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APRIL 2004
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Source: Roland Users Group
http://www.rolandus.com/rug/index.asp/?pg=features&art=yes
Yes Today: 35 Years Young
By Wayne Davies
RUG's U.K counterpart, PowerOn magazine, spoke to the band collectively
just before they embarked on their 35th anniversary world tour.
You've been at the top of the progressive rock scene for over three
decades. How have you achieved this?
The band: We take as much care in selecting sounds for our songs in as much
as everything else that we do. Every member of the band tries to add his
own unique characteristic to a sound; this makes it different from the
norm. People have a tendency to stick to one tone for all of their song
creations. We try to be different in every song, even if it is only by a
subtle amount to separate it from the rest of our material. The fact that
we are all into different things. . . . Steve is jazz oriented and his
sounds are unusual. Rick is classically based. Jon is what we call a world
listener; he'll listen to 14 Zulus under water with frogmen's outfits on,
but will find something in there and pull it out as a positive thing. Chris
is into very unusual playing. Alan is a true rock 'n' roll drummer. We are
the most unlikely group of five people that you could put in a band, but it
all knits nicely and it seems to have worked over the past 30 years.
Living so far apart from each other, how do you get new material together?
The band: We have mainly concentrated on playing more together in the last
two-and-a-half years, and have toured a lot, so we managed to scribble down
some ideas while touring.
Steve Howe: I used the [Roland] VS-2480 to get some ideas together back
home in Devon. This is a great tool to have in my collection, as I can burn
my ideas on to CD directly and then either post them to the guys or send
them via email as MP3 attachments.
Does the band have a preconceived idea of how the songs will sound, or do
you let the technology dictate this?
The band: We write the music without using great sounds. Our thinking is
that if you write with a great sound, you can be fooled that what you are
writing is good material. Lots of people buy new products, get them home
for the first time and flick through the patches, find a good patch and
then start writing songs using that preset. You have to be careful . . . it
is an even balance of good writing and sound selection. It can sound great
just because the sound is good, not because it is a great piece of music.
David Bowie, to give you a classic example, writes everything on a battered
12-string guitar. His argument is that if it can sound great on a basic
instrument, then when the latest sounds are added it can only lift it to
the next level. That's why we stick to our basic sounds of acoustic guitar
and piano.
Rick Wakeman: I do most of my writing in Tenerife where I live for 70% of
the year. In my house I have a small music room with a Roland RD piano and
I keep going back to this instrument to write material, as I find the
product does not cheat me into thinking that things sound good. All of
Return To The Centre Of The Earth, which ended up including the London
Symphony Orchestra, was written using that RD piano. The songs that we
create are normally 75% complete before we start paying any attention to
the sounds that we will use.
Do you keep on top of new technology as and when it develops?
The band: We're lucky in as much as we all have good techs that look at the
new gear as it develops, so we can bypass a lot of material that wouldn't
be suitable for the band. It is in our best interest to keep developing new
sounds, and spending two hours with a good tech can be like spending two
weeks with your head in a manual.
Steve Howe: When I got the [Roland] VG-88, I was worried that the
technology would get the better of me, but after sitting down and playing
with the product for an hour or so, I began to realize that the processes
in sound creation haven't really altered. The technology has advanced to
where we can manipulate or model other sounds such as in Roland's COSM
products, but it is how we use these products to create material that is
the vital part.
How do you mentally and physically prepare to go on stage before a show . .
. do you have a routine?
The band: Well, not the routines we used to do, because at our age the
groupies aren't around. Those were the good warm-up days, especially if
they looked gorgeous. Nowadays our sights are a lot lower. If they've got
their own hip we're happy. Mental preparation? Well, we are all mental in
the band so we don't need to do a lot. We tend to start focusing in on the
show around 20 minutes prior to going on stage and start concentrating on
the music, blocking out everything else because every one of us has other
things going on in our lives, but we don't need to take them on stage with us.
Is Yes a democracy or is there a dictator in the band?
The band: Yes is a democracy that doesn't work because nobody can agree on
anything. This band is the only band that can have a meeting to decide when
to have a meeting. Because we are all scattered around the world, the
closest person can be 1,200 miles away, so we often have conference calls.
Earlier this year we had a conference call to decide when we could have a
conference call to have a conference call about this tour. That is how Yes
works!
The Yes album covers are renowned for their artwork. How did the
collaboration with Roger Dean come about?
The band: Steve was the first to spot the artwork, and commented that it
was Yes music in paintings. So we all met Roger and it was the weirdest
thing, as he had managed to capture our thoughts and material in his
artwork. We have worked together ever since, and Roger has designed the
stage set for this 35th anniversary tour. It is actually like playing in an
inflatable Yes album cover. He is a very clever guy . . . looks like a bank
manager though!
How would you say the music industry has changed since you first got
together as a band?
The band: We class ourselves as being lucky, because when we first started,
the instruments allowed us to be individualistic. There was no such thing
as preset sounds, and when we bought an instrument, we spent the first six
hours trying to get a sound out of it. If we got it to fart, we used it. If
we found a sound that we liked, we twiddled and played with the settings
and then that sound was ours because there was no such thing as presets,
and we had to then remember where each setting was so we could access it
again. This allowed early musicians to have an identifiable sound, so it
was a great era to be involved in. It also gave us a great opportunity to
work with many of the music-industry manufacturers about new product ideas.
Today's industry is fast-paced and more about commercial benefit. We
continuously say to people that to give yourself a fighting chance there
are two things you have to do. Number one is to be honest with yourself:
Set yourself a goal that is achievable and play to that level. Number two:
Differ your sound and playing style from the norm. This makes you unique
and more noticeable.
Today, 35 years later, are you still as passionate and enthusiastic about
making music and touring together as you were when you began?
The band: We all enjoy going on stage, even though it is not as easy as it
used to be. The band plays better and tighter now than ever, and this is
the result of technology helping us. In the early days we used to go on
stage and wonder how much of the gear would actually be left working by the
end of the show, because the products weren't as robust as today's. The
newer products that we use have helped us to perform the older material to
a better standard than was possible when we first hit the road.
As regards touring, this is a killer and it is not easy. We are not spring
chickens anymore, even though we do all look after ourselves quite well. We
all get tired a lot easier when touring, but when you walk on stage, the
old adrenaline kicks in and it is like running a race where you don't feel
that tiredness until you've stopped running.
What does the future hold for Yes?
The band: We are well aware that musically we can carry on doing lots of
things while people want to hear us and see us play . . . and there is no
reason that that shouldn't happen. The thing that will stop this band from
doing exactly that is health, which is a terrible thing to say. Last year
Jon fell off a ladder and broke his back and was out of action for five
months, and that really hit home . . . we are not immortal. We can see that
the future will continue for Yes, but at a much slower pace, and it will
only be a health thing that will stop us from performing. When that day
will arrive is anyone's guess, but for now we will enjoy it while we still
have the chance.
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