Épico (rock progressivo)

No rock progressivo, épico é uma composição longa, normalmente acima de 20 minutos, em alguns casos chegando até a uma hora, que compõem a forma mais pura e distinta do gênero. A maioria dos épicos varia entre 15 e 25 minutos.

Normalmente os épicos são divididos em partes distintas em tempo, escala, instrumentos e sonoridade, porém coesas em estilo. Um exemplo é a clássica Close To The Edge (1972), da banda inglesa Yes, que é dividida em 4 partes, cada uma composta por membros diferentes da banda. O modo como a música é conduzida e como suas partes são balanceadas tornaram-se uma referência no gênero. Algumas vezes, determinadas partes de um épico são lançadas separadamente como um single, como foram Gates of Delirium do Yes (de onde se tirou o single Soon), ou Supper's ready do Genesis (de onde se tirou o single Willow Farm).

Um épico é a recorrência mais clara do rock progressivo à música clássica, de onde ele teve suas origens. Mesmo assim, os épicos atuais seguem as tendências e estilos de cada banda. Green Carnation, por exemplo, no seu épico Light of Day, Day of Darkness, toca uma hora de metal. Rush, no épico 2112 (20:37), utiliza-se bastante de seu estilo próprio, também pesado.

Os épicos às vezes são divididos em duas ou mais faixas de um CD, como faz Pendragon (Queen of hearts, Not of this world), mas são assim consideradas porque trata-se de uma única composição. Jethro Tull, por exemplo, criou dois épicos com mais de 40 minutos cada utilizando os dois lados do LP, que não suportava muito mais que 20 minutos por lado. Nessa época, a maioria dos épicos ocupava um lado inteiro do disco.

Álbuns conceptuais

Outra forma pura de rock progressivo são os álbuns conceptuais. Eles são quase o oposto de um épico: em vez de uma música longa, o álbum é composto por diversas músicas, normalmente menores, porém com o mesmo tema. Freqüentemente, essas músicas são conectadas, formando uma única composição, como o álbum de Marillion em 1985, Misplaced childhood. Não é totalmente aceito que músicas como essa sejam consideras épicos.

Épicos por década

Aqui são listados alguns exemplos de épicos no rock progressivo ou metal progressivo, por década de lançamento.

Década de 60

Ano	Artista	Álbum	Música	Duração
1967	Pink Floyd	Tonite let's all make love in London (EP)	Interestellar overdrive	16:46
1968	Iron Butterfly	In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida	In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida	17:05
1968	Procol Harum	Shine on brightly	In held 'twas in I Glimpses of Nirvana 'Twas tea time at the circus The Autumn of my madness Look to your soul Grand finale	17:39
1968	The Jimi Hendrix Experience	Electric Ladyland	1983… (A Merman I Should Turn to Be)	13:39
1969	Golden Earring	Eight Miles High	Eight Miles High	19:00

