Keep on Running

In the autumn of 1969, four young lads from Birmingham crammed themselves into a studio in London for what looked like their last chance at making a career in music. They had 24 hours to record and to change their lives forever. They left the studio with “Black Sabbath” an eponymous debut album from the band led by Ozzy Osbourne and guitarist Tommy Iommi that would turn a whole generation onto heavy metal. Let's look back on this sonic revolution.

Influence is a shapeless thing, moving and rearranging based on sounds from the past and how they align with sounds from the present. In the case of progressive rock, a genre relocated from the pop charts to sheet music stands and art rock-favored stereos over the past four decades, influence has shifted in a similar way—later records that expanded the lexicon have lapped previous records with the incorporation of new styles, cultures and their corresponding sounds. Prog may not be burning up the rock charts, but you can see the everlasting influence of the genre in bands ranging from Tool to Kanye West and beyond. With that said, here are ten crucial progressive rock releases for 2021 and beyond.

Having sold 125 million albums across the globe, including some 30 million copies of their “Black Album”, Metallica is among the unlikeliest of pop sensations to come out of the last half-century. So how did a heavy metal band with such a convoluted song structure end up on par with music from the likes of Madonna and Michael Jackson? By following their instincts and sheer determination. Let’s return to the roots of the most famous heavy metal band in history.