Reactions to Mirror in the Sky
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Topic: Reactions to Mirror in the Sky
Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Subject: Reactions to Mirror in the Sky
Date Posted: May 23 2023 at 16:26
| This seems to be a divisive album, so we have every option at hand. Vote, and please share your thoughts. |
Replies:
Posted By: Cristi
Date Posted: May 23 2023 at 16:32
annoyingly uneven, predictable and rather generic 
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Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: May 23 2023 at 16:37
| ^ I have to agree with uneven. |
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: May 23 2023 at 16:51
| Excellent, but it was very tempting to vote for A Masterpiece! |
Posted By: JD
Date Posted: May 23 2023 at 17:42
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I listened to the whole thing on the weekend while I was working in the kitchen. Usually I have music on that keeps me boppin' around. It was so forgettable I can't even remember half of what I heard and recall zoning out to think about other things. That NEVER happens when I'm working in the kitchen. This album lacks any heart/soul/emotion, pick the term of your choice and I'm sure I'll only listen to it one more time, in about 5 years, as a curiosity. ------------- Thank you for supporting independently produced music |
Posted By: mathman0806
Date Posted: May 23 2023 at 19:49
| It's bland. Very unremarkable and unmemorable. I had it on headphones as I worked. I streamed it through my music service, which has an autoplay feature after the album is done. Songs from the autoplay drew my attention compared to any from the Yes album. I often use autoplay as I work, and when a song draws my attention as I work, it's a good indicator of something I should explore further. Yes definitely failed in that regard. |
Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: May 23 2023 at 21:36
| I didn't buy it yet. I was going to but then noticed it was sold out. Go figure. |
Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: May 23 2023 at 21:38
Yes isn't for everyone. I remember trying to turn my uncle, who was a huge Pink Floyd fan, onto Yes but he wouldn't take to them. Oh well. Not everyone likes the same thing. That's just reality.
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mathman0806 wrote:Posted By: VianaProghead
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 03:24
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I don't know if I want to listen to it. Maybe i'll check it when I've some free time and mood.
------------- "PROG IS MY FERRARI". Jem Godfrey (Frost*) |
Posted By: mathman0806
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 03:55
It's not that Yes isn't for me. The Yes Album is one of my all time favorites. There's such a lack of energy and originality in this release. Even the most memorable bits of music feel like they were borrowed from previous Yes songs. |
Posted By: suitkees
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 04:03
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How many more threads or polls are we going to get about this album? This is what I said elsewhere:
So, to me it is a poor album with one good track. ------------- The razamataz is a pain in the bum |
Posted By: Cristi
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 04:04
Most people just are not into the music of this Yes line-up, it's not that they don't like Yes in general. |
Posted By: Manuel
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 05:51
| An improvement from The Quest indeed, but still missing strength, inventiveness and certainly is quite unremarkable. I guess YES is a differente band now, and not part of the elite of progressive rock, as they used to be. Without Steve Howe's guitar, nothing on it would make me think is worth a penny. |
Posted By: Progfan1958
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 07:27
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I think it's rather good album, their best since "Fly from Here". Is it a masterpiece ? Not at all, but it's definitely an enjoyable listen, for the most part. Some songs though, tend to sound like Steve Howe solo album tracks with guests. There is also not enough highlighted keyboard work from Geoff, and Steve tends to add widdly guitar bits just to fill time. ------------- Progfan1958 "Peace to you all" "La paix est avec vous" "Pax vobiscum" "Al salaam a'alaykum" "Vrede zij met u allen" "Shalom aleichem" |
Posted By: twosteves
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 07:53
| Howe is a legend but I can’t stand the singers voice or the horrendous lyrics. The rhythm section is trying to be squire and white but who needs plagiarism we need originality . I don’t know what the keyboardist is trying to do. He sounds exhausted & not engaged. I’ve been watching Jon Anderson with band geeks and they sound very good- including the legend JA. I believe this is about money- many people & their families need money. It will continue when Howe passes too. In a recent interview Howe restated he will never play with JA again -things happened years ago- one was JA wanted to be paid more then anyone else in the band. |
Posted By: siLLy puPPy
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 08:10
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For me when Squire passed on so did Yes. This is just a cheap imitation. Not even interested when there are literally hundreds of new releases every month that are more innovative, more interesting and more contemporary than anything Yes has done in a long time. Some of us distinguish between music and brand names and that's all Yes is at this point. -------------  https://rateyourmusic.com/~siLLy_puPPy |
Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 08:15
There were other threads predating the release of the entire album, so I think this may be a good opportunity to discuss the actual thing (not just expectatives) now that it's available for everybody to listen to. |
