Y2K's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2000 studio releases.

1. "Castlerigg" - IONA (21/20) = 10.0

2. "I Am The Sun (Part 2)" - THE FLOWER KINGS (20/20) = 10.0 

3. "Catastrophe" - KBB (20/20) = 10.0

4. "Nessa No Kiuku" - KBB (20/20) = 10.0

5. "Divine Design" - KBB (19/20) = 9.5

6. "Woven Cord" - IONA (19/20) = 9.5

7. "The Peter Criss Jazz" - DON CABALLERO (18.5/20) = 9.25

8. "Gathering Storm" - GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR (41.5/45) = 9.22

9. "Songs of Ascent" (Parts 1-3) - IONA (39.75/45) = 8.833

10. "Barbiturus" - TAAL (26.5/30) = 8.833

11. "Russia on Ice" - PORCUPINE TREE (21.875/25) = 8.75

12. "Gnostalgia" - WHITE WILLOW (17.5/20) = 8.75

13. "The Seventh House"- IQ (26/30) = 8.67
14. "Storm" - GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR
15. "Super Flat Moon" - TAAL
16. "Anamnesus" - WHITE WILLOW
17. "Static" - GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR
18. "Flat Spectre" - TAAL
19. "The Reach" - WHITE WILLOW
20. "Antarctica" - KBB
21. "Cathédrale" - CAFEÏNE

* Bold print denotes songs the have risen into the pantheon of my All-time favorite epics.

2001's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2001 studio releases.

1. "En Las Manos de Dios" - NEXUS
2. "Birth Pains of Astral Projection" - MAUDLIN OF THE WELL
3. "Us" (11:32) - PEKKA POHJOLA (19.75/20) = 9.875

4. "Watercourse Hymn" (19/20) = 9.5

5. "Come To Dust" (9:56) - EARTHWORKS (19/20) = 9.50

6. "Tiny Tears" - DEVIN TOWNSEND

7. "Reflection" - TOOL
8. "Bizarre Flowers/A Violent Mist" - MAUDLIN OF THE WELL
9. "The Drapery Falls" - OPETH
10. "Sparks that Flash and Fall..." - KARDA ESTRA (18.5/20) = 9.25
11. "The Perfect Element" - PAIN OF SALVATION.
12. "Hybr'Ys" - SEVEN REIZH
13. "Riseth He, The Numberless" (Parts 1 & 2) - MAUDLIN OF THE WELL
14. "King of Loss" - PAIN OF SALVATION
15. "Lateralus" - TOOL
16. "Earth Day" - DEVIN TOWNSEND
17. "Stranger in Your Soul" - TRANSATLANTIC (50.5/55) = 91.82

18. "Heroes" (9:27) (18.25/20) = 9.125

19. "Close Your Eyes" - NO-MAN

20. "Tad ha Mamm" - SEVEN REIZH
21. "Shrinking Violet" - MOSTLY AUTUMN
22. "With Tired Eyes, Tired Minds, Tired Souls, We Slept" - EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY
23. "Selaou" - SEVEN REIZH
24. "Serious Dreamers" - THE FLOWER KINGS
25. "Action !" (9:39) (18/20) = 9.0

26. "Nameless" (10:24) (18/20) = 9.0

27. "White Witch" - MAGENTA


Honorable Mentions:
"Dreamtime" - YES
"Stranger in Your Soul" - TRANSATLANTIC
"Children of the Sun" - MAGENTA
"Lighthouse" - NO-MAN
"Triad" - TOOL
"The Grudge" - TOOL
"The Curve That to An Angle Turn'd" - MAUDLIN OF THE WELL
"Light of Day, Day of Darkness" - GREEN CARNATION

"Powerless" (9:30) - SLEEPYTIME GORILLA MUSEUM (17.5/20) = 8.75

"Gradus ad Parnassuum" - PÄR LINDH PROJECT (26/30) = 8.67

"Metropolitan" (14:05) - PEKKA POHJOLA (26/30) = 8.67

"Duel with the Devil" -TRANSATLANTIC (42/50) = 84.0

"Suite Charlotte Pike" - TRANSATLANTIC (29/35) = 82.86

"Sleepytime" (10:16) - SLEEPYTIME GORILLA MUSEUM (16.25/20) = 8.125

Just shy of 9 minutes:
"Girl with a Watering Can" - MAUDLIN OF THE WELL
"Andraiad" - KARDA ESTRA

* Bold print denotes songs the have risen into the pantheon of my All-time favorite epics.

