Yes live at Palais Theatre St Kilda, April 11 2012 |
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AtomicCrimsonRush
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: July 02 2008 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 14258 |
Topic: Yes live at Palais Theatre St Kilda, April 11 2012 Posted: April 12 2012 at 07:53 |
Yes live at Palais Theatre St Kilda, in
Australia April 11th 2012 Yes Live in Australia – In a Word…. Awesome!
The set list was a fantastic double act by the
headliners as the ‘Friends’ that were supposed to be there were cancelled. This
meant a two act Yes extravaganza. Setlist
from Yes Act I 2. Tempus Fugit 5. Solitaire 6. Australia interval Act II 9. Fly From Here - Pt
I - We Can Fly 10. Fly From Here - Pt
II - Sad Night at the Airfield 11. Fly From Here - Pt
III - Madman at the Screens 12. Fly From Here - Pt
IV - Bumpy Ride 13. Fly From Here - Pt
V - We Can Fly (Reprise) 15. Into the Storm 18. Starship Trooper 19. Encore: 19. Roundabout 1Fly From Here (9) 2The Yes Album (3) 3Fragile (2) 490125 (1) Drama (1) Covers (1) This is the identical set as with the NZ and
Perth shows although Machine Messiah was sometimes played in place of Heart of
the Sunrise. I believe the songs were longer in the Melbourne live set though
due to no opening act.
The band were flanked by lights at the
beginning with a classical suite to usher them on. The screen that hung above
them was certainly effective though mostly showed psychedelic effects, flashy
lightning bolts, colour bars, or rotating Yes logos. Often the band were shown
on the screen but always overlayed with lighting effects. I would have
preferred to see the band throughout the show as up the back of the theatre the
band were tiny figures. They did not move about too much though Squire did his
usual leg movements, standing on one leg Ian Anderson style, or shuffling
across the stage and spinning. Squire did sing harmonies with the others and
sounded fine to me. Howe was on his custom piece of rug and moved off to
produce some electrifying lead solos. He was wonderful on the slide keyboard
during And You And I. He even jumped a few times at the end of the concert and
sometimes raised his hand up to show his love for the crowd. Geoff Downes was
great and remained surrounded by keyboards though he came out to play a roaming
keyboard solo. Alan White drummed his heart out and only moved from the set to
bow at the end. The new member Jon Davison, from Glass Hammer fame, swayed
gently to the music, banged a tambourine lightly, or a shaker and generally
moved gracefully around the stage. The big question was will Jon be able to
reach the high notes and will his vocals do this incredible music justice? I am
pleased to report that he is absolutely fantastic.Jon’s voice is spot on, high
notes shmigh notes, the man can sing as good and perhaps better than Benoit, now
a distant memory. I am glad Jon was so passionate as he really added to the
experience. He stands out as the youngest member among all the grey hairs, but
he looks and sounds terrific. A lot of the crowd at half time were chatting
about how amazing Jon’s voice is.
The songs were played with the same vibrant
passion as on the studio releases. All the classics were played and a huge slab
from the new album. The lights were coloured standard spots, blue lights, to
green and some red and purple but mostly it was bright white rays of lights
that shone out. Occasionally house lights were flashed to encourage audience
participation such as singing or clapping during certain sections. There were
no strobes and it was all very tasteful and white spotlights on certain members
highlighted their solos. There was no smoke, no effects though images and bright
colours showed on the screen, no lasers… no set design, but each member had
their own space on the stage and dominated that. Squire had a fan blowing on
him perpetually during the show, and his dancing was a special effect in
itself. I mean an electric fan now. The screen film during Starship Trooper was very spacey psych images, there were roger Dean art in some places, and waves crashing as well as lightning bolts and a myriad of colours to enhance the music.
The crowd were courteous and very reverant
towards the music. There were no stupid yelling out during the songs, “Do
Topographic!”, and the only wooping and hollering was heard after each song
where it belonged. A few songs received standing ovations and rightfully so.
