Italian Progressive Rock

The Italian progressive rock scene was born in the early 1970s, mostly inspired by the progressive movement in Britain, but with certain features of its own that makes some sources mention it as a separate musical genre.

In the early-to-mid-1970s, Italy was one of the European countries most interested in this genre; many English bands such as Genesis, Van der Graaf Generator and Gentle Giant were discovered by the Italian public before they had consolidated a fan base in their home country. Consequently, progressive Italian groups were prolific. Some received worldwide attention, such as Le Orme, Premiata Forneria Marconi, Area, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Saint Just. Most of the bands, however, were mainly known inside Italy.

As CD reissues started appearing and the Internet made information flow easier during the 1990s, the Italian bands were discovered and rediscovered by a number of progressive rock fans internationally. Reissues proved so successful that several recordings which were never released at the time received their first pressings on CD in the 1990s and 2000s (decade). The "discovery" of Italian progressive rock by foreign fans also led to bands such as Celeste being re-evaluated as core bands, despite the fact that they were virtually unknown in Italy at the time.

The 1990s also saw a resurgence in bands performing progressive rock. The first of the well known bands to do so was Ezra Winston, but other groups such as Nuova Era, Finisterre, Deus Ex Machina, Delirio Sonoro and Moongarden soon established themselves as well respected progressive rock acts. More recently La Torre dell'Alchimista and La Maschera di Cera have carried on the Italian progressive rock tradition, sporting a very 1970's style.