9/09/2014

Scandinavian Prog Rock Bands That Are Worth Checking Out

By Kerri Stout


Progressive rock is still a very popular form of music despite the fast it has been around for around 40 years. It began in the late 60s with the Beatle's Sargeant Pepper and the early psychedelic rock of Pink Floyd. These days, fans of the genre should check out Scandinavian prog rock. There are many excellent bands from the continent, especially in Finland, Sweden and Norway.

Sweden's Beardfish are well worth taking a listen too. Similar to Genesis and Yes the band bring progressive rock to the modern day. They formed in 2001 and have had several different musicians com and go. The band's fist album is called Fran En Plats Du Ej Kan Se, which was released in 2003 to great success.

The Flower Kings from Sweden are another fantastic Scandinavian progressive rock band. They were formed in 1994 formed by the renowned guitarist Roine Stolt. The Flower Kings have released 11 albums since their formation. Their music is a blend of jazz, blues and experimental music. They make use of ployrhythms, dynamic changes, heavy bass, lengthy compositions and abstract lyrics.

Magic Pie from Norway have a contemporary sound that is merged with the 1970s. The band has interesting lyrics, strong melodies, sparkling guitar riffs, powerful vocal arrangements, classic 1970s organ sounds and tight bass and drums. Magic Pie's music is both soft and gentle or hard and heavy. They formed in 2005 and have three albums. There next album is due in 2014 so check it out!

An usual but highly exciting band are Finland's Apocalyptica. Instead of bass, drums, guitars and keyboards, there are three cello players and a drummer to create a unique kind of progressive heavy metal. They began their career as a Metallica covers band on cellos, but soon began creating their own exciting music. All of the band's cellists are classical trained.

Also from Finland, are Hidria Spacefolk. This fantastic band blend psychedelic space rock with folk music. As well as guitar, bass, keyboards and drums, the band also use cello, violin, flute, didgeridoo, marimba, mandolin, sitar and vibraphone to create their music. The band was formed in 1999 and have released eight albums on an independent label.

Kingston wall are another successful band from Finland. There music can be compared to Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix. Eastern themes are combined with spacey psychedelic rock and they remain a cult favorite with fans of the genre. They have released three albums, a number of remix albums and a live DVD.

The Swedish prog rock band, Moon Safari have a symphonic instrumental vibe that uses complicated vocal harmonies. These vocals are an important part of their overall sound and they often sing acapella as well as produce songs using guitars, bass and drums. They just love to play around with unusual time signatures and a lot of their sings exceed the 10 minute mark. The band won the Vox Pop vote at the 9th annual Independent Music Awards for their "In the Countryside" album. Moon Safari are a band to definitely check out if you are a fan of the genre.




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