Sunday, December 29, 2013

My personal Top-10 Prog- Orientated Rock albums of 2013. (Part.1)

Hello all!
2013 is reaching to its end, and I thought it could be a good idea to present here my top-10 Prog-Orientated albums of this year. Don't forget that this is a personal list, therefore some of you may disagree with it. Also, the bands and their albums are randomly written, and not in any specific order.
2013 was a very productive year for Progressive Rock and its subcategories, with over 100 new releases. As you can understand, it was impossible to listen to all those albums, but I listened to enough of them to form my opinion.
This post is the first part. Part.2 will follow in the next two days.

CAMEL: The Snow Goose (Re-recording)
Yes, its true. Camel decided to re-record their legendary album which was released for the first time in 1976. This new recording is quite similar to the old one, but with significant changes to the production and the mixing. But that's not all. There are many changes to the compositions and the organs which are used. If you listen to it you will find many small changes all over the album.
I think it deserves a spot in my top-10 list, because it's a real masterpiece!

RIVERSIDE: Shrine of New Generation Slaves. 
Another excellent album from the Polish Prog-Metal band Riverside. This is their 5th album, and
certainly their most mature one. During these last 10 years Riverside changed a lot, and the changes can be seing in every new release of them. In this album their sound is heavier than their previous ones, the compositions are more complexed, and they seem to have left behind their "Tool-like" period for good. This album is a 'must' for all the fans of Prog-Meal & Heavy Metal, but it is highly recommended to all those who would enjoy an album with excellent production, and some really strong compositions and guitar riffs.

WE.OWN.THE.SKY: The Glass/Nails (EP)
This 5-piece band was one of the surprises of 2013 for me! They are a Greek band and they released one of the best Post-Rock albums I ever listened. A couple of years ago they released their first demo, and now it was time for their first official release which is an EP. It includes 6 songs, and has a running time of almost 33 minutes. It was released in a limited number of 100 copies only, therefore it will be very hard to find. If you want more info on the band and their songs, please visit:
 http://weownthesky.bandcamp.com/music You might be surprised!

AYREON: The Theory of Everything
 Ayreon is the personal project of the Dutch multi-instrumentalist/composer Arjen Lucarssen, and his only purpose is to release Rock Operas every now and then. 'The Theory of Everything' is his 8th Rock-Opera, and surely one of the best. It includes some really great musicians and some of them are the following: Cristina Scabbia (Lacuna Coil), Marco Hietala (Nightwish), Rick Wakeman (Yes), Keith Emerson (Emerson Lake & Palmer), Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater), Steve Hackett (Genesis), Troy Donokley (Nightwish), John Wetton (Asia & King Crimson) etc... This double album consists of 4 main long tracks, which include many small parts in them. You can find many different kinds of music in this album, from Heavy Metal to Folk-Rock, and it surrely is a very interesting record to say the least!

NEMRUD: Ritual
This is the second album by the surprisingly good band Nemrud from Turkey. The album includes only 4 tracks, and it's a concept one. (Exactly like their first album 'Journey of the Shaman'). Nemrud have a more Psychedelic approach and their music reminds that of Eloy in some cases. They have a rather Space and Hypnotising tempo into their music, with very interesting turns. I really recommend this album to those who enjoy long tracks with many turns and not so many lyrics. (For those who might wonder, I should mention that the lyrics are in English).

Here ends the first part of my Top-10 albums of 2013. I hope you found it interesting and informative.
Part.2 will follow in a couple of days.
Thanks for reading! :)

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