Latest articles by Malcolm Dome
The chaotic story of Black Sabbath’s Born Again and the booze-fuelled union of two rock legends
Black Sabbath’s Born Again: flawed classic or total disaster? Ian Gillan has opinions
Jethro Tull’s struggle to make Aqualung, in their own words
Their fourth album, a prophetic masterpiece and best-selling work, made them stars – but its creation wasn’t easy
How Saxon made Crusader, the album that marked the end of their early 80s glory years
Biff Byford looks back on Saxon’s divisive 1984 album Crusader
The life and times of Tony Iommi, metal’s indestructible dark lord
If it wasn’t for Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi, the world would sound very, very different
The chaotic story behind Motörhead’s Overkill, the album that turned three speed freaks into stars
Motörhead’s second album, Overkill, was the one that truly put them on the map
“Forget Satan – bring on the biologist”: Nightwish’s Endless Forms Most Beautiful
Endless Forms Most Beautiful started with a handwritten letter and resulted in an extraordinary, inspiring concept album – plus the professor’s first-ever prog performance at Wembley Arena
The rollercoaster story of Wolfsbane, the British metal band who should have been superstars
Long before Blaze Bayley joined Iron Maiden, he was a member of British metal lunatics Wolfsbane
When William Burroughs gave Daevid Allen permission to call his band The Soft Machine
A key moment in the Canterbury band’s history came when the future Gong mastermind made contact with his former collaborator in 1966
By the time Barclay James Harvest upset The Moody Blues, they already had form
They didn’t mingle with fellow prog pioneers and didn’t clamour for stardom – but co-founder Les Holroyd argues they were highly successful where it mattered
When Kansas cracked the charts with a song they didn’t want to record
In 1976 the US prog rockers found themselves in the upper reaches of the US charts with drivetime classic Carry On Wayward Son – which nearly fell victim to lethargy
A beginner's guide to Bad Company in 10 songs
The best songs by Bad Company, the supergroup who took blues rock to the stadiums of America
The chaotic story of Girls, Girls, Girls, the album that almost killed Motley Crue
The album that kicked Motley Crue to the next level – and nearly killed them
John Sykes looks back on Blue Murder, the band he formed after leaving Whitesnake
A rare interview with the late John Sykes, who died this week at the age of 65 – and some personal memories from Myles Kennedy
Urged on by fans, Mike Oldfield’s final album was a look back to his early years
Return To Ommadawn was a fresh exploration of the ideas on his third album – complete with a vinyl gatefold sleeve offering “hours of enjoyment”
Tony Visconti, Roger Dean and the making of Osibisa’s debut album
Released in 1971, the African-tinged record pioneered what would become world music, and took prog into fresh new waters too.
How a reinvented Black Sabbath saved themselves from oblivion with Heaven And Hell
Heaven And Hell was the start of Black Sabbath’s short but glorious second chapter
“Few can claim to have such a diverse catalogue”: Gryphon’s Dave Oberlé looks back
He’s worked with Steve Howe, Wire and Gandalf’s Fist, and even on a metal magazine – but it’s the quirkiness and curiosity of his own band that makes the singer and percussionist most proud
How The Nice got started by fibbing about their songwriting skills
Prompted by a disagreement that spilled into the public domain, co-founders Keith Emerson and Lee Jackson once visited the Prog office to set things straight
How Saxon’s Wheels Of Steel turned them into the NWOBHM’s first stars
No band did more than Saxon to put the NWOBHM on the map
“You can spend hours studying them and still not get it”: Nik Kershaw’ on Gentle Giant
One of the 80s hitmaker’s early bands covered two of their songs – but it took him years to realise their genius, and he still doesn’t truly understand it
How the Moody Blues returned to superstardom with Long Distance Voyager
With help from an ex Yes member and a new engineer, 1981 release marked a significant update without a loss of their musical values. But is it a concept album?
The chaotic story of Lamb Of God’s New American Gospel, the album that kickstarted 2000s metal
Lamb Of God’s New American Gospel ushered in the New Wave Of American Heavy Metal a couple of years early
How Queensryche made conspiracy theory-based masterpiece Operation: Mindcrime,
Metal’s all-time greatest concept album? Operation: Mindcrime could be it
The convoluted story of Procol Harum’s A Whiter Shade Of Pale
In May 1967, the band’s debut single changed the musical world. Nearly six decades later it’s developed a long and protracted legacy
The all-too-short story of promising early proggers Rare Bird
A US tour without enough dates, a move away from the sound that got them signed, frequent line-up changes and never any money – just some of the things that went wrong for the band who once stood alongside The Nice and Van der Graaf Generator
