#4 Psychedelic Rock
13th Floor Elevators
Among the first bands to call their music psychedelic rock—with an electric jug at the centre of the sound.
- Origin
- Austin, Texas, USA
- Active
- 1965 – 1969
The RetroForge band atlas
Three rankings.One crooked family tree.
Progressive scale, psychedelic colour and West German experiment rarely stayed in separate rooms. These ranked guides follow the bands, records and ideas that kept crossing the walls.
3complete rankings
107individual band histories
265classic album guides
The rankings are entrances, not finish lines. Every name opens into a dedicated history, essential albums and deeper listening.
Choose a signal
Enter through the sound that pulls you in
Each route uses the same editorial system while keeping the movement’s own shape, pace and visual identity.
Top 50
Progressive Rock
From King Crimson and Yes to PFM, Magma, Marillion and the modern underground: fifty bands that kept changing what a rock composition could contain.
Open the Top 50 →
Top 50
Psychedelic Rock
San Francisco ballrooms, London studios, Brazilian colour, Japanese noise and cosmic aftershocks: a map of psychedelia that refuses one fixed centre.
Open the Top 50 →
Top 10
Krautrock
Can, Neu!, Kraftwerk, Faust and six more routes through the studios, communes and forward motion of West German experimental rock.
Open the Top 10 →The complete archive
Browse every band
The rankings are curated routes. This is the complete alphabetical archive of every RetroForge band history.107 bands
#6 Krautrock
Amon Düül II
From Munich’s Amon Düül commune to a defining voice in German psychedelic rock.
- Origin
- Munich, Germany
- Active
- 1968 – 1981; later reunions
#50 Progressive Rock
Anekdoten
Mellotron melancholy with the weight of industrial machinery.
- Origin
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Active
- 1991 – present
#42 Progressive Rock
Ange
French progressive theatre spoken in shadows and Mellotron.
- Origin
- Belfort, France
- Active
- 1969 – 1995; 1999 – present
French ProgTheatrical Prog
Read the history 
#39 Progressive Rock
Änglagård
The 1990s prog revival arriving through a dark Scandinavian forest.
- Origin
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Active
- 1991–1994; 2002–2003; reunited 2009
#46 Progressive Rock
Aphrodite’s Child
A Greek psychedelic group whose final album became an apocalypse.
- Origin
- Greece; based in Paris, France
- Active
- 1967 – 1971
#33 Progressive Rock
Area
Revolutionary jazz-rock with one of Europe’s most fearless voices.
- Origin
- Milan, Italy
- Active
- 1972–1983; 1993–1999; reunited 2009
#49 Progressive Rock
Art Zoyd
Amplified chamber music built for ruins, machines and silent films.
- Origin
- Valenciennes, France
- Active
- 1969 – present
#8 Krautrock
Ash Ra Tempel
Infinite guitars from the Berlin underground.
- Origin
- Berlin, Germany
- Active
- 1970 – 1975; reunited 2000
#45 Progressive Rock
Atomic Rooster
Hammond organ, hard-rock weight and a permanent storm warning.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1969–1975; 1980–1984; 2016–present
Heavy ProgHard Rock
Read the history 
#23 Progressive Rock
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Opera, philosophy and keyboards with the roof removed.
- Origin
- Rome, Italy
- Active
- 1968 – present
#44 Progressive Rock
Barclay James Harvest
Melancholy symphonic rock written for wide skies and patient listeners.
- Origin
- Oldham, England
- Active
- 1966 – 1998
#17 Psychedelic Rock
Big Brother and the Holding Company
San Francisco ballroom rock built from electric blues, collective risk and Janis Joplin's singular voice.
- Origin
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Active
- 1965 – 1972, 1987 – present
Psychedelic RockBlues Rock
Read the history 
#45 Psychedelic Rock
Blossom Toes
Whimsical British psych growing teeth between albums.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1966 – 1970
#16 Psychedelic Rock
Blue Cheer
San Francisco blues and psychedelia, amplified until distortion became the architecture.
- Origin
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Active
- 1966–1972; later reunions to 2009
Psychedelic RockProto-Metal
Read the history 
#34 Psychedelic Rock
Blues Magoos
Bronx club discipline, electric organ and fuzz inside psychedelia's first commercial wave.
- Origin
- The Bronx, New York, USA
- Active
- 1964–1970; reunions from 2008
Garage RockPsychedelic Rock
Read the history 
#9 Progressive Rock
Camel
Guitar, flute and keyboards shaped into patient, melodic progressive rock.
