Progressive Metal

S1, E11: Many rock academics have proclaimed that the truly progressive musicianship of the last 20 years has been found right here in the world of heavy metal, rather than obvious locales such as jazz, fusion or progressive rock. It stands to reason then, that much of this jaw-dropping virtuosity occurs within what’s known as progressive metal, a genre that takes root with the likes of Rush in the ‘70s, Queensryche and Fates Warning in the ‘80s, and Dream Theater in the ‘90s. Since then, the genre has exploded with creativity, spawning mind-bending, genre-defying acts such as Tool, Mastodon, Coheed And Cambria, Porcupine Tree, Meshuggah, A Perfect Circle and Opeth. Episode 11 looks at the extreme musicianship of these bands, as well as their often extreme literary prowess and conceptual strength, the end result being a rich level of respect and attention such challenging acts have brought upon the world of heavy metal, from a critical community usually dismissive of the form.