Business as usual then--though any choice moments are somewhat let down by Roy Thomas Baker's sterile production and some badly dated keyboard sounds. [Oct 2014, p.80]
This set makes one yearn for (some of) the prog excesses of old; Heaven & Earth is the most creatively challenged and energetically listless record in Yes' catalog.
You would think that recruiting singers much younger than Jon Anderson would inject some youthful energy into Yes, and maybe it worked to aYou would think that recruiting singers much younger than Jon Anderson would inject some youthful energy into Yes, and maybe it worked to a degree on Fly From Here, but somehow, somewhere along the way whilst making Heaven and Earth, the band catapulted themselves further into play it safe dad-rock territory than ever before. There are a few memorable moments, but it doesn't feel very proggy, as there isn't a whole lot going on within each song, meaning many of them struggle to sustain themselves. It's predictable and even lazy at times, two things that no Yes album should be. The songs aren't un-listenable, just severely lacking in the Yes spark of quality. It's a shame that this is the last album Chris Squire did before his death from leukaemia the following year. Yes is capable of much more than this.…Expand
Three tracks into YES's new album "Heaven and Earth". "Believe Again" starts off vanilla, but the bridge isn't too bad. "The Game" has aThree tracks into YES's new album "Heaven and Earth". "Believe Again" starts off vanilla, but the bridge isn't too bad. "The Game" has a catchy hook that beats itself into your brain enough that has you humming the melody after you finish listening to it...but not necessarily in a good way. "Step Beyond" is a horrible fluff piece. "To Ascend" is okay as a ballad...kind of the album's "Madrigal" off the album "Tormato". Really, you could almost say this album parallels "Tormato" in terms of sound and writing quality so far. -- "In a World of Our Own" needs to go back to the world it came from. The track is relatively un-listenable due to the hurdy-gurdy...ugh, make it stop! "Light of the Ages" would be good if Jon would shut up in it...and unfortunately it sounds like there are a few miscued notes in the song as well...unless Chris is really trying to come in on the 16th note of the 4th beat on purpose. Otherwise, it's one of the better tracks at least...but it does go on a bit too long with no new ideas towards the end. Almost feels like it's padded to claim it's more "prog". -- "It Was All We Knew" has a weird XTC vibe to it. Not bad from that perspective but ultimately not much to chew on. Okay, "Subway Walls"...the track everyone says is the golden goose of the album. It begins decent, with a big keyboard solo from Downes using his orchestral setting. Jon sounds lost as to how to fit his voice into the song, though. A couple more miscued notes...Geoff this time I think. 4:30 mark is where the band finally remembers what they came here to do. 6:30 is where the bridge ends...so 2 minutes of semi-cool prog. Around 7:10, the band transitions into a more familiar YES sound. But with less than 2 minutes left, leaving with a taste of what COULD HAVE BEEN for this album rather than what it really was.…Expand
This album fails in that it always sounds tired, dated, passive, and just downright boring. Jon Davison is simply a very, very terrible choiceThis album fails in that it always sounds tired, dated, passive, and just downright boring. Jon Davison is simply a very, very terrible choice to replace Jon Anderson, and whenever he attempts to do harmonies with Squire and Howe, it sounds strange. The bass of the late Chris Squire (R.I.P.) is drowned out by the unusually unimaginative guitar work of Steve Howe, who really is better than this (especially this), and Geoff Downes's inopportune keyboard work on this album. The production and mixing of this album mimic those of the average horrific 90's album.…Expand
