Heavy Prog

Heavy prog is the progressive rock category for bands that keep progressive rock's extended forms and technical ambition while drawing their weight from hard rock and early metal. Its canonical act is *Rush*, whose albums joined virtuoso arrangements to arena-sized riffs, but the style reaches back to *Uriah Heep*, *Atomic Rooster* and *Captain Beyond*, groups that pushed organ- and guitar-driven rock toward longer, more demanding compositions without crossing into progressive metal. Modern exponents such as *Porcupine Tree* and *Karnivool* updated the formula with alternative-rock dynamics, and heavy prog remains the bridge category between classic prog and prog metal.