[Rick and Roll]

I like Vanila's assessment of this as a delicate subject. It is very hard to discuss this without pigeonholing or stereotyping.

My core favorite music is rock. It could be very simple or complicated. But what I like about Aural Moon is that I can hear music that has some substance.

Progressive music is quite varied. For that matter, so is "metal". I consider the great metal acts really an extension of hard rock.

Using that as a basis, I find "prog metal" very limiting. It's very specific, and bands such as Pain of Salvation are the exception rather than the norm. I saw Ice Age and Braindance (who has a very good first record) at prior festival shows, and they were very good. But it doesn't hold up over time. Like this new fusion of rap and rock - a good thought, but for the most part done with little effort. In this realm, bands like System of A Down and Evanescence are OK but again, exception rather than norm.

Then there are bands like Tool who I really dig but probably will never fit the Moon.

My suggestion is to start a specific thread for each band, with some specific ideas. The once a month idea has merit, but I would do that within the framework of specific programming, like Gnosis or Extended Play.