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 09:58
YES, it's time to update my Top 7 albums list again.  01.  1999: YES - The Ladder - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nqDU0J8X8x2WSBB7xRsGir8Smfl2hlMrU" rel="nofollow - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nqDU0J8X8x2WSBB7xRsGir8Smfl2hlMrU 02. 2023: YES - Mirror to the Sky - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mdLFJt9iPnV0i5cqbPQzOA3-wD3VEgJxA" rel="nofollow - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mdLFJt9iPnV0i5cqbPQzOA3-wD3VEgJxA 03. 2021: YES - The Quest - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lD6x-iaY3we25X25RBbX2g_ee9AmZCUlA" rel="nofollow - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lD6x-iaY3we25X25RBbX2g_ee9AmZCUlA 04. 1994: YES - Talk - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lUj1d4fSCsm1W8MpGqww4v1UzFASfbfcI" rel="nofollow - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lUj1d4fSCsm1W8MpGqww4v1UzFASfbfcI 05. 1977: YES - Going for the One - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nIFWHKVs0t-mEq-GZ3xEVE1kqqYiV4wZo" rel="nofollow - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nIFWHKVs0t-mEq-GZ3xEVE1kqqYiV4wZo 06. 1972: YES - Close to the Edge - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_ktk8PtkXO8GdshsmXb6w0fhaCMMTsyFio" rel="nofollow - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_ktk8PtkXO8GdshsmXb6w0fhaCMMTsyFio 07.
 1973: YES - Tales from Topographic Oceans - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kb8xEtrxemjdLgHaZzOfS5MFHI7oBseQc" rel="nofollow - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kb8xEtrxemjdLgHaZzOfS5MFHI7oBseQc |
Posted By: Progosopher
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 10:33
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My least favorite version of Yes, but I think it is a pretty good album. Slightly better overall than The Quest and much better than Heaven and Earth. I call them Yes-Lite now. ------------- The world of sound is certainly capable of infinite variety and, were our sense developed, of infinite extensions. -- George Santayana, "The Sense of Beauty" |
Posted By: progaardvark
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 11:03
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Having just listened to it on Spotify, I would say this is an acceptable release and an improvement on the prior album. I would rate it around 3 out of 5, maybe 3.5. The longer track is the best one of the album. I didn't care for the bonus tracks and would have recommended that the band save them for a box set. I still think Davison was a better singer when he was with Glass Hammer. I think he's trying too much to be like Jon. I don't like his higher-pitched voice and would prefer him sing more at his natural pitch. I think the production is top-notch; this mix sounds well. I feel some of the instrumental sections could have been expanded on in several songs as they were sounding like interesting ideas. It seems this version of Yes insists on sitting somewhere between 90125-era Yes and their classic period. If they dropped the idea of "making singles" and expand on the music ideas, this would have been a nicer listen. That's my two cents. Take it with a grain of salt. ------------- ---------- i'm shopping for a new oil-cured sinus bag that's a happy bag of lettuce this car smells like cartilage nothing beats a good video about fractions |
Posted By: Negoba
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 12:15
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It's certainly better than I thought it was going to be. It's better than really any other retro / nostalgia prog I've heard this year. Would I pick it over any of the classics? No. Will I enjoy it while it's new driving to work for a little while? Yes. Will I come back to it ever again once the newness wears off? Probably not. ------------- You are quite a fine person, and I am very fond of you. But you are only quite a little fellow, in a wide world, after all. |
Posted By: JD
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 12:48
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^Did you think it was going to be a dud? Did you listen really really closely? Will you ever stop asking your self questions you already have the answers to?  ------------- Thank you for supporting independently produced music |
Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 13:43
| ^ Never question the art of rhetorical question! |
Posted By: lazland
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 14:48
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My take on the album is at https://lazland.org/album-reviews-2023/yes-mirror-to-the-sky I hope you enjoy what I believe is an objective review of an album which has pleasantly surprised me. There is some very strong music on this album, but also a couple of weak tracks which do take the overall gloss off. Let me know what you think. ------------- Enhance your life. Get down to www.lazland.org |
Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: May 24 2023 at 18:50
| ^ Thanks Steve, very kind of you. I like specially your appreciation of the vocals by Sherwood and Howe (a neat improvement over past albums) and the orchestral arrangement in the title track (I think I like this even better than Magnification's arangements). I wasn't particularly enthusiastic about Luminosity, though. But it's an album that refuses to let me go, so, who knows after relisten... |
Posted By: Pekka
Date Posted: May 25 2023 at 23:17
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Extremely pleasantly surprised, it's probably a top 5 Yes album since the 70s. I'm glad they pushed the lesser tracks on the second disc and labeled them bonus, so the better six track portion is the actual work called Mirror to the Sky and the last three can be skipped if needed. ------------- http://www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=42652" rel="nofollow - It's on PA! 
