This is a Yes cover band. I missed the first hour because I was at an open mic and I didn't get a good spot on the list, so I was near the end. When I got to Art Boutiki at 9pm, they had already played two songs and were in the middle of Siberian Khatru. They started at 8-ish and had played all of Close to the Edge which I was bummed to have missed.
Khatru was still pretty good. I used to be able to play it and I know how challenging it is. All the songs they played were challenging and the band were hitting most of the marks pretty well. The singer, a woman, was no Jon Anderson. She didn't have his range and was constantly straining for notes and not getting them, cracking not infrequently. Also, I could see her looking at her iPad between verses for lyrics. I was singing along with no text and it bothered me that she needed that.
Songs played (from what I remember, and not necessarily in the correct order):
Close to the Edge album
- Close to the Edge (1972)
- And You and I
- Siberian Khatru
Tempus Fugit (from Drama, 1980)
In Thru the Lens (from Drama, 1980 - a cover of The Buggles "I Am a Camera" - makes sense since 2/5ths of this iteration of Yes were The Buggles)
Yours Is No Disgrace (from The Yes Album, 1970)
Perpetual Change (from The Yes Album, 1970)
Long Distance Runaround (from Fragile, 1972)
The Fish (from Fragile, 1972)
South Side of the Sky (from Fragile, 1972)
Heart of the Sunrise (from Fragile, 1972)
Roundabout (from Fragile, 1972)
Either Awaken or Parallels (from Going for the One, 1977)
There was another in there that I kinda recognized...very Jon Anderson hippy-dippy, with overbearing instrumentation (coming from me, THAT'S A LOT!). Probably something from Relayer, Tormato, or Tales from Topographic Oceans, none of which are on my "enjoyable listening" lists. The band did a pretty good job of steering clear of "bad" Yes. Aside from those albums and the first two, very early albums, they also avoided "Loaner of an Only Fart", "Changes", and everything from the 90210 album with Trevor Rabin. They skipped Big Generator, Union and anything that came after that I never paid any attention to...
The band was playing really complicated material and really almost nailing it. The guitarist had to get these very specific sounds for each song and he did for the most part, even faking the pedal steel in Tempus Fugit using a sustainer pickup...it worked really well. The keyboardist was doing his best Rick Wakeman imitation and he survived the evening. For the Drama tracks, he got that Geoff Downes sound, and even had the vocoder for In Thru the Lens. The vocals (all around, not just the lead singer) needed work...a lot of work.
I would check them out again if I read they had a new singer.
--tg
They might have also played
I've Seen All Good People
Conspicuously absent songs:
Starship Trooper
Does It Really Happen?
Going for the One (one of their most rockin' songs)
Wondrous Stories
Turn of the Century
Khatru was still pretty good. I used to be able to play it and I know how challenging it is. All the songs they played were challenging and the band were hitting most of the marks pretty well. The singer, a woman, was no Jon Anderson. She didn't have his range and was constantly straining for notes and not getting them, cracking not infrequently. Also, I could see her looking at her iPad between verses for lyrics. I was singing along with no text and it bothered me that she needed that.
Songs played (from what I remember, and not necessarily in the correct order):
Close to the Edge album
- Close to the Edge (1972)
- And You and I
- Siberian Khatru
Tempus Fugit (from Drama, 1980)
In Thru the Lens (from Drama, 1980 - a cover of The Buggles "I Am a Camera" - makes sense since 2/5ths of this iteration of Yes were The Buggles)
Yours Is No Disgrace (from The Yes Album, 1970)
Perpetual Change (from The Yes Album, 1970)
Long Distance Runaround (from Fragile, 1972)
The Fish (from Fragile, 1972)
South Side of the Sky (from Fragile, 1972)
Heart of the Sunrise (from Fragile, 1972)
Roundabout (from Fragile, 1972)
Either Awaken or Parallels (from Going for the One, 1977)
There was another in there that I kinda recognized...very Jon Anderson hippy-dippy, with overbearing instrumentation (coming from me, THAT'S A LOT!). Probably something from Relayer, Tormato, or Tales from Topographic Oceans, none of which are on my "enjoyable listening" lists. The band did a pretty good job of steering clear of "bad" Yes. Aside from those albums and the first two, very early albums, they also avoided "Loaner of an Only Fart", "Changes", and everything from the 90210 album with Trevor Rabin. They skipped Big Generator, Union and anything that came after that I never paid any attention to...
The band was playing really complicated material and really almost nailing it. The guitarist had to get these very specific sounds for each song and he did for the most part, even faking the pedal steel in Tempus Fugit using a sustainer pickup...it worked really well. The keyboardist was doing his best Rick Wakeman imitation and he survived the evening. For the Drama tracks, he got that Geoff Downes sound, and even had the vocoder for In Thru the Lens. The vocals (all around, not just the lead singer) needed work...a lot of work.
I would check them out again if I read they had a new singer.
--tg
They might have also played
I've Seen All Good People
Conspicuously absent songs:
Starship Trooper
Does It Really Happen?
Going for the One (one of their most rockin' songs)
Wondrous Stories
Turn of the Century
