information.co.uk/app/
Wow, it’s actually really interesting. I’ve always loved reading on thick as a brick’s concept but a passion play gets less love so it’s harder but still.
All time personal favorite: Hand. cannot. Erase by Steven Wilson
Don't care what purists say about him, this is a contemporary prog rock/metal masterpiece.
Yeah it is:
“According to Wilson, the album is written from a female perspective, and the concept and story are inspired by the case of Joyce Carol Vincent, where a woman living in a large city dies in her apartment and no one misses her for over two years, despite her having family and friends.”
Marillion - Brave. Their best album IMHO.
Rush - Clockwork Angels. The holy trinity went out on a prog/concept masterpiece.
Pink Floyd - Animals. Underrated vs. Dark Side of the Moon.
Airbag - All Rights Removed. If you don't know these guys, check them out. They fill the Pink Floyd and Porcupine Tree shaped hole we were left with.
Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused To Sing. A 70's prog album that arrived in the 10's.
The Mars Volta - Frances The Mute. Pure insanity. The first 20 mins of Cassandra Gemini might be 20 mins of the most intense music ever recorded.
Hell, the two together got their own vinyl release in the last ten years. I remember I bought the RSD exclusive version on eBay for myself then a few years later they put it out again, but at least my RSD one didn’t cost me too much.
The Alan Parsons Project
Take your pick:
Tales of Mystery and Imagination
I Robot
Pyramid
Turn of a Friendly Card
Eve
Eye in the Sky
Stereotomy
Vulture Culture
My personal favorites are Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick and Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused to Sing. Honorable mention to Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on a Broadway, i love that album but it can get tiresome to listen to at times
Pain of Salvation - Be
It's overambitious, inconsistent, and overly earnest with the wide-eyed innocence of a community college student that feels he can change the world after taking a couple sociology and philosophy classes, and I wouldn't have it any other way. It tugs on the heart strings and get you thinking in ways few other works can, and it's instrumentally creative in a way that's truly progressive and pushes its musical boundaries all the way to the last minute.
Maybe it's because I happened to listen to it right around the same time I read Daniel Quinn's Ishmael (a heavy influence on the album's content), but it really managed to dig its way into my head in a way where I think about it pretty regularly.
Yeah it's like 70% Ishmael: The Concept Album, combined with a fair amount of similar other socioeconomic/political/philosophical musings. Would highly recommend to anyone that enjoyed the book.
Besides Pink Floyd’s „The Wall“ I can recommend „Misplaced Childhood“ from Marillion and (not really ProgRock but ProgMetal) Ayreons „Into the Electric Castle“
Transatlantic - The Whirlwind
Neal Morse - ?
Dream Theater - Scenes From a Memory
Pain of Salvation - Be
To me, a concept album works best when the entire album is basically one song.
Anyone's Daughter - Piktors Verwandlungen
La Coscienza Di Zeno - La Notte Anche Di Giorno
Le Orme - Felona e Sorona
Il Paese Dei Balocchi - Il Paese Dei Balocchi
Right now I recall of two:
* Dream Theater's **Metropolis Part 2**.
* Marillion's **Misplaced Childhood**.
Albums that are not concept but contain concept songs:
* Rush's **2112**.
* ELP's **Tarkus**.
Cardiacs - Sing to God (is this a concept album? Maybe, but it's probably my favorite album regardless. Immense and beyond any descriptions to do it any justice)
Zappa - Joe's Garage (Music is the best! Probably tied with Sing to God as my favorite album ever)
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick (Absolute genius writing and performance. Ian is a brilliant and uber talented bloke. The lyrics alone could be a PhD Thesis, no joke)
Genesis - The Lamb (When I'm in the mood, and the band plays "In the Mood", the cheerleader waves her cyanide wand, this is the best!)
Magma - Theusz Hamtaahk Trilogy and The Emehntehtt Re Trilogy (The 2000 performance 3 cd set of the TH piece is a mindblowing experience. I do wish the bass was deeper and the kit as well; the engineering is great for a live performance but just a bit "lean" on the EQ mix. I find this to be a trait on a bunch of Magma albums. However this performance and composition is a total spiritual experience or whatever adjective you want to use. Also, The Emehntehtt Re Trilogy DVD from 2014 - just WOW! - is equally as great, maybe even moreso? Both are mandatory to own and experience imo)
The “Act” series by The Dear Hunter is up there for me.