As yet unreviewed:  

"Defining The Legacy" (11:15) - FLAMBOROUGH HEAD (/20)

"House Of Cards" (9:16) - FLAMBOROUGH HEAD (/20)
"Garden Of Dreams" (12:35) - FLAMBOROUGH HEAD (/25)
"Assassin" (9:07) - FLAMBOROUGH HEAD (/20)

"Impulse" (11:17) - FLAMBOROUGH HEAD (/20)
"Lussesoggi Zomn" (10:26) - KOENJI HYAKKEI (/20)
"Gassttrumm" (9:24) - KOENJI HYAKKEI (/20)

2002's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2002 studio releases.

1. "Skin" - BONDAGE FRUIT (56.5/60)

2. "Quits" - PAATOS
3. "Untitled #8 (Popplagið)" - SIGUR RÓS
4. "In the Shadow of Our Pale Companion" - AGALLOCH
5. "Silent Inferno" - THE FLOWER KINGS
6. "Waiting for Water" - GRAND STAND
7. "Coming Like Light" - IZZ
8. "Beyond the Pale" - PAIN OF SALVATION
9. "No Quarter (Page - Plant)" - QUIDAM

10. "Rockets Fall on Rocket Falls" - GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR

11. "La Maschera di Cera" - LA MASCHERA DI CERA
12. "Pangaia" - HIDRIA SPACEFOLK
13. "Deep Inside" - SYLVAN
14. "A Nod and A Wink" - CAMEL
15. "Artificial Paradise" - SYLVAN
16. "Hym" - ISIS
17. "Star Evil Gnoma Su" - IZZ
18. "A Place in The World" - PAT METHENY GROUP
19. "The Truth Will Set You Free" - THE FLOWER KINGS
20. "The Hawthorne Passage" - AGALLOCH
21. "A Place in the World" - PAT METHENY GROUP

22. "Weight" - ISIS
23. "9-15-00" - GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR
24. "Voyage automatique" - 35007
25. "Untitled #7 (Dauðalagið) (The Dead)" - SIGUR RÓS
26. "Under the Tree" - THE JELLY JAM
27. "Tsunami" - 35007
28. "motherfucker=redeemer" - GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR
29. "Old Man's Tale" - GRAND STAND
30. "Untitled #5" - SIGUR RÓS

31. "Proof" - PAT METHENY GROUP

32. "Untitled #7" - SIGUR RÓS

33. "Quimpromptu" - QUIDAM

34. "The Gathering Sky" - PAT METHENY GROUP

*Bold print denotes a song that has risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

A Little too Short:
"Troum und Spiegelglas" -- Faun

"Hypnotique" - PAATOS

2003's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2003 studio releases.

1. "The Manifold Curiosity" - KAYO DOT
2. "Cicatrix ESP" - THE MARS VOLTA
3. "On the Run" - SATELLITE
4. "The Boat Builder (Searching )" - CLEARLIGHT
5. "Way Is Open" - CAFEÏNE
6. "Women Who Love Men Who Love Drugs" - OCEANSIZE
7. "Wayfarer" - KAYO DOT

8. "The Same River" - RIVERSIDE

9. "Il viaggio nell'oceano capovolto" (Parte 2) - LA MASCHERA DI CERA
10. "Marathon" - KAYO DOT
11. "Waterfall Carnival" - FROGG CAFÉ
12. "Skymind" - TAAL
13. "Il viaggio nell'oceano capovolto" (Parte 1) - LA MASCHERA DI CERA
14. "Together We're Stranger" - NO-MAN
15. "Vela" - KARDA ESTRA
16. "I Know You Are But What Am I?" - MOONGARDEN
17. "Photographs in Black and White" - NO-MAN
18. "Long Forgotten" - OCEANSIZE
19. "Stratus" - TAAL
20. "Shutdown" - O.S.I.
21. "Singing Deep Mountain" - GORDIAN KNOT
22. "The Egg-Shaped Moon" - TAAL
23. "Invisible Legion" - AFTER CRYING
24. "Ratts of the Capital" - MOGWAI

Honorable Mentions:

"The Purple Queen's Lips" - TAAL

Too Short:
"All This Time" - FROGG CAFÉ

*Bold print denotes a song that has risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

2004's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2004 studio releases.