- Origin
- Guildford, Surrey, England
- Active
- 1971–1984; 1991–present
#1 Krautrock
Can
Collective improvisation, rhythmic discipline and tape editing made into a new rock language.
- Origin
- Cologne, Germany
- Active
- 1968–1978; later sessions to 1999
#13 Progressive Rock
Caravan
Melodic Canterbury rock shaped by organ, shared voices, jazz harmony and long-form ensemble writing.
- Origin
- Canterbury, England
- Active
- Formed 1968; later reunions and recordings
#9 Krautrock
Cluster
From amplified objects and unstable electronics to drum-machine miniatures and quiet cyclical forms.
- Origin
- West Berlin, West Germany
- Active
- Cluster formed 1971; later reunions and recordings
#12 Psychedelic Rock
Country Joe and the Fish
Berkeley psychedelia shaped by protest song, electric improvisation, organ and twin-guitar interplay.
- Origin
- Berkeley, California, USA
- Active
- Formed 1965; later reunions
#24 Psychedelic Rock
Cream
Blues power becoming psychedelic volume and open-ended conversation.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1966 – 1968; later reunions
#18 Progressive Rock
Curved Air
Electric violin, keyboards and a distinctive lead voice across a catalogue of constant reinvention.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1970–1976; later reunions, farewell 2026
#27 Progressive Rock
Eloy
German progressive rock rebuilt repeatedly around Frank Bornemann's guitar, voice and long-form concepts.
- Origin
- Hanover, Germany
- Active
- 1969–1984; 1986–1998; active again from 2008
#5 Progressive Rock
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Keyboards, bass, voice and drums expanded into suites, adaptations and arena-scale theatre.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1970–1979; 1991–1998; one-off reunion in 2010
#5 Krautrock
Faust
Tape, repetition, noise and near-song treated as equal materials inside a residential studio.
- Origin
- Wümme, Lower Saxony
- Active
- 1971–75; reunion from 1990
#37 Psychedelic Rock
Fifty Foot Hose
Handmade electronics meeting songs, improvisation and Bay Area rock in real time.
- Origin
- San Francisco, USA
- Active
- 1966–1969; revival from 1994
#42 Psychedelic Rock
Flower Travellin’ Band
A Tokyo quartet turns transformed covers into five-part form, then carries that sound through Toronto.
- Origin
- Tokyo, Japan
- Active
- 1969–1973; reunion 2007–2011
#14 Progressive Rock
Focus
Four changing rhythm sections, two unmistakable lead voices, and a catalogue that moves from compact themes to entire album sides.
- Origin
- Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Active
- 1969–1978; intermittent reunions; 2001–present
#3 Progressive Rock
Genesis
A school group becomes a five-piece theatre of sound, then learns how to rebuild itself as a quartet and trio.
- Origin
- Godalming, England
- Active
- 1967–2000; reunions 2006–2007 and 2020–2022
#7 Progressive Rock
Gentle Giant
Six multi-instrumentalists turn counterpoint, hard rock and chamber colour into songs that continually change shape.
- Origin
- Portsmouth, England
- Active
- 1970–1980
#24 Progressive Rock#40 Psychedelic Rock
Gong
A planetary mythology powered by glissando guitar and joyful disorder.
- Origin
- Paris, France
- Active
- 1967 – present
#41 Progressive Rock
Grobschnitt
German progressive rock as theatre, satire and a very long solar journey.
- Origin
- Hagen, West Germany
- Active
- 1971–1989; reunion and acoustic projects later
#43 Progressive Rock
Gryphon
Crummhorns, bassoons and courtly music escaping into progressive rock.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1972–1977; 2009 reunion; 2015–present
Progressive FolkMedieval Prog
Read the history 
#10 Krautrock
Harmonia
The supergroup nobody noticed until it was too late.
- Origin
- Forst, Germany
- Active
- 1973–1976; reunited 2007–2009
#20 Progressive Rock
Hatfield and the North
The Canterbury scene at its most sophisticated and absurd.
- Origin
- England
- Active
- 1972–1975; 1990; 2005–2006
#39 Psychedelic Rock
Hawkwind
The free-festival engine pointed permanently toward the stars.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1969 – present
#30 Progressive Rock
Henry Cow
Progressive rock stripped of comfort, hierarchy and predictable resolution.
- Origin
- Cambridge, England
- Active
- 1968 – 1978
#37 Progressive Rock
IQ
Dark British neo-prog with patience, weight and continuity.
