RELAYER

Yes

Symphonic Prog

4.38 | 3479 ratings

From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

lazland
Prog Reviewer

Bye Bye Wakeman, and hello Moraz, recruited after the band experimented with the idea of hiring Vangelis, who Anderson would later successfully work with for a number of years.

This is Yes, Jim, but not as we know it. The feel and velocity of the music is a million miles away from its overlong predecessor, and this is not a bad thing by any means. Rumour has it that Anderson wanted to produce another very lengthy concept LP to poke two fingers up at all the critics, but was withheld from doing so by wiser band members.

The main attraction is, of course, Gates of Delerium, and it is utterly brilliant. A quiet introduction belies the cacaphony that follows, almost as if the band were turbocharged on speed. It is, though, incredible, and as much as I love Wakeman, I wish Moraz had done a bit more work with the band, because his swirling and pulsating keyboards contribute a huge amount to the instrumental section at the heart of the piece. When the war is over, the track descends into quite the most lovely guitar solo from Howe (this man is amazing) and Anderson's deservedly famous Soon sequence. You experience all of the horrors of war in the main section and then absolutely feel the relief at the coming of the light at the end. A five star track if ever there was one.

I noted the equally high quality of the second side of Close to the Edge. I do not, however, think that the flipside of Relayer anywhere near matches the main event, and it is for that reason that I award the LP four stars overall.

Sound Chaser, in particular, is far too jazzy for my tastes and is certainly not a typical Yes track. I do, however, adore the relaxed and sonically lovely To Be Over, which hints very much at some of the direction to follow in the next album.

A very good LP which definitely helped restore the reputation of the band after the critical mashing they had with the predecessor LP.

Four stars.

lazland | 4/5 | 2009-2-27

MEMBERS LOGIN ZONE

As a registered member (register here if not), you can post rating/reviews (& edit later), comments reviews and submit new albums.

You are not logged, please complete authentication before continuing (use forum credentials).

Share this YES review

Social review comments () BETA

Review related links

Send comments to lazland
Report this review (#204582)
Buy YES music online with PA partners
Show all YES MP3/Stream
Go to YES page for videos, full discography with ratings, reviews and much more
Go to Relayer page for more details, where to buy and ratings/reviews
Search the Forum for YES related discussions