No: I haven't bought a Yes studio album since 90125.

OMG, that's a burn. 

 Not even Keys to Ascension V1/2 aka KeyStudio? You'd better check that out! Best Yes since Drama, and better than anything since, IMO.

Wow, you must really hate Yes. 

Same here.

Maybe I'll buy the new one just for the cover. 

really? Don't know what to say to that, you left me speechless here. 

That goes for me too. 

Hi,

I know this may sound kinda bad, but ... even if the lyrics were written by Pete Sinfield, I doubt I would see this. I saw the band at their best (TFTO in LA) and then in what I think was Chris' last tour here near Portland at the Casino ... a nice show, but the singer was so bad that I would not cast him in a Pasolini version of the music or film! He sang fine, but his motions and "show" was all about the oldest theatrical tricks and the most amateuristic acting on stage I have ever seen. I saw high school productions better than that!

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

Though I think they have made decent records since the 70s ("Magnification" anyone?), the last few records I've heard have been sedentary.

Because I am such a completist, I would most likely buy if I found in the used bin at Rhino or Amoeba for less than $10.

What I've heard from Oliver's Yes sounded better than "Heaven and Earth."  But that was over 10 years ago!

See what?

I bought H&E but never really play it. I listened to The Quest and decided there were better things to spend my money on. I will listen to this latest one and decide then. Not holding out much hope to be honest.

I set the bar pretty low before hearing Open Your Eyes for the first time (especially after reading some of the derogatory comments about the album), so I wasn't disappointed back then either. 

I think I'll look for samples before deciding. 

Totally the opposite. In all honesty, Mirror to the Sky is the only 2023 prog album I'm ever likely to buy, mainly because it's destined to end up in a charity shop bargain bin at some point in the not too distant future, just like all of Genesis' albums between the years 1980 & 1997. 

So, I got to listen to it, and my vote is "no".

It could be a lot worse (e.g. The Quest), and I think this album will find its admirers, but in my opinion it is lacking a lot of originality. Only the title track is interesting, both composition wise and the playing; the orchestrations sometimes a bit cliché, but at other moments quite interesting. The closing track is a nice guitar-voice Yes-kind of ballad, which is OK. It actually also shows that Davison has a good voice, as long as he's avoiding the higher pitched outings.

The rest of the album is really lacking in the song writing department and in the originality of playing: many melodies, riffs, vocal harmonies are just formulaic Yes ripp-offs and make you think of earlier works (which may be a recommendation to some...), lyrics are so-so to cringy and especially Luminosity is a good example of mediocrity.

So, imho, the best is at the end of the album, but you'll have to plow through a safe-playing, formulaic and uninspired Yes-tribute band during the first four tracks.

The second CD is superfluous: the first track is too full of different ideas, which makes it inconsistent, the two other tracks are rather uninteresting Steve Howe pop-rock ditties.

So, I won't buy it, but I must say that the title track of the album is not unpleasant to listen to, and the only one that shows that this band that calls themselves "Yes" might produce some above average music in the future...

Of course I bought it, I am a completist and must have all Yes studio albums on CD. I ordered it on the release date this time, rather than pre-ordered like I did The Quest. Honestly, I didn't expect much from it, but unlike the previous album, Mirror to the Sky has actually gotten me excited about Yes again! It's good!

I enjoy the Rabin albums, especially 90125 and Big Generator. There, I said it. 

I would add Talk to the list. That has Endless Dream on it which is one of their best post 70s epics imo.

Yeah, Talk is a good album, I like the two I mentioned above more. 

I didn't get The Quest and I won't be getting this one either. 

Arguably two? I don't think so. Downes is not a core member. I guess he's Steve Howe's long time friend, despite the fact that Steve quit Asia three times . Probably these two do not argue, i imagine Geoff is not arguing with Steve  and they have a good working relationship somehow. 

Yeah, Downes was the "arguably" second one I was talking about  But in any case, the current incarnation of Yes just doesn't strike me as Yes anymore. The magic is gone now 

I don't think it's that simple. Both bands play at about the same size venues these days.  I would say more older people know about and like Yes but more younger people know about and like Porcupine Tree. The last few PT albums charted higher than Yes. Yes is more famous overall but I think more people are into  PT than Yes right now. If you substituted everything I said about PT with King Crimson it would still make sense.

What's the definition of "core member"? Does it mean "old" or "important" or something else? And how is the concept applicable to the case of Yes?

The history of Yes is a history of line-up changes. The original line-up only lasted for two albums, and rarely did they make more than a couple of albums before somebody in the band moved on or was replaced by another (sometimes someone new, somtimes a returning, older member). Very different line-ups have managed to conjure up the "Yes spirit" and create good music.

Instead of focussing on who is currently in the band, why not focus on the music they are making? As the case of Heaven & Earth proved, having both Squire and White still in the band didn't help them to make a strong album. At that point, it made sense to argue that they should have just stopped. The Quest was better, but not great. Mirror to the Sky is much better, and personally I feel that it is a worthy Yes album - the best in a long, long time.

Why wouldn't Downes be a "core" member? He first joined the band more than 40 years ago, and Mirror to the Sky is his fifth studio album with Yes. Billy Sherwood has contributed to the band in various capacities since the early 90's, and Mirror to the Sky is his fourth Yes studio album as full member. Jon Davison has been with them for over a decade already and writes or co-writes much of the material. How many roads must a man walk down before you call him a man?

-I do love 1970's Jethro Tull an uncomparable amount more than Porcupine Tree. But if I got to choose one concert to attend to (for free, I wouldn't pay for any of them) out of the two for a 2023-gig, I'd still choose the ticket for the Porcupines. As I know (from experience) I'd be better off watching a tribute band at a local bar in regards to Tull.