1.  "K.A. (Part III)" - MAGMA (45/45) = 10.0

2. "Envy" - MAGENTA (20/20) = 10.0 

3. "Immanence" (11:26) - THORK (19.5/20) = 9.75

4. "Five Suns II" - GAUPO (19.5/20) = 9.75

5. "Powder Monkey" - BIG BIG TRAIN (19.5/20) = 9.75

6. "Danse de la terre" (10:48) - THORK (19/20) = 9.5

7. "Greed" - MAGENTA (28.5/30) = 9.5

8. "FC: The Freedom Club" - SLEEPYTIME GORILLA MUSEUM (19/20) = 9.5

9. "The Everlasting Hills" (Parts 1-5) - DAVE BAINBRIDGE (37.5/40) = 9.375

10. "Sloth" - MAGENTA (18.75/20) = 9.375

11. "… And Weak II" - INDUKTI

12. "Voivode Dracula" - KARDA ESTRA (18.5/20) = 9.25

13. "L'origine" (11:40) - THORK

14. "Symptoms Alone" - FLOORIAN (18.5/20) = 9.25

15. "Crime Story" - MY EDUCATION (18.25/20) = 9.125

16. "Star-Filled Skies" (Parts 1-4) - DAVE BAINBRIDGE (27/30) = 9.0
17. "Now" - MATTHEW PARMENTER
18. "Ea" (21:18) - THORK (36/40) = 9.0
19. "In Fiction" - ISIS
20.  "K.A. (Part I)" - MAGMA
21. "Gluttony" - MAGENTA
22. "Altered Course" - ISIS
23. "Tierra Boreal" - AMAROK
24. "First Breath After Coma" - EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY
25. "Lust" - MAGENTA
26. "Violence" - ANATHEMA
27. "Harvest of Souls" - IQ
28. "Modern Times" - MATTHEW PARMENTER
29. "Nightside of Eden" - WHITE WILLOW

*Bold print denotes a song that has risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

Just Too Short:

"Overruled" - FLOORIAN

"Six Days at The Bottom of The Sea" - EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY

2005's Best "Epic" Song

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2005 studio releases.

1. "At the Court of Alkinoos" - GLASS HAMMER (40/40) = 10.0

2. "Chapter IX" - AETHER (40/40) = 10.0

3. "Second Life Syndrome" - RIVERSIDE (30/30) = 10.0

4. "Sulle ali del sogno Odissea" - C.A.P. (59/60) = 9.83

5. "The Way Up: Part Two" - PAT METHENY (39/40) = 9.75

6. "She" - FIELDS OF THE NEPHILIM (19.5/20) = 9.75

7. "Zilezi" - ARANIS (29/30) = 9.67

8. "Mourning Sun" -- FIELDS OF THE NEPHILIM (19.25/20) = 9.625

9. "Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore" - THE MARS VOLTA (24/25) = 9.6

10. "Cassandra Gemini" - THE MARS VOLTA (62/65) = 95.38

11. "El Regresso (the Return)" - NEXUS (57/60) = 9.5

12. "Milanó" - SIGUR  RÓS (19/20) = 9.5

13. "Le Gardien" - NIL (38/40) = 9.5 

14. "Idle End" - NOSOUND (18.5/20) = 9.25

15. "Flight Of Shamash" (9:13) - KVAZAR (18.5/20) = 9.25

16. "Dérégénération" - NIL (27.5/30) = 9.167

17. "A Giant's Lullaby" (9:42) - KVAZAR
18. "Sol 29" - NOSOUND (18/20) = 9.0

19. "From Ismarus to the Land of Death" - XII ALFONSO

20. "Étranger dans sa demure" - MINIMUM VITAL
21. "Chapter VII" - TÉMPANO
22. "Deadwing" - PORCUPINE TREE
23. "Reverie/Harlequin Forest" - OPETH
24. "The Moment She Knew" - NOSOUND
25. "Clair Obscur" - WOBBLER
26. "Late Night Salvation" - IZZ
27. "Minds of Mortal Men" - SIMON SAYS


Honorable Mentions:
"Sequence III: Unbreakable" - SEIGES EVEN

"Of Longings, Suitors, Deities, and Quests..." - NATHAN MAL
"When Everything Dies"

"Humber Doucy Lane" - THE FUTURE KINGS OF ENGLAND
"Chupacabras" - PHIDEAUX
"L'via l'viaquez" - THE MARS VOLTA
"Hinterland" - WOBBLER


Songs Just Shy of 9 Minutes:
"Garden" - WILLOWGLASS
"Nocturn" (8:34) - KATE BUSH

"Shroud" - FIELDS OF THE NEPHILIM

"Wammilica Iffirom" - HOENJI HYAKKEI

*Bold print denotes a song that has risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

2010's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2010 studio releases.