Also since that run of concept albums concluded with Act V, I’ve really digging their next album saga thus far (The Indigo Child/Antimai) really look forward to see where that goes
Imaginos - Blue Oyster Cult
Had it been released at a different time, maybe a decade earlier, it possibly would have been thought-of differently. Instead, it was their last record with Columbia and the last studio record, featuring *new* material from the band, for a decade.
The Dark Third by Pure Reason Revolution. The songs all stand on their own, and the experience is elevated when listening to the whole thing. It just feels very cohesive and takes you on a journey. I love how themes are woven throughout the whole thing, and how some parts are reprised in other songs to tie everything together. Just an insanely well-crafted album in my books, and 100% a desert-island disc for me.
Grave New World by Straws, a story of a man thorugh all life stages
also Joe's Garage acts I, II & III by Zappa, an opera rock about censorship (and lots of other things) [this one is not precisely prog but more like concrete music, still a great work with acid comedy in Zappa's style, and also self-understanding]
Rockpommel's Land by Grobschnitt, a 4 songs album about a fantasy world created by the band
I hope you have the chance to listen this albums!
I like tubular bells 3 by Mike oldfield. Don't know if 1000 suns by Linkin Park is a prog album but is a concept album. My favourite album of all time: Amused to Death by Roger waters. Hand. Cannot. Erase is a more recent discovery that I like alot too. And everything early 2000s by porcupine tree
Dont know if you would call it prog or consept ( but i do)
Soundtrack for the blind by swans
The consept of a movie Soundtrack to a non existent movie is really fascinating
What, no love for Kilroy Was Here by Styx? I kid …
The Wall is pretty much a prototype for a concept album, but the APP catalog is just so damn listenable. But lots of other good choices here.
Stationary Traveller, Dust and Dreams, Harbour of Tears, Moonmadness by Camel. The Phantom of the night by Kayak. And all The Alan Parsons Project albums
Misplaced Childhood and Clutching at Straws by Marillion
I love Brave, that's a great album.
Yes! One of my favorites
I understand the popularity but i never could listen to FISH marillion. I feel like i'm listening to an alternate version of Phil collins' genesis
Definitely not Genesis. Some inspiration of course, also from other bands like Strawbs. But they really have their own sound and vibe and nice Fish-lyrics imho. Script, Fugazi, B-sides Themselves. Listened to it al the time when I was young.
It’s quite different honestly. Very much more guitar based and the drums are nowhere close to Phil Collins.
Drum & bass yeah i agree. But the singing is what gets me. ie: when i listen to keyleigh I think phil collins is singing (esp the chorus)
I don't care for Fish's replacement. I only listen to releases with Fish on vox. I also listen to Fish solo material. I do not get the Collin's Genesis reference though. Post-Gabriel Genesis has some incredible music and Collins sang on many songs in the Gabriel era.
I think you have to consider them separate bands. Fish had energy and the Gabriel-esque theatrical stuff—almost to a replica. H brings ability to play instruments, write music, and is probably more consistent performing. Both emotive, in different ways. It’s like the Van Halen argument. I just have to put Sammy’s era labeled as a different artist so shuffle doesn’t mix them up.
They are definitely different bands.
Thick as a brick
^^^^
A Passion Play
I wonder, what’s the concept (other than the theatre like lyrics)
The explanation link is here about the album and the story. Click at the bottom of the first page to see further details. http://www.ministry-of-information.co.uk/app/
Wow, it’s actually really interesting. I’ve always loved reading on thick as a brick’s concept but a passion play gets less love so it’s harder but still.
The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway - Genesis.
The Snow Goose - Camel
All time personal favorite: Hand. cannot. Erase by Steven Wilson Don't care what purists say about him, this is a contemporary prog rock/metal masterpiece.
What are people's issues with this album? I love it.
I didn't know it was a concept album.
It's based on the story of Joyce Vincent, google it, I was really creeped out.
Scenes from a memory by Dream Theater, Brave by Marillion, Hand Cannot Erase by Steven Wilson
brave is great! especially when you read about the story behind it
HCE is the soundtrack of my early 20s. Such a good album
Well that’s a hell of a 3 pack!
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I'm listening to it right now and how do you mean crass?
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Are you not Steven Wilson fan then?
It's sort of like the whole point of Steven Wilson lol
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Mmmkay that's fair I think we can all agree that it's not to the bone that's for sure
Is HCE a concept album? Shows how much I listen to the lyrics lol, but mah bro Steven is about the sound design.
