Aurora Hall: Yes sang about the fight against AI
A multi-part rock suite about artificial intelligence, exotic stringed instruments and a call to harmony with the cosmos. Yes has released a new full-length album, the 24th in the band's discography. And although the sound as a whole remains close to the familiar, traditional for Yes, there are enough experiments here, and the lyrics touch on current issues of our time. Izvestia listened to the veterans of the style.
Oriental wisdom
Yes has definitely been experiencing a creative upsurge in recent years. In 2021, the band released the album The Quest, in 2023, Mirror to the Sky appeared, and now another record has arrived, which the musicians think of as the end of the trilogy. The name Aurora in this case refers, of course, not to a revolutionary cruiser (although it would be funny), but to ancient mythology.
Aurora is the goddess of the dawn. Simplifying things a bit, we can say that Yes calls for the spiritual dawn of humanity. And despite the many internal contrasts, the disc really turned out to be very bright. Well, at least someone needs to remain optimistic in this world...
Guitarist Steve Howe
As before, guitarist Steve Howe was at the helm of the entire project: he produced the entire record and co-wrote most of the tracks. John Davison, the band's vocalist, also played an important role. We hear his melodies in six of the eight tracks on the main track list (plus he and Howe own one of the two bonus tracks). Although these two musicians belong to different generations, Davison is almost one and a half times younger than Howe, who came close to the ninth decade, their joint material is characterized by rare integrity and conformity with the ideals and aesthetics of classic prog rock.
As expected, there are complex and diverse arrangements combining electric sound and acoustics, rhythm section and orchestra, European rock instruments and all kinds of exotics. But the tracks themselves include several sections. First of all, it concerns two key compositions: the initial Aurora (lasts more than 7 minutes) and the central Counterpoint (almost 14 minutes).
John Davison
Aurora begins with a detailed symphonic introduction with pretentious piano chords, in the main part an imitation of an Indian sitar is woven into the traditional rock sound, and a distinct oriental flavor is created, but the number ends with an orchestra.
And all this is imbued with Hindu religious philosophy. "The whisper of the psalms of light always brings clarity / uplifting to virtuous wisdom / and soothing with vital signs / Oh Harbinger, bring balance to the tides / flowing through my life / The exhalation of Brahma governs the creation that has existed for centuries / Everyone returns to an ecstatic state with the inhalation."..
Unlike many other rockers, Yes does not castigate humanity for its imperfections, but preaches meditation, the pursuit of cosmic harmony and peace.
Rock versus AI
Counterpoint adds a touch of drama, although some kind of wise calmness dominates here. A four-episode rock suite is dedicated to the topic of artificial intelligence. Yes is expected to oppose the displacement of the human principle, the simulation of personality and the "synthesized world."
Still, it can't be said that the sound here is so gloomy — rather, it's motley both emotionally and stylistically. Moreover, numerous solo Know-how almost play a key role. Whereas Aurora focuses on John Davison's androgynous voice, balancing between tenor and countertenor. And when it comes to heaven, these sublime, disembodied vocals seem especially organic.
In general, one can endlessly argue how much Davison has become an equivalent replacement for John Anderson, but recent albums, and Aurora in particular, demonstrate that the vocalist who came in 2012 feels more than confident, and his manner is still not devoid of individuality, this is not at all copying the founder of Yes. By the way, there is no one from the original 1969 team in the team now. Nevertheless, Yes in its current form retains the stylistic and ideological continuity in relation to the classic works of the band.
Sometimes it seems that it would be possible to experiment more boldly: there is still a touch of retro, no matter how one turns it. Sometimes, on the contrary, there is a feeling that the arrangements lose their integrity, and the sound slips into eclecticism. Howe changes guitars like gloves, piano, organ, harp and many other things appear among the additional instruments, not to mention the orchestra.… But all together it adds up to a rather convincing and expressive picture, paradoxically linking the times — the 1970s and the 2020s.
And most importantly, there is no strain in the entire Aurora album, the feeling of musicians overcoming themselves (like, you don't want to, but write so many songs, please). On the contrary, it feels like both melodies and verbal images are born naturally. And the proof of this is two bonus tracks: Jambustin and Watching the River Roll. After Emotional Intelligence, which completes the main program, it would be possible to calmly put an end to it. But the musicians continue to play music, and they get compositions that are in no way inferior to the previous ones, they just don't really fit into the narrative line.
Well, maybe Yes really found the harmony that they sing about in Aurora, and discovered a source of endless inspiration?
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