The first half of March 2025 brought us 17 Highlights!

Italian Progressive Death Metal legends Sadist are somewhat a curious case. For me personally, it will be one of those bands forever linked to ProgPower Europe, as I remember their first appearance in 2016 (the first time I ever heard about them) still going a bit over my head since that was exactly the very first year my ears opened up for more extreme stuff. Their most recent appearance last year however left me with my jaw all the way down on the floor – together with many other attendees, including many musicians from other bands. Granted, mainman Tommy Talamanca’s double guitar/keyboard attack (simultaneous!!!) develops its full impact only in a live setting with the added visual aspect, but that doesn’t mean their studio output sounds dull and boring or anything. On the contrary. The tribal and fusion elements are ever clear and present on “Something to Pierce”, the band’s tenth studio album since their inception in 1991, giving them a unique, if not superior edge in a nowadays all too crowded genre. Sadist can count themselves easily and proudly among the illustrious round of OG Prog Death innovators and continue to deliver high quality. High time that their immeasurable contributions to the genre were recognised accordingly (and more widely!). Dario

American rising metal stars Dawn of Ouroboros have been on my radar for a while now. I remember when they dropped their sophomore album, and I was hearing it through mutual friends. The following year, I catch them on a tour with Fallujah, Persefone, and Vulvodynia, and what a performance they gave! I also recognized the drummer filling in as Chris Stropoli, who I’ve seen tear up the kit previously with Tómarúm and Monotheist, and is now an official member. Notably, their other members also play in other projects, such as Cailleach Calling and Botanist. Looking at where they’ve come now, they dropped their third album “Bioluminescence”, and I think this is their best effort yet. I could even say that this is a contender for album of the year! The record itself is a mix of Progressive Blackgaze and Post Metal, with elements of Melodic Death Metal. While on the extreme side of things, there’s a solid combination of aggressive and clean vocals, so those who may still be iffy about Black/Death Metal should have a pleasant journey with this effort. Lots of proggy flares throughout that remind me of Opeth, with sonic influences from the likes of Deafheaven, Alcest, and White Ward. It is an incredibly consistent release, and I highly recommend this to anyone remotely into Progressive Metal and extreme music. Colin

While their stellar 2024 debut album “Solace” still feels very much hot, fresh out the oven, Canadian/Swedish Prog Metal upstarts Voidchaser waste no time and dropped a massive follow up EP a mere 6 months later. “Trust” clocks in at 20 minutes, but the content of the three songs feels so ‘meaty’ (or replace for any other favorite food) that you get plenty of quality for your buck here (plus the instrumental versions as well). Add to that some awesome features of Universe Effects, The Anchoret and Jim Grey from Caligula’s Horse, and you’ve got yourself a neat little EP that simply cannot be overlooked. Dario

You are looking for an album that covers the following requirements: a.) released in the first half of March of 2025 b.) in the style of Progressive Rock c.) consisting of two 20+ minutes longtracks d.) both of these longtracks are also available broken down to their individual pieces or movements. Yes, I’ve got exactly the album you were looking for: Karfagen’s “Omni”! Ukrainian keyboardist and composer Antony Kalugin easily counts amongst the most prolific and productive Progressive Rock musicians of the last two decades, be it with his main outlet Karfagen, Sunchild or with music released under his own name. According to the Progarchives, “Omni” is the 26th album released under the Karfagen banner since 2006, which is quite impressive in itself of course. But on this one, Antony has invited some of the top players internationally, so the list of talents that can be heard on “Omni” range from Marco Glühmann (Sylvan), Bartosz Kossowicz (Quidam) and Mystery duo Jean Pageau & Michel St Pere all the way to Prog Flutist John Hackett and Canterbury legend Richard Sinclair (Caravan, Camel, Hatfield and the North etc.). All that name-dropping aside (and a big up to all the other equally talented, yet lesser well-known musicians involved like guitarist Max Velychko), “Omni” is simply an impressively epic Progressive Rock album that should appeal to all fans of the genre, period. Dario

Astonishingly, Karfagen is not the only Progressive Rock band name starting with “Ka”. Karmakanic would be another one attached firmly to that genre, and “Transmutation” is the name of the latest album ex-The Flower Kings, now-Steve Hackett-live bassist Jonas Reingold has put out under that moniker with music primarily composed by himself. Now to put the following words into perspective I have to say that the first three Karmakanic albums rank among my favorite Prog Rock albums of all time. “Transmutation” is not my favorite Karmakanic album. And I’m a bit sad that the seemingly tight-knit band structure that, in my opinion, contributed immensely to the overall success of the first three to five Karmakanic, was far and widely dismissed for “Transmutation” in favour of a myriad of (granted, top notch) guest musicians. However, the outcome under that premise, with Jonas Reingold at the helm and the likes of John Mitchell (Arena, Frost*, It Bites), Simon Phillips, Craig Blundell (Steven Wilson), Steve Hackett and many more executing very solid Progressive Rock music, might still end up above the new (upcoming) The Flower Kings. But in order to be able to be the judge of that, you’ll need to give it a proper spin or two at first. And that is recommended in any case. Dario

