HEAVEN & EARTH

I really wanted to like Fly From here. I was hoping for a return to drama-style harder edge prog rock. Unfortunately, I didn't get that and as much as I tried, I just didn't love the album. So when I picked up Heaven & Earth, my expectations weren't sufficiently lowered. Despite being excited by another gorgeous Roger Dean cover and the promise of 4/5 of the Drama line up, I knew not to expect too much. And Yes didn't deliever too much.

However, I find myself really loving this album. The melodies have stuck in my head and I have played it innumerable times in the past weeks. What's weird though is that it isn't a great Yes album. It's barely a good Yes album. It's Yes-light. It's pleasant, professional elevator-Yes. If I didn't know it was a Yes album, I'd be praising the songs and referring to this unnamed band as "sort of like Yes but poppier" Sort of like Yes. That's a good description. It's really excellent sort-of Yes.

I love Yes. I love this album. And yet, those two statements aren't related. Because this fails as a Yes album. But succeeds as a good light rock album.

It's not bad in an Open Your Eyes way or generic mainstream like Big Generator or even interesting mainstream like Talk but neither is it prog rock Yes a la Drama or CttE. I guess the closest thing I can compare it to is that (to me, dreadfully boring) Anderson/Wakeman album from a couple of year ago, but done really well.

So should you get this? If you are a Yes diehard and all things are measured against Fragile and TfTO then probably not. If you like the lighter side of Yes and can appreciate something that is more Yes-like than actual Yes, give it a spin. You'll probably still be disappointed but it is worth a listen.