#69 - Crimson Glory

The under-appreciated early prog metal band, Crimson Glory, formed as early as 1979, solidifying their lineup and recording their debut album in the mid-80s.  (I first learned of them many years later, thanks to one of my metal mentors who I've mentioned before in this blog, Chris Hare.)  The sound was akin to early Queensryche, with maybe a slightly more power metal drive to it.  The goofy hair and costumes looked like a lot of the bands of that time, although the masks they wore pretty much all the time in public made them stand out for the extra helping of cheese.  But where they really stood out was in the vocal department: singer Midnight is surely one of the all-time greatest metal voices.  Unfortunately, he was pretty unreliable too, and so was in and out of the band until his untimely death in 2009.

Crimson Glory borrowed some of their early sound from the NWOBHM movement, and their driving, dual-guitar, riff heavy compositions on the first album are classic, both catchy and inventive for the time.  Their second album, Transcendence, is widely regarded as their best, but I'm including Mayday, off their eponymous debut, below.  I like the first album's pure, almost innocent, approach and the vocals are just amazing.  The song really shows off Midnight's pipes, and at 2:59 is the shortest (and fastest) song on the album.

#70 - Liquid Tension Experiment

Liquid Tension Experiment is our first purely instrumental band on the top 100.  We've heard from a couple of instrumentalists, including one who recorded an excellent instrumental album, and we've heard from one or two bands with a vocalist who have put out some great instrumental songs.  LTE started as a 1997 side project for prolific New-York-based drummer Mike Portnoy, who has had more than his share of side projects over the years.  He recruited keyboardist Jordan Rudess, who at that time was playing with the Dixie Dregs, and in-demand session bassist Tony Levin, whose regular gig was with King Crimson.  Portnoy also attempted to get guitarists Dimebag Darrell of Pantera, Steve Morse, then playing with Deep Purple, and Jim Matheos of Fates Warning, but none of them were available.  He eventually settled for his virtuosic bandmate in Dream Theater, John Petrucci.

LTE, as with many instrumental rock bands, is loaded with chops.  In terms of metal subgenres, they're firmly in the realm of progressive, instrumental metal, heavy on keyboards and insanely fast and technical playing.  They're maybe a little less all over the place in terms of composition than a lot of progressive bands, and maybe a little more upbeat sounding than most metal bands, but there's still plenty to chew on (and rock out to) in their music.  Paradigm Shift is the uptempo opener to their debut, eponymous album.  It certainly comes charging out of the gate and doesn't relent until a half-time improvisatory section beginning at 2:06.  It's pretty feel oriented throughout, with the show-off-y playing generally subservient to the groove.  At 4:40, the band takes it down another notch to a relaxed funk beat that features Levin on bass, and then layers a guitar solo by Petrucci that builds back up to the first half-time feel at 6:56.  At 7:24, the tune shifts into a more proggy 7-feel bridge back to the opening up-tempo feel, with a blistering outro that recaps the intro from eight minutes earlier.

#71 - Linear Sphere

I think I first read about Linear Sphere sometime shortly before the release of their first album, Reality Dysfunction, in 2004 or 2005.  Somehow, I came across their name online as an up-and-coming technical/progressive metal band on which to keep an eye.  It may have been on an online forum for some other band where fans like me got together to lament the slow delivery cycle of said band and speculate as to why they weren't catering to our every whim, who might serve as an acceptable substitute for listening while we wait, and what they might like to eat for breakfast (fans are nuts).  Anyway, I managed to find at that time an exclusive release for the Dream Theater fan club from 2003 that was a collection of songs written and recorded to spec as part of a composers' competition.  The guidelines were based on a song that Dream Theater was in the process of recording at the time, called "Stream of Consciousness", but revealed in the competition only as "SoC".  Interestingly, a little known band named Redemption appeared on the CD of finalists, as did an even lesser-known band from London, Linear Sphere.

The name of the Linear Sphere track was "Scent of Carbonite" (SoC), and it blew me away.  It was technical progressive metal with a heavier jazz influence than other prog metal bands, and some terrific guitar playing by shredders Martin Goulding and Charlie Griffiths.  It's well worth checking out.

I'm not including that one below, mostly because the production, understandably, is pretty bad.  Instead, check out the opening track, Origin, from their second and most recent release, Manvantara.  Try to get past the obnoxious vocals... not easy to do, but if you can you'll be treated to some really unique and well-played technical prog fusion metal (they're in a genre all their own).