And You And I got the crowd to their feet, played so beautifully throughout’
pure genius. The Fly From Here epic was played in its entirety and received a
massive ovation with the crowd on their feet in applause, and perhaps the
largest cheer of the night and spontaneous ovation came after the amazing Heart
of the Sunrise, that featured an unforgettable mid section with Howe and Downes
trading off brilliantly.
Another highlight of the show was Howe’s
acoustic interlude performing well known Clap and the new one. He bowed
graciously at the end and everyone let him know their appreciation. It was also
a pleasant experience to hear Starship Trooper, perhaps my favourite track of
the night. They left after that to a standing ovation and said goodnight. The crowd
roared for them to come back on and it was deafening in the Palais at that
point. The band returned to play Roundabout. I must say that it was a great way
to end the show. Jon thanked the crowd and said we were beautiful Melbourne. He
also said previously that they were enjoying their time in Australia. They didn’t
speak too much as usual but I remember them saying they would be playing a lot
from the new album, and also introducing band members, song titles, or stating
you might know this one before playing Owner of a Lonely Heart.
The bass of Squire was turned up to maximum
during Starship Trooper, like a solo, and he danced around. Often Howe played
an acoustic attached to a stand and switched guitars easily this way. The
roadies kept out of the way mostly though were about to switch guitars and
check the keyboards. I even saw Howe adjust his guitar during a solo as I think
he believed it was slightly out of tune. They are really consummate
professionals and just played virtuoso throughout. There were no drum solos
which was surprising as that would have capped off White’s night who really was
not as noticeable as other members, though he played well. I never noticed any
faltering of Jon’s vocals though I noticed they played some songs slightly
slower such as Owner of a Lonely Heart. This version was the heavy guitar
version and had recorded bangs and effects exactly like the original. Howe’s
guitar solo was killer and pleased the crowd.
Progarchive members including in centre AussieBirdBrother and me. Towards the end of the show the crowd were beginning
to get more daring, I saw people recording the show with their sneaky Iphones
keeping security busy, and many photos taken despite the request of the
security to refrain from photography. I took many photos but they did not take
exception to that, however, when I began to film I was tapped on the shoulder
and told to stop filming. It was a warning and I heeded it. But I was a bit
shocked that they were so strict as I have been to many concerts and it is
almost standard practice to take some films as a momento or souvenir. In any
case the quality is not good enough on non SLR to do any real damage. Bags were
checked at the beginning of the show though I didn’t see any confiscations.
Another thing I was surprised was the lack of
merchandise. There were absolutely no programs! That is a mystery as that would
have drawn big dollars. It is the first time I have been to a show with no
programs available, apart from the Alice Cooper PsychoDrama show that had run
out of them. The 3 Yes Tour T-Shirts were $45 a pop, Yes logo on one, FFH album
cover on the other with tour dates on the back, and they were snapped up by a
massive crowd that had to line up in enormous queus. The CDs on sale for $25 were
the Greatest Hits CD and Fragile Remastered. No Fly From Here would you
believe? There was a $15 poster available, but I was disappointed with the
small choice. I was able to buy more Yes stuff just by shopping round some
second hand stores earlier. I was pleased to pick up a vinyl copy of Tales from
Topographic Oceans and the complete triple vinyl of Yesssongs with the booklet
in tact. That made up for the fact that there was really nothing on the
merchandise stand for the average Yes fan. Even some box sets would have been
good or more CDs. I am sure those tour T-shirts could be found cheaper online
but they were admittedly excellent looking shirts. It was a tiny merchandise
stall too and needed more room and staff for the eager crowd that had to line
up for ages. I mean John Farnham had a bigger merchandise stall! Come on, this
is Yes and they should have gone to greater lengths to promote the tour. There was
some liquor sales going on before and between the two acts, that was taken
advantage of. Crowds were not allowed to take any alcohol in but in Act 2 there
were definitely some alcohol smuggling because a guy next to me was drinking a
beer. The crowd were very subdued though and were there to experience the incredible
music of Yes. They remained seated and did not disturb anyone. The theatre was
fairly packed apart from some seats way up the back. I would say about 4 or
5000 were in attendance though it is hard to ascertain given the size of the
theatre. It was an unforgettable show and I certainly
loved every minute of it. It was great to meet up with some Progarchive members
there and also some Rush fans out the front caught up with me. There were lots
of Yes shirts scattered about and some other bands such as Rush, Camel, Pink
Floyd, and Unitopia. Yes are still amazing after all these years and despite all
the line up changes. They are still a force to be reckoned with and can draw a
large crowd. Yes live on and I pray they will contine for many years to come.
