Leprous are one of the most distinctive and restless bands in modern progressive music. Beginning as a progressive metal band, they have evolved — album by album — into something far harder to categorise, blending prog metal, art rock and emotional, atmospheric songwriting, all carried by the extraordinary voice of Einar Solberg. Here is our fellow fan’s ranking of all eight albums.

The short version

For the heart of Leprous, start with The Congregation, Coal, Bilateral and Malina. Between them they hold the band’s critical peak and its boldest, most adventurous work. The full ranking is below.

Restless reinventors

Few bands reinvent themselves as often, or as boldly, as Leprous. Their relentless evolution — from the intricate metal of their early peaks to the vulnerable art rock of their recent work — has made them both beloved and divisive: where you enter may shape which Leprous you love. Solberg’s soaring, fragile, powerful voice is the thread through all of it, but the music around it never stops changing. A note on the catalogue: all eight of their studio albums, 2009 to 2024, are ranked here.

How we ranked them

This is one fan’s order, weighing songwriting, emotion and ambition across a remarkably varied career. The facts are accurate; the order is a starting point for the debate — and with a band this changeable, your own ranking may look very different.

The essential four

At the top sits The Congregation (2015), widely held as their masterpiece — the dazzling culmination of their prog-metal years, intricate and emotionally overwhelming. Coal (2013) is its darker, heavier forebear, and Bilateral (2011) the eclectic, adventurous breakthrough that announced their gifts. Malina (2017) marked the elegant pivot toward art rock, melodic and atmospheric, and remains one of their most beloved.

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Reliably great

The next tier captures the band at their most daring. Pitfalls (2019) is their boldest reinvention — a vulnerable, largely electronic art-rock album that thrilled many and divided others — and Aphelion (2021) is the warm, varied set that balanced their emotional and heavier sides beautifully.

For completists

Two albums sit lower here. Melodies of Atonement (2024), their most recent, is a strong, heavier return that may yet climb in the estimation of fans, and the debut Tall Poppy Syndrome (2009) is a fine but more conventional prog-metal record, made before they found their singular voice.

Every album, in order

Their complete studio discography, 2009–2024, in chronological order — a map of one of modern prog’s most fascinating evolutions. Click through to the full write-up on any record.

Where to start

Begin with The Congregation — their most acclaimed album, and the fullest expression of everything that made their name. From there, Malina offers their melodic art-rock side at its finest, and Coal their darkest, heaviest power.

The players

Leprous revolve around Einar Solberg, the band’s leader, keyboardist and the owner of one of modern prog’s most striking voices — soaring, fragile and powerful by turns. Around him, guitarist Tor Oddmund Suhrke, the acclaimed drummer Baard Kolstad and bassist Simen Børven form a band of formidable skill and feel. In their early years, Leprous also served as the live backing band for the Norwegian metal innovator Ihsahn — but it is Solberg’s restless creative vision that has always driven them forward.

Why they still matter

Leprous have become one of the defining bands of modern progressive music precisely by refusing to stand still — turning vulnerability, atmosphere and constant reinvention into a sound entirely their own. Alongside contemporaries like Opeth, Haken and Pain of Salvation, they have pushed the genre somewhere new — and their best albums are among the most emotionally powerful prog of their age.

Go deeper

Keep exploring: read about the best Leprous songs. You can also place them in the bigger picture with our list of the best progressive rock albums of all time.

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