THE QUEST

The band couldn't do worse than their previous album and having more time in the lockdown situation to work on their songs. I wasn't expecting a masterpiece of the 70's, but something better than "Heaven on Earth". The first track gives you a good idea of the whole album with a light sound in the style of "Fly From Here" and "Magnification" with a nice and short keys passage of Downes, but it's the guitar of Howe is the highlight of the song, but you feel that the song doesn't gain momentum. "Dare to Know" is more interesting with some classical arrangements with strings and a guitar work of Howe who take us back to "Relayer" "MInus the Man" is where things started to go down with uninspiring music that you could find in a Billy Sherwood album. "Leave well Alone" brings some nice multipart vocals where Howe again shows his versatility on the guitar, but Downes is still showing a low profile. The rest of the album is characterized by some light semi-ballad songs missing the big symphonic style of Yes in the 70's. The bass of Squire and the keys of Wakeman are missing as the songwriting, nothing that moves you only Steve Howe playing is bringing a little fun. This one will not require many spins on my cd player, it's going back on the shelf.

The album says YES! YES! YES! but my ears keep saying NO! NO! NO!

And such is the plight of a once mighty prog band reduced to its fading lifespan.

So let's get this statement out of the way:

YES in its prime were GODZ in every musical sense.

However even GODZ have an expiration date and YES has obviously exceeded it.

Personally after 2011's "Fly From Here" which was a decent if not outstanding album,

YES jumped the shark past the point of no return and truly where the band should've

Flown off back to wherever they emerged and called it a career well served.

Didn't happen. Chris(t) Squire - R.I.P. - obviously wanted the band to continue

And that means we are treated to substandard material for eternity!

THE QUEST is the official 22nd album under the YES moniker

But without Squire, is it really YES? This is the question at hand, ladies and gents

Squire has been replaced by Billy Sherwood as bassist but unfortunately

All i can think about is his collaborations such as with William Shatner

And then all i can do is cringe and guffaw and then cringe some more

Sure Steve Howe is back as well as is Alan White but is it good enough?

Well the best i can say is that it's not as bad as i imagined.

While THE QUEST provides an adequate slab of traditional symphonic prog,

It's just too by the books for a 2021 release although purists will rejoice

Jon Davison does an adequate job as an Anderson vocal stand-in but NO, NO, NO!

All sounded promising with the early release of the opening track "The Ice Bridge"

But after the opening highlight it all goes south. "Dare To Know" starts to sound like

One of those new age Jon Anderson albums. Not bad but certainly not YES either.

It continues to degenerate into nursing home prog. Ugh. Our heroes are flaccid. :(

A viagra moment occurs on "Leave Well Alone" kicks up the funk but if this is the best

A classic band like YES can conjure up on an album then perhaps celibacy is an option

Honestly it just gets worse and worse. Why? WHY? WWWHHHYYYYYYY????!!!!!!

I seriously don't understand why a band of GOD status in the prog world wants to

Tarnish its overall impact on history with such dross. DO NOT GET IT!!! NOT!!!!!

Cool to see a Roger Dean cover but visuals don't equal good music in the least

It's mind boggling how much effort went into this with such diminishing returns

An excuse for a tour or just a tepid bland album for the sake of releasing a new product?

I know not and really don't care but as a rabid YES fan (first album to "Magnification")

I am utterly bored and embarrassed by the last two albums. WHYYYYYYYYYY???!!!!

I honestly don't understand why a great band like YES would continue in this manner :/

Oh well, like it or not, here we are. YES has inverted me and now i can only say NO

That's right, not even MAYBE but NO! NO! NO! Me no likey! Completists only

It's quite impressive to think that Yes's first album dates back to 1969, and that in 2021, 52 years later, they are still capable of putting out decent albums like this "The Quest".

The epic keyboards at the beginning of The Ice Bridge already tell us that this time Yes are coming for all. And although they only partially succeed, it must be admitted that the effort has certainly been worth it.

