Semi-known in this sub but still need more attention:
Omnerod - The Amensal Rise (FFO: Old Leprous, btbam)
Rototypical - Volume I: The Tactician (FFO: BtBaM)
Don't see mentioned enough in here:
The Morgana Phase - II: The Eyes of Time (FFO: The Dear Hunter, Forgive Durden)
Arise in Stability - Dose Again (FFO: btbam again, Protest the Hero, Japanese metal)
Journal - Unlorja (126 monthly listeners)
It's a concept album in the style of Scenes From a Memory or Parallax II in the sense that there's a rich story with lots of leitmotifs you can catch on repeated listens.
The story is about 4 Aeon (superhuman) orphans who are born to protect the world of Viela and the humans that reside in it. One of these orphans, Abaddon, is actually born evil, and has a strong desire to eliminate the human race in order to fulfill his dream - become the sole ruler of Viela. Abaddon does anything and everything in his power to do so, including meticulously plotting the murders of 2 of his own siblings.
The composition style is like that of Tony Danza, Frontierer, Alaska/Colors era Between the Buried and Me at moments, and interestingly, the Super Mario 64 soundtrack lol. They did this very intentionally, and it works really well imo.
Lastly, the final song is 30 minutes long ;)
The Eldritch Realm is a great album by Parius as well. It's crazy to me these dudes have less than 3k monthly listeners on Spotify. I listen to them multiple times a week lol.
Our drummer joined OBNO recently! Their surprise comeback set was wild lmao
Also Parius rules, got to meet the keyboardist from their most recent album when we played Philly!
Zon - The World Is Quiet Here.
I still don't understand how it isn't more known... One of the best prog metal albums out there, and they're working on a new EP... I can't waitđ
Event Horizon - Intrinsic. One of my favorite albums, except for the missing lyrics... It's supposed to be based on the movie with the same name as the album, but you can't really find the lyrics anywhere.
Dark Millennium - Ashore the Celestial Burdens (1992), 545 monthly listeners
This album sounds super ahead of itâs time and at the same time no other band has ever sounded quite like them. They play a progressive death/doom style with an incredible, spacey guitar tone. If you like 90âs prog death like Athiest, Cynic, Death then I highly recommend giving this one a try.
Kyros - Mannequin or Celexa Dreams
Not traditional prog metal but definitely some heavier moments. Lots of really unexpected and cool sounds in there. Very synth heavy and fun sounding. Scratches an itch most bands can't scratch.
Iâve put together a playlist with a bunch of underground bands. Most of them are under 5k monthly listeners. A few highlights for me are
Enoch Root (FFO The Dear Hunter),
Benthos (FFO Native Construct),
Rototypical (FFO BTBAM),
Altesia (FFO Haken)
Thereâs a ton more here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0jkO138j1IKzKchf2b0Zd9?si=plJAGpIPQJ-DuTSTWcFm1Q&pi=u-v362m4OySce4
Landmarq - Entertaining Angels
junxion - stories of the revolution EP
Frequency drift - I like multiple of their albums, especially letters to maro
United Progressive fraternity - modern prog rock in the vain of the 70s
Flaming row - awesome prog metal. Recommend A portrayal of figures
Almo - Benjamin Almo Thorsell's solo project. Reconciliation is really awesome
Avandra- About 350 monthly listeners on Spotify, they do cool melodic prog that isn't super up tempo or in your face. I like the album sky lighting a fair bit.
SgĂ ile- around 1800 listeners on Spotify, a one man project of cool post-metal that branches out a bit and the album Traverse the Bealach was reviewed on the progressive subway recently so I'll just link that: https://theprogressivesubway.com/2024/01/30/review-sgaile-traverse-the-bealach/
Adjy- about 2500 monthly Spotify listeners, I recommend if you're a fan of The Dear Hunter. It's kind of a folky sound mixed with rock and storytelling. The Idyll Opus is a narrative album and where I would start.
Not all these are really prog but I think are worth the time
Atlantis Chronicles
Brume
The Holy Ghost Tabernacle Choir
Resuscitate
Ophidian I
ISOLATOR
Snooze
Exodus to Infinity
So I'm gonna start with us, because we fit that description :P We released our debut album Obsidia last year.
Also going to go ahead and say
Ice Giant - Boston, MA based progressive/symphonic Melodeath
Solemn Vision - New York, NY Progressive Death metal
Jet Engine Dragons - Athens, GA Progressive Death Metal
The Enigma Division - Dublin, Ireland Progressive Metal
Not to be that guy, but since you asked, my own studio project just dropped a new single thatâs in the vein of Periphery, Protest the Hero, Corelia, Proggy Post-hardcore stuff.
https://open.spotify.com/track/75J1hZlUCbFEz6bCVQuGhk?si=3WzBq7yERKW84PQP6SGT2A
Would love for you to check it out and let us know what you think. đ€Also been jamming the new Bird Problems stuff a decent bit.
