Welcome to the top half of The Elite Extremophile’s Top Prog Albums of 2025. Part One can be found here.
Continue reading “Best of 2025: Top 50 Prog Albums Part 2: 25-1”Best of 2025: Top 50 Prog Albums Part 2: 25-1
Tag: jazz-fusion
Best of 2025: Top 50 Prog Albums Part 1: 50-26
Welcome to The Elite Extremophile’s Top Prog Albums of 2025! As usual, this is a two-part list of 50 total entries. Part two is here.
As a reminder, the music on this list spans December 2024 through November 2025. Music from December 2025 will be on the 2026 list. I’m sure there is plenty of good music I missed, but when it comes to the reviewing, this is a one-man operation. (My proofreaders/editors, Kelci and Dan, have been very helpful, as always.) There are also certain trends and styles I simply don’t like very much.
2025 was a fantastic year for progressive rock and related genres. I was spoiled for choice with this list, and this may be the overall-strongest batch of recommendations I’ve given to date.
Continue reading “Best of 2025: Top 50 Prog Albums Part 1: 50-26”Odds & Ends: December 22, 2025
Band: Humming Whale | Album: Chasing Rabbits | Genre: Progressive metal | Bandcamp
The debut album from this Finnish quartet is a highly melodic brand of proggy alt-metal. The riffs are powerful, and the vocals are strong. The band demonstrates a strong ear for catchy melodies. There are a few moments in the second half of the album I’m not nuts about; the overly-pop-infused “Ocular” and the butt-rock influenced “Rover” are the main culprits. Overall, though, this is an enjoyable record. The musicianship is top-notch without being needlessly flashy, and there are plenty of great structural twists.
Score: 74/100
Band: Khan | Album: That Fair and Warlike Form/Return to Dust | Genre: Heavy psych, Post-metal | Bandcamp
The latest release from Khan, an Australian trio, consists of just two massive tracks. The first is the overall heavier of the two, providing a cavalcade of evolving musical themes that weave prog rock, psychedelia, alternative metal, and post-metal. “Return to Dust” features more contrasts with quieter, cleaner passages. Both epics hold together very well and have lots of small things that reveal themselves on subsequent listens.
Score: 78/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: December 22, 2025”Odds & Ends: September 1, 2025
Band: Jordsjø & Breidablik | Album: Kontraster | Genre: Progressive rock, Progressive folk, Krautrock | Bandcamp
Norwegian bands Jordsjø and Breidablik team up on this album to each deliver one epic apiece, fittingly titled “Kontraster” (“Contrasts”). Jordsjø’s composition is some of their best music in a long time, featuring a thrilling mix of classic prog that filters the influences of Genesis and King Crimson through their Norse folk-tinged lens. This work is balanced against many pretty acoustic moments that feel like they’re rooted in scenic fjords, but still with a foot in the modern prog-rock movement. Breidablik’s offering is much more electronic. Tangerine Dream, Vangelis, and other early prog-electronic acts are their obvious inspiration. Hints of their homeland still peek through, though. Airy flutes and twinkling guitars shine against the backing of looping synths.
Score: 91/100
Band: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard | Album: Phantom Island | Genre: Progressive pop | Bandcamp
King Gizzard’s latest album is a bit borderline for this site, but I enjoyed it overall. On this release, the band has incorporated a full orchestra into their music, and it’s a successful experiment. The lush soundscapes complement and elevate the band’s smart, Southern-inflected art rock, and it pushes the album from “fine” to “pretty good.” Their previous record didn’t really resonate with me; this is in a similar vein, but the freshness of all the strings and winds helps the band better realize their ideas.
Score: 78/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: September 1, 2025”Odds & Ends: August 4, 2025
Band: Alburnus | Album: Alburnus III | Genre: Progressive rock, Psychedelic rock | Bandcamp
This Finnish band’s latest album is a groovy, retro-influenced slab of prog and psych. The instrumental passages are peppy, surprisingly catchy, and thoroughly enjoyable. The band shows a knack for melody and hooks, and their playing is flashy without being excessively technical. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but it’s fun.
Score: 72/100
Band: Echolyn | Album: TimeSilentRadio II | Genre: Progressive rock | Bandcamp
Echolyn put out two albums this March, and this is the stronger of the two. Consisting of just two massive tracks, TSRII sees the band utilize their usual sound in an effective manner. ‘90s prog is not my favorite flavor of the genre, but Echolyn pulls it off pretty well. It’s often sunny and relatively accessible, but the underlying songwriting is complex and intelligent. Some parts can be a bit on the cheesy side for me, but overall, their blend of classic prog, pop-rock, and jazzy flourishes works very well. The 29-minute “Water in Our Hands” is especially memorable.