Perhaps this is not one of Yes's best albums. It's not even a truly memorable prog rock album, but it's certainly satisfying to hear Steve Howe's unmistakable guitars accompanied by long-time band musicians like Geoffrey Downes and Billy Sherwood, not to mention Alan. White, who already recorded with "Tales from Topographic Oceans" 49 years ago.

So even though it's not an album that will change your life, as long as you're interested in Yes, I recommend you listen to it. It is not brilliant, but at this point in life it is not necessary.

Best Tracks: The Ice Bridge (epic and dynamic), Dare to Know (has the best guitar work on the entire album. Wonderful) and The Western Edge (my favorite song on the album. I love its adventurous and evocative air)

My Rating: ***

New Yes is irrisistible so I had to immerse myself in The Quest . The album cover is beautiful Roger Dean mastery. It starts off with a familiar keyboard phrase I've heard from an old 80s TV compilation of UFO called 'Invasion UFO' so being familiar with this I was perplexed as to why they took this melody and turned it into a song. However the song itself is endearing with amazing keyboards and guitar trade-offs and some killer riffs. The Ice Bridge grows on you and opens the album with a treasure and there's an awesome film clip on youtube yesofficial channel. 

Dare to know follows with beautiful orchestration accompanied by the wistful lyrics reflecting on changes and the band know all about that. Chris Squire is now gone but Yes continues with the wonderful Billy Sherwood filling big shoes admirably. Overall this is a very nice track with Squires fingerprints all over it.

Minus the Man  could be a tribute to the loss of Squire. Notably the guitar process of Howe is absolutely wonderful. The Melancholy sound is counterbalanced by a frenetic string section in the orchestra. No, it's not the strongest song on the album but I love the orchestral flourishes.

Leave well alone is another very compelling track that holds my attention. It starts with a sprinkling of piano tinkles and then a steady rhythm glazed with guitar riffs and '80s style synths.  Primarily a folk song with odd lyrics as we venture down into the abyss.  It changes signature midway through and has some tasty guitar licks and harmonies. So again not a masterpiece but very listenable Yes as they move into a new direction. The 8 minute running time is brimming over with innovative ideas and musical detours. Again Howe just shines on the amazing outro.

The Western Edge is orchestrated with sweeping synths and symphonic embellishments. Another highlight on the album.

Future memories is a tribute to Rodger Dean in the official video on the yesofficial channel on YT. This is worth watching as it  augments the song so admirably. It is another gentle melancholy song sung well by John Davidson who wrote it. The sublime song has such a beauty it haunts you.

Track 7 is Music to my ears with a lilting piano motif and choir synths. The vocals of Sherwood and Davison are in fine form. The melody is upbeat and catchy and it's a gentle piece with a commercial sound.

A living Island concludes cd1 full of emotion and clearly shows a softer side to Yes. Davison sings with passion and it's a pleasure to hear such an upbeat song to close the album. Again the video on YouTube enhances  the enjoyment of the track. I recommend you find the channel to watch the new songs as so much effort has been put into augment the listening experience with Roger Dean's outstanding artwork on display. Invariably, the Dean landscapes accompany the soundscapes with a degree of emotional nuance.

The bonus CD is only 13 minutes long so is a bit disappointing but the songs are still worth a listen beginning with the pop sounds of Sister sleeping soul which is not too bad but the weakest track so far on the album.  The next track is Mystery Tour not The Beatles, not as magical, but it is about the Beatles as the lyrics are utilising Beatles titled tracks to this song's throughout which may be clever or ridiculous. I enjoyed it but it had a Weird Al vibe rather than a serious tribute to the fab four. The song  is mercifully short but funny to be honest. Damaged world concludes the latest Yes with delicious 80s synths and update melodies. Sherwood takes centre stage on vocals. So the full album is just an hour so why did we need 2 CDs?

Overall, it's great to hear Yes enjoying themselves and playing well and there are at least four treasures on here you can locate especially the first two tracks which are absolutely wonderful. Therefore The Quest is worth venturing  into but don't expect it to measure up to the classic Yes years.