The dystopian impulse in prog: Cross-cutting thread/ts in dystopian concept albums

Abstract

Dystopia is a widely used imaginative expression of concerns and anxieties over societal trends and tendencies. In much of the artistic output throughout the history of progressive rock, bands and artists have utilized dystopian representations to express their societal concerns and warnings. This chapter presents an analytical and interpretative framework to understand the dystopian impulse in prog. By analyzing the stylistic, thematic, and narratological elements that make up the material content of dystopian concept albums, this study offers three interwoven interpretative threads of dystopia: (i) the political thread, in which Dream Theater's The Astonishing (2016) is the subject of analysis; (ii) the sociocultural thread, of which Porcupine Tree's Fear of a Blank Planet (2007) is a crucial example; and (iii) the technological thread, which is well represented by The Alan Parsons Project's I Robot (1977). This chapter examines how the analytic elements intersect with the interpretive threads in these concept albums.