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Mushroom Sword 
Forum Senior Member
Joined: September 28 2010
Status: Offline
Points: 426
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 Posted: July 11 2011 at 14:21 |
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I really like it. It's nice. The epic is great, I've been missing those vocal rhythms you don't get in any other band, reminds me of "Yours is no disgrace".
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"I gazed into the eyes of the madman and I saw, and I saw,and I saw myself.
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GypsyJoker
Forum Senior Member
Joined: July 09 2011
Status: Offline
Points: 103
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Posted: July 11 2011 at 13:57 |
 GypsyJoker wrote:
criticdrummer94 wrote:
thehallway wrote:
I'm curious about the fish scales in the logo though. |
I think that might be a reference to Chris Squire who's nickname is The Fish |
It reminds me of the ship from Fragile, with the long wing-like structures (which appear in the upper edge of the logo). |
Which might also be the "Fly" reference in the title: the flying ship.
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GypsyJoker
Forum Senior Member
Joined: July 09 2011
Status: Offline
Points: 103
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Posted: July 11 2011 at 13:56 |
criticdrummer94 wrote:
thehallway wrote:
I'm curious about the fish scales in the logo though. |
I think that might be a reference to Chris Squire who's nickname is The Fish |
It reminds me of the ship from Fragile, with the long wing-like structures (which appear in the upper edge of the logo).
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criticdrummer94
Forum Senior Member
Joined: June 16 2011
Location: Ohio
Status: Offline
Points: 431
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Posted: July 11 2011 at 10:10 |
thehallway wrote:
I'm curious about the fish scales in the logo though. |
I think that might be a reference to Chris Squire who's nickname is The Fish
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chopper
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: July 13 2005
Location: Essex, UK
Status: Offline
Points: 20030
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Posted: July 11 2011 at 07:06 |
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Bought it on Saturday and have played it 4 or 5 times since. I reckon it's probably their best since Drama (not a massive surprise as it's pretty much Drama 2). Really liking it, but what's happened to Alan White?
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richardh
Prog Reviewer
Joined: February 18 2004
Location: United Kingdom
Status: Offline
Points: 28029
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Posted: July 09 2011 at 10:51 |
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Downloaded it today for £3.99 from a certain online retailer. I like it and would put it on a par with Talk (4 star). Solid effort and the vocals don't put me off ,if anything they are a strength.
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ghost_of_morphy
Prog Reviewer
Joined: March 08 2007
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 2755
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Posted: July 09 2011 at 10:18 |
colorofmoney91 wrote:
I thought the album was okay. It's no better or worse than Magnification, in my opinion. It's definitely better than most of their '90s work, which is definitely positive. |
It's not as good as Magnification. And I'm not one of those people who was way overimpressed with Magnification either. It is most comparable to Talk, I would think.
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Blacksword
Prog Reviewer
Joined: June 22 2004
Location: England
Status: Offline
Points: 16130
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Posted: July 08 2011 at 07:35 |
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Not one of his best, although I like the logo.
Alpha by Asia is one of my favorite Dean covers. Shame the album is mostly pants.
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Ultimately bored by endless ecstasy!
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leonalvarado
Forum Senior Member
Joined: March 03 2009
Location: USA
Status: Offline
Points: 177
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Posted: July 07 2011 at 21:54 |
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Hopefully my posting will stay this time around.
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leonalvarado
Forum Senior Member
Joined: March 03 2009
Location: USA
Status: Offline
Points: 177
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Posted: July 07 2011 at 21:53 |
I listen to the whole album and wrote my first impression here:
The blog's posting has more details than what I'm copying here. There are also more postings regarding the band. Feel free to check it out.
Below is a copy of some of my comments from the blog. I posted this earlier on another thread but apparently it got taken away. I don't understand some times what is allowed and what's not allowed on this website.
1. Overture
The most "classical" music oriented piece. Perhaps Downes highlight in the album. It does bring memories from "Drama".
2. We can fly
Vocally the song sounds more akin to Trevor's style than Jon's. Perhaps a deliberate attempt from the band to set Benoit's style. The melody is very unlike anything I ever heard from Yes however, the band manages to keep their core sound intact. I suspect the song will grow better with more listens.
3. Sad Night at the Airfield
Howe's guitar never lets down on this one. I can't help but to think how this song would sound with Jon at the vocals. Not that Benoit does a bad job at it. It just seems to lack energy making it sound a bit "generic" at times. This could be the song that makes the biggest difference between the Yes of old and the new incarnation of it. The ending is nice though.
4. Madman at the screen
Following the thematic of "Fly From Here" this song starts a bit more up-tempo and basically adds lyrics over the overture tracks with some edited additions.
5. Bumpy Ride
In parts reminiscent of something out of their "Drama" album. It keeps closely with the theme but introduces some off-tempo riffs.
6. We can Fly (reprise)
An anthem version of the first "We can Fly". Grander in instrumentation but otherwise it is what it says in the name (reprise).