Myriad Drone is a band I stumbled upon by accident recently, but as soon as I saw Birdsrobe as their label, I was immediately interested, as this Australian label often promotes great post rock/metal bands, which is my jam. Myriad Drone, from Melbourne, just released a new album called “A World Without Us“, and to me, it’s one of the most remarkable releases this year so far, and I don’t say this often. Starting as rather classic post-rock, on the title track, with rather faded vocal feature, which sounds more like an instrument as it’s hard to understand the lyrics, it then fades out halfway to come back with folk-style vocals, just to explode again towards the end, getting heavier and it reminded me, both musically and vocally, The Ocean.

Then the band keeps showing the other dimensions of their music – it is a cinematic post-rock for a large part of it, however, in some songs it transitions into something different, even black metal beats/heavy chugging (like in ‘DYHAMTTAJ’), but it also impressed me vocally, as it has beautiful ethereal vocal parts, in ‘Forlorn Hope’, and then it goes back to the shouty vocals, which is a classic post-rock build-up and release we all love. Overall, this album reminded me of the greats of the genre, like The Ocean, Bossk or MONO. Only time will tell if I will be getting back to it later in the year, but it’s the most replayed album in 2025 so far for me. Alex

This release dropped out of nowhere! Now, you may or may not be familiar with this Chinese artist, who has a project named Hoplites. Last year, they had an album in January that blew up across music circles called “Παραμαινομένη [Paramainomeni]”. It was a crazy, technical and progressive release that was more black metal focused. This new album here, “Rgyaġdźé!”, dropped spontaneously from the same artist, but using a new project name called Smiqra. It is just as wacky as his latest release from 2024, but what makes it different? The focus on technical thrash metal is higher than anything else he’s done before, although the influence was there previously, and he continues to strive for the fast and pummeling styles of progressive black metal and avant-garde mathcore. You want high-octane drive? This is the album for you! Colin

“Aria”, Dessiderium’s Willowtip Records label debut caused a bit of a stir in the Extreme Prog Metal scene when it dropped in December 2021, rattling many End of the Year lists that were seemingly written in stone already. Releasing the follow-up “Keys to the Palace” in March this time might just mean that fans of the genre can safely place it in their lists already now. The solo project of Alex Haddad (Arkaik, Atheist) is whacky enough to keep its interest long after the first spin. Be it sudden Piano excursions, spacey Devin Townsend arpeggio’s (‘Keys to the Palace, Pt. 1’) or just overall unexpected curveball-throwing all over the place. That might seem a bit motley and random in patches, but hey, that’s Prog with a capital P for you. And just overall way too much fun-inducing for such a genre that’s usually synonymous for being full of despair and rather grim and bleak emotions. Dario

Another three track EP (together with Voidchaser’s “Trust) that most certainly deserves to be highlighted is “Obelisks” from Newcastle upon Tyne based quartet Midnight Jazz Club. Don’t let the band name fool you though, these four lads play highly energetic Instrumental Progressive Post Metal. Once unleashed, the massive undertow of their dark energy will sweep you away, with towering riffs, as monolithic as the eponymous stone pillars. Dario

There’s been a good measure of the genre descriptor “Cosmic” over the last few years in our Highlights, mostly in a Cosmic Black Metal context though. For Swiss duo Flame Drop’s new album “Beyond Cosmic Infinity”, the context is a rather proggy Space Rock one in contrast and, despite being primarily comprised of a drummer (Felix Waldispühl) and a guitarist/bassist (Roland Hegi), there’s a fair amount of Keys and Synths, apparently contributions from both members. It seems that flying beyond the dark side of the moon wasn’t enough. It had to be cosmic infinity even. But either way: the one hour long cosmic flight in space is one full of wonder and beauty – and the absence of any words or vocals isn’t something that’s negatively noticeable at any second. On the contrary, the fact that Flame Drop are keeping in purely instrumental adds manifold to the dreamlike, kaleidoscopic vibes. Dario

