Lynch
Here for the cookies and the tunes
That might be one of the best explanations I've read
I think that prog rock, like metal, generates emotion rather than expresses it. What I mean is, a folk singer sits down with their guitar, or a blues band belts out a tune, and they're telling you exactly how they feel. That can cause a very personal sense of empathy. With a prog rock song on the other hand you may not be empathizing with the singer, but you can feel the song none the less. I have no idea what the hell Yes was thinking when they were recording Close to the Edge, but I sure as hell get a lot of feelings when I listen to that song. To me it's no more or less emotional, it's just a different approach.
Fair play, that's preference. I will concede that Prog can involve quite a bit of showing off, but last I checked that's sometimes part of what we want from our favourite musicians.
If not, we'd all be wearing overalls, farting and politely listening to Phil Collins.
Phil Collins has been so over rated it's pathetic..............