I know. Yes, the band is still making music, and this new one, Aurora, marks their 24th album. This is, of course, the fifth album with Jon Davison taking over lead vocals from the founding member Jon Anderson, who departed the band in the early 2000s and was replaced by Benoit David for one album, and then Davison who has been with the band since 2012. Since then, bassist Chris Squire and drummer Alan White have passed, so the true creative force and composer behind the last few Yes albums has been guitarist Steve Howe, who is pushing 80, and I’ll admit, save for a few tracks from 2023’s Mirror To The Sky, I haven’t listened to much of the new albums.
I did see Yes live, for the first (and probably last) time around eight or so years ago, with Davison on lead vocals and Howe ripping on hundreds of guitars, and I loved it. That old-school progressive rock scratches the right itch when I feel for it. So this new one Aurora, does sound like old-school Yes, backed by a full orchestra (the Czech National Symphony Orchestra), and Davison, who basically has the same range and falsetto as Davison (who will always be my favourite singer). For me, the lyrics have always taken a back seat in Yes. It’s Howe’s musicianship that keeps me coming back. He’s an absolute master, as heard in his nylon acoustic wizardry and electric solos on “Love Lies Dreaming.”
We’re also welcome to his robotic slide guitar on “Countermovement,” which, in true Yes fashion, is a four-part song at almost 14 minutes. Howe also sings lead, with Davison coming in for a few backups. Howe’s vocals are fine, but the lyrics are very ‘old man sings at cloud’ and corny. Still, the instrumentation on this track is wild, psychedelic, and at times, droney. I really enjoy the mandolin paired with the synth work, giving a medieval-ish space vibe. Halfway through, we get a marriage of grooving drums and a piano, which is very Asia-esque, especially during cascading synth movement. This makes sense since Asia-member Geoff Downes is on keys and Howe was also in Asia. Asia was never my cup of prog tea, but I appreciate the variation.
“Ariadne” was a nice surprise, giving the spotlight to the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. With Davison’s vocals, the first few minutes feel like they’re pulled out of a hero’s journey theatrical play. This is until Howe jumps on with a jazz fusion lead guitar. Overall, Aurora is just Yes (the band that continues) doing Yes, and that’s all you can really ask for.