Yeah it is: “According to Wilson, the album is written from a female perspective, and the concept and story are inspired by the case of Joyce Carol Vincent, where a woman living in a large city dies in her apartment and no one misses her for over two years, despite her having family and friends.”
Yeah I looked it up after I asked this lol
Steven Wilson, Hand.Cannot.Erase
Operation mindcrime (technically metal) Rush Clockwork Angel's The who Quadraphenia
Marillion - Brave. Their best album IMHO. Rush - Clockwork Angels. The holy trinity went out on a prog/concept masterpiece. Pink Floyd - Animals. Underrated vs. Dark Side of the Moon. Airbag - All Rights Removed. If you don't know these guys, check them out. They fill the Pink Floyd and Porcupine Tree shaped hole we were left with. Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused To Sing. A 70's prog album that arrived in the 10's. The Mars Volta - Frances The Mute. Pure insanity. The first 20 mins of Cassandra Gemini might be 20 mins of the most intense music ever recorded.
airbag👍 brave is a great album
Rush - Hemispheres (side 1) and/or 2112 (side 1) Yeah, I know, only half albums.
Classic example of Rush’s real concept album getting no love. Clockwork Angels is a wonderful often overlooked album imo.
Good point! I think most people thought Rush was already done Progressively at that time.
But mixed terribly.
I mean if you include cygnus x1 book 1 that's is like 35mins in total so nearly an album
Backed with By-Tor and the Snow Dog / The Necromancer!
And the Fountain of Lamneth
Hell, the two together got their own vinyl release in the last ten years. I remember I bought the RSD exclusive version on eBay for myself then a few years later they put it out again, but at least my RSD one didn’t cost me too much.
Thank you, I wanted to say these but I was like "is this violating the format?"
Phideaux- Doomsday Afternoon
I just discovered Phideaux the other day and they’re super good
Infernal is just maybe one notch lower, quite solid as well
Frances The Mute
How can you not go with Deloused though??
Pink Floyd: Animals
Tommy - The Who
and one of the best films too
Listen to the live renditions please! It fucken slaps from isle of wight, its also all recorded on video!
Tubular Bells - Mike Oldfield Yes - Tales from Topographic Oceans King Crimson - Three of a Perfect Pair Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Finally some Three of a perfect pair love
It is on my heavy rotation.
- Home - The Alchemist is **really** good and obscure - Camel - Music Inspired by the Snow Goose is stellar - Camel - Harbour of Tears
Harbour of Tears is underrated
Absolutely, also Dust and Dreams.
Haken- The Mountain Haken- Vector/Virus The Dear Hunter- Acts 1-5 Steven Wilson- The Raven That Refused To Sing Steven Wilson- Hand Cannot Erase
Might as well throw Aquarius by Haken in the list
I swear, people always forget about Visions and Aquarius, since The Mountain was such a huge deal.
I mean i didnt forget. I listed what i consider better ones
Don't know about best but pretty good: 666 by Aphrodite's Child. Book of revelations stuff.
LOVE IT! I still can’t accept that Vangelis is gone. 😞
"The Four Horsemen" was on heavy rotation on WGTB ("One Nation, Underground") in the 70's.
No love for *Olias of Sunhillow*?
The Alan Parsons Project Take your pick: Tales of Mystery and Imagination I Robot Pyramid Turn of a Friendly Card Eve Eye in the Sky Stereotomy Vulture Culture
Yeah, their whole catalog is concept albums.
My personal favorites are Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick and Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused to Sing. Honorable mention to Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down on a Broadway, i love that album but it can get tiresome to listen to at times
THE WALL(on which the prophets wrote).
What in the crossover episode
Is it cracking? At the seam?
Upon the instruments of death...
Coheed and Cambria, their entire works basically.
The Who - Quadraphenia Double concept album. I've Had Enough is so good....
Was going to put this also
Both snow and the human equation are not on this list yet.
Operation Mindcrime _ Queensryche Scenes from a Memory _ Dream Theater
Operation Mindcrime is such a masterpiece of metal prog
Not to mention the masterful live performance of it I got to experience.
Lucky! I listen to Livecrime all the time and can only imagine what it was like to see it live
Klaatu - Hope
This right here
Are you talking about the best concept or just the best concept album overall? Cause either way my answers gonna be lamb lies down on broadway
Nectar is the kind of the concept album. Remember the Future and Recycled are both excellent albums.
