THE YES ALBUM

As far as I know, this is the album where YES started to play progressive music. It's a great start, nevertheless it's just the start to find their new sound, to achieve much greater albums later on. There are longer songs, but I wouldn't call them "epics", since they are in (comparatively) lighter mood, a pleasant mood, mostly pop based songs with more complex structure. The structures are not fully developed, they mostly repeat the parts on and on, with sometimes contrasting breaks. This is also a mostly guitar dominated album, Probably the new guitarist Stewe Howe wanted to take great place on the album. I like his playing, especially on the acoustic guitar.

Let's go. We have the first song "Yours is no disgrace": Simple but great rythm guitar chords that turns in to kind of jamming with the synths and drums come in. Well, the lyrics with "silly human race" and ships going nowhere are odd to the world of yes and to the happy nature of the song...(except the acoustic break when its a slower, a bit sad mood).

"The Clap" is an upbeat guitar solo with a boogie dance like rythm. The amazing thing is that it's played by ONE guitarist. It's a bit of having fun.

"Starship Trooper" slows down a bit to a mellow dreamier song, one of the best of the album. Not amasterpiece, the acoustic break is really boring, but the beginning is like a vision in a dream, or something unexpected going on. Interesting guitar sound. The three chord progression that forms the last part "Würm" start like "How many times should we repeat this....? But in the end it's quite transcendental, the guitar bursts out of solid ground...

"I've seen... people" This is not as good as the fist ones. Its like somewhat uninspired and too typical, sweet pop song, and especially the second part with the heavier blues section, when they simply take the chorus and repeat it a hundred times... The end is very funny, its like they always tune down a whole step.

"The Venture" This is the weakest song, simply a easy-listening rocker, blundering piano solo at the end.

"Perpetual change" is however one of my favourite, this may be even better than Trooper. The three themes repeat all over again, the second is a slower, very beautiful melody (Influence of Lennon? I don't know, just the Inside out, Outside in sectoin...) There is a very fast, hilarious riff in the middle. Great one.

Good album, I recommend it to listen while riding( or along a Venture...?) D major!

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