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: post-rock
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”Best of 2025: Cool Songs
Welcome to the first installment of The Elite Extremophile’s Best of 2025! Today, I’m starting off with Cool Songs. Tomorrow will feature the Top EPs, and the Top Albums will follow on Wednesday and Thursday.
Before we get to it, let me give my usual Best-Of disclaimers. This is a one-man operation, in regard to writing the reviews. (My proofreaders Kelci and Dan are very helpful.) I’m sure there was plenty of great music I just simply missed. I’ve also got my own personal biases against certain styles and trends.
As a reminder, this list covers what I call the “music year” 2025, which covers December 2024 through November 2025.
This segment is meant to show off great tracks that do not appear on my other year-end lists. If a release makes my best EPs or best albums list, it is disqualified from appearing in this particular segment.
Without further ado, let’s get to it!
Continue reading “Best of 2025: Cool Songs”Odds & Ends: December 15, 2025
Artist: Gianni Carlin | Album: In nessun luogo | Genre: Progressive rock | Bandcamp
In nessun luogo features a mildly-lo-fi sound, but it works well. Flute is always prominent, providing some great, breathy contrast to the fat and rubbery bass that underpins much of the music. The songwriting is overall solid, though the 21-minute album opener is a bit unfocused at moments. There are some surprisingly catchy passages mixed in, and with the occasional dash of jazz and blues, it makes for a well-balanced record.
Score: 73/100
Band: Hesse Kassel | Album: La Brea | Genre: Post-rock | Bandcamp
The debut record from this Chilean ensemble features intricately structured epics that unfold slowly. Delicate moments contrast heavier passages. Post-punk and art rock influences abound, and there is also clearly a deep debt to Windmill scene bands like black midi and Squid. While I overall like this record, it does have one glaring flaw, and that it is way too damn long. 78 minutes across eight songs leaves a lot of fat to trim, even when taking into account the fact that this is a post-rock record. This band is at their best during their heavier moments, like on “A. Latur”.
Score: 75/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: December 15, 2025”Odds & Ends: December 11, 2025
Band: Ábrete Gandul | Album: Suciedad Contemporánea | Genre: Progressive rock | Listen
This instrumental release heavily incorporates jazz and classical elements into its compositions. Reed and wind instruments can be found among the many slinking themes present here. Things swell and retreat fluidly, and there are a lot of great tonal and textural choices. While I enjoy it overall, this isn’t the most distinctive record. It’s solid, jazzy instrumental prog, if that’s what you’re looking for.
Score: 74/100
Band: An Abstract Illusion | Album: The Sleeping City | Genre: Progressive metal | Bandcamp
An Abstract Illusion’s latest record is a noticeable step down from their last release, 2022’s excellent Woe. The Sleeping City isn’t a bad record, by any means, but it’s unimpressive. The biggest problem for me on this record is the production. Everything is very clean and clear in a way that robs the band’s death metal of its impact. The clean parts of this record also come off as overly glossy and sterile, with many of the synth tones sounding out of place. There are still good ideas in the compositions, but the sound of the album itself is lacking.
Score: 68/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: December 11, 2025”Odds & Ends: December 8, 2025
Band: creamcheese | Album: schallplatte | Genre: Psychedelic rock, Post-rock | Bandcamp
The new record from this one-man instrumental act draws quite heavily from Pink Floyd. Drifting rhythms and wavering guitars float about, occasionally interrupted by sharper tones. Acoustic guitar is deployed for the occasional bit of earthiness, balancing out this record’s more astral moments. “Maha Nakhom” sees creamcheese dabble in some semi-electronic Ozric Tentacles worship, for a nice change of pace. And though overlong, the closing “3L3K7R0K4CK3” is a charmingly diverse cut.
Score: 74/100
Band: Flowʍolꓞ | Album: Téboly | Genre: Progressive rock | Bandcamp
Flowwolf is a Hungarian band that blends psychedelic textures with progressive song structures for a very satisfying EP on Téboly. The instrumental tones are great, and there are smart contrasts between rich textures and grittier passages. The vocal performances are strong and melodic, and I also really enjoy the dashes of alternative rock that crop up here and there.
Score: 81/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: December 8, 2025”Odds & Ends: December 4, 2025
Artist: William Covert | Album: Dream Vessel | Genre: Post-rock, Drone | Bandcamp
Drone is a genre that I largely dislike but do occasionally dabble in. When I run across a drone artist that I do enjoy, it’s usually because they’ve melded those influences with something else. With Neptunian Maximalism, they married drone with heavy, experimental metal. And with William Covert, he has blended it with post-rock and avant-garde jazz. Textures are wide and airy, but it’s not just aimless ambience. Drumming helps give this record a sense of direction, and there are clear structures and throughlines in the individual compositions. The music is spooky, spacy, and artful.
Score: 73/100
Band: Cratophane | Album: Exode | Genre: Progressive rock, Post-metal | Bandcamp
Cratophane’s sophomore album sees this self-described “angular rock” band take a lot of stoner and doom metal influences into their music. There are still jagged riffs and irregular rhythms aplenty, but the band also slows down significantly for extended periods of time. Magma’s influence looms large here, but so does that of bands like Pelican. This is a dark, moody, and semi-psychedelic record that goes to some interesting places. As with many instrumental records, I feel a number of the songs are longer than they need to be, but it’s not too bad.
Score: 76/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: December 4, 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: April 7, 2025
Artist: Lukey Cope | Album: Interpretation | Genre: Progressive rock, Progressive metal | Bandcamp
Lukey Cope’s debut album is an instrumental affair full of fast, flashy guitar licks. Amid all the showing off, he also displays a keen ear for melody and composition. Piano is prominently deployed, and that instrument’s percussive, biting tone pairs well against some of the thicker auditory qualities at play here. Despite being an instrumental record with a semi-atmospheric vibe, the bloat is pretty minimal here.
Score: 79/100
Band: Deddom | Album: When you find out the amount of your pension and start thinking what to do with it | Genre: Avant-garde metal | Bandcamp
This is an absolutely insane release. This 42-minute behemoth covers territory as diverse as black metal, free jazz, ambient, and more. It’s angry, full of harsh sounds and uneasy rhythms. There is a lot of inventive, oddball material here, and I like just how stark many of the contrasts are. That said, it is longer than it needs to be, and if you’re not in the mood for something harsh and challenging, you’re gonna have a bad time.
Score: 73/100
Continue reading “Odds & Ends: April 7, 2025”
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