Ahead of their 45th anniversary, IQ are looking forwards with optimism. Vocalist and lyricist Peter Nicholls even admits he’s in a more positive place than he was on 2019’s Resistance. He tells Prog how the work of poet Dylan Thomas and an online video ranking their releases informed their long-awaited 13th album, Dominion.

Words: Rich Wilson Photos: Mark Hughes Illustration: Tony Lithgoe

We never consciously take time off,” says IQ vocalist Peter Nicholls, when the subject of the near-sixyear gap between albums is tentatively raised. He has a point. The band play at annual weekenders and have frequently appeared onstage over the last few years, but to many, it still feels like they’ve been missing in action. Objectively though, their last two albums have contained a substantial amount of fresh material, and as Nicholls confesses, they merely needed a break from the studio.

“We don’t set a timetable of recording one album every five years. I guess each album takes a couple of years to get through and, with the last two, Road Of Bones and Resistance, they were either a double or there was a bonus disc. So essentially, that’s twice the volume of work to get through.

“Sometimes when you get to the end of it all there’s that feeling of exhaustion. You just want a little bit of time away from doing albums. At the moment, though, I really think the situation with the band is that we feel this is a renaissance for IQ.”

That resurgence Nicholls hints at is well founded, and the band’s latest album, Dominion is another fine recording that continues their recent trend of creating lavish and inspired records. IQ have also pinpointed a methodology of working that’s aided the writing process, far removed from their occasionally embattled earlier creative sessions.