1. "Transition" - LUNATIC SOUL
2. "The Sirens Sound" - COLLAPSE UNDER THE EMPIRE
3. "Lashes" - FOURTEEN TWENTY-SIX
4. "Incubus" - THE BOX

5. "Echoes of Madness" - BROTHER APE
6. "Terra Sancta" - FROGG CAFÉ
7. "'Even The Outsider' Suite, Parts i, ii, & iii" - DOMINA CATRINA LEE
8. "Herculean" - KHATSATURJAN
9. "Aurora Borealis" - VESPERO
10. "From the Fence" - FROGG CAFÉ
11. "Perfumed Garden" - AMOEBA SPLIT

12. "Phantom Pain Scars" - T
13. "Naise" - ARANIS
14. "Straight Edge" - UNIVERS ZERO
15. "Blessed Water" - AMOEBA SPLIT

16. "Through Different Eyes" - MYSTERY

17. "Canto 2: Transcendance" - THE PSYCHEDELIC ENSEMBLE
18. "Écailles de lune" (Parts 1 & 2) - ALCEST
19. "Warrior" - UNIVERS ZERO

20. "Turbulent Matrix" - AMOEBA SPLIT

21. "The Rear View Mirror Suite" - T
22. "The Very Last Number" (Parts 1 & 2) - AREKNAMÉS

23. "Requiem (for a Dying Creed)" - HYPNOS 69
24. "Double Freedom" - SAMSARA BLUES EXPERIMENT
25. "Singata Mystic Queen" - SAMSARA BLUES EXPERIMENT

26. "The Shape Shifter Suite, Parts I & II" - DOMINA CATRINA LEE

27. "Counter Clockwise (Bridge Five)" - QUANTUM FANTAY

28. "Toccata" - JAGA JAZZIST
29. "Celestial Elixir" - HAKEN
30. "Astro" - THE TEA CLUB

Honorable Mentions:

"The Empty Hourglass" - HYPNOS 69

"Follow the Star" - QUANTUM FANTAY

"The Great Work" - HYPNOS 69

"A Kid Called Panic" - MOON SAFARI
"Il Centro Sottile" - IL TEMPIO DELLE CLESSIDRE
"Center of the Sun" - SAMSARA BLUES EXPERIMENT
"Metal" (1 & 2) - XING SA
"Till the Truth Comes Out" - MYSTERY

Too Short:

"Evnyssien" - ATARAXIA

"Lust" - MY EDUCATION

"A Garden of Delights" - CICCADA

"Skellig" - MR. GIL

*Bold print denotes songs that have risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

2009's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2009 studio releases.

1. “Incubus" - THE BOX (20/20) = 10.0

2. “Kana” (9:03) - PROGHMA-C (20/20) = 10.0

3. "Excerpt from 6,000,000,000,000 Miles Before the First, or, the Revisitation of the Blue Ghost" - MAUDLIN OF THE WELL (20/20) = 10.0

4. “Laboratories of the Invisible World (Rollerskating the Cosmic Palmistric Postborder)" - MAUDLIN OF THE WELL (20/20) = 10.0

5. "Vapour Trail" - SYLVAN (30/30) = 10.0

6. "Summer Fall" - AISLES (19.5/30) = 9.75

7. "Sovrano dell-illusione" (Parts 1 & 2) - MAD CRAYON (33.5/35) = 9.57

8. “Tick Tock” (22:24) - GAZPACHO (43/45) = 9.56

9. “Ëmëhntëhtt-Ré II" - MAGMA (52.5/55) = 9.54

10. “Serenity in a Nutshell" - CIRRUS BAY (28.5/30) = 9.5

11. "The Maiden" - AISLES (19/20) = 9.5

12. "Ryker Skies" - IQ"
13. "Dopo il vento" - DELIRIUM

14. "The Underfall Yard" - BIG BIG TRAIN
15. "Sorterargatan 3" - GÖSTA BERLINGS SAGA
16. "Bond of Mutual Distrust" - ANUBIS
17. "Fading" - ARCANE
18. "Deliverance" - THE BLACK NOODLE PROJECT
19. "Change" - KARNIVOOL
20. "Vinden" - PORCELAIN MOON
21. "Deadman" -  KARNIVOOL
22. "Re schiavo" (Parts 1 & 2) - MAD CRAYON
23. "Can't Feel the Earth" (Parts I-III) - IZZ
24. "Pure as Snow (Trails of the Winter Storm)" - MONO
25. "Abigails Questions (in An Infinite Universe)" - BEARDFISH
26. "Jack the Ripper" - PRESENT


Honorable Mentions:
"Perpetual Twilight" - iNFiNiEN
"Hawaii" - AISLES 

"Kahden Kuun Sirpit"--VIIMA
"A Last Drop" - PRESENT

"La Roche (Meeting Point)" - MIRIODOR

"Coup de grâce" - BEARDFISH
"The Collapse" - ANUBIS
"Västerbron 05:30" - GÖSTA BERLINGS SAGA
"Vertiges" - PRESENT
"Asylum: Acolyte Zero" - ARCANE
"Thoughts Are Swimming in My Head" (Parts 1 & 2) - SHAMALL
"Until You Comply/entropy" - BEARDFISH
"Those I Left Behind" - YVES POTIN

*Bold print denotes songs that have risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

2008's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2008 studio releases.