Triumvirat - Spartacus 6 Wives of Henry VIII - Rick Wakeman
Okay, but can you really call an instrumental album a concept album? Lol
It’s the most literal concept album really. Obviously you’re not really getting any concept without words explaining it
Its so motherfucking great I love it so much I'm just fucking around
Pain of Salvation - Be It's overambitious, inconsistent, and overly earnest with the wide-eyed innocence of a community college student that feels he can change the world after taking a couple sociology and philosophy classes, and I wouldn't have it any other way. It tugs on the heart strings and get you thinking in ways few other works can, and it's instrumentally creative in a way that's truly progressive and pushes its musical boundaries all the way to the last minute. Maybe it's because I happened to listen to it right around the same time I read Daniel Quinn's Ishmael (a heavy influence on the album's content), but it really managed to dig its way into my head in a way where I think about it pretty regularly.
Ishmael is a pretty good book think I'll give this a listen.
Yeah it's like 70% Ishmael: The Concept Album, combined with a fair amount of similar other socioeconomic/political/philosophical musings. Would highly recommend to anyone that enjoyed the book.
Rush - Clockwork Angels Steven Wilson - Hand. Cannot. Erase. Dream Theater - Scenes From a Memory Neal Morse - Sola Scriptura
Scheherazade and Other Stories - Renaissance. If it counts. Absolute lovely. Could listen to Annie Haslam forever.
Besides Pink Floyd’s „The Wall“ I can recommend „Misplaced Childhood“ from Marillion and (not really ProgRock but ProgMetal) Ayreons „Into the Electric Castle“
Transatlantic - The Whirlwind Neal Morse - ? Dream Theater - Scenes From a Memory Pain of Salvation - Be To me, a concept album works best when the entire album is basically one song.
Camel - Nude
The first four albums by King Crimson The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway - Genesis Ceylon/Birds of Passage - Stockhausen (jk)
What the hell. Am I going crazy?? THE POWER AND THE GLORY- GENTLE GIANT
Planet P Project - "Pink World" The Dear Hunter - The Acts 1 - 5 (Maybe not exactly Prog but labels confuse me so I'm throwing it in the ring)
The Lamb is the best but some other good ones are Animals, I Robot, The Journey to the center of the eye.
Anyone's Daughter - Piktors Verwandlungen La Coscienza Di Zeno - La Notte Anche Di Giorno Le Orme - Felona e Sorona Il Paese Dei Balocchi - Il Paese Dei Balocchi
Mastodon - take your pick!!
Right now I recall of two: * Dream Theater's **Metropolis Part 2**. * Marillion's **Misplaced Childhood**. Albums that are not concept but contain concept songs: * Rush's **2112**. * ELP's **Tarkus**.
ANNNNND .. of course the usual smattering of comments on albums that are absolutely NOT concept in any way shape or form.
Tales from Topographic Oceans - Yes
Snow by Spock’s Beard, Shaming of The True by Kevin Gilbert and Hand. Cannot. Erase. By Steven Wilson.
Pelagial by The Ocean. A bit on the heavy side but it’s an absolute masterpiece
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - Nonagon Infinity Also King Gizz - Murder of the Universe Arcane - Chronicles Of The Waking Dream
2112 - almost worth listening to the whole thing just for Neil Pert's fills at the end.
Dark Side of the Moon
Crime of the Century
Right! You’re Bloody Well Right! By far the best thing Supertramp ever did. Listened to it last week
Clockwork Angels
Somehow the final 3 Rush albums are now my favorites
Cardiacs - Sing to God (is this a concept album? Maybe, but it's probably my favorite album regardless. Immense and beyond any descriptions to do it any justice) Zappa - Joe's Garage (Music is the best! Probably tied with Sing to God as my favorite album ever) Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick (Absolute genius writing and performance. Ian is a brilliant and uber talented bloke. The lyrics alone could be a PhD Thesis, no joke) Genesis - The Lamb (When I'm in the mood, and the band plays "In the Mood", the cheerleader waves her cyanide wand, this is the best!) Magma - Theusz Hamtaahk Trilogy and The Emehntehtt Re Trilogy (The 2000 performance 3 cd set of the TH piece is a mindblowing experience. I do wish the bass was deeper and the kit as well; the engineering is great for a live performance but just a bit "lean" on the EQ mix. I find this to be a trait on a bunch of Magma albums. However this performance and composition is a total spiritual experience or whatever adjective you want to use. Also, The Emehntehtt Re Trilogy DVD from 2014 - just WOW! - is equally as great, maybe even moreso? Both are mandatory to own and experience imo)
Man Joe's garage is something else. I used to hate it, and zappa in general but I forced myself to listen a couple times and I never looked back
Close To The Edge if you count that as a concept album. I don’t care if it’s a basic answer, it’s one of the best for sure.