- Origin
- Southampton, England
- Active
- 1981 – present
#28 Psychedelic Rock
Iron Butterfly
The organ riff that made acid rock feel monumental.
- Origin
- San Diego, USA
- Active
- 1966 – 1971; intermittent revivals
#1 Psychedelic Rock
Jefferson Airplane
The sound of San Francisco at its most electric.
- Origin
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Active
- 1965 – 1972
#6 Progressive Rock
Jethro Tull
Flute-led rock that moved from British blues into long-form composition, acoustic folk and electronic experiment.
- Origin
- Blackpool roots; formed in Luton, England
- Active
- 1967 – present
Progressive RockFolk Rock
Read the history 
#44 Psychedelic Rock
July
One small British album containing an implausible number of colours.
- Origin
- Ealing, London, England
- Active
- 1968–1969; reformed 2009
#14 Psychedelic Rock
Kaleidoscope
Oud, saz, fiddle, banjo and electric guitar inside one restless Los Angeles ensemble.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Active
- 1966 – 1970; reunions in 1976 and 1990–91
#46 Psychedelic Rock
Kaleidoscope (UK)
Childhood memory, London rain and melodies viewed through stained glass.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1967 – 1970
British Psychedelic Pop
Read the history 
#17 Progressive Rock
Kansas
Violin, paired guitars and searching songs from the American heartland.
- Origin
- Topeka, Kansas, USA
- Active
- 1973 – present
#1 Progressive Rock
King Crimson
Different ensembles, different systems, one continuing appetite for musical risk.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- Several periods, 1969 – 2021
#3 Krautrock
Kraftwerk
Electronic rhythm, reduced language and moving images designed as one system.
- Origin
- Düsseldorf, Germany
- Active
- 1970 – present
KrautrockElectronic
Read the history 
#29 Progressive Rock
Le Orme
A power trio that made keyboards feel orchestral and intimate at once.
- Origin
- Marghera, Italy
- Active
- 1966 – present
#43 Psychedelic Rock
Les Rallizes Dénudés
A bass line, a ghost melody and guitar turned into white light.
- Origin
- Kyoto, Japan
- Active
- 1967 – 1996
Psychedelic RockNoise Rock
Read the history 
#5 Psychedelic Rock
Love
Los Angeles garage fire, folk detail and orchestral unease in one changing band.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Active
- 1965 – present
Psychedelic RockFolk Rock
Read the history 
#19 Progressive Rock
Magma
A Parisian ensemble built around rhythm, massed voices and the Kobaïan language.
- Origin
- Paris, France
- Active
- 1969 – present
#22 Progressive Rock
Marillion
The band that carried progressive storytelling into a new decade.
- Origin
- Aylesbury, England
- Active
- 1979 – present
#9 Psychedelic Rock
Moby Grape
Five writers and singers, three guitars, and no fixed front person.
- Origin
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Active
- 1966–1969; intermittent reunions thereafter
#48 Progressive Rock
Museo Rosenbach
One 1973 album, a towering Mellotron sound and a reputation that refused to disappear.
- Origin
- Sanremo area, Liguria, Italy
- Active
- 1971–1973; later revival projects
#31 Progressive Rock
National Health
The Canterbury scene’s late, intricate flowering.
- Origin
- England; Canterbury-scene network
- Active
- 1975–1980; reunions in 1981 and 1983
#28 Progressive Rock
Nektar
British musicians, German stages and albums designed as light shows.
- Origin
- Hamburg, West Germany
- Active
- 1969–1978; later revival lineups
#2 Krautrock
Neu!
Two contrasting musicians, three Brain albums, one radically durable pulse.
- Origin
- Düsseldorf, West Germany
- Active
- 1971–1975; 1985–1986 sessions
#41 Psychedelic Rock
Os Mutantes
Brazilian song, electric invention and Tropicália’s irreverent theatre.
- Origin
- São Paulo, Brazil
- Active
- 1966–1978; revived 2006
TropicáliaPsychedelic Rock
Read the history 
#47 Progressive Rock
Osanna
Neapolitan theatre, flute, heavy guitar and Mediterranean heat.
- Origin
- Naples, Italy
- Active
- 1971–1975; 1978–1979; revived 1999
#20 Psychedelic Rock
Pearls Before Swine
Florida folk songs enlarged by tape, chamber colour and Tom Rapp’s unsparing writing.
