Our friend Friday, out of necessity, threw us a curveball this year. In the past, this round has continued the tradition of matching two LPs against one another. However, because this is apparently his last contest, this year, Friday had a dilemma as the result of having allowed 20 participants instead of the usual 16. So this time, the old rules went out the window.
Here were Friday's instructions for us:
This Elimination Round will be different. I want you to give me (in one single comment that makes clear you are voting) your top 4 ranking out of these ten. So if Procol Harum was your favorite, followed by Jordsjo, Pendragon, and Seru Giran, you would say "1. Procol Harum, 2. Jordsjo, 3. Pendragon, and 4. Seru Giran." I will weight the number 1 spot over number 2, etc.
Voting ends next Thursday, August 5th.
So where I had expected my Procol Harum album (which won the first first-round matchup) to be matched directly against the Jordsjo LP (which was the winner of the second first-round matchup), instead we got a free for all.
Here were the ten survivors from the first round:
Procol Harum
Live with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra
"This was Procol's best selling album ever. The pluses include live performances of some of Procol's proggiest material ever, including their 19-minute opus classic 'In Held 'Twas in I', and the acknowledged best version of their song "Conquistador" (much better than the studio version on their first album). The LP is also historic as being one of the earliest collaborations between a symphony orchestra and a rock band. The only real minus in that their great guitarist Robin Trower was no longer with them, and organist Matthew Fisher had also long since left the band. But Dave Ball and Chris Copping do a fine job in their place, and Procol lyricist Keith Reid makes an appearance on 'In Held 'Twas in I' during the spoken interlude that begins, 'Held close by that which some despise'. Overall, this was one of the classic live albums of the 1970s, and a highlight the career of one of my favorite bands." - Divaman
Youtube playlist [album only first 5 tracks]: https://tinyurl.com/vdw69bex
Nattfiolen
"A sweet piece of bingeable Norweigen prog. Replete with synth and flute there’s no hiding the influence of Jethro Tull, but it’s truest ancestry lies in the melodicism of early Camel and Swedish instrumentalist Bo Hansson. For me, good prog tricks the listener into feeling like he’s hearing something playful but familiar while still pushing the experimental boundaries and Nattfiolen is one of the finest examples of that in recent memory. Headphones are the only way to listen, as some of the stereo effects really bring the fairy tale to life." - Inoculaeted
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/54Ooribd5hSPdl2keRxLBT
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qPeIJkyf84
Pendragon
Love Over Fear
"A neo-prog gem from one of the most underrated bands in the entire genre who’ve been at it for decades.
Is it a tad cheesy, a bit over produced and lacking a certain something? Yes but I’ll be buggered if it’s not one of the greatest albums of the last few years." - zakalwe
Bandcamp" https://pendragon3.bandcamp.com/album/love-over-fear
Seru Giran
La Grasa de las Capitales
"One of the many projects by Charly Garcia, one of the biggest names in latin rock. La Grasa de las Capitales is a slow, bluesy prog album with what feels to me like a very nocturnal and urban vibe. Also a lot of jazz fusion into it, and your classic argentinian vocals!" - MrSirLordGentleman
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zm6Qzilw5Cs&ab_channel=Ser%C3%BAGir%C3%A1n
Yolk
Solar
"Incredible fluid layering of sounds with a tricked-out, almost krautrock approach to rhythm. Playful vocals and vibrant atmosphere, whole thing sounds like a wonky prog forest. And they keep it tight, under 40 minutes long, praise be." - porcupinetheater
Bandcamp: https://yolkmusic.bandcamp.com/album/solar
Hermann Szobel
Szobel
"Child prodigy Hermann Szobel composed and produced one album at the age of 18 before he disappeared from the music world completely. The album has a Frank Zappa vibe, with emphasis on piano (Szobel's instrument), percussion, and vibraphone. It was obscure even when it was released in the 70s, but a 2012 reissue has given us a second chance to enjoy it." - TwigTW
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/2VUcwcNH6YbFCPfntYcYdG?si=iBz1ZcHoRta7TNbKOWMizg
youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWb59xaXahQpnZs7AjlHhCQ
Regal Worm
Pig Views
"Modern prog band featuring a multi-instrumentalist experimenting avant gardist music. Band is injecting Medieval and psychedelic touches in their weird kind of prog that contains start and stop patterns and eccentric turns. Alternance of punchy and pastoral ambiences give tonus to the mix. It's generally sophisticated and simple in the same time. It's really melodic, and vocals serve as an instrument. Good use of mellotrons, organs and many more keys and synths. Kinda Beck on acid, making prog." - Jethro42
On Bandcamp: https://regalworm.bandcamp.com/album/pig-views
[also on Spotify]
Ibio
Cuevas De Altamira
"Really cool 70s release, blending in spanish folk music and progressive rock which works astonishingly well. There are great compositions on here and I didn't know before that prog sounded so sweet with the spanish language." - farmerobama
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/7JHzOcKxQZVRAeAHIHjjSn?si=A8sjXPI8S7uFUpY7bEtLkw&utm_source=copy-link
Quiet Sun
Mainstream
"I love the Canterbury prog style. As a real contestant for the first time, and it seems the last too, I needed to choose one of its albums and Mainstream is one of the best albums to that of the '70s. I love the album and Manzanera guitar style." - TheIntruder
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/6WUzJONHD1qkuMhbqJfgsD?autoplay=true
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQsmzpFVXkM
Kollektiv
Kollektiv
"Jazzy krautrock mit flute. More effects pedals than your Dad's favourite band. Viele spass fur alles. 2 votes just doesn't cut it. This write-up is short, but this album is long." - MiloRuggles
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4YXHLIh6mo
So we'll see how it goes. As I write this it's now Wednesday, and the voting is scheduled to end at the end of the day on Thursday. So this will give us out final four.
I'll be back to tell you who I voted for and how it all worked out in a couple of days.
