The top ten progressive albums of 2011
10
Animals as Leaders - Weightless
Combining incredible musicianship with an attitude of just not giving a fuck, Animals as Leaders have doodled, shredded, and chugged their way into their sophomore album, Weightless. It's much tighter and more reined in than their eponymous debut, but it still showcases everything wanky that endeared us to this incredible trio in the first place.
9
Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
Stepping aside from Porcupine Tree for a bit, Steven Wilson has assembled the most incredible guest ensemble to join him on his newest solo album, Grace for Drowning. A ridiculous double-disc extravaganza, Wilson takes his time to lay praise on the classic prog rockers before him while still expressing his love for newer technical metal acts.
8
Sun Caged - The Lotus Effect
Bright keyboards and soaring vocals abound in the newest release from Sun Caged, The Lotus Effect. Sure, they're still unabashedly ripping of Dream Theater, but for once, they seem to be actually doing it better than Dream Theater does. Though it's much more mellow than either of their first two albums, it's still the best progressive metal in the pure you'll find this year.
7
Uneven Structure - Februus
Bringing a refreshing bit of iciness to an already cold and unforgiving genre, Frenchmen Uneven Structure have combined the polyrhythmic chugging of djent with the emptiness of dark ambient to incredible effect. Though their ambient music is a few steps ahead of their math metal, Februus is nonetheless an incredibly solid debut that should please fans of Meshuggah and Lustmord alike.
6
Scale the Summit - The Collective
Bright and triumphal, Scale the Summit's third album The Collective somehow manages to feel epic while scarcely running over four minutes a track. While it's clear the band have matured, the album still feels as free and unfettered as their debut. The only fault this album has is that it will leave you wanting even more.
5
Between the Buried and Me - The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues
The combination of death metal and symphonic music is incredible on Between the Buried and Me's latest EP, Hypersleep Dialogues. Though it's only the first in a duology, the second of which will be a full length, it is still a generous and satisfying offering without any chaff to be found.
4
Symphony X - Iconoclast
Given the epic, symphonic nature of Symphony X's music, it seemed only fitting that they'd finally want to break the single-disc barrier. Also their first non-classically-inspired album (the theme is machines this time, not Greek mythology), Iconoclast manages to never tire out for its entire two-disc length.
3
Seed from the Geisha - Talk Peace to the Wolf
French prog-alt-rockers Seed from the Geisha have come out of literally nowhere to release their incredible debut, Talk Peace to the Wolf. The album is unabashedly accessible and guaranteed to appeal to a wide audience, and yet it still maintains an impressive level of musicianship. It may cleverly hide all of its subtle progressive elements behind engrossing riffs and melodies, but it's still one of the best progressive releases this year.
2
Random - Todo.s los colres del
Argentinian group Random just don't care what you think. Todo.s los colores del, their debut, is all over the map stylistically, yet it still maintains this inexpressible sense of cohesion that makes the album incredibly satisfying. This album also gets our distinction of being the best legally free-to-download album of the year, so you don't have an excuse not to hear it.
1
Vildhjarta - måsstaden
Djentleman Vildhjarta have left me literally floored with their debut release. Everything about the album is so intricately composed and deeply layered that, after an uncountable amount of listens, I'm still not certain I understand everything that's going on here. Without a doubt, this is the most flawless, satisfying album in progressive music this year, not to mention one of the best progressive death metal albums, period.
Words: Matthew Sarah