Década de 70

Ano	Artista	Álbum	Música	Duração
1970	Pink Floyd	Atom Heart Mother	Atom Heart Mother Father's shout Breat milky Mother fore Funky dung Mind your throats please Remergence	23:45
1970	King Crimson	Lizard	Lizard Prince Rupert awakes Bolero: The peacock's tale The battle of the glass tears	23:15
1971	Caravan	In The Land Of Grey And Pink	Nine Feet Underground Nigel Blows a Tune Love's a Friend Make It 76 Dance of the Seven Paper Hankies Hold Grandad by the Nose Honest I Did! Disassociation 100% Proof"	22:43
1971	Focus	Moving Waves	Eruption Orfeus Answer Orfeus Answer Pupilla Tommy Pupilla Answer The Bridge Break Euridice Dayglow Endless Road Answer Orfeus Euridice	23:04
1971	Pink Floyd	Meddle	Echoes	23:28
1971	Van der Graaf Generator	Pawn Hearts	A plague of lighthouse keepers Eyewitness Pictures/Lighthouse Eyewitness S.H.M. Presence of the night Kosmos tours (Custard's) Last stand The clot thickens Land's end We go now	23:04
1971	Emerson, Lake & Palmer	Tarkus	Tarkus Eruption Stones Of Years Iconoclast Mass Manticore Battlefield Aquatarkus	20:41
1972	Jethro Tull	Thick as a brick	Thick as a brick	43:36
1972	Focus	Focus III	Answers? Questions! Questions? Answers!	19:54
1972	Focus	Focus III	Anonymus II Anonymus II (Part 1) Anonymus II (Conclusion)	26:21
1972	Genesis	Foxtrot	Supper's ready Lover's leap The guaranteed eternal sanctuary man Ikhnaton and Itsacon and their band of merry men How Dare I be so Beautiful Willow farm Apocalypse in 9/8 (featuring the delicious talents of Gabble Ratchet) As sure as eggs is eggs (aching men's feet)	22:54
1972	Yes	Close to the edge	Close to the edge The solid time of change Total mass retain I get up, I get down Seasons of man	18:44
1972	Banco del Mutuo Soccorso	Banco del Mutuo Soccorso	Il giardino del mago Passo dopo passo Chi ride e chi geme Coi capelli sciolti al vento Compenetrazione	18:26
1973	Jethro Tull	A Passion Play	A Passion Play	44:58
1973	Emerson, Lake & Palmer	Brain Salad Surgery	Karn Evil 9 First Impression, part 1 First Impression, part 2 Second Impression Third Impression	29:40
1973	Yes	Tales From Topographic Oceans	Ritual: Nous Sommes du Soleil	21:33
1973	Yes	Tales From Topographic Oceans	The Revealing Science of God: Dance of the Dawn	20:20
1973	Yes	Tales From Topographic Oceans	The Remembering: High the Memory	20:36
1973	Yes	Tales From Topographic Oceans	"The Ancient": Giants Under the Sun	18:37
1973	Triumvirat	Illusions on a double dimple	Illusions on a double dimple Flashback Schooldays Triangle Illusions Dimplicity Last dance	22:55
1973	Triumvirat	Illusions on a double dimple	Mister ten percent Maze Dawning Bad deal Roundabout Lucky girl Million dollars	21:12
1974	Yes	Relayer	The Gates of Delirium	21:54
1974	Camel	Mirage	Lady Fantasy Encounter Smiles For You Lady Fantasy	12:45
1974	Focus	Hamburguer Concerto	Hamburger Concerto Starter Rare Medium I Medium II Well Done One for the Road	20:19
1975	Rush	Caress of Steel	The fountain of Lamneth In the valley Dialects and narpets No one at the bridge Panacea Bacchus plateau The fountain	19:59
1975	Renaissance	Scheherezade and other stories	Song of Scheherezade	24:39
1976	Rush	2112	2112 Overture Temples of the Syrinx Discovery Presentation Oracle: the dream Soliloquy The grand finale	20:37
1977	Pink Floyd	Animals	Dogs	17:08
1977	Yes	Going for the one	Awaken	15:35
1978	Emerson, Lake & Palmer	Love beach	Memoirs of an officer and a gentleman Prologue / The Education Of A Gentleman Love At First Sight Letters From The Front Honourable Company (A March)	20:16
1978	Rush	Hemispheres	Cygnus X-1 Book II: Hemispheres Prelude Apollo (Bringer of Wisdom) Dionysus (Bringer of Love) Armageddon (The Battle of Heart and Mind) Cygnus (Bringer of Balance) The Sphere (A Kind of Dream)	18:08
1979	Anyone's Daughter	Adonis	Adonis Come Away The Disguise Adonis The Epitaph	24:13

Década de 80

Ano	Artista	Álbum	Música	Duração
1982	Marillion	Market Square Heroes (EP)	Grendel Heorot's Plea and Grendel's Awakening Grendel's Journey Lurker At The Threshold Finale	17:15
1983	Genesis	Genesis	Home By The Sea Second Home By The Sea	11:14
1983	IQ	Tales From The Lush Attic	The Last Human Gateway	19:58
1983	IQ	Tales From The Lush Attic	The Enemy Smacks	15:56
1983	Mercyful Fate	Melissa	"Satan's Fall"	11:23
1984	Iron Maiden	Powerslave	"Rime of the Ancient Mariner"	13:35
1984	Venom	At War with Satan	"At War with Satan"	19:57
1986	Genesis	Invisible Touch	Domino In The Glow Of The Night The Last Domino	10:45
1987	Helloween	Keeper of the Seven Keys Part 2	Helloween	13:18
1988	Helloween	Keeper of the Seven Keys Part 2	Keeper of the Seven Keys	13:37
1988	Talk Talk	Spirit of Eden	The Rainbow The Rainbow Eden Desire	22:38