1. "Someone Starts to Fade Away" - NOSOUND
2. "Vento Madre" - UNIVERSAL TOTEM ORCHESTRA
3. "Indigo" - PENDRAGON 
4. "From Silence to Noise" - NOSOUND
5. "Crashmind" - FROM.UZ
6. "The Garden" - UNITOPIA
7. "Salto nel Buio" (13:45) PANDORA (28/30) = 9.33

8. "Ato piradime" - UNIVERSAL TOTEM ORCHESTRA
9. "Bring Out the Sun" - VON HERTZEN BROTHERS
10. "Hybrisma" - DATURAH

11. "Pandora" (11:43) PANDORA (18.5/20) = 9.25

12. “De Astrologia” (19:30) - UNIVERSAL TOTEM ORCHESTRA (37/40) =  9.25

13. "Semi-Permiable Menbrane" - DIAGONAL (18.5/20) = 9.25

14. "The Water Road" - THIEVES' KITCHEN (18.5/20) = 9.25

15. "Metamorphosis" (23:15) - MAGENTA (46/50) = 9.2 

16. "Le Grand Dieu Pan" (14:45) - SYRINX (27/30) = 9.0

17. "Comatose” (parts I-III) (17:38) - PENDRAGON (22.5/25) = 9.0

18. "Too Much To Loose" (15:12) - THE PINEAPPLE THIEF (27/30) = 9.0

19. "Different World" (10:44) - THE PINEAPPLE THIEF (18/20) = 9.0

20. "The Lighthouse Song" - MOONGARDEN (18/20) = 9.0

21. "Embryo" - MILLENIUM (26.75/30) = 89.167

22. "Ricorre l'abbandono" - J'ACCUSE..! (26.5/30) = 8.83

23. "The Ballad of Samuel Layne" (20:17) - MAGENTA (35/40) = 8.75 

24. "In The Dark" - MATTHEW PARMENTER (17.5/20) = 8.75

25. "Up & Down" - MILLENIUM (21.75/25) = 87.0

26. “Other Half of the Sky” (31:50) - MOON SAFARI (56/65) = 86.14
27. "Coerenza delle percenuali" - UNIVERSAL TOTEM ORCHESTRA
28. "Ricorre l'abbandono" - J'ACCUSE..!
29. "Simurgh" - KOTEBEL
30. "Child of the Thundercloud" - DIAGONAL
31. "9" - DATURAH
32. "Ouroboros" - ASTRA
33. "What Will Happen" - SHAMALL
34. "Malebolge" - IL CASTELLO DI ATLANTE
35. "The Children Gathering Around the Lake " - STEVE JANSEN, RICHARD BARBIERI, NOBUKAZU TAKEMURA

36. "The Long Fianchetto" - THIEVES' KITCHEN

37. "Imperial Winter White" -  WOBBLER

38. "Cruces y Sombres" - NEXUS
39. "Aggrandizement" - DELUGE GRANDER

40. "Two Blocks from the Edge" - KARMAKANIK

Honorable Mentions:

"Del abismo al sol" - NEXUS

"The Willing Victim" - VON HERTZEN BROTHERS
"Brother Where'you Bound?" - SIMON SAYS
"Stone Salad" - FROM.UZ
"Beautiful & Monstrous" - SUBSIGNAL
"Ouroboros" - KOTEBEL
"In Taberna" - WOBBLER
"The Weirding" - ASTRA
"Yucatan 65: The Agitation of the Mass" - BIRDS AND BUILDINGS
"Ára bátur" - SIGUR RÓS
"Perpetuum Karma" - NEXUS
"Silent Sleep" - ASTRA
"As the River Runs" - SIMON SAYS
"De astrologia" - UNIVERSAL TOTEM OTCHESTRA
"Caution Congregates and Forms a Storm" - BIRDS AND BUILDINGS
"Chronicle of the Invisible River of Stone" - BIRDS AND BUILDINGS

"Rat Race" - MILLENIUM (16.75/20)

"Road to Infinity" - MILLENIUM (25.5/30)

Too Short:

"Tout ce que j'ai rêvé" - JELLY FICHE

"Child of the Thundercloud" - DIAGONAL

"Moonwalk" - MOON SAFARI

*Bold print denotes songs that have risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

2007's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2007 studio releases.