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Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 10:50
By the way, there have been no vote for Masterpiece yet, while I have seen at least one 5 star review. Maybe reviewers are shy to vote and react? |
Posted By: mathman0806
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 11:24
Maybe those who rated it a 5 don't go on the forums. There are 94 ratings on PA, and there are only 22 votes here as I write this. I can accept people who rate it a 4, but a 5 for any album must be really special in my opinion. |
Posted By: Cristi
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 11:33
so true
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Posted By: Mr ProgFreak
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 12:22
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It’s objectively good, but subjectively I’m torn between the very respectable craftsmanship of the musicians involved and the bland, generic feel of the songs. Need to listen once more to arrive at a firmer conclusion, but there’s other albums to listen to … ------------- https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike" rel="nofollow - https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike |
Posted By: jamesbaldwin
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 16:29
------------- "Happiness is real only when shared" |
Posted By: jamesbaldwin
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 16:34
For me, Yes are Squire's bass plus Anderson's vocals. ------------- "Happiness is real only when shared" |
Posted By: I prophesy disaster
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 16:37
The irony is, didn't Paul start out here liking music from no later than the '70s? ------------- No, I know how to behave in the restaurant now, I don't tear at the meat with my hands. If I've become a man of the world somehow, that's not necessarily to say I'm a worldly man. |
Posted By: jamesbaldwin
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 16:45
I add: it seems to me a real scandal that a group can be called Yes without having any of the founding musicians inside. ------------- "Happiness is real only when shared" |
Posted By: jamesbaldwin
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 16:51
Just imagine, if I said that 1) Do not Disturb 2) ALT 3) A Grounding in Numbers 4) Trisector is my top 4 of VdGG.... ------------- "Happiness is real only when shared" |
Posted By: I prophesy disaster
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 16:54
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship_of_Theseus" rel="nofollow - Ship of Theseus ------------- No, I know how to behave in the restaurant now, I don't tear at the meat with my hands. If I've become a man of the world somehow, that's not necessarily to say I'm a worldly man. |
Posted By: I prophesy disaster
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 17:06
I actually have those albums, whereas I don't have any Yes after "Big Generator", and generally speaking I have little interest in new albums from old groups. ------------- No, I know how to behave in the restaurant now, I don't tear at the meat with my hands. If I've become a man of the world somehow, that's not necessarily to say I'm a worldly man. |
Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: May 26 2023 at 17:26
 Maybe the point of the paradox is to show meaningless the question of "becoming another thing". Is the UK (or any nation) the same it was in the 19th century? People may not be the same, but they're still here. |
Posted By: iluvmarillion
Date Posted: May 29 2023 at 00:04
| For me it's a slowed down version of Spock's Beard, a mixture of Glass Hammer and the Yes album "Drama" and some very clean guitar playing from Steve Howe that reminds me of Andrew Latimer. Others may find it bland and derivative but personally I love it. Five stars it's not but certainly excellent to me. |
Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: May 29 2023 at 01:02
That sounds like the Trigger's Broom Paradox, where his broom has had 17 new heads and 14 new handles and he's still using "the same" broom 20 years later - although Trigger wouldn't go as far as saying it's lasted him two decades.  |
Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: May 29 2023 at 08:35
I guess the "funny effect" of the paradox comes from comparing inanimated objects with persons. Behind a (group of) person(s) possibly lies a story, a concept, an epic, a journey, like is the case with Theseus (and not with Trigger). That ship is always "the same" because it embodies the mythical journey. Who cares the planks? |
Posted By: Lewian
Date Posted: May 29 2023 at 09:36
