The main musical influences on the neo-prog genre are bands from the first wave of progressive rock such as early Genesis, Camel, and to a lesser extent Van der Graaf Generator and Pink Floyd.
", stating that this subgenre "surfaced in late 1981, bearing testimony to the lasting values of this musical form" of progressive rock, but distinguishing it from this main genre, saying, "Sure the sound was a bit different ... a little more bite, a little more eighties".
Famous neo-prog albums were Marillion's Fugazi, Pallas' The Sentinel, Pendragon's Fly High Fall Far, Twelfth Night's Art and Illusion, Solstice's Silent Dance, IQ's The Wake, and Quasar's Fire in the Sky.
[6] The change of approach can be heard in the shift toward shorter compositions and a keyboard-based sound in the 1980s Rush albums Signals, Grace Under Pressure, Power Windows and Hold Your Fire.
[7] Digital synthesizers took over many of the roles formerly filled by bulkier keyboards such as Mellotrons and organs,[8] and their modern sound tended to minimise the folk influences that had been typical of 1970s progressive rock.
They would also spawn a sci-fi based trans-Atlantic Neo-Prog side project in Edison's Children in 2011 starring, Marillion's Pete Trewavas[13] and NYC's Major Motion Picture Special FX Technician[14] Eric Blackwood.