----------------------------------------------------- OCTOBER 5, 2001  ----------------------------------------------------- Source: Progressive World http://www.progressiveworld.net/yes10.html Yes - Magnification By Clayton Walnum If you're a Yes fan, one question about this album is probably foremost in your mind: Is it progressive? I'm happy to report that Magnification is most definitely a progressive work. However, it may not be progressive in the way Yes listeners expect. We're not talking about Close To The Edge here or even Fragile; we're talking about an entirely new direction for the band, one not only intriguing, but also entirely successful. For sure, all the Yes trademarks are here. The tracks overflow with terrific vocal harmonies, wondrous guitar melodies, and soaring bass lines. But what is missing are keyboards. Except for a piano here and there (played by drummer Alan White, of all people), no keyboards appear on this album. Instead, a full orchestra plays all keyboard parts. Do you see what I mean by intriguing? Magnification offers very little of the poppy sound that Yes has been dabbling with lately. Sure, plenty of pleasant melodies adorn the songs and a moment here and there borders on sentimentality (the closing track "Time Is Time" comes to mind). Echoes of the very commercial Trevor Rabin Yes even pop up here and there. Nothing on this album, however, has a remote chance of radio air play, which is great news (in a perverse sort of way) for progressive fans. This is Yes like we've never heard them before, yet somehow still familiar. The original hype proclaimed that the album is a 60-minute composition divided into ten subtracks. The truth, however, is that, while each of the ten songs here segue one into the other, they are still distinct songs, with no musical ties between them (except the orchestra). So, if you were expecting a 60-minute opus, you're going to be disappointed. When you get over that, however, you won't be disappointed in the songs here. While the compositions on this album are not as complex as 70s-style Yes, they are magnificent, some of the best stuff Yes has turned out in a long time. Count me among the impressed. Close Window YesInThePress.com For site comments, problems, corrections, or additions, contact YesinthePress@aol.com