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I'm for sure not excited about that album; I didn't like the two tracks I have heard much. However what I don't really get is the discussion about whether they are "really" Yes in connection with liking or not liking the album. For me, whether I like the music on the album or not has zero to do with whether the band who recorded it is called Yes, and to what extent they are "real" Yes is irrelevant for me as it doesn't change the quality of any of the notes they're playing. |
Posted By: Stressed Cheese
Date Posted: May 29 2023 at 11:58
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I don't know if it's really a "divisive" album. I feel it's pretty much panned and/or ignored most places except on here. Every bad album has its fans, but I don't think this one has nearly enough of them to counter all the negativity surrounding this release. On RYM it's sitting at a 2.48, which is abysmal. Either way, it's another new album by an old artist that people won't remember or list to anymore 20 years from now - by then nobody will remember the names of the last 2 decades of Yes' albums, or will be able to tell their album covers apart. Yes I'm slighly excaggerating. What I've heard of it so far is at best inoffensive, and at worst boring. It's the kind of music that can only be made by a 50+ old band that's trying to play it safe. The kind of music that would get close to no traction (not that it's getting that much traction to begin with) if it weren't for the name Yes attached to it. There's just something depressing about a band that, after going through a period of changing their style, goes back to what they're best known for, but as generically as possible. Yes in the 70's was pushing boundaries and evolving. Yes in the 2020's just wants to sound like Yes in the 70's, and I don't think that ever results in good music. It's like how the last three Metallica albums sound like parodies of their classic era. Whether the players are founding members doesn't really matter to me, but having only 1 member from the band's golden age...at that point just change the name of the band, man. But then people wouldn't care about the album, would they? That might be a bit cynical towards Howe, but I'm sure he's aware of both the silliness of still calling this unit Yes, and the fact that it's the name Yes that's doing most of the heavy lifting here. Anyway, maybe I'm being too big of a negative nancy, but like I've said on this forum before, it just bums me out when a band has 10-15 years of classic music, followed by literal decades of stuff nobody's going to care about when all is said and done.
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Posted By: Pekka
Date Posted: May 29 2023 at 13:53
Ha! Mirror to the Sky and 72 Seasons are my two biggest surprises this year, both are great despite very modest expectations. ------------- http://www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=42652" rel="nofollow - It's on PA!
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Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: May 29 2023 at 14:48
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^^ Do you see? Divisive!
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Posted By: Cristi
Date Posted: May 29 2023 at 14:55
I liked the Metallica album, saved by a James Hetfield in top form. But the new Yes album did nothing for me. Oh well...
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Posted By: SouthSideoftheSky
Date Posted: June 07 2023 at 14:21
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The new album has gotten me excited about Yes again for the first time in ages. I am a huge Yes fan (duh!), but for the longest time I haven't listened to anything by them, and have had no particular desire to do so. I dutyfully bought The Quest when that came out, but heard it only a handful of times at the time. Mirror to the Sky is much better, I really enjoy it. |
Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: June 07 2023 at 17:57
| ^ I agree, Mirror To The Sky is probably not the South Side Of The Sky (that one really made an impression), but, in my experience, is a slow grower. Each listen reveals something more. |
Posted By: MikeEnRegalia
Date Posted: June 08 2023 at 04:36
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It's good! Which is kind of bad, considering that it's coming from a band who(se former members) published some of the most iconic masterpieces of the genre. I think this is where the divisiveness is coming from - people refuse to assess the music objectively. And this may be justified - there is no law saying that you must be objective in matters of taste. ------------- https://awesomeprog.com/users/Mike" rel="nofollow">Recently listened to: 
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: June 08 2023 at 06:04
Which part of my updated YES Top 7 are you confused by?
