We're back with a brand new Tracks Of The Week! This week we've got eight new and diverse slices of progressively inclined music for you to enjoy.
Asia romped home again last week with their sprightly and very melodic Echo Of You, which bodes well for their upcoming new album, Indigo. Former Mew vocalist Jonas Berrre was second, with Envy Of None singer Maiah Wynne in third place.
The premise is simple - we've collated a batch of new releases by bands falling under the progressive umbrella, and collated them together in one post for you - it makes it so much easier than having to dip in and out of various individual posts, doesn't it?
The idea is to watch the videos (or listen if it's a stream), enjoy (or not) and also to vote for your favourite in the voting form at the bottom of this post. Couldn't be easier, could it? We'll be bringing you Tracks Of The Week, as the title implies, each week. Next week, we'll update you with this week's winner and present a host of new prog music for you to enjoy.
If you're a band and you want to be featured in Prog's Tracks Of The Week, send your video (as a YouTube link) or track embed, band photo (please, don't forget the photo!) and biog with quotes to us here.
COLIN MOULDING - WANT IT BAD
XTC fans will be delighted to see bassist and vocalist Colin Moulding stick his head above the parapet once more with a new three-track EP, from which comes the title track, Want It Bad (The Pep Talks And Playing Fields Of Old England), the gentle psychedelia of which evokes memories of some of XTC's wondrous later era and highlights Moulding's talents as a songwriter. More Please!
"Although this song started life as a sporting pep talk, it was clear that it could easily be thought of as a mantra for one's own life ambitions whatever they may be," Moulding explains. "If you want something in this life you have to really want it. And if you really want it, you’ll get it -- that was my mantra. I was scouting around for a cover that would signify human endeavour. I had written 'Want It Bad', which basically amounted to a pep talk by a sporting coach to his team. Football, perhaps... something made me think of the runners on the beach in the film Chariots Of Fire.
"After many permutations, Andrew, my artwork designer, said, "What about Delaunay and his runners?" and when he showed me, there was no doubt. So it was derived from Les Coureurs by Robert Delaunay, a French painter from the early part of the twentieth century. Check him out!"
EIVØR - VERJUGARÐAR/WALLS
Faroese musician Eivør will release her latest album, Tungl (the Faroese word for ‘moon’), through Nuclear Blast Records on October 16, and if ever an album deserved to make an artist a huge star, this is it - which is saying something considering Eivør's impressive back catalogue. Brilliant genre-defying, in that way Kate Bush is, Verjugarðar is a delightful slice of atmospheric music that has appeal to both prog and pop fans!
"Verjugarðar/Walls is an epic and dark electronic rock ballad about two people who have lost what once bound them together behind walls of silence," she says. "The paradox is that the walls we build to protect ourselves can also be the very walls that keep us apart. This is one of those songs that took me a few years to write, but when it suddenly fell into place, I just couldn’t stop singing it."
LONELY ROBOT - SHOW THE WAY
John Mirchell's got a busy few months coming up. Not only do Asia release their new album in November, but he'll also release his last album under the Lonely Robot moniker when he releases An Ending through White Knight Records on September 11. Judging by the quality of Show The Way, not to mention their previous single, World Window, he's really going out on a high!
"Show The Way is a call to arms," he says. "There’s so much incompetence and gaslighting in the world right now, and I wanted to write something that pushed back against that. We can’t afford to sit idly by while Rome burns. I like songs that work as anthems, and this is one of them. It’sabout finding a way out of the trouble we’re in, holding on to our humanity and appreciating what we have."
IT - WON'T PRAY ON SUNDAY
UK prog quartet IT (possibly the worst band name when it comes to searching online!) go right back to the beginning with their latest album! They celebrate their 30th anniversary with the release of a newly reworked version of their original cassette release, The Stranger Within The Self. All the songs and 95% of the lyrics are as they were; the only exception, a title change on one song, The Last Of November, now renamed Do You Remember?. The new release contains both the 2026 and 1994 versions of the album too!
“In 2020, after several IT fans had somehow got a hold of the long-deleted The Stranger Inside The Self recordings, and with more asking for a copy, I reluctantly gave them one”, mainman Nick Jackson says. “As this request began to snowball and IT’s 30th year anniversary was just over the horizon, I somehow got the bright idea to revisit the album and initially fix the mix and remaster. Well, I quickly learnt that that doesn’t happen so easily. And a new journey had begun in which we chased TSITS into what has become a complete remake of the original 1994 version.”
CULT OF LUNA - A WAY BACK
Obviously, Sweden's heavy proggers Cult Of Luna aren't for everyone in the prog community. Some will have been scared off by the hefty nature of some of their music; others probably refuse to give the band any time of day at all. The broodingly melancholic A Way Back, however, might be something you do enjoy, so we implore you to at least give the band a listen here. They release their new album, In The Shadow Of Your Shadow, through the band's RED CRD Recordings on November 6.
“I often find myself trying to describe a recurring feeling, the sensation of being lost, trapped, or both, and the struggle to find a way out,” explains the band’s co-vocalist and guitarist Fredrik Kihlberg of one of the album’s most hushed yet powerful moments. “A way back to yourself, to a safe space, or simply finding a way to make it through when anxiety overwhelms you: at its core, that’s what this song is about.”
GATES OF KIEV - HAMLET BURNS
The band name is something of a giveaway - that and the fact they're a trio too. Dutch prog rockers Gates Of Kiev are ELP-tastic - there's no other way to describe them. The twelve-minute Hamlet Burns (admitedly it doesn't really get going until the third minute!) is a perfect introduction to the band. They release their self-titled debut album through Laser's Edge on October 2. Get past the cheesy artwork, and there's much to enjoy...
"Hamlet Burns is a dramatic, ecstatic song inspired by the scenery of barren fields in Dutch Winter," explains drummer Hessel Braat. "The music and lyrics follow a journey of loss, deep experience and transformation. Almost as if portraying the unfolding of destiny within a human life.”
AISLES - ANYWHERE
Chilean proggers Aisles like to be quite flexible within the parameters of progressive rock, and new single, Anywhere, starts off with a distinct disco beat, which may raise a few eyebrows. It soon moves into more recognisable territory, and boasts another fine performance from the band's latest vocalist, Boris Seeder. The band drop their sixth studio album, Irrationally, on October 1.
"The track explores themes of freedom, the vitality of true passion, and the core belief that location doesn't matter as long as there is unity," the band say. "The central metaphor, "we can travel south," carries a powerful emotional weight—symbolising a journey to the end of the road, far away from everything and everyone."
RODRIGO PAGAVINO - VELOMORPH
Proof that if you send us your material, there's a damn good chance you too can make TOTW! This arrived literally as we're writing this, and we will admit that the minute we saw a fourteen-string guitar (Fourteen! Count them!!) we were intrigued! Velomorph isn't all shred either! There's a seriously good melody running through the piece. And Venezuelan-born, Spain-based guitarist Rodrigo Pagavino is certainly no slouch on the guitar! He releases his upcoming instrumental album in October.
“Velomorph is an instrumental piece combining progressive rock, shred guitar, fusion, and electronic elements, aiming to balance technical performance with a strong melodic narrative," Padavano says. "The concept behind the track revolves around movement, velocity, and transformation, reflected in the wordplay between Velocity and Morph. The track was performed using a 14-string guitar by FM Guitars (Felix Martin), a brand I am endorsed by. The instrument plays a fundamental role in the song’s sonic identity, allowing for an expanded tonal range and a distinctive approach to guitar performance."
