ones I didn't think were proggy enough, and still had 24 tracks. In the end, the
ones that won me over were the ones I couldn't get out of my head at work.
Here are some (very late) reviews of the tracks that ended up in my (very) long shortlist.
Nils_B__es_flossen_traenen
Beautiful and gentle prog piece. Lush production - great guitars, and
mellotron. And chimes. The chime is such a signature prog element, but so
easily forgotten. When I heard the chime in this track (0:06), I ran out and
bought one myself and used it in my piece.
Zeoy Neptune
Gorgeous, massive and immersive production. Nods to King Crimson, and Pink
Floyd, but a sound your own. The guitar and mellotron are so warm and
expansive. Love the drums and bass. Especially the drums. The most
"produced" sounding track in the contest, IMHO.
MarcJX8P_Timechange
Another great track that gets stuck in my head. It's fast and driving but
still ties up my gut and makes me feel sad and nostalgic. At 0:16 it
introduces one of the main themes that to me is very reminiscent of FM (the
Canadian prog band).
Barnadine_ProgLord
Hilarious and well executed. I've played this for all my friends. It's got
all the prog elements, but also a very relaxed, folky feel. Brilliant Gentle
Giant vocal styling at 0:40 (pity about the "borrowed" melody though
).I Swallowed_the_Mountain
Lofi, relaxed, patient, urgent energy - I love this song! It makes me feel
really nostalgic for some reason.
Kara_Tribute_to_Zelda
Great, lush arrangement, and beatiful melodies. I don't know how much is
yours and how much is from the original, but it's a great track.
chimpuat_takemetoyourleader
I can't get the bit with the imperial march and close encounters theme out
of my head!
DuncanParsons_Retropolis
Very proggy with all the right bits - I love the moog bit, it's so
off-kilter! Also the skipped beats in the last section.
me109_70sandBeyond
Great jazzy harmonies. And the roundabout polka was inspired!
oddbodsfinger-prideandprogudicedoublegatefoldsleeve
Very funny on a lot of levels! But I love the fact that even through the
tinny production, the chords and melodies are immediately recognizable as
prog, like at 0:25 the "I've got a ticket to see Yes" bit.
in one sixtieth
This was my early favourite. It takes balls to discard half the running
time and cram all that into the minute. Fast, lean and proggy right from
the start, and it never lets up. I love how only 12 seconds in, it does
one of those signature prog 90 degree turns, as if to say, "okay, BORED now".
My short attention span can't get enough of this piece.
FritzFiedler_FanFareFo
Brilliant, discordant, and sinister - very Crimson. Great production: meaty,
almost oppressive and suffocating. There are often 5 guitars (or more) playing
subtle little layered riffs. Like around 1:06, there's there's this lovely
little guitar line in the right speaker, gently hammering away another tiny
nail in the great discordant construction.
Ixox_TheRiverFlows
Lovely arrangement of harp, strings and flute. Beautiful melodies that stay
with me.
jamesb_GrazieFor11
I love this piece - such haunting and moody melodies that keep getting stuck
in my head. Very layered, and I love the odd time signatures. The synth and
piano bit at 1:06 strikes me as particularly 70's (somehow that bit reminds of the
soundtrack to some non-existant 70's cop show).
jer1224_Atlantis
Very haunting and discordant. A fusion of King Crimson and FM. Great guitar
sound.
jplanet_overtureforshadows
Hits all the right prog instrumentation notes. Strident, urgent, very
natural performance. I love the moment at 0:53 when everything
kicks in, and my stomach knots up. Very Wakeman-ish moog solo.
LagunaRising_Pale_dragon_returns
Brilliant chord progressions that keeps taking left turns. This one took me
several listens to get into, and now it's one of my favourites, which is how
great prog should be. I love the odd sound effects in the first 5 seconds
(what instrument is that?).
markleford_plowshares
Oh my. Despite it's rich progginess, this is another friend-friendly track
due to its great lyrics ("he even beat Chuck Norris", "other things that rhyme
with e", etc.). Spinal Tap, meet Rush. Very ambitious to cram that whole
story into 2 minutes! And a cyclical theme with classical references, no
less! Full marks for pretention! I love the synth harp bit in the middle -
very evocative; it reminds me of Dead Can Dance. The battle theme (unison
bass and guitar) is very well executed.
Mellotronaut_Prognuts
Holy Crap! WTF? I love that I have to listen to this 20 times even to figure
out what the hell is going on. It's ADD, and OCD. Very proggy, if not all
that typical seventies prog. It definitely satisfies my hunger for prog
chaos, often having 3 or 4 things going on at the same time. I once heard Yes
described as "five way soloing with vocals". Which is how, e.g. Relayer
sounds the first time you ever hear it. And if nothing else, Prognuts
captures that exhillarating prog-first-listen-WTF moment. Love the Lucky
Man reference at 1:47.
nikp2000-the_red_king3
Another great track in the King Crimson style. Driving and dramatic. I love
the bit at 1:36 where it breaks open into the new theme. The change has the
same feel to me as Larks Tongues Part 1 when it finally ends. Great guitar
sound.
sttjelle_fuz-travel
This really starts to grab me at 0:42 when the second part comes in, the
keep piling up, and the energy keeps building.
TC_Quintessant
Another song that has a FM feel to me, very nostalgic and haunting. I love
the bass theme that comes in at 1:18 - somehow I find this disorienting and
evocative. Great string pad.
Too_young
Great feel. Not so proggy, but I keep coming back to this for that great
guitar groove.
papatomany_aftermath
Very dark and ominous throughout. Great bass and drums for the main groove.
The vocals have a great eerie quality.
Michael
Don't do that again ! That's worse than smoking ! 
IMO he's Paul McCartney, but he doesn't want to earn anymore money (in the end it's the ex who's getting it) so he's using a nick name. 
(sold mine... 
).
I'm sure I'm not the only piece of old musical crack(l)ing funiture having more fun than ever ! 
)