1. "Perfect Cosmic Storm" (14:40) - BIG BIG TRAIN (30/30) = 10.0

2. "Sequencer (from 70 to 07)" - KLAUS SCHULZE (50/50) = 10.0

3. "Fronteira" (10:20) - VIOLETA DE OUTONO (19.5/20) = 9.75 

4. "Deep Into the Night" - HIROMI'S SONICBLOOM (19.5/20) = 9.75

5. "Ex-Slave" (12:47) - THORK (24/25) = 9.6

6. "The Sound of the Apocalypse" - BLACK BONZO (24/25) = 9.6

7. "Salt Water Falling on Uneven Ground" (12:38) - BIG BIG TRAIN (23.75/25) = 9.5

8. "Elsewhere" - YVES POTIN (47.5/50) = 9.5

9. "La Lumière" (9:10) - THORK (19/20) = 9.5

10. "Wald" (10:14) - ELECTRIC ORANGE (19/20) = 9.5

11. "Depicting Colours Of Emotions" (10:18) QUIDAM (19/20) = 9.5

12. "Jacob van Vennepkade II" (18:40) - OMAR RODRIGUEZ-LOPEZ (38/40) = 9.5 

13. "Upside Down" - GAZPACHO (18.5/20) = 9.25 

14. "Metamorphosis" (23:51) - MAGENTA (46/50) = 9.2

15. "Note from the Past" - HIROMI'S SONICBLOOM (23/25) = 9.2

16. "The Poet & The Pendulum" (13:54) - NIGHTWISH (27.5/30) = 9.167

17. "Walk It Off" - MOTH VELLUM (18.25/20) = 9.125

18. "The Black Tomato" (Parts I-III) (32:14) - ØRESUND SPACE COLLECTIVE (59/65) = 9.08

19. "Pick Up If You're There" - BIG BIG TRAIN (27/30) = 9.0

20. "Rumble" (Parts I-V) (38:50) - ØRESUND SPACE COLLECTIVE (72/80) = 9.0

21. "Thank You Evil" (9:17) - PHIDEAUX (18/20) = 9.0 

22. "Frank (New Version)" (22:57) - TRION (40/45) = 8.89

23. "The Apocalypse Inside of an Orange" - OMAR RODRIGUEZ-LOPEZ (17.75/20) = 8.875 

24. "Dream of Stone" (17:01) - GAZPACHO (31/35) = 8.86

25. "Thor (Thunder)" - KLAUS SCHULZE (57/65) = 8.77 

26. "The Ballad Of Samuel Layne" (20:17) -  MAGENTA (35/40) = 8.75

Honorable Mentions:
"What Have We Sown?" - THE PINEAPPLE THIEF
"Solar Winds" - DEVIN TOWNSEND
"One More Time" - THE FLOWER KINGS
"Roulette" - BEARDFISH
"Against the Suns" - MOTH VELLUM
"From the Grey Notebook" - RATIONAL DIET

"Let the Race Begin" - MOTH VELLUM
"Euro Caravan" - KLAUS SCHULZE
"Heaven Can Wait" - SATELLITE
"Stop, Kopalkoff!" - RATIONAL DIET

"West Winds" - THE PINEAPPLE THEIF
"Constellation" - OUTER LIMITS

*Bold print denotes songs that have risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

2006's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2006 studio releases.

1. "Wind, Water, & Fire" suite - IONA (30/30) = 10.0

2. "Pane of Truth" - SYLVAN (20/20) = 10.0

3. "Carpe" - RUSSIAN CIRCLES (20/20) = 10.0 

4. "Cel Din Urmã Vis" - NEGURA BUNGET (20/20) = 10.0

5. "Falling Stardrops" - ØRESUND SPACE COLLCTIVE (29.5/30) = 9.83

6.  "The Bright Ambassadors of Morning" - PURE REASON REVOLUTION (24/25) = 9.6

7. "European Lover / Random Avenger" - MAGYAR POSSE (24/25) = 9.6

8.  "Pentacle's Suite" - KOTEBEL (57/60) = 9.51

9. "Milliontown" - FROST* (46.5/50) = 9.25

10. "Quando la morte mi colse nel sonno" - YUGEN (18.5/20) = 9.25 

11. "Vessiko" suite (23:08) - UZVA (40.75/45) = 9.06

12. "Ra" - KOTEBEL (27/90) = 9.0

13. "Are You There?" - MONO (18/20) = 9.0

14. "Realm of Dreams" - TO-MERA (18/20) = 9.0 

15. "O redek" - SEVEN REIZH (18/20) = 9.0

16. "Dim" - CULT OF LUNA (17.825/20) = 8.9125

17. "Visioni di Archimede" - PREMIATA FORNERIA MARCONI (17.75/20) = 8.875
18. "The Flames Beyond The Cold Mountain" - MONO
19. "The Reason of Construction and/or Building a Pyramid" - BEARDFISH

20. "Psychic Jugglers" - UNEXPECT

21. "SAI" - OOIOO

22. "Ignis Fatuus" - AREKNAMÉS

23. "Hope to See Another Day" - BELIEVE
24. "Clover Rd ABC" - COMBINATION HEAD

25. "Blackhole" - iNFiNiEN

Honorable mentions:
"A Love Story" - BEARDFISH
"Tetragrammaton" - THE MARS VOLTA
"Millions Starved And Became Skinnier And Skinnier While Our Leaders Became Fatter And Fatter" (10:01) - RED SPAROWES (9/10)