- Origin
- Eau Gallie, Florida, USA
- Active
- 1965–1974; Rapp returned 1997
Psychedelic RockFolk
Read the history 
#4 Progressive Rock#21 Psychedelic Rock
Pink Floyd
From London psychedelia to studio-built concept albums and monumental live sound.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1965
#7 Krautrock
Popol Vuh
From Moog electronics to acoustic devotion and cinema.
- Origin
- Munich, Germany
- Active
- 1969 – 2001
#36 Progressive Rock
Porcupine Tree
Modern progressive rock built from studio depth, restraint and controlled impact.
- Origin
- Hemel Hempstead, England
- Active
- 1987–2010; reunion cycle 2021–2023
#21 Progressive Rock
Premiata Forneria Marconi
Italian symphonic prog in constant motion.
- Origin
- Milan, Italy
- Active
- 1970 – present
#11 Progressive Rock
Procol Harum
Soulful songs, cathedral organ and orchestral ambition without easy grandeur.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1967–1977; 1991–2022
#8 Psychedelic Rock
Quicksilver Messenger Service
Twin guitars in motion: sharp tremolo, open space and collective improvisation.
- Origin
- San Francisco, California, USA
- Active
- 1965–1979; later revivals
#15 Progressive Rock
Renaissance
Acoustic songcraft, orchestral scale and a voice built for long melodic arcs.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1969–1987; 1998–2002; 2009–present
#10 Progressive Rock
Rush
A power trio that kept changing the scale, technology and grammar of its songs.
- Origin
- Toronto, Canada
- Active
- 1968–2015
Progressive RockHard Rock
Read the history 
#25 Psychedelic Rock
Santana
Psychedelic guitar carried by congas, clave and collective rhythm.
- Origin
- San Francisco, USA
- Active
- 1966 – present
Latin RockPsychedelic Rock
Read the history 
#36 Psychedelic Rock
Silver Apples
Oscillators, pulse and drums before electronic rock had a roadmap.
- Origin
- New York City, USA
- Active
- 1967–1970; revivals from 1996
#27 Psychedelic Rock
Small Faces
East London soul exploding into a miniature psychedelic universe.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1965 – 1969; later reunions
#12 Progressive Rock#38 Psychedelic Rock
Soft Machine
From psychedelic song suites to electric jazz, with the personnel changing as quickly as the music.
- Origin
- Canterbury, England
- Active
- 1966–1978; 1980–1981; 1984; since 2016
#10 Psychedelic Rock
Spirit
Kaleidoscopic, cinematic, and criminally underheard.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Active
- 1967 – 1997
#38 Progressive Rock
Spock’s Beard
The band that helped American symphonic prog restart its engine.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, USA
- Active
- 1992 – present
#32 Psychedelic Rock
Strawberry Alarm Clock
Bright harmonies, fuzz guitar and the strange aftertaste of incense.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, USA
- Active
- 1967 – present
#26 Progressive Rock
Strawbs
English folk memory rebuilt with Mellotron and electricity.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1964 – 2023
#16 Progressive Rock
Supertramp
Pop polish on a progressive frame.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1969–1988, 1996–2002, 2010–2012
#4 Krautrock
Tangerine Dream
The architects of the synthesiser landscape.
- Origin
- Berlin, Germany
- Active
- 1967 – present
#23 Psychedelic Rock
The Beatles
The world’s largest pop band turning the studio inside out.
- Origin
- Liverpool, England
- Active
- 1960 – 1970
#6 Psychedelic Rock
The Byrds
Twelve-string guitar, close harmony and a catalogue that kept changing direction.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Active
- 1964 – 1973
Psychedelic RockFolk Rock
Read the history 
#35 Psychedelic Rock
The Chocolate Watchband
A South Bay garage band whose records never tell just one lineup's story.
- Origin
- Los Altos, California, USA
- Active
- 1965 – 1970; reunited in 1999
Garage RockPsychedelic Rock
Read the history 
#49 Psychedelic Rock
The Creation
Compressed freakbeat singles, bowed guitar and Pop Art staged at club volume.
- Origin
- Cheshunt, England
- Active
- 1966 – 1968; later reunions
#3 Psychedelic Rock
The Doors
Poetry, organ bass, jazz dynamics and blues shaped into a distinctly Los Angeles sound.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Active
- 1965 – 1973
#15 Psychedelic Rock
The Electric Prunes
Fuzz, tremolo and studio experimentation — followed by one of psychedelia's sharpest identity ruptures.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Active
- 1965–1970; reunion era from 1999
#2 Psychedelic Rock
The Grateful Dead
Not just a band — a way of life.