Edited by AtomicCrimsonRush - April 12 2012 at 20:05 |
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AtomicCrimsonRush
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: July 02 2008 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 14258 |
Posted: April 12 2012 at 07:56 |
Apologies for the shocking photos but the lights played havoc with my iphone!
have some film too on my facebook page Some lucky guy filmed And You and I at the front! Edited by AtomicCrimsonRush - April 12 2012 at 08:30 |
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Aussie-Byrd-Brother
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: October 12 2011 Location: Melb, Australia Status: Offline Points: 7951 |
Posted: April 12 2012 at 09:00 |
Hey Atomic!
I can't add anything more to your glowing review, my mate and I felt exactly like you did...except that we'd been hanging to hear `Machine Messiah' - DIDN'T HAPPEN lol! Otherwise, great show! It was a real privilege to get to meet you last night! Edited by Aussie-Byrd-Brother - April 12 2012 at 09:02 |
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AtomicCrimsonRush
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: July 02 2008 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 14258 |
Posted: April 12 2012 at 09:02 |
Likewise buddy - great to meet some online pals at last!
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Quirky Turkey
Forum Senior Member Joined: August 17 2011 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 177 |
Posted: April 12 2012 at 10:02 |
I was there too. Front row of the lounge! Amazing.
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cstack3
Forum Senior Member VIP Member Joined: July 20 2009 Location: Tucson, AZ USA Status: Offline Points: 7272 |
Posted: April 12 2012 at 10:15 |
"The big question was will Jon be able to reach the high notes and will his vocals do this incredible music justice? I am pleased to report that he is absolutely fantastic.Jon’s voice is spot on, high notes shmigh notes, the man can sing as good and perhaps better than Benoit, now a distant memory. I am glad Jon was so passionate as he really added to the experience. He stands out as the youngest member among all the grey hairs, but he looks and sounds terrific. A lot of the crowd at half time were chatting about how amazing Jon’s voice is." Thank you all for the great review and photos/video! I'm very pleased that Jon D. is working out so well with this band, he seems to be giving them new energy. The music sounds far better than with Benoit D. in my opinion. |
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AtomicCrimsonRush
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: July 02 2008 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 14258 |
Posted: April 12 2012 at 19:39 |
Wow! You could have got some amazing photos. Glad you loved it as much as we did.
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AtomicCrimsonRush
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: July 02 2008 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 14258 |
Posted: April 12 2012 at 19:40 |
i think so too. Jon D was simply on target on every song. I hope they release a DVD with his input. As much as I love Jon A, he maybe gone forever and Yes will go on just fine without him, though of course he will always be the greatest Yes singer.
Edited by AtomicCrimsonRush - April 12 2012 at 19:41 |
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AtomicCrimsonRush
Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: July 02 2008 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 14258 |
Posted: April 12 2012 at 19:47 |
Wow yesterday someone loaded up Tempus Fugit, a song i did not record.
Great stuff Inspired me to load my crappy videos of the concert Yours is no uploaded masterpiece and Your Move/ All good uploads are not found here More coming - excited? NAME that tune! OK audio clips I recorded here "All Good People/ Life on a Film Set" - very dark footage (can you see the one small flash of footage?) coming soon - blink and you miss it Roundabout - the darkest version and even better 35 mins of audio Into the Storm, Heart of the Sunrise, Owner of a Lonely Heart, Starship Trooper. Edited by AtomicCrimsonRush - April 13 2012 at 02:05 |
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