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Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: June 08 2023 at 09:19
| I voted "good." It would be a three star album for me on PA. |
Posted By: telefunk
Date Posted: June 08 2023 at 11:18
| Sorry to say. Too many clueless reviewers on this site. Like too many clueless voters in democracies :-( |
Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: June 08 2023 at 14:07
^ Clueless remark, I'm sorry to say: this is a thread commenting on a certain Yes album... 
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Posted By: Frets N Worries
Date Posted: June 09 2023 at 06:01
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As someone who just recently got into prog, I was very excited for some of the classic bands to have a new release. So this is the Yes album I've kinda 'grown up with'. So for me, It'll have an emotional attachment to it. It's not a terrible album by any means. Sure, the lyrics aren't great, but musically it's pretty good. 2.48 on RYM is low. I'd say it deserves about a 3. ------------- The Wheel of Time Turns, and Ages come and pass. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the shadow. Let the Dragon ride again on the winds of time... |
Posted By: telefunk
Date Posted: June 09 2023 at 11:40
| Huh? OK I didnt make myself clear: this is not Yes (never can be without Jon Anderson) and so some reviews are clueless: meaning not having the knowledge & experience to review in any significant way. |
Posted By: someone_else
Date Posted: June 09 2023 at 13:54
Not clueless, not at all... The clue is that he cannot tell Yes from http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=131059&PN=1" rel="nofollow - Queen  .------------- 
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Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: June 09 2023 at 16:31
Would you please go to write your own review, just to see if you have some "knowledge & experience" of your own? I mean, actually listen to an album and write about it, not just about someone else's work. Then we'll see where comes your authority from... 
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Posted By: MikeEnRegalia
Date Posted: June 09 2023 at 16:37
Says Yes on the cover. If it is "not Yes" to you, then that's your opinion, and others might differ. Personally, when I listened to the album I didn't care much about who was playing. I just evaluated what came out of the speakers (headphones, to be precise). Where's your review? Here's mine, too short to put on PA anyway. If you think it's invalid because I'm not mentioning that it's NOT Yes, then good for you! https://tagyourmusic.org/release-comments/3849182" rel="nofollow - https://tagyourmusic.org/release-comments/3849182 ------------- https://awesomeprog.com/users/Mike" rel="nofollow">Recently listened to:
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Posted By: Heart of the Matter
Date Posted: June 09 2023 at 16:41
OMG, then I cannot suggest Liberace for Rococo Prog?
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Posted By: telefunk
Date Posted: June 10 2023 at 11:43
| Good question. False Yes, no review. |
Posted By: telefunk
Date Posted: June 10 2023 at 11:45
| The Beatles will release an album with only Ringo on board. I would be happy, but it's not the fab 4 |
Posted By: someone_else
Date Posted: June 10 2023 at 13:23
I tend to file Liberace under Glam Rococo -------------
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: June 10 2023 at 14:49
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It doesn't bother me at all that YES keep regenerating like Doctor Who with only one semi-original member remaining in the band. They're still the Fab Five to me. Then again, if it's nostalgia I'm after, I always have the option of boarding the TARDIS and travelling back in time over 30 years to that momentous moment in 1991 when YES were the Fab Eight for one amazing night at the end of the Union tour. |
Posted By: AFlowerKingCrimson
Date Posted: June 10 2023 at 15:20
| ^Actually, Yes were made up of 8 members for the entire Union tour (and not just one night). ;) |
Posted By: omphaloskepsis
Date Posted: June 10 2023 at 16:01
Interesting top Seven. I haven't listened to The Ladder in years. I'll break The Ladder out this weekend. I got to trim wild wisteria off my pergola. Talk stays in my permanent YES rotation. I got a real love for the state of play gamboling twixt the vinyl grooves of Talk. I've only heard one song each off The Quest and Mirror To The Sky. Both songs intrigued me intensely. It seems my multiyear Norwegian prog spree distracted me from two potential YES Masterpieces. I'll rectify that.
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Posted By: Psychedelic Paul
Date Posted: June 10 2023 at 17:13
^ From that Top 7 list, I've only climbed two rungs on The Ladder so far with Close to the Edge and Going for the One on CD, but I also have the YES Collection, which includes most of the songs from The Ladder. 
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