Fly From Here - Yes

Fly From Here (Yes, 2011)

Fly From Here

1. Overture - 1:53

2. Pt. 1: We Can Fly - 6:00

3. Pt. 2: Sad Night at the Airfield - 6:41

4. Pt. 3: Madman at the Screens - 5:16

5. Pt. 4: Bumpy Ride - 2:15

6. Pt. 5: We Can Fly (Reprise) - 1:44

7. The Man You Always Wanted Me to Be - 5:07
8. Life on a Film Set - 5:01
9. Hour of Need - 3:07
10. Solitaire - 3:30
11. Into the Storm - 6:54

Ten years after their last studio album, Yes have made a triumphant homecoming. With Geoff Downes and Trevor Horn from the Drama era back in the fold, and new vocalist Benoit David, the remaining core of Yes (Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Alan White) are invigorated, and, while Downes and Horn dominate the writing credits, Fly From Here is truly a Yes album, a group opus in which everyone shines in the context of adventurous new music.

The opening song suite, which uses an abandoned airport as a metaphor for death and the afterlife, starts with a classical flourish in the "Overture" which calms to silence for Pt 1, "We Can Fly." A mysterious, lonely vocal accompanied by wistful piano chords slowly builds over long bass tones and palm-muted guitar into a dramatic prechorus:  "Every day that you wait is one more that you've lost / When you wake up, I see you there on display / Like some final point of no return." The chords climb steadily underneath, releasing in a sunburst of chorus: "And we can fly from here / into a sky that's clearing / Look back we'll dry the tears / for loved ones held so nearly / Our love will never disappear." Chris Squire's bass is loud and proud, Steve Howe's guitar work is ascendant, and even Alan White has a little fun as the song transforms into a soaring rock anthem.

"Sad Night..." starts with gentle acoustic guitar picking and Benoit David's calm, tender voice. The music accentuates emotions of loneliness and change, leading up to a simply gorgeous slide guitar solo from Howe, quite possibly one of the best uses of the instrument. "Madman" is a very adventurous, progressive number, the musical source of the "Overture," with orchestral counterpoints and a bewitching 5/8 melody overlaying five measures of 4/4. "Bumpy Ride" continues the adventure with a bouncy, semi-Latin rhythm and some psychedelic, neo-classical riffing - perhaps not to everyone's taste, but it's impressive these old codgers still have it in them. Finally, "We Can Fly" makes an epic reprise and brings the whole to a satisfying conclusion.

The shorter songs deliver as well. Chris' Squire's contribution "The Man You Always Wanted Me to Be" is a fairly straightforward rock song, with a little time signature monkey business and some nice harmonized instrumental leads from Howe and Downes. "Life on a Film Set," another from Horn and Downes, starts very quiet and moody with playful tuned percussion, then ramps up into a rollicking 11/8 jam with angular guitar, nimble bass, and catchy harmonies.  Howe provides the two short tracks: "Hour of Need" features folk singing over acoustic guitar (or is it vachalia?), and "Solitaire" features Howe alone, another excellent solo acoustic piece in the tradition of "Mood for a Day." It all winds up with the 7-minute "Into the Storm," an up-tempo slab of prog where Squire's bass takes center stage.

If I have any complaint, it's the editing of the pieces of the "Fly From Here" suite.  Each part gets really quiet at the end, then the next part fades in (except, thankfully, for the last two).  It's most noticeable between "Madman" and "Bumpy Ride" and it's really unnecessary.  Maybe Horn was trying to make a statement about how an extended piece is really indebted to the individual songs within it, or maybe he was just being lazy - either way, a little more work would have made a seamless progressive rock epic. As it is, it's still pretty amazing.

Arbritrary rating: 5 out of 5 loved ones held so nearly