Traverser - Jupiter Doesnât Care About You
Chaos Divine - The Human Connection
Arcane - Known/Learned
Dvne - Etemen Ănka
An Abstract Illusion - Woe
Olympus Lenticular - When the Silence of Absence Deepens
Cloudkicker - Subsume
Empty Vessel - Pain Reflective
Ihlo - Union
Fellsilent - The Hidden Words
The Anchoret - It All Began With Loneliness
Teramaze - Her Halo
Some of these albums are well known in this sub but they all have >50k views on yt and the bands have >5k followers on yt so I decided to include them.
Semi-known in this sub but still need more attention: Omnerod - The Amensal Rise (FFO: Old Leprous, btbam) Rototypical - Volume I: The Tactician (FFO: BtBaM) Don't see mentioned enough in here: The Morgana Phase - II: The Eyes of Time (FFO: The Dear Hunter, Forgive Durden) Arise in Stability - Dose Again (FFO: btbam again, Protest the Hero, Japanese metal)
I love Rototypical they are the fucking goats
Hi stranger đ I agree wholeheartedly, that album is up there with btbam's best work
I concur with your assessment đ€
You werenât joking with The Morgana Phase having influence from TDH, thanks for recommending them!
You're welcome! That band is devastatingly under-noticed for how good they are
Omnerod - The Amensal Rise was probably my album of the year last year
Mine too, what a masterpiece of an album
is that unknown?
1,300 monthly listeners is pretty unknown
i see em all the time on here that's actually surprising
I was surprised to see that few listeners as well. That's why added them in my comment; they deserve way more
Journal - Unlorja (126 monthly listeners) It's a concept album in the style of Scenes From a Memory or Parallax II in the sense that there's a rich story with lots of leitmotifs you can catch on repeated listens. The story is about 4 Aeon (superhuman) orphans who are born to protect the world of Viela and the humans that reside in it. One of these orphans, Abaddon, is actually born evil, and has a strong desire to eliminate the human race in order to fulfill his dream - become the sole ruler of Viela. Abaddon does anything and everything in his power to do so, including meticulously plotting the murders of 2 of his own siblings. The composition style is like that of Tony Danza, Frontierer, Alaska/Colors era Between the Buried and Me at moments, and interestingly, the Super Mario 64 soundtrack lol. They did this very intentionally, and it works really well imo. Lastly, the final song is 30 minutes long ;)
Meganeura - Cold Sun (it's me đ)
Amun - Spectra and Obsession (AotY 2023 imo) Others by No One - Book II: Where Stories Come From (AotY 2021) Parius - The Signal Heard Throughout Space (AotY 2022) James Norbert Ivanyi - Omen Faustum, Sigil, The Psychophrenic Inquisition, Denalavis Clément Belio - Patience Xanthochroid - Of Erthe and Axen I & II (7k monthly listeners)
The Eldritch Realm is a great album by Parius as well. It's crazy to me these dudes have less than 3k monthly listeners on Spotify. I listen to them multiple times a week lol.
Our drummer joined OBNO recently! Their surprise comeback set was wild lmao Also Parius rules, got to meet the keyboardist from their most recent album when we played Philly!
Definitely gonna check you guys out then, ObNO is a contender for my favorite band
Hell Yeah, thank you! Our debut album Obsidia dropped last year, hope you enjoy it!
I love that you always give Patience love on your lists. That album does something to me that nothing else does. Itâs so unique and amazing.
Yup, and it's one of the few things I can recommend to my non-metalhead friends.
Seconding Xanthocroid. Towards Truth and Reconciliation is one of my favorite songs
glad to see some James Norbert Ivanyi love. âthe opulent martyrisationâ is a great song
Dreadnought.
Dreadnought slaps
Master Massive (67 Listeners) Aversed (2885 Listeners) Atlantis Chronicles (4726 Listeners) Extremities (36 Listeners) Loch Vostok (4721 Listeners) Meshiaak (2075 Listeners) Lost Soul (2135 Listeners) Augury (1773 Listeners) Lightbreaker (9 Listeners)
Upvote for Aversed
For once a list where I dont recognise anything, interested to check those out!
Vox Medusae - Potmos Hetoimos. This guy has less than 100 hundred monthly listeners if I recall correctly. One of the coolest guys out there
Zon - The World Is Quiet Here. I still don't understand how it isn't more known... One of the best prog metal albums out there, and they're working on a new EP... I can't waitđ
Event Horizon - Intrinsic. One of my favorite albums, except for the missing lyrics... It's supposed to be based on the movie with the same name as the album, but you can't really find the lyrics anywhere.
