5) The White Witch
Off the same album, another four-part suite (yes, that’s right, another one), “The White Witch” will take you on a journey of keyboard-laden Prog mystery filled with melody and power as good as any symphonic prog you have ever heard. It’s a journey you must take – all hail 70’s Prog done in the 21st century.
4) Stoned
The band’s most recent album, “The Twenty-Seven Club” (a concept about all the great musicians who have died at that age) is a pure Prog gem. It offers no less than three of the songs on this list, showing how far this great band have come, and that they continue to deliver some of the finest melodic Prog around today. “Stoned” is a complex piece about Brian Jones that one feels Yes might have delivered in their best days if they had had a female vocalist.
3) Pearl
The album’s song about Janis Joplin, openly reveals what many of us already know – that Chris Fry is one of the best guitarists in the world. Magenta really soar as a band on this one, and Fry is in the cockpit.
2) The Lizard King
This song is, of course, about Jim Morrison, and one feels that the late lamented Doors vocalist must be very happy with this composition, if he is listening. It soars in lyrical and musical power, and shows Magenta to be the mighty, contemporary Prog force that America deserves to hear. Whether Mr Morrison is listening to it or not, you definitely should do so.
1) Gluttony
From 2004’s breakthrough album ‘Seven. This amazing piece of music, despite the brilliance of all that has come after it, still holds up as the first Magenta song you should listen to. It truly is a beacon of what this band is all about and remains one of the best melodies the band has produced. A classic piece of Prog that is written unashamedly in the mould of Yes, but with Christina Booth’s melodic female slant on vocals, the result is simply stellar. You cannot fail to be entranced by this excellent composition.
So there you have it: Prog Report’s potted introduction to the great Welsh Prog band Magenta. Happy listening!