#72 - The Human Abstract

Another great hometown band from right here in L.A.  And you thought Mötley Crüe was the last bastion of artistry in this fine town.  I say nay!  The Human Abstract is a somewhat new band for me: I only stumbled on them around the release of their third and most recent album, Digital Veil.  Sadly, it might be their last, as there hasn't been any activity from them in about a year.  It's a shame, because they're clearly a talented bunch.  Rooted in the metalcore style (which is generally not a favorite of mine), The Human Abstract makes frequent forays into the complexities of progressive metal and the clear, melodic and fast soloing of the post-Yngwie movement.

Complex Terms is a track from that most recent album, Digital Veil.  Like a lot of metalcore bands, you'll hear the enraged growling/yelling juxtaposed against the clean, harmonized alternative rock vocals and the machine gun repeated staccato notes from the guitar and snare/bass drums.  Unlike a lot of metalcore bands, you'll also hear their characteristic compositional twists and turns, heavy use of mixed meters and copious neoclassical soloing.  The whole album sounds pretty much like this, and as a new band (to my library) they're definitely growing on me.  Here's hoping they get back in the studio and/or on the stage.  Enjoy.

#73 - Leprous

Back to Norway for this eclectic prog-metal band.  Leprous bounces around between lighter and heavy rock, using major and minor tonalities, sparse and dense textures, catchy and complex composition.  They manage better than most to impress without coming across as though they're trying to impress.  They're a newer band, and I don't know too much about them but I like what I know.  They're a band on the ascent in my book.

I could pick just about any of their songs to share with you: they're remarkably consistent in a very good way.  Below, I picked the title track from their sophomore effort.  It gives you a good taste of their simultaneously challenging and listenable style.  Note the easy 7-feel in the verse, the anthemic chorus, the development of the verse after the chorus and then the recapitulation of the verse at the end.  Enjoy!

#74 - Gracepoint

Gracepoint is essentially a local Minneapolis band that really hasn't been able to break out of the confines of the scene there.  It's unfortunate, because they've got a lot going for them that a lot of more widely recognized bands don't.  First of all, they've got what seems to me to be a pretty marketable sound: something along the lines of a late 90's post-Creed thrashy pop-metal sensibility.  Or maybe it's more of an Armored Saint vibe.  It may be that their window has closed, but for a while there, that was all the rage.  Secondly, they play the crap out of their instruments, and aren't afraid to mix up the meter into some really interesting and enjoyable grooves.  A seriously under-appreciated band...

Case in point, the title track from 2000's "Science of Discontent".  This is especially nice, because it forgoes the, in my opinion, weakness of the band: the vocals.  But it also highlights everything that is great about this band.  Inventive time shifts, funky bass playing, and a twisty, interesting overall form and aesthetic.  You'll hear a lot of odd meters here, but my favorite part is the heavy, surprising and totally effective shifts between 6/8 and 4/4 beginning at 3:15.  The whole song is similarly clever, but that section is one of those magical moments that brings a smile to my face every time... check it out and see if you're similarly moved.

#75 - Yngwie Malmsteen

As comical as Yngwie Malmsteen - the character - is, there's no denying his virtuosic performance on the guitar, nor his influence on legions of metal guitarists since his first solo effort in 1984.  Known for his pristine technique, smooth and facile phrasing, and above all for his ultra-fast picking and arpeggiating, Yngwie set a bar for guitar virtuosity which, amazingly, really hasn't been topped in the 30 years since that debut.  Plus, check out the ruffly cuffs on that shirt!

Yngwie takes heat for a lot of things, I think mostly because he seems not to be a very nice guy.  I don't know how accurate that reputation is, but one thing he's criticized about that I agree with is his songwriting, which is pretty formulaic and often cheesy.  His songs are usually just a framework upon which to show off his incredible facility on the instrument.  For this reason, I tend to prefer his work on other people's music, including cover versions of classic songs.  Fortunately for me, there are plenty of examples of just that.  I'm including below one of my favorites: his partnership with Ronnie James Dio on the Aerosmith classic, Dream On.  As I'm sure you know, the original is a great piece of music and a solid execution.  To these ears, this cover takes it up about five notches with just awesome performances by two of the greatest in the history of rock.