“Recorded at a time when progressive music was anathema, it deserves recognition alongside some of the more leftfield heroes of the genre”: Why The Only Ones’ Even Serpents Shine is actually a prog album

Only Ones – Even Serpents Shine.

In 2018 we stated the case for The Only Ones’ second album 1979’s Even Serpents Shine to be regarded as a fully-fledged progressive rock work – at a time when the genre had been all-but dismissed from popular culture.

There was always an otherworldly feel to The Only Ones. To some extent it emanated from vocalist Peter Perrett, a poet who sounded like he was from the same planet as Peter Hammill. That quality was also emphasised by John Perry’s jarringly melodic, psychedelically dank guitar work.