Ed’s Letter

Hello, and welcome to the new issue of Prog magazine. I must admit it feels a bit weird offering new year greetings over halfway through January in an issue none of you will read until the beginning of February. But here we are, the first issue of Prog for 2023. Happy New Year to you all. I hope this issue finds you well, and excited for the year ahead in progressive music.

This year we kick off with the legend that is Rick Wakeman. We celebrate the 50th anniversary of his solo debut, The Six Wives Of Henry VIII, and discuss his brand new studio album with his English Rock Ensemble, A Gallery Of The Imagination. Of the former, what can one say? Such a bold move for its time, as you will discover in Dave Ling’s fascinating cover story (p28). “They said, ‘Nobody makes instrumental keyboard albums’, to which I replied, ‘I’ve just done it,’” Rick says in the piece, and boy didn’t he just, kickstarting a solo career that’s still going to this day. And talking of which, he’s sounding in fine fettle on the new album, too. Moving on from 2020’s The Red Planet, refusing to sit still, progressing.

Prog 137 is a packed issue – there’s already a lot of prog to get through in 2023! We have Riverside, Katatonia, Enslaved, Snarky Puppy, Elder, Gandalf’s Fist, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Russian Circles and Dungen speaking about upcoming or recently released albums, while Michael Rother looks back at the career of Neu!, and Todd Rundgren at more than 50 years of making music, and we explore how King Crimson reimagined themselves for the 80s. A veritable prog pot pourri, which I hope you love.

As I mentioned last issue, 2023 is already shaping up to be an exciting year for music, and Prog will be at the forefront, all the way. Oh, and do enjoy our Pelagic Records sampler – there’s some great proggy and post-rock stuff on that label that I think a lot of you will really enjoy.

Until next issue, as always, stay safe and prog on…