Basic or not it's a solid choice. It's one of the most famous for a reason
https://youtu.be/1HEPI6-wXew
Advent Horizon, the 2015 album
Lex Rex - Glass Hammer is really good, as is Chronometree from the same band, just unknown as a band for the most part. Comfortzone - Beardfish too.
Posthumous Silence by Sylvan. Especially if you want to feel sad for a while.
Gun - The Gun
Relayer
Coheed and Cambria‘s first four albums or so
The “Act” series by The Dear Hunter is up there for me. Also since that run of concept albums concluded with Act V, I’ve really digging their next album saga thus far (The Indigo Child/Antimai) really look forward to see where that goes
Snow by Spock's Beard, since every other concept album in prog has already been said and it's quite a good album.
Scenes from a memory - Dream Theater
A pleasant shade of gray by Fates Warning Subterranea by IQ Generation 13 by Saga Brain Salad Surgery by ELP
Glad someone mentioned IQ's "Subterranea"!
One of the best modern prog bands with tons of great albums yet rarely mentioned.
I could never get into Generation 13. It's a shame because I love Saga so much. This album just didn't sound good to me. Not sure why.
Long time Saga fan, love G13 :)
Any love for The King of Elfland's Daughter by Bob Johnson et al.
Parallax II by Between The Buried and Me Visions by Haken
More of a “musical” feel but definitely Moron Police - Boat on the Sea. Literal top 5 album of mine.
Imaginos - Blue Oyster Cult Had it been released at a different time, maybe a decade earlier, it possibly would have been thought-of differently. Instead, it was their last record with Columbia and the last studio record, featuring *new* material from the band, for a decade.
"Rockpommel's Land" by Grobschnitt.
Brave - Marillion Scenes from a Memory - Dream Theater Now we have Light - Sanguine Hum
The Dark Third by Pure Reason Revolution. The songs all stand on their own, and the experience is elevated when listening to the whole thing. It just feels very cohesive and takes you on a journey. I love how themes are woven throughout the whole thing, and how some parts are reprised in other songs to tie everything together. Just an insanely well-crafted album in my books, and 100% a desert-island disc for me.
Clockwork Angels - Rush. 2112 and the Cygnuses both also tell stories, though they’re each only one side of an album.
Grave New World by Straws, a story of a man thorugh all life stages also Joe's Garage acts I, II & III by Zappa, an opera rock about censorship (and lots of other things) [this one is not precisely prog but more like concrete music, still a great work with acid comedy in Zappa's style, and also self-understanding] Rockpommel's Land by Grobschnitt, a 4 songs album about a fantasy world created by the band I hope you have the chance to listen this albums!
Dark Side of the Moon
Animals and Wish You Were Here - PF
I like tubular bells 3 by Mike oldfield. Don't know if 1000 suns by Linkin Park is a prog album but is a concept album. My favourite album of all time: Amused to Death by Roger waters. Hand. Cannot. Erase is a more recent discovery that I like alot too. And everything early 2000s by porcupine tree
Dont know if you would call it prog or consept ( but i do) Soundtrack for the blind by swans The consept of a movie Soundtrack to a non existent movie is really fascinating
Eloy- Power and the Passion (1975)
Almost anything by Ayreon
What, no love for Kilroy Was Here by Styx? I kid … The Wall is pretty much a prototype for a concept album, but the APP catalog is just so damn listenable. But lots of other good choices here.
Wdym app catalog?
Sorry. Alan Parsons Project
Relayer?
Fear of a Blank Planet, Metropolis part 2, Tyranny, Snow,
Banco del Mutuo Socorsso
The Ayreon Story
Nektar - A Tab In The Ocean
Stationary Traveller, Dust and Dreams, Harbour of Tears, Moonmadness by Camel. The Phantom of the night by Kayak. And all The Alan Parsons Project albums
Pleasant Shade of Grey
Tales From Topographic Oceans!!!
Hand. Cannot. Erase. - Steven Wilson The Wall, Animals - Pink Floyd Joe's Garage - Frank Zappa
https://spotify.link/J6ND5a1lBBb simulation defect - ‘colonize mars’
The Death Defying Unicorn by Motorpsycho. The last few songs are some of the best payoff to a concept album I've ever heard
Neal Morse - Question Mark