Band: 55YT MQRT | Album: 55YT MQRT | Genre: Space rock, Progressive rock | Bandcamp This band’s name might look like a license plate number, but their sound isn’t nearly that ordinary. They play a vast, cosmic variety of heavy psych and prog, and the album art of an astronaut traveling through an ancient temple is weirdly fitting. The soundscapes are vast and huge, and everything has a massive amount of weight behind it. Even though this album is a bit on the long side, it works. This is the sort of music where stretching out benefits the band. Score: 80/100 Band: AKU | Album: Solipsism | Ge ..read more

Band: Slift | Album: Ilion | Genre: Heavy psych, Space rock | Year: 2024 From: Toulouse, France | Label: Sub Pop For fans of: Elder, Hawkwind, Ash Ra Tempel Bandcamp Slift is back after a four-year gap with their new album, Ilion. The band has stated that Ilion can be thought of as a direct sequel to Ummon, their 2020 release. There is a lot of sonic continuity between the two records. Both prominently feature bludgeoning doom metal riffs, crossed with krautrock-like repetition, and interstellar aesthetics. Much like Ummon, Ilion is a challenging listen. It’s a nearly-unrelenting onslaught of ..read more

Welcome to part two of The Elite Extremophile’s Top 50 Prog Albums of 2023. Part one can be found here. Now, let’s get back to it! #25: Steven Wilson – The Harmony Codex | Art pop, Progressive electronic | Buy Steven Wilson’s second-most electronic outing of his solo career is also his strongest in quite a while. Ditching many of the glossy and saccharine sounds that dominated his last two solo releases, The Harmony Codex is often dark and foreboding. Guitar is relatively minimal on this album, but when it shows up, Wilson sounds like he cares for the first time in a while. The synth arrangeme ..read more

Band: Frankie and the Witch Fingers | Album: Data Doom | Genre: Progressive rock, Krautrock | Bandcamp Frankie and the Witch Fingers remind me a lot of Osees. The music is fierce, energetic, and shot-through with punk influences. But the riffs are usually weird and angular, with uncommon meters. Despite a lot of the overt, aggressive tendencies of this band, the music remains relatively accessible. There are plenty of melodic hooks and catchy riffs and themes. “Syster System” is one hell of an earworm, and “Doom Boom” has a groovy, King Gizzard-esque feel to it. Score: 80/100 Band: Gong | Al ..read more

Band: Baroness | Album: Stone | Genre: Progressive rock, Sludge metal | Bandcamp Baroness’s first non-color-themed album is an improvement over the miserable Gold & Grey. The production is much better here; I can actually distinguish different instruments in the mix! The songwriting sees Baroness try a few new things, to mixed results. “Beneath the Rose” and “Choir” both see the band integrate some alt-metal influence, and “Magnolia” features some excellent evolution through its runtime. Stone still sees the band trying to be both pop-friendly radio rock and prog-sludge, and that prevents ..read more

Band: Grant the Sun | Album: Voyage | Genre: Post-metal | Bandcamp I liked this band’s 2019 EP, Sylvain, so when I saw they were putting out a full-length release, I made sure to put it on my docket. The music here is heavy and moody, occasionally with vocals. Guitar lines are both gritty and expansive, and there are a lot of wonderful textural contrasts. I’m not sure there are enough ideas here to warrant a full album, but this would have made a pretty decent long EP if they trimmed off a couple songs. The playing is great, and I’m especially fond of the guitar tones they chose. But post-met ..read more

Band: Chafouin | Album: Trois, quatre | Genre: Math rock, Progressive rock | Bandcamp I liked this band’s 2021 album Toufoulcan, so I was excited when I saw they had something new coming out. Where Toufoulcan had a sense of sonic continuity between the tracks, this release feels more like a collection of unrelated (or barely-related) songs. The music itself is good, and none of the songs overstay their welcome. When taken as a whole, though, Trois, quatre feels a bit unfocused. Score: 74/100 Band: Numidia | Album: South of the Bridge | Genre: Hard rock, Progressive rock | Bandcamp This album ..read more

Band: Demolished Men | Album: In a Violent Way | Genre: Jazz-Fusion, Progressive rock | Bandcamp This EP is full of light, smooth, complex instrumental passages that equally put you at ease and keep you guessing where they’re going next. It constantly treads the line between rock and jazz, and sax, electric piano, and guitar share lead duties fluidly. The hand percussion is executed excellently, adding a nice depth to the rhythmic elements of this release. Score: 81/100 Band: Krallice | Album: Porous Resonance Abyss | Genre: Progressive metal, Progressive rock | Bandcamp Prolific prog-metall ..read more

Band: Missing Jack & The Kameleons | Album: Human Cycle | Genre: Psychedelic rock | Year: 2023 From: Toulouse, France | Label: Six Tonnes de Chair For fans of: Slift, Hawkwind, Neu! Bandcamp Six Tonnes de Chair is a small French record label that specializes in garage rock, often with psychedelic and kraut-y flairs. I’ve covered acts from this label before (Perilymph, WEEED, Slift), and Missing Jack & The Kameleons fit into this general mold quite neatly. Their style draws a lot from late ‘60s garage rock, albeit often sounding a bit cleaner. Krautrock and surf influences are commonpl ..read more

Band: Delvoid | Album: Swarmlife | Genre: Post-rock | Bandcamp This Norwegian quartet plays a melodic variety of post-metal and post-rock with strong alt-rock influences. Tool is an obvious comparison, but there are also flashes of Isis and even Soundgarden. They do a good job at balancing harsh and clean passages, and I appreciate the subtle touches of jazz they incorporate. Some songs (and the album as a whole) run a little long. This is nothing groundbreaking, but it’s solid and enjoyable. Score: 75/100 Band: The Dunning-Kruger Effect | Album: Psychik Adventures in Stereo | Genre: Krautro ..read more