"Black Light Machine" - FROST*
"The Mass" - KHATSATURJAN
"Douce mort" - NEMO
"We Love You" - THE PINEAPPLE THIEF
"Consumed by the Goblin" - ØRESUND SPACE COLLECTIVE
"Deceit" - AREKNAMÉS

Just shy of 9 minutes:
"Shimmering Lights" - THE D PROJECT

"Children Of Stone" (8:54) - ESPERS

"Arrival/The Intention Craft" - PURE REASON REVOLUTION

*Bold print denotes songs that have risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

2011's Best "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2011 studio releases.

1. "Fire! Fire!!" - MY BROTHER THE WIND
2. "In Orbit" - WOBBLER
3. "Particelle" - LAGARTIJA
4. "Honeysuckle" - ALIO DIE
5. "...and so we destroyed everything" - SLEEPMAKESWAVES
6. "Snowflake" - KATE BUSH
7. "Under Crimson Skies" - MY BROTHER THE WIND
8. "Mermaid" - FREQUENCY DRIFT
9. "Welfare Botanico" - MOOGG
10. "Dance" - FREQUENCY DRIFT
11. "Tempest" - FREQUENCY DRIFT
12. "Innamorato" - ALIO DIE
13. "Epitaph for A Mariner" - SEAN FILKINS
14. "a gaze blank and pitiless as the sun" - SLEEPMAKESWAVES
15. "Dreams" - FREQUENCY DRIFT
16. "Searise" - WHITE WILLOW
17. "White Horses at Sea//Utopian Daydream" - AMPLIFIER

18. "Il Tredici" - SANHEDRIN

19. "L'assalto" - AKT
20. "Torbjörn Abelli" - MY BROTHER THE WIND
21. "Le Meurtrier Volant" - CAMEMBERT
22. "Rogue" - DISCIPLINE
23. "The Awakening" - EDISON'S CHILDREN
24. "The Hand That Feeds You" - INTROITUS
25. "A Waning Solace" - FEN
26. "Trading Dark Matter on The Stock Exchange" - AMPLIFIER
27. "Di vento" - AKT

28. "The Octopus" - AMPLIFIER
29. "Seeds of Gold" - NEAL MORSE

30. "Steam" - SANHEDRIN

 Honorable Mentions:

"Emphaty" - PENDRAGON
"The Green and Pleasant Land" - PENDRAGON
"Dreamscape" - INTROITUS

"Carrier of Echoes" - FEN

"Lake Tahoe" - KATE BUSH
"Voice" - HIROMI 

"Misty" - KATE BUSH
"All That Is" - ANUBIS

"Red Leaves" - WHITE WILLOW
"Loin des yeux (Barbares parties VII à XII)" - NEMO

"Pumori" - SOLUS3
"Disillusion" -  EYE 2 EYE
"Untung Untung" - CAMEMBERT
"Siniset Runot" - TENHI
"The Sick Rose" - AMPLIFIER


*Bold print denotes songs that have risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

2012's Top "Epic" Songs

These are my favorite songs of over nine minutes in length from 2012 studio releases.

1. "Frozen Moment" - NINE STONES CLOSE
2. "Obliterated Aclove" - ALIO DIE
3. "Pride" - MYSTERY
4. "Prologue: Nature Morte/You're Not Welcome Here" - BATTLESTATIONS
5. "Concerto for Piano and Electric Ensemble" - KOTEBEL
6. "Firebears" - THE TEA CLUB
7. "Formas-Pensamento" - VIOLETA DE OUTONO
8. "Storm Corrosion" - STORM CORROSION
9. "Comrade/The Way We Grieve" - BATTLESTATIONS
10. "And I Awaken" - I AND THOU
11. "Snardom" - ANGLAGARD
12. "The Apostate" - SWANS
13. "The Fall of Bliss" Suite - METHEXIS
14. "A Piece of the Sky" - SWANS
15. "Heroes for Ghosts" - THE GATHERING
16. "The Seer" - SWANS
17. "All I Am" -  TO-MERA
18. "The Face Behind the Eyes" - I AND THOU
19. "Atlantis" - ELEPHANT9 WITH REINE FISKE
20. "Langtans Klocka" - ANGLAGARD
21. "Speak" - I AND THOU
22. "Obsession" - DISTORTED HARMONY
23. "Summoned By Bells" - BIG BIG TRAIN
24. "The Storm Before the Calm" - ANATHEMA
25. "Hide and Seek" - I AND THOU
26. "Apocalipsis" - EKOS
27. "I Shall Consume Everything" - THE TEA CLUB
28. "I Cannot Fly" - THINKING PLAGUE
29. "We Are What We Are" - RPWL
30. "Guardian Angel" - GALAHAD