7. The Man You Always Wanted Me To Be
On this song, the main vocalist is Squire instead of Benoit. The song, in a way, is pretty much a combination of all of Yes incarnations. It is a modern ballad of sorts. Many people will love this song, specially those who's favourite Yes incarnation was the one with Trevor Rabin as the lead composer. My personal jury still out on this one. There are passages I like but there are also many things that remind me of bands like Kansas and Toto (two bands I was never too keen on).
8. Life on a Film Set
This song sounds interesting and I'm not sure I know why. Some pieces of it sound like a Broadway musical but as an overall piece it has something nice about it. There is a little of "I Like to Live In America" in there. Again, I have to listen to it several times to see if it will grab me as much as I think it might.
9. Hour of Need
Not going to lie about this one. I liked this one the second I heard it. To me is the most Yes-like song of the bunch. And the keyboards have a lot to do with it. They sound great as subtle as they are which tells me that Oliver Wakeman is a much better fit for the band regardless of what Trevor Horn thinks.
10. Solitaire
Another very Yes song like only Howe can bring. This one's a keeper for sure.
11. Into The storm
The very beginning of this song goes amazingly all the way back to the very first incarnation of the band. Then suddenly seems to go through all permutations of the band within a few bars. By the time the vocals start, the song takes a style of composition that recalls the days when my friend Billy Sherwood was in the band. The overall sound is nice and fits with the album.
I will have to listen to it several more times before making a more concise conclusion. The production values are extremely high (not bad having it all done using ProTools). No doubt that Horn's production style is very polished. The overall vocals are good and clean and if anything, they are a bit removed from Jon's which gives Benoit more credit than just being a "tribute" singer. On a quick listen, I wish he would have added more inflection on the vocals just to energise the overall sound a bit. The music is undeniably Yes but sounds a bit calculated and salvo for Howe and Squire's signature sounds, it is perhaps a bit "too clean" sort of speak. I will write more about it as I get to listen to it some more.
So far, I would say that this album sounds more cohesive than some of the last few albums before it. In other words, this album as a whole may be better than let's say The Ladder. However, The Ladder has a gem of a song with "Homeworld" and this album doesn't seem to have anything as good as that on it. Some of it, in my opinion, is because the keyboards are weak. Without Jon or one of the Wakemans (because Oliver's style can perfectly match that one of his dad), the band needs to make a bold statement in the right direction. They did it once with "Drama" but I'm not too sure they have done it again with "Fly From Here". I'll give it a bit more time before writing a proper review.
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colorofmoney91
Prog Reviewer
Joined: March 16 2008
Location: Biosphere
Status: Offline
Points: 22774
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Posted: July 07 2011 at 16:53 |
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I thought the album was okay. It's no better or worse than Magnification, in my opinion. It's definitely better than most of their '90s work, which is definitely positive.
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Garden of Dreams
Forum Senior Member
Joined: April 26 2011
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 336
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Posted: July 07 2011 at 16:08 |
Grimalkin wrote:
Hi Leon, I find your first impressions very deep, but, as you know, this is not a first impression record, like all Yes albums are indeed.
In these fast n' frenzy music days, something that deserves a longer time to "land on your soul" is a pure gem! Stylewise this is definitely not a "typical" Yes album. But this is quite what Yes are: they're a continuous evolution made by its band members changes, keeping BTW the same NDA cohesion with Chris, Steve and Alan.
I understand you are disappointed by a lack of keyboards that you were used to enjoy on previous albums, and I think this is because Yes are considered THE symphonic rock band, and with Magnification they had achieved that in full.
But this record is different. Trevor Horn is a patient, meticoulous mastermind with a clean minimal style. He "paints" his sound like a cathedral in a crystal ball. He's unique! He is able to let you feel the power of an entire invisible symphonic orchestra just by the use of 3 snare drum hits in the overture, (like he did with "White Car" on "Drama")
Yes are here after 40plus years career delivering something new.. and different.. Because they are progressive. And I mean progressive in the vein of the "real original concept,": experimenting sounds, compositions, ideas, even changing formation, and always mixing the ingredients to a Yes recipe that we'll keep on singing for 40plus years more.
The more you listen to this record, the more you'll discover new landscapes, like Roger Dean's the perfect visual expression for this music. |
I'm excited to hear the album now; Excellent post. White Car is actually one of my favorites of Drama.
My first impression of the classic Yes was that it was really weird but continued listens made realize their brilliance. I hope the same will occur with Fly From Here. The most important thing is to not compare the Fly From Here to previous albums but judge it by the music. It can be hard to that, though.
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Just give it all an hour by the concrete lake.
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Conor Fynes
Prog Reviewer
Joined: February 11 2009
Location: Vancouver, CA
Status: Offline
Points: 3196
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Posted: July 07 2011 at 14:32 |
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Looking forward for it to be realsed in North America, although the one song I heard from it didnt feel as if it had all too much depth to it. All the same, the seems like good pop Yes, and the vocalist really impressed me.
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lazland
Prog Reviewer
Joined: October 28 2008
Location: Wales
Status: Offline
Points: 13627
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Posted: July 07 2011 at 14:08 |
Grimalkin wrote:
Hi Leon, I find your first impressions very deep, but, as you know, this is not a first impression record, like all Yes albums are indeed.