- Origin
- Palo Alto, California, USA
- Active
- 1965 – 1995
#19 Psychedelic Rock
The Incredible String Band
Folk music from a world that never existed.
- Origin
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Active
- 1966 – 1974, 1999 – 2006
#22 Psychedelic Rock
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Electric guitar becoming weather, colour and architecture.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1966 – 1969
#25 Progressive Rock
The Moody Blues
The album became a continuous dream before prog had a name.
- Origin
- Birmingham, England
- Active
- 1964 – 2018
#47 Psychedelic Rock
The Move
Brilliant British singles with a demolition crew hidden underneath.
- Origin
- Birmingham, England
- Active
- 1965 – 1972
#34 Progressive Rock
The Nice
Keith Emerson’s first attempt to make the organ larger than the stage.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1967–1970; reunion 2002
#11 Psychedelic Rock
The Pretty Things
From ferocious R&B singles to one of British psychedelia's defining album narratives.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1963 – 2018
Psychedelic RockProto-punk
Read the history 
#31 Psychedelic Rock
The Red Krayola
Texas psychedelia refusing to behave like rock music.
- Origin
- Houston, USA
- Active
- 1966 – present
#29 Psychedelic Rock
The Seeds
Two chords, Farfisa organ and absolute belief.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, USA
- Active
- 1965 – 1972; later revival
#48 Psychedelic Rock
The Smoke
A perfect banned single and the flicker of British freakbeat becoming psych.
- Origin
- York, England
- Active
- 1965 – 1976
British Psychedelic PopFreakbeat
Read the history 
#18 Psychedelic Rock
The United States of America
A guitarless rock group where written composition met live electronic processing.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Active
- 1967 – 1968
Psychedelic RockElectronic
Read the history 
#30 Psychedelic Rock
The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band
Sunshine harmonies with a locked door somewhere inside them.
- Origin
- Los Angeles, USA
- Active
- 1965 – 1970
Psychedelic RockExperimental Pop
Read the history 
#26 Psychedelic Rock
The Zombies
Quiet English psychedelia built from breath, harmony and suspended time.
- Origin
- St Albans, England
- Active
- 1961–1967; 1999–2024
Psychedelic PopBaroque Pop
Read the history 
#13 Psychedelic Rock
Tomorrow
Twelve months of pure London psychedelia.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1967
#7 Psychedelic Rock
Traffic
English pastoral rock with a jazz soul.
- Origin
- Birmingham, England
- Active
- 1967–1969; 1970–1974; 1994
#40 Progressive Rock
Triumvirat
Keyboard-led German prog with precision, speed and melodic discipline.
- Origin
- Cologne, West Germany
- Active
- 1969 – 1980
#35 Progressive Rock
U.K.
A late-1970s supergroup balancing precision with melody.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1977–1980; reunions 2011–2015
#50 Psychedelic Rock
Ultimate Spinach
Boston psychedelia caught between genuine invention and manufactured hype.
- Origin
- Boston, USA
- Active
- 1967 – 1969
Psychedelic RockBosstown Sound
Read the history 
#32 Progressive Rock
Univers Zero
Rock instrumentation entering a dark European chamber.
- Origin
- Belgium
- Active
- 1974–1987; reactivated 1997
#8 Progressive Rock
Van der Graaf Generator
Organ, saxophone and a voice pushed to the edge.
- Origin
- Manchester, England
- Active
- 1967–1972; 1975–1978; reunited 2005
#33 Psychedelic Rock
Vanilla Fudge
Pop songs slowed until the walls begin to bend.
- Origin
- New York metropolitan area, USA
- Active
- 1966–1970; later reunions
Heavy Psychedelic RockProto-Metal
Read the history 
#2 Progressive Rock
Yes
Virtuosity in service of something genuinely transcendent.
- Origin
- London, England
- Active
- 1968–1981; 1983–present
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A listener’s compass
Different instincts, shared borders
Start with a musical instinct rather than a label. The borders become useful only after the music starts moving across them.
01
You follow the composition
Suites, shifting structures, instrumental dialogue and albums built as complete journeys.
Take the progressive route → 02You follow the atmosphere
Tape echo, altered perception, heavy colour and songs that loosen reality around the edges.
Take the psychedelic route → 03You follow the pulse
Repetition, electronics, collective improvisation and motion that changes through tiny decisions.
Take the Krautrock route →Where the maps overlap
No band stays inside one drawer for long.
Keep exploring
Connect this collection
Move sideways into another part of RetroForge. Every route is a different way back into the same music archive.