Top 250: #121 - #140

140. .3, by Porcupine Tree
(In Absentia, 2002)
Porcupine Tree's towering masterwork In Absentia is our number one favorite in their discography, so it comes as no surprise that there are several tracks taken from it in not only Top 250 but in fact Top 140. .3 is a powerful instrumental track, almost as if hidden somewhere in the middle of the album. No reason - when all material on an album is this strong, there is really nothing to hide.

139. Lightdark, by Nosound
(Lightdark, 2008)
This is already the third track on the list from Italian Giancarlo Erra's Nosound, following Constant Contrast (#211) from their later release, and Someone Starts to Fade Away (#210) from this very same 2008 album. This title track might be our favorite on it. An absolutely beautiful melody backed up by a nicely echoing piano. Atmospheric and unforgettable.

138. Stinkfist, by Tool
(Ænima, 1996)
Following Schism (#225), Vicarious (#198) and The Grudge (#167), this is already the fourth and almost certainly final appearance on the list by American progressive metal artists Tool. Frankly, it comes as a surprise to us that the opening track of their second studio album, already 18 years old, ended up higher on the list than the newer, more polished ones. There is some raw power at play here.

137. La Mer recommencée, by Vangelis
(L'Apocalypse des Animaux, 1973)
This is an early masterpiece from Greek electronic music wizard Vangelis, from the time when he lived in Paris, composed music for films, and named his compositions in French. L'Apocalypse des Animaux was his breakthrough album that even led to discussions on whether he should join progressive rock supergroup Yes following the departure of their keyboard player Rick Wakeman.

136. Light Mass Prayers, by Porcupine Tree
(Signify, 1996)
Here comes another Porcupine Tree track. Light Mass Prayers seems to be little more than a short interlude between two actual tracks on the album Signify, but somehow we always connected to it more strongly than we did to those other two. We have mentioned the word "atmospheric" a few times already; here is a composition you could use to define the term. It is a perfect example of how music can take you to another place by power of suggestion alone.

135. Resurrect Dead on Planet Jupiter / Last Dream Before Dawn, by American Hollow
(Screaming into the Void, 2012)
This is actually a combination of the first two tracks on American Hollow's second album, out only two years ago. Resurrect is only a short introduction, Last Dream is the actual song that brings Blackfield to mind. American Hollow started as a progressive metal group on their debut; here, they have replaced metal with rock, and also with some really gentle elements exemplified by Last Dream.

134. Come in out of the Rain, by Engineers
(Folly, 2004)
At the beginning of their career a full decade ago, British shoegazers Engineers displayed some exceptionally strong songwriting skills. This track is a particularly good example of that. It will be interesting to see if their new album Always Returning, due out next month, will be anywhere near this level. Come in out of the Rain was also included on the group's self titled debut album (2005) but its first publication was on the EP Folly, out the previous year.

133. Earth Day, by Devin Townsend
(Terria, 2001)
Ever since we discovered Devin Townsend, this song has been a major favorite for us, so here we are, for a change actually wondering why it hasn't climbed any higher on the list than this. A great, great progressive metal anthem from the album that was Townsend's salute to his home country Canada. It is over eight minutes long but packs more punch than most other albums in their entirety.

132. Interlink, by Tetsu Inoue
(World Receiver, 1996)
Another Japanese composer in the Top 250 besides Yasushi Yoshida is Tetsu Inoue, whose 1996 album World Receiver contains the delightful track Interlink. We suppose it really belongs to the ambient music genre, but what causes this approximately ten-minute long composition to stand out in that context is the skillful use of sound effects as well as its exceptionally good natured overall feel.

131. Stream of Unconsciousness, by Spock's Beard
(Spock's Beard, 2006)
In spite of being self titled, this album is actually already the ninth effort by American prog rockers Spock's Beard - and since then, they have released another two. Stream of Unconsciousness is an instrumental closing section of a 17-minute long combination of four separately named tracks. Since these were marked with different track numbers, it received a rank of its own on the list. Easily the best section of the whole, it is an irresistibly fun and energetic prog track.