Closing out this instrumental triple in the middle of our first half of March 2025 Release roundup is “Synaesthetic Garbage”, the brand new album from hard hitting Spanish Djent trio Ciconia. Ten years into their band history, this is Ciconia’s fifth full length album and their ability to incorporate some other rocking influences into their heavily djentized Prog Metal makes it sound fresh and varied. Lots of memorable melodies shine on top of the heavy riffing and intricate rhythms. A great balance between complexity and accessibility. On tour in Europe throughout the second half of April and May. Don’t miss out if you get the chance to catch them live! Dario

Staying in djenty Prog Metal waters, but adding back the vocal aspect with Belgian quintet Ursa and their debut full length, “Call of the Infinite”. Conjuring up a bit similar vibes and atmospheres as their fellow countrymen Hippotraktor (yet not entirely reaching their staggering quality), it’s the clean vocals that certainly win over the slightly monotonous extreme delivery. Elsewhere, the instrumentals paint a varied, yet concise picture and certainly display a promising new talent emerging from the brimming Belgian scene. Dario

One of the most productive bands in the gothic and doom metal scene is Hanging Garden. The Finnish band has been steadily releasing full-length albums every two years and added a couple of EPs on top of that. Judging by the new EP, “The Unending”, the band still has plenty of fresh ideas, because it upholds the same quality standards as other recent Hanging Garden releases.

With 4 tracks and a playing time of 20 minutes in total, “The Unending” is a quick listen, but one that actually sticks with you really well. As usual, the melodies, musicianship and vocals are of high quality, while the songs are some of the finest that Hanging Garden has written so far. Not that we should expect anything new here: the band stays within its familiar blend of gothic doom metal, enriched with minor elements of post-rock, prog and folk. It’s melancholic, but melodic rather than crushing, making “The Unending” a fairly accessible experience. To summarize, Hanging Garden have once more released a fine piece of music, and I can’t wait for the next album! Lykle

If there ever was an award for most on the nose album title, Swedish band Lights of Skadi would have easily won it, hands down. “A Cinematic Experience” is bursting into bloom with exactly the stylings you would expect from such a title: some less post-y Earthside vibes, with added over the top cinematic and dark symphonic  drama, backed up with guitar wizardry by the likes of Mattias IA Eklundh & Andy Gillion on the massive centerpiece epic ‘Gods’ for example. The preceding ‘Species’ however, the only one on the entire album to feature vocals, evokes memories of the fantastic Echoes from Venezuela and their hidden 2010 underground gem “Nature|Existence”. So even though a lot about this album is steeped in clichés (down to the AI artwork), there’s a lot to cherish on it (apart from the AI artwork). Dario

Tiktaalika, the solo project by Haken’s axewielder Charlie Griffiths is also all about clichés (down to the Death/Sanctuary memoriam artwork by Dan Goldsworthy): Archaeological Prog Thrash Metal about dinosaurs and other prehistoric fun stuff that couldn’t be further from the (equally awesome) Modern Fusion Djent his Haken-buddy Richard Henshall releases under his own name. Solo project turned band, with bassist Conner Green and high-in-demand-drummer Darby Todd (Devin Townsens, Kaipa) now listed as full members, the vocal department of Tiktaalika is still a revolving door enlisting the returning throat acrobats of Daniël de Jongh (Textures), Thomas Giles (Between the Buried and Me), Vladimir Lalic (Organized Chaos) and Luna’s Call’s Neil Purdy, now rounded out by Protest the Hero’s Rody Walker. This album is pure, nostalgic fun. Dario

And now, that we’re knee deep in clichés and loving it, Deathless Legacy’s new album “Damnatio Aeterna” is a more than welcome continuation of this theme. Listening to it, I can’t help but keep thinking this could be Ghost if they actually played Metal and had Pope Mistress Steva Deathless instead of some Papa Perpetua fronting them, with a big wide grin on my face. The proggy keyboard solos of Vision Divine’s Alex Van Eden and dramatic horror choirs are just the icing on the cake of an album full of hits, hits, hits. So much theatrical fun. Dario

Enough with the fun now. Gothic legends Lacrimosa are back, and with “Lament”, they celebrate once more as much the clichés – that Tilo Wolff, Anne Nurmi & co. helped formulate themselves with genre defining masterpieces like the 1997’s “Stille” – but at the same time manage to subvert expectations time and again with wildly different stylistics (the subtle, delicate opening title track versus the idiomatic ‘Punk & Pomerol’) as well as vividly imaginative compositorial and arrangement decisions. Unsurprisingly, I was never a big fan of their punky side, but as soon as that monumentally deep bass B in the slow-motion heart throbbing tearjerker ‘Du Bist Alles Was Ich Will’ (‘You Are Everything That I Want’) hits, I’m reconciled and ready to declare Lacrimosa my favorite band again. Dario