Questions is in the topic.
So.. is Devin Townsend PROGRESSIVE MUSIC and why?

Thx for some thoughts

you know, people say it is, but i could never tell and i was never one to tell about these kind of things...

i think its its own kind of music....

Genres = Gay.

They are useless.

"Oh hell no!, we're not a progressive technical death metal band, we're progressive technical black metal band... DUH!!"

...whats the point?

All the genres i need are: Rock/Metal, Alternative, Techno/Electronica, Hip hop/rap, Blues, Jazz, Classical.

I didnt really think this through very well by the way...

and why?

Thx for some thoughts

"Progressive" is normally defined as music with complex and varied song structures (as opposed to the normal 'rock formula') combined with very good musicianship. So one can say that a lot of his solo-stuff is progressive. Terria and Accelerated Evolution are definitely Progressive Rock/Metal albums in that sense.

Genres = Gay.

They are useless.

"Oh hell no!, we're not a progressive technical death metal band, we're progressive technical black metal band... DUH!!"

...whats the point?

All the genres i need are: Rock/Metal, Alternative, Techno/Electronica, Hip hop/rap, Blues, Jazz, Classical.

I didnt really think this through very well by the way...

RIGHT dude!!
I totally agree!!

Dev plays Devy Metal. Period.

Well, I usually call Devin Townsend progressive metal when trying to explain to other people what kind of music it is.. but I also call Meshuggah progressive metal, which is totally different.
I agree, genres are stupid. But try and explain to someone the sound of a band, without using them...

Frankly I think people who flat out reject genre terms are just as silly as those who use them to make their band sound cooler or whatever.

Sure they are abused, but labels can be very useful to rapidly identify what an artist or band sounds like. Simple as that. I'd rather say 'They're technical death metal' rather than 'Well, they have long songs and fiddly riffs and odd time signatures and they sound a bit like Theory in Practice' etc.

[Blazingmonga]

I would use the term 'progressive metal' to describe what Devy roughly sounds like to my mum.

It by no means tells you exactly what to expect, and every album or song has elements of many other things...but as a rough guide his music IS progressive (ie, each song progresses) and IS metal.

But these terms do not tell you what makes his music his own.

Just look on the back of some of Devin's CDs:

"File under Metal"

I already asked that question in the older Dev forum and the best answer so far was "Devy Metal"!

Yes, I would consider Dev's solo stuff progressive metal, just as I would describe Opeth's music as progressive metal. It's music that evolves but doesn't morph into something completely different. There is a difference between evolution and alteration. Bands like Opeth, DTB and Type O Negative evolve and progress with their sound, but don't discard their core sound that made them unique and stand out from the crowd to begin with.

There is a term, prog-metal, that I absolutely abhor as it completely abuses the term progressive. To be a "prog-metal" band, you need ridiculous, over-the-top guitar wankery, quirky time-signatures, and enough egotistical flamboyance to make anyone puke. Bands like Symphony X and Spock's Beard aren't progressive, but quite the opposite. They churn out the same overly-pretentious, 70-minute jam-sessions with each successive album. While they are certainly talented with technical ability, song-writing seems to have dropped by the wayside.

I would definitely consider Devin's music to be progressive metal as it is constantly evolving and never stagnating, providing the listener with a beautifully unique experience with each new album.

Progressive/Atmospheric Metall.....

I already asked that question in the older Dev forum and the best answer so far was "Devy Metal"!

thats what i was going to say, i think i recall devin wearing a shirt that displayed those words, too... i tihnk on great average guitar or whatever

Devin even has a shirt which says "Devy Metal"
I wish they'd sell those t-shirts.

Yeah, Dev's really got his own style, there's no way of putting it into any one category. It's kinda like the Melvins in how every CD is something different as well. You have the more raw rock sound on one, another couple of more epic ones and then more electronic stuff on another and so on, there's just no two albums that are exactly alike with Devin.