130. All Sweet Things, by No-Man
(Schoolyard Ghosts, 2008)
Following Pigeon Drummer (#219), Close Your Eyes (#185) and Truenorth (#161), this is already the fourth appearance of No-Man on the list. This beautiful song opens the dynamic duo's latest album and is admittedly a very lovely thing to listen to but one that lacks the strong dynamic of a Pigeon Drummer. This is the third and probably last pick from Schoolyard Ghosts, but not the last we'll hear of No-Man.

129. Ibby it is, by Happy the Man
(Crafty Hands, 1978)
One of the greatest symphonic progressive rock instrumentals of the seventies, Ibby it is reached a surprisingly poor rank on the list, but this is of course explained by us listening to it a lot of times before introduction of iTunes in April 2006. The track from American prog group Happy the Man's second studio album is arguably the unsurpassed highlight of their entire recorded output.

128. Darkness, by Lamb
(Between Darkness and Wonder, 2003)
Lamb is not progressive rock, but we would be hard pressed to define what it is. Difficult to label, the stunningly beautiful opening track Darkness from their 2003 album Between Darkness and Wonder is nowhere near as dark as its title might suggest. The music is really only a cocoon from which the existential lyrics emerge. The listener can respond with nothing but sheer awe.

127. The Man With the 4.7, by Jem Godfrey
(Music in the Typewriting Room, 2001)
Yes, there never really was an album called Music in the Typewriting Room, but the Frost* frontman Jem Godfrey used to have a collection of experimental tracks from this particular era available for download on this web site, using that as a header, so we will reuse it. This humorous track has played enough times to reach a respectable chart position. We suspect the "title track" will be also on the list, higher up. Fun fusion of pop and prog, with great production values.

126. Wind Won't Howl, by OSI
(Fire Make Thunder, 2012)
Following the older track Once (#223), this is the second appearance of American progressive metal group OSI on the list. Fire Make Thunder is the band's fourth studio album and latest release, out a couple of years ago. Wind Won't Howl is not a particularly metallic song but more of a low key effort with well written melody. Original Dream Theater keyboardist Kevin Moore knows his craft very, very well.

125. Island, by Echolyn
(Echolyn, 2012)
Another American progressive rock group Echolyn has a somewhat different style compared to OSI. Their latest release is also from 2012, and is already their second self titled album, following 1991's debut. Island is its absolutely stunning opener that runs over 16 minutes and already proves that the group is still in great form, after all these years. We cannot wait for their next album release and can only hope that one is forthcoming.

124. Thrombosis Sonata, by Donny Who Loved Bowling
(Headstone, 2013)
The third recent release from an American group in a row on the list is perhaps the most challenging one. Donny Who Loved Bowling is an experimental music outfit with only two members. This is by far our favorite track on their most recent release Headstone: an atmospheric (again) instrumental that is very reminiscent of the early works of film composer Howard Shore. This composition would be right at home on the soundtrack of Videodrome (1983).

123. Futile Devices, by Sufjan Stevens
(The Age of Adz, 2010)
Yet another relatively recent American release, but not from a progressive rock group. Singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens already appeared once on the list with his best known song Chicago (#150). This beautiful song made it higher up on the list probably only because of its more recent release and therefore higher chance of being played via our iTunes collection. The song opens the album and runs only two minutes and eleven seconds.

122. Something to Believe in, by The Bangles
(Everything, 1988)
OK, so we still have an occasional pop song on the list here and there. In this case, it is hardly any wonder. Yet one American group or artist - this is already the fifth one in a row - released one of their best loved albums called Everything in 1988. There were other songs on it that gained more popularity but this pretty song has always been our number one favorite. Hence, it made it to the upper half of Top 250.

121. Entry 11-19-93, by Echolyn
(As the World, 1995)
And here is the sixth subsequent American release. We had to check: it will end here, #120 that opens the next blog entry is a song from a British artist for a change. Entry 11-19-93 is a wonderful track that practically demands to be played in succession with the next one on As the World, called One for the Show. Combined, these two make one hell of a ten-minute sequence for the listener. Shuffle plays must have separated these great songs on the list but we are sure that One for the Show will shortly follow. Do not miss either one!