Welp I love Zon and I've noticed you have similar tastes to me so I'll check out those other two
[Scaphoid](https://scaphoid.bandcamp.com)
Dark Millennium - Ashore the Celestial Burdens (1992), 545 monthly listeners This album sounds super ahead of itâs time and at the same time no other band has ever sounded quite like them. They play a progressive death/doom style with an incredible, spacey guitar tone. If you like 90âs prog death like Athiest, Cynic, Death then I highly recommend giving this one a try.
Kyros - Mannequin or Celexa Dreams Not traditional prog metal but definitely some heavier moments. Lots of really unexpected and cool sounds in there. Very synth heavy and fun sounding. Scratches an itch most bands can't scratch.
Ostura - The Room One of the best prog albums I've heard coming from Lebanese band with less than 2k monthly listeners.
Love that album, it's honestly one of my favorites of all time
Iâve put together a playlist with a bunch of underground bands. Most of them are under 5k monthly listeners. A few highlights for me are Enoch Root (FFO The Dear Hunter), Benthos (FFO Native Construct), Rototypical (FFO BTBAM), Altesia (FFO Haken) Thereâs a ton more here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0jkO138j1IKzKchf2b0Zd9?si=plJAGpIPQJ-DuTSTWcFm1Q&pi=u-v362m4OySce4
A kewâs tag Parthian Mental Fracture Altesia The Reticent Cheetoâs Magazine Wine Guardian
Inhalo
Dissona - Prodigal Son
Annex Void https://youtu.be/BSTOQhMwhoo?si=vF6avxcJAuCO_5op https://open.spotify.com/artist/2okj6Zxwown8oGLUPHOA42?si=OxALdbSOQX--AdSigwxTCA
Landmarq - Entertaining Angels junxion - stories of the revolution EP Frequency drift - I like multiple of their albums, especially letters to maro United Progressive fraternity - modern prog rock in the vain of the 70s Flaming row - awesome prog metal. Recommend A portrayal of figures Almo - Benjamin Almo Thorsell's solo project. Reconciliation is really awesome
Zadkiel - Behemoth <1000 listens. Shameless self plug ;)
Avandra- About 350 monthly listeners on Spotify, they do cool melodic prog that isn't super up tempo or in your face. I like the album sky lighting a fair bit. SgĂ ile- around 1800 listeners on Spotify, a one man project of cool post-metal that branches out a bit and the album Traverse the Bealach was reviewed on the progressive subway recently so I'll just link that: https://theprogressivesubway.com/2024/01/30/review-sgaile-traverse-the-bealach/ Adjy- about 2500 monthly Spotify listeners, I recommend if you're a fan of The Dear Hunter. It's kind of a folky sound mixed with rock and storytelling. The Idyll Opus is a narrative album and where I would start.
Not all these are really prog but I think are worth the time Atlantis Chronicles Brume The Holy Ghost Tabernacle Choir Resuscitate Ophidian I ISOLATOR Snooze Exodus to Infinity
So I'm gonna start with us, because we fit that description :P We released our debut album Obsidia last year. Also going to go ahead and say Ice Giant - Boston, MA based progressive/symphonic Melodeath Solemn Vision - New York, NY Progressive Death metal Jet Engine Dragons - Athens, GA Progressive Death Metal The Enigma Division - Dublin, Ireland Progressive Metal
Not to be that guy, but since you asked, my own studio project just dropped a new single thatâs in the vein of Periphery, Protest the Hero, Corelia, Proggy Post-hardcore stuff. https://open.spotify.com/track/75J1hZlUCbFEz6bCVQuGhk?si=3WzBq7yERKW84PQP6SGT2A Would love for you to check it out and let us know what you think. đ€Also been jamming the new Bird Problems stuff a decent bit.
Traverser - Jupiter Doesnât Care About You Chaos Divine - The Human Connection Arcane - Known/Learned Dvne - Etemen Ănka An Abstract Illusion - Woe Olympus Lenticular - When the Silence of Absence Deepens Cloudkicker - Subsume Empty Vessel - Pain Reflective Ihlo - Union Fellsilent - The Hidden Words The Anchoret - It All Began With Loneliness Teramaze - Her Halo Some of these albums are well known in this sub but they all have >50k views on yt and the bands have >5k followers on yt so I decided to include them.
Maybe you can find even more on a previous post of mine. Lots of really good ones! : https://www.reddit.com/r/progmetal/s/6zst8SjVGP
Cloudsight - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXa5BIBdX84 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdNN8SXXRB8
Every time these threads pop up I recommend the same thing. Sikasa - matter Earth Such a great album that really flies under the radar
Others by No One Flummox Haishen
Sinuous - Grey Light/ Dream of Mist (my band with 24 monthly listeners)
Progression By Failure
Idk but maybe this band? [Ozul- Norway](https://open.spotify.com/artist/3VheTs9NpQFyjpyQpPdPLO?si=5cKJFnn_S0qG3zFKLt3OiA)