As longtime guitarist and co-writer for the powerhouse rock hitmaker Billy Idol, Steve Stevens is widely celebrated as a master of composing forceful, electrifying rock melodies that balance their intensity with an undeniable mainstream appeal. It’s that melodic sensibility matched with an impressive technical mastery that has made Stevens one of the most sought after collaborators in music today. Recently, Stevens accepted an invitation to contribute to the new album from The Prog Collective and the result is one of the purest expressions of Stevens’s creativity ever captured.

For the uninitiated, The Prog Collective, founded and helmed by producer/multi-instrumentalist and famed bassist for Yes Billy Sherwood, has united some of the finest musicians of rock, jazz, metal, pop and everything in between since its founding in 2012. The group’s newest studio effort, entitled Dark Encounters, takes a deliberate turn toward a more brooding and melancholic musical path, filled with haunting ambience and eerie melodic passages. All of this makes Stevens the perfect partner for an exploration into the darker side of prog rock.

Check out the album’s first single and the album’s leadoff track, “Darkest Hour,” which is released today on all music platforms. Stream/download the track here; listen below.

Dark Encounters is set for release on March 29 and includes contributions from a number of notable musicians and creative geniuses from the legendary Steve Morse, violinist David Cross, and guitar wizard Bumblefoot to keyboardist Patrick Moraz, Utopia’s Kasim Sulton, Gong’s Steve Hillage, and more!

Order CD/vinyl here; pre-order/pre-save the digital here.

Tracklisting:

"Darkest Hour" with Steve Stevens
"Ominous Signs" with Steve Morse
"At The Gates" with David Cross
"Dark Days" with Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, Patrick Moraz & Omar Hakim
"Lonely Landscape" with Kasim Sulton
"The Long Night" with Frank Dimino & Marco Minnemann
"The Quasi Effect" with Billy Sherwood
"The 11th Hour" with John Etheridge
"Between Two Worlds" with Steve Hillage & Gregg Bissonette
"Distant Thunder" with Todd Sucherman
"Dark Money" with Joe Bouchard
"For All To See" with Pat Mastelotto
"Beyond Reason" with Chad Wackerman

Bonus tracks (CD only):
"I Saw The Light" - Todd Rundgren with Rick Wakeman    
"I'm Not In Love" - Nektar with Rick Wakeman