Score: 80/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: August 4, 2025”Odds & Ends: May 5, 2025
Band: Danefae | Album: Trøst | Genre: Progressive rock, Post-rock | Bandcamp
Danefae plays a delicate, intricate variety of prog that weaves in folk influences from the band’s native Denmark. There are also frequent heavy counterpoints to their usual sound. The vocals are strong, and the overall atmosphere is often rather dreamy and otherworldly. There is a lot to like about this album, but it often veers a bit too close to certain strains of post-rock for my taste. I could definitely see this appealing to a lot of people, but there’s just something intangible that prevents it from truly clicking with me.
Score: 74/100
Band: Don Bolo | Album: Umma | Genre: Progressive rock, Avant-garde rock | Bandcamp
The latest release from this Ecuadorian outfit is a lurching, ominous release inspired by the Dune series of books; and it’s an interesting contrast to their punk-influenced 2022 album, Bahamut. This instrumental album cultivates a hypnotic, trancelike mood, befitting of Dune’s mystic themes. The band blends harsh, noisy elements, Western psychedelia and experimentalism, and Middle Eastern motifs, resulting in an uneasy and unsettling work. Thick guitar tones contrast with airier keyboard and saxophone passages, and the rhythm ranges from thundering to skittering.
Score: 84/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: May 5, 2025”Odds & Ends: March 3, 2025
Band: Besna | Album: Krásno | Genre: Post-metal | Bandcamp
Slovakian quartet Besna’s newest album is a powerful record full of searing, anguished post-black metal. The band expertly blends haunting and disorienting atmospheres with raw emotionality and clever and unexpected song structures. There are moments of stark beauty woven into the piercing guitar lines. The closing track is an especially strong encapsulation of this band’s best tendencies.
Score: 82/100
Artist: Marton Juhasz | Album: Metropolis | Genre: Jazz, Jazz-fusion | Apple Music
This is certainly at the jazzier end of things I cover, but it isn’t out of place here. Juhasz’s latest album sees him toy around with complex meters and rhythms, and the drumming is especially impressive. Warm saxophones and glimmering electric piano lead the way on most songs. He also draws from a fairly diverse set of influences. “Sao Paulo” has fitting Brazilian flavors; the guitar on “Helio” would be right at home in a post-rock song; and “Radar” features the structured chaos of an avant-leaning math rock band.
Score: 81/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: March 3, 2025”Odds & Ends: February 3, 2025
Band: Actionfredag | Album: Lys fremtid i mørke | Genre: Progressive rock | Bandcamp
I liked Actionfredag’s debut, Turist i eget liv, a lot, so I went into this new release with somewhat high hopes. The opening track, “Angst oppå bordet” is a tense and exciting instrumental, but much of the rest of the album fails to land for me. They’ve incorporated a lot more jazz and Canterbury elements on this record, but it often comes off as a bit weak and mushy. Many songs meander without saying or doing much, and even some of the more enjoyable cuts here are still somewhat forgettable. There’s a certain sonic slipperiness which makes them difficult to hold onto. If you like warm, mellow jazz more than I do, perhaps you’ll get more out of this.
Score: 62/100
Band: Blackwood Station | Album: In the Gamma Garden | Genre: Psychedelic folk, Americana | Bandcamp
On their latest album, Blackwood Station takes a laid-back, psychedelic approach that heavily evokes the late 1960s. Textures are lush, and the atmosphere is dreamy. Bandleader Ian Blackwood shows a natural knack for catchy melodies. Some songs are a bit longer than they need to be, but it’s an overall fun listen.
Score: 78/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: February 3, 2025”Best of 2024: Top 50 Prog Albums Part 2: 25-1
Welcome back to The Elite Extremophile’s Top 50 Prog Albums of 2024. Today covers the top 25, and you can read about the first half in Part 1.
As a reminder, the music on this list covers December 2023 to November 2024. I spend much of December compiling and editing this list, so I push releases from that month into the following year’s list.
This is also a one-man operation, in regard to reviewing. (Many thanks to my proofreaders/editors, Kelci and Dan.) I’m sure there’s plenty of great music out there I simply didn’t get to. I’ve also got my own biases against certain styles and trends.
Now, onto the list!
Continue reading “Best of 2024: Top 50 Prog Albums Part 2: 25-1”Best of 2024: Top 50 Prog Albums Part 1: 50-26
It’s time for The Elite Extremophile’s Top 50 Prog Albums of 2024! This is the first half of the list, and you can find the second half here.
As a reminder, the music on this list covers December 2023 to November 2024. I spend much of December compiling and editing this list, so I push releases from that month into the following year’s list.
This is also a one-man operation, in regard to reviewing. (Many thanks to my proofreaders/editors, Kelci and Dan.) I’m sure there’s plenty of great music out there I simply didn’t get to. I’ve also got my own biases against certain styles and trends.
2024 wound up being an alright year for the sort of stuff I cover here. It felt like it started off somewhat slow, but in the end, it wasn’t too challenging for me to find 50 records worthy of being highlighted.
Now, onto the list!
Continue reading “Best of 2024: Top 50 Prog Albums Part 1: 50-26”
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