Década de 90

Ano	Artista	Álbum	Música	Duração
1991	Pendragon	The world	Queen of hearts Queen of hearts ...A man could die out here... The last waltz	21:53
1992	Echolyn	Suffocating the Bloom	A suite for the everyman Only Twelve A Cautious Reponse Bearing Down Cash Flow Shuffle Mr. Oxy Moron Twelve's Enough I Am the Tide Cannoning in B Major Picture Perfect Those That Want to Buy Suffocating the Bloom	28:13
1992	Änglagård	Hybris	Gånglåt från Knapptibble	19:36
1992	Manowar	The Triumph of Steel	Achilles, Agony and Ecstasy in Eight Parts Prelude I. Hector Storms the Wall II. The Death of Patroclus III. Funeral March IV. Armor of the Gods V. Hector's Final Hour VI. Death Hector's Reward VII. The Desecration of Hector's Body A. Part 1 B. Part 2 VIII. The Glory of Achilles"	28:38
1993	Pendragon	The Window of Life	The last man on Earth	14:46
1993	Disembowelment	Transcendence into the Peripheral	A Burial at Ornans	14:38
1994	Galleon	Heritage and Visions	Permanent vacation	16:26
1994	Dream Theater	Awake	A Mind Beside Itself Erotomania Voices The Silent Man	20:24
1995	Dream Theater	A Change of Seasons	A Change of Seasons The Crimson Sunrise Innocence Carpe Diem The Darkest of Winters Another World The Inevitable Summer The Crimson Sunset	23:06
1995	Spock's Beard	The Light	The water Introduction/The water When it all goes to hell A thief in the night FU/I'm sorry The water (revisited) Runnin' the race Reach for the sky	23:05
1995	Spock's Beard	The Light	The light The dream One man Garden people Looking straight into the light The man in the mountain Señor Valasco's mystic voodoo love dance The return of the horrible catfish man The dream	15:33
1996	Yes	Keys to Ascension	That, that is Togetherness Crossfire The giving things That is All in all How did heaven begin Agree to agree	19:15
1996	Opeth	Morningrise	Black Rose Immortal	20:14
1997	The Flower Kings	Stardust We Are	Stardust We Are	25:03
1997	Symphony X	The Divine Wings of Tragedy	The Divine Wings of Tragedy	20:41
1997	Enslaved	Eld	793 (Slaget om Lindisfarne)	16:10
1997	IQ	Subterranea	The narrow margin	20:00
1998	The Flower Kings	Flower Power	Garden of Dreams Dawn Simple Song Business Vamp All you Can Save Attack Of The Monster Briefcase Mr Hope Goes To Wall Street Did I Tell You Garden Of Dreams Don't Let The d'Evil In Love is the Word There's No Such Night The Mean Machine Dungeon Of The Deep Indian Summer Sunny Lane Gardens Revisited Shadowland The Final Deal	59:24
1998	Yes	Keys to Ascension II	Mind drive	18:38
1998	Galleon	Mind over matter	The wanderer	21:14
1998	Mercyful Fate	Dead Again	Dead Again	13:41
1999	Neal Morse	Neal Morse	A whole nother trip Bomb that can't explode Mr. upside down The man who would be king It's alright	23:58

