Atomic Rooster

With a dark, heavy sound whose core was leader Vincent Crane's thick, powerful Hammond organ, Atomic Rooster were part of the U.K.'s first wave of progressive rock, an offshoot of psychedelic-era wildmen Crazy World of Arthur Brown. Somewhat akin to early Deep Purple, Atomic Rooster favored the heavier side of prog, with a doomy mood and a hard-edged guitar attack. Founding drummer Carl Palmer left after the first album to make further prog-rock history with Emerson, Lake & Palmer, but the band kept going until 1973. In the '80s, they reunited, feted by the burgeoning British metal scene, and released three more albums.