In these fast n' frenzy music days, something that deserves a longer time to "land on your soul" is a pure gem! Stylewise this is definitely not a "typical" Yes album. But this is quite what Yes are: they're a continuous evolution made by its band members changes, keeping BTW the same NDA cohesion with Chris, Steve and Alan.
I understand you are disappointed by a lack of keyboards that you were used to enjoy on previous albums, and I think this is because Yes are considered THE symphonic rock band, and with Magnification they had achieved that in full.
But this record is different. Trevor Horn is a patient, meticoulous mastermind with a clean minimal style. He "paints" his sound like a cathedral in a crystal ball. He's unique! He is able to let you feel the power of an entire invisible symphonic orchestra just by the use of 3 snare drum hits in the overture, (like he did with "White Car" on "Drama")
Yes are here after 40plus years career delivering something new.. and different.. Because they are progressive. And I mean progressive in the vein of the "real original concept,": experimenting sounds, compositions, ideas, even changing formation, and always mixing the ingredients to a Yes recipe that we'll keep on singing for 40plus years more.
The more you listen to this record, the more you'll discover new landscapes, like Roger Dean's the perfect visual expression for this music. |
What an excellent and thoughtful post 
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Enhance your life. Get down to www.lazland.org
Now also broadcasting on www.progzilla.com Every Saturday, 4.00 p.m. UK time!
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Grimalkin
Forum Newbie
Joined: May 28 2008
Location: Italy
Status: Offline
Points: 9
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Posted: July 07 2011 at 14:06 |
Hi Leon, I find your first impressions very deep, but, as you know, this is not a first impression record, like all Yes albums are indeed.
In these fast n' frenzy music days, something that deserves a longer time to "land on your soul" is a pure gem! Stylewise this is definitely not a "typical" Yes album. But this is quite what Yes are: they're a continuous evolution made by its band members changes, keeping BTW the same NDA cohesion with Chris, Steve and Alan.
I understand you are disappointed by a lack of keyboards that you were used to enjoy on previous albums, and I think this is because Yes are considered THE symphonic rock band, and with Magnification they had achieved that in full.
But this record is different. Trevor Horn is a patient, meticoulous mastermind with a clean minimal style. He "paints" his sound like a cathedral in a crystal ball. He's unique! He is able to let you feel the power of an entire invisible symphonic orchestra just by the use of 3 snare drum hits in the overture, (like he did with "White Car" on "Drama")
Yes are here after 40plus years career delivering something new.. and different.. Because they are progressive. And I mean progressive in the vein of the "real original concept,": experimenting sounds, compositions, ideas, even changing formation, and always mixing the ingredients to a Yes recipe that we'll keep on singing for 40plus years more.
The more you listen to this record, the more you'll discover new landscapes, like Roger Dean's the perfect visual expression for this music.
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leonalvarado
Forum Senior Member
Joined: March 03 2009
Location: USA
Status: Offline
Points: 177
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Posted: July 07 2011 at 08:13 |
Many people expects for the new Yes album to be something like "Drama". I'm not too sure about that. I wrote a post on my blog about my first impressions. Feel free to read it and comment on this thread. I would like to know your thoughts on the subject.
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jean-marie
Forum Senior Member
Joined: July 27 2010
Location: FRANCE
Status: Offline
Points: 2585
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Posted: June 03 2011 at 07:20 |
Still haven't got the album but the cover is beautiful, sure it's classic Dean, maybe the logo kind of remembers me the Asia dragon, I remember an old Dean interview ( late sixties ) he was asked about Yes music and answered: don't like it, prefer the Rolling Stones  Honest but a bit stupid, i've read from him that today he regrets about that answer
Edited by jean-marie - June 03 2011 at 07:30
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Grimalkin
Forum Newbie
Joined: May 28 2008
Location: Italy
Status: Offline
Points: 9
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Posted: June 03 2011 at 06:58 |
American Khatru wrote:
Grimalkin wrote:
American Khatru wrote:
Maybe I'm saying something everyone else already knows the reason for, but the black cats a reference to the Horn/Downes era and the song "We Can Fly From Here"?
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You are right, t'was my suggestion to Roger. The band loved the idea! Horn/Downes: there's not only ONE cat chasing the bird. :) -Giulio C.- |
Hey there, didn't expect an "insider" response. Care to tell us any more?
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Well, Roger Dean's not only a great artist, he's a wonderful person!! :D I also created and designed with him a nice box set (CD+DVD+LP gatefold) full of memorabilia. I hope you'll like it! G
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American Khatru
Forum Senior Member
Joined: March 28 2009
Location: New York
Status: Offline
Points: 732
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Posted: June 02 2011 at 09:08 |
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 Why must my spell-checker continually underline the word "prog"?
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chopper
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: July 13 2005
Location: Essex, UK
Status: Offline
Points: 20030
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Posted: June 02 2011 at 07:12 |
Vibrationbaby wrote:
If it weren't for Yes Dean wouldn'd be in business. I'm |
Hmm, it's probably fair to say he is best known for his Yes covers, but he did do a lot of other work as well.
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