Progressive Rock

Progressive rock, also referred to as prog rock, prog-rock, or simply prog, is a rock music subgenre which originated in the United Kingdom, with further developments in Germany, Italy, and France, throughout the mid to late 1960s and 1970s. Developing from psychedelic rock, progressive rock originated, similarly to art rock, as a British attempt to give greater artistic weight and credibility to rock music. Progressive rock intended to break the boundaries of traditional rock music by bringing in a greater and more eclectic range of influences, including free-form and experimental compositional methods, as well as new technological innovations. It was mostly characterized by the break-up of the classic 3-minute song, replaced by long suites sometime as long as a whole LP side, rife with symphonic influences, extended and diluted musical themes, fantasy-like ambience and lyrics, and ample, very rich (sometimes defined by critics as "overblown") sounds and productions. Classical forms are often inserted or substituted, sometimes yielding entire suites, building on the traditional medleys of earlier rock bands. Progressive rock songs also often have extended instrumental passages, marrying the classical solo tradition with the improvisational traditions of jazz and psychedelic rock. All of these tend to add length to progressive rock songs, which may last longer than twenty minutes. Concept albums are albums that are built around a theme or a story, and they are common to progressive rock.

Associated Sub-Genres: Canterbury Scene, Krautrock, New Prog, Rock In Opposition, Space Rock

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_rock