DRAMA

Yes is one of my favorite bands. At their best the group is incomparable. At their worst, well, they're also incomparable. With that in mind, I held off exploring Drama for years because of two reasons: first, it came out in the '80's, at the tail end of what I consider to be band's weakest albums (Tormato), and second, it doesn't feature Anderson on vocals.

I am very very happy I finally decided listen to Drama. Not only are my assumptions wrong - it's actually one of the band's best albums. It is short, high-energy, precise, creative, and very artistic. There is more feeling and excitement on these all- too-brief 36 minutes of music that can be heard on the band's entire 90's catalog. Every song is a winner and probably belong on the Yes highlight reel. Considering it was made more than 30 years ago, it sounds very polished and modern. It's a great example of Yes blending melodic pop with their ambitious song structures and instrumentals. A lot of this is thanks to the keyboards of Downes, who fills the album with sound and yet somehow manages to feel understated and classy. This is a big change to most albums with Wakeman, whose overwhelming sound came across as comical and contrived.

Trevor Horn's vocals are outstanding. He sings in the same register as Anderson but with a somewhat more mellow feel. I love Anderson but feel that his presence isn't missed on this album. The lyrics may not be as wonderfully cryptic as the band's peak output, but they are still memorable.

Drama is probably one of the best prog albums of the '80's, at least by a "classic" prog-rock group, and definitely belongs in every Yes fans' library.

Songwriting: 4 - Instrumental Performances: 4 - Lyrics/Vocals: 4 - Style/Emotion/Replay: 5