Década de 2000

Ano	Artista	Álbum	Música	Duração
2000	Transatlantic	SMTPe	All of the above Full moon rising October winds Camouflaged in blue Half alive Undying love Full moon rising (reprise)	30:59
2000	Spock's Beard	V	The great nothing From nowhere One note Come up breathing Submerged Missed your calling The great nothing	27:03
2001	Green Carnation	Light of day, day of darkness	Light of day, day of darkness	60:06
2001	Transatlantic	Bridge Across Forever	Duel with the devil Motherless children Walk away Silence of the night You're not alone Almost home	26:43
2001	Transatlantic	Bridge Across Forever	Stranger in your soul Sleeping wide awake Hanging in the balance Lost and found pt. 2 Awakening the stranger Slide Stranger in your soul	26:23
2001	Magenta	Revolutions	Man the machine Man and machine War Rememberance The watchers Lightspeed First contact	24:41
2001	Magenta	Revolutions	Genetesis The new age Renewed purpose A new life The search for faith The creed	22:07
2001	Magenta	Revolutions	The white witch Overture The white witch The plague Reflection The spell	20:57
2001	Magenta	Revolutions	Children of the sun Spirit of the land The journey The battle Thanksgiving	19:18
2001	Pendragon	Not of this world	Not of this world Not of this world Give it to me Green eyed angel	16:26
2002	Echolyn	Mei	Mei	49:33
2002	Dream Theater	Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence	Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence Overture About to Crash War Inside My Head The Test That Stumped Them All Goodnight Kiss Solitary Shell About to Crash (Reprise) Losing Time / Grand Finale	42:02
2002	The Flower Kings	Unfold The Future	The truth will set you free	31:03
2002	The Flower Kings	Unfold The Future	Devil's playground	24:45
2002	Symphony X	The Odyssey	The Odyssey Odysseus Theme / Overture Journey To Ithaca The Eye Circe (Daughter Of The Sun) Sirens Scylla And Charybdis The Fate Of The Suitors / Champion Of Ithaca	24:09
2003	Galleon	From Land to Ocean	The Ocean Beginning And on... Tsunami International Killer green Bermuda Atlantis Polar white - Part I The abyss Polar white - Part II Blood waters Into the deep Blue richness Black sea Tidal wave Undertow Swirl On the north shore - Part IV Paradise or what?	52:05
2004	IQ	Dark Matter	Harvest of souls	24:29
2004	The Flower Kings	Adam & Eve	Love Supreme	19:45
2004	The Flower Kings	Adam & Eve	Driver's Seat	18:23
2004	Neal Morse	One	The creation One mind In a perfect light Where are you? Reaching from the heart	18:23
2004	Neal Morse	One	The separated man I'm in a cage I am the man The man's gone (reprise)	17:59
2005	Kaipa	Mindrevolutions	Mindrevolutions	25:47
2005	Hammerfall	Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken	Knights Of The 21st Century	12:19
2005	Circus Maximus	The 1st Chapter	The 1st Chapter The 1st Chapter	19:54
2005	Dream Theater	Octavarium	Octavarium Someone Like Him Medicate Full Circle Intervals Razor's Edge	24:00
2005	The Mars Volta	Frances The Mute	Cygnus....Vismund Cygnus 1. Sarcophagi 2. Umbilical Syllables 3. Facilis Descenus Averni 4. Con Safo	13:02
2005	The Mars Volta	Frances The Mute	L'Via L'Viaquez	12:21
2005	The Mars Volta	Frances The Mute	Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore 1. Vade Mecum 2. Pour Another Icepick 3. Pisacis (Phra-Men-Ma) 4. Con Safo	13:09
2005	The Mars Volta	Frances The Mute	Cassandra Gemini 1. Tarantism 2. Plant a Nail in the Navel Stream 3. Faminepulse 4. Multiple Spouse Wounds 5. Sarcophagi	32:32
2005	The Mars Volta	Scab Dates	Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt (Gust of Mutts - And Ghosted Pouts)	13:23
2005	The Mars Volta	Scab Dates	Cicatriz (Part I - Part II - Part III - Part IV)	42:58
2006	The Flower Kings	Paradox Hotel	Monsters and men	21:21
2006	The Mars Volta	Amputechture	Tetragrammaton	16:41
2006	The Mars Volta	Amputechture	Meccamputechture	11:03
2006	The Mars Volta	Amputechture	Day of the Baphomets	11:57
2007	Neal Morse	Sola Scriptura	The Door Introduction In The Name Of God All I Ask For Mercy for Sale Keep Silent Upon the Door	29:15
2007	Neal Morse	Sola Scriptura	The Conflict Do You Know My Name? Party to the Lie Underground Two Down, One to Go The Vineyard Already Home	25:00
2007	Neal Morse	Sola Scriptura	The Conclusion Randy's Jam Long Night's Journey Re-Introduction Come Out of Her Clothed With the Sun In Closing...	16:34
2007	Dream Theater	Systematic Chaos	In The Presence of Enemies Prelude Resurrection Heretic The Slaughter of The Damned The Reckoning Salvation	25:38
2007	The Flower Kings	The sum of no evil	Love is the only answer	24:28
2008	Moon Safari	Blomljud	Other Half of Sky	31:44
2008	Týr	Land	Land	16:17
2009	Dream Theater	Black Clouds and Silver Linings	A Nightmare to Remember	16:10
2009	Dream Theater	Black Clouds and Silver Linings	The County of Tuscany	19:16
2009	Transatlantic	The Whirlwind	The Whirlwind Overture / Whirlwind The Wind Blew Them All Away On the Prowl A Man Can Feel Out of the Night Rose Colored Glasses Evermore Set Us Free Lay Down Your Life Pieces of Heaven Is it Really Happening?" Dancing with Eternal Glory / Whirlwind (Reprise)	77:54
2009	Porcupine Tree	The Incident	The Incident Occam's Razor The Blind House Kneel and Disconnect" Drawing the Line The Incident Your Unpleasant Family The Yellow Windows of the Evening Train Time Flies Degree Zero of Liberty Octane Twisted The Séance Circle of Manias I Drive the Hearse	55:15

Década de 2010

Ano	Artista	Álbum	Música	Duração
2010	Triptykon	Eparistera Daimones	"The Prolonging"	19:22
2013	Dream Theater	Dream Theater	"Illumination Theory"	22:18
2014	Haken	Restoration	"Crystallised"	19:23
2016	Haken	Affinity	The Architect	15:40