Honorable Mentions:
"Peel Away This Mortal Coil" - ALIO DIE
"Mother of the World" - SWANS
"Barefoot in the Head" - ASTRA
"Ur Vilande" - ANGLAGARD
"Sorgmantel" - ANGLAGARD
"One More Moment" - RHYS MARSH & THE AUTUMN GHOST
"A Virtuous Man" - THINKING PLAGUE
"Utopia" - DISTORTED HARMONY
"Another Day" -- MYSTERY

Great Songs Just Shy of Nine Minutes in Length:
"Avatar" - SWANS


*Bold print denotes songs that have risen into my pantheon of All-time favorite "epics."

Important "Progressive" Albums from the 1980s

In no particular order, here is a list of albums that, in my opinion, contributed to the progress of music in the 1980s.

Brian Eno:  (with Harold Budd): Ambient 2: Plateuax of Mirror, (with Laraaji): Ambient 3: Day of Radiance, (with Harold Budd): Ambient 4: On Land, (with Jon Hassell): Fourth World, Vol. One: Possible Musics, (with David Byrne): My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks, More Music for Films, Thursday Afternoon

Kate Bush:  Never Forever, The Dreaming and Hounds of Love

King Crimson:  Discipline, Beat and Three of a Perfect Pair

Pat Metheny (Group): As Falls Wichita, So Falls Wichita Falls, American Garage, Offramp, First Circle, Still Life (Talking), Letter from Home

Peter Gabriel:  "3" and "Security"

Bruce Cockburn:  Humans, Inner City Front, The Trouble with Normal, Stealing Fire, Big Circumstance 

Roxy Music:  Flesh and Blood and Avalon

Rush:  Permanent Waves, Moving Pictures, Signals

Talking Heads:  Remain in Light and Speaking in Tongues

Univers Zero:  Ceux du dehors, UZed and Heatwave

David Sylvian:  Brilliant Trees, Gone to Earth, Secrets of the Beehive

The Fixx:  Reach the Beach

Bacamarte: Depois do fim

Tears for Fears:  The Hurting

Yes 90120

Cocteau Twins/4 A.D. Treasure, Tiny Dynamine/Echoes on a Shallow Bay, Victorialand, and Blue Bell Knoll

The Cure:  Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me and Disintegration

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Illustrated Music Encyclopedia and Neo-Geo plus soundtracks for Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence and The Last Emperor

Ozric Tentacles:  5 cassette-only releases (all compiled on the 1992 release, Vitamin Enhanced box set) and Pungent Effulgent, (Erpland was released in 1990)

Jesus and Mary Chain:  Psychocandy

It's Immaterial: Life's Hard and Then You Die

Love and Money:  Strange Kind of Love 

Steve Tibbetts:  Yr 

Solaris: Marbéli Krónikák (Martian Chronicles)

Asia Minor:  Between Flesh and Divine

Eskaton: 4 Visions

Talk Talk: The Colour of Spring and Spirit of Eden

Eloy:  Planets and Time to Turn

Zammla Mannas Mamas:  Familjesprickor (Family Cracks)

Shub-Niggurath:  Les mortes vont vite

SBB:  Memento z banalnym tryptykiem

Dün:  Eros

Pazzo Fanfano di Musica:  Pazzo Fanfano di Musica

Yezda Urfa:  Sacred Baboon

Dead Can Dance:  The Serpent's Egg

Kenso:  II

IQ: Tales from the Lush Attic and The Wake

Marillion: Script for a Jester's Tear, Misplaced Childhood, Fugazi, and Clutching at Straws

Jean-Luc Ponty: Individual Choice

Voivod: Killing Technology, Dimensional Hatross, and Nothingface

Present: Triskaidekaphobie and Le poison quie rend fou

Queensryche: Rage for order and Operation: Mindcrime

Art Zoyd: Le mariage du ciel et de l'enfer and Berlin

Cardiacs: The Seaside, A Little Man and a House and the Whole World Window, and On Land and in the Sea

XTC: Black Sea, English Settlement, The Big Express, Mummer, Skylarking, and Oranges and Lemons 

U2: Boy, War, The Unforgettable Fire and Joshua Tree

Simple Minds: New Gold Dream

Prince: Purple Rain soundtrack

The Police: Ghost in the Machine












Blade Runner soundtrack (composed by Vangelis)

The Mark Isham soundtracks and Windham Hill work









Trevor Horn's work with The Buggles, Art of Noise, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Yes, Pet Shop Boys, Propaganda, ABC, Grace Jones, Simple Minds, Paul McCartney and Seal