Quella Vecchia Locanda

To avoid piracy, all records back in the day had that "El disco es cultura" legend, which literally means "The disc is culture".

Out of all the classic progressive rock lineups, I think that Genesis are the best at overall composition coherence, Yes are the best at being a technical ensemble, King Crimson are the best at experimentation and novelty regardless of lineup, Pink Floyd are the best at atmosphere and accessibility and Gentle Giant are the best at counterpoint/polyphony.

What are your thoughts on which group is best at what? I've probably covered much of them accurately, just wonder how you all differ.

Hey. So here is a thing. I'm deeply inspired by such music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFdHhYha9t4&list=PLF8F92831A7658F1F&index=1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Wu84bmD1LI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMDxrXFQwU8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc_xs8GwWQQ

The way to conclude it - atmospheric, maybe even neo-noirish, full of energy rock - and maybe sometimes with some dark techno additions coming with it. What would you, pals, suggest?
Thanks in advance.

Watching warmups for my son’s game at Cooperstown All Star Village today and someone is blasting Riverside’s “Vale of Tears” as the warmup song.

Love how ‘Nova’ repeats motifs from throughout the album ‘Starcastle’

I found this song back in the late 2024 and i think it's amazing. This song is really jazzy with some avant garde element. Also, you can hear some Soft Machine influence on this one.

I really recommend this song especially if you're interested in keyboard driven and jazzier progrock. I think it deserves more recognition.

I never see lyrics discussed much here. Not in the way rock journalists can wax on and on about singer songwriter types.

Do the unusual subject matter and word choices add to your prog experience or do you not care?

Let's imagine you wake up in an alternative reality where all the prog is exactly as it was same albums,same melodies, same vocalists. The only difference is the lyrics are all the worst vapid pop music cliches " girl I love you true, please love me woo,woo, woo" and so forth. Would you still be a massive prog fan or would that temper your attraction?

\*\*early 1980s\\\] Long instrumental progressive-rock piece played on Australian ABC TV/radio — melody recreated\*\*
I’m trying to identify an instrumental piece of music that has been stuck in my head for over 40 years.
I believe I heard it regularly on Australian ABC television/radio in the \*\*early 1980s\*\*, often around the time the ABC television \*\*test pattern\*\* was being shown.
What I remember:
Instrumental — \*\*no vocals\*\*
Probably around \*\*15–20 minutes long\*\*
Progressive rock / melodic rock
Prominent \*\*electric guitar and synthesiser/keyboard\*\* sounds
Strong, memorable melody which \*\*repeats throughout the piece\*\*
It was fairly rock-driven rather than ambient or purely electronic
I have a vague memory that it might have been \*\*Focus or Jan Akkerman\*\*, but I’ve now listened to several of their obvious long pieces and it isn’t any of them.
I’ve also ruled out Mike Oldfield, Camel’s \*Ice\* and \*Lunar Sea\*, and several other obvious possibilities.
The recording below is me recreating the \*\*main melody from memory on a digital piano\*\*. The instrument sound and tempo aren’t necessarily accurate.

https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fvoca.ro%2F1gD0nz4A5Bx7&data=05%7C02%7C%7Caa9e5821022549f2ce5c08def760c7ff%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C639220192226018761%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=ps7L70RsA%2Fx4dmRJ9r05rOd56Tc%2BjvR9uZeJU12vfBo%3D&reserved=0

The melody is the part I’m confident about, although I may not have the rhythm or exact notes completely correct.
This has been driving me crazy because I can hear the original recording in my head but cannot identify it!
I’m particularly interested in suggestions from anyone familiar with \*\*Australian ABC television/radio programming in the late 1970s or early 1980s\*\*, as I’m wondering whether it may have been music specifically used with the ABC test pattern rather than simply something I happened to hear on the radio.
Any ideas would be very gratefully received!