Showing posts with label Yes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yes. Show all posts

Another @#$&! 2015 Top 10 rock albums list: Part 1

Depressing end to a year full of strong records
By Peter Lindblad

Killing Joke and Jaz Coleman released
one of this year's best records with 'Pylon.'
There was no happy ending to 2015 for hard rock and heavy metal. The December deaths of Lemmy Kilmister and Scott Weiland cast an overwhelming pall over a year dotted with peaks and valleys, the June passing of Yes bassist extraordinaire Chris Squire being one of the lowest of low points.

Once the grief passes, and eventually it will, the sun will break through the clouds, shining a light on the positive developments of 2015, such as the grand return of Jeff Lynne's Electric Light Orchestra and the release of critically acclaimed solo albums from Keith Richards, David Gilmour and Roger Waters. And while it appears the end is near for Black Sabbath and the ride is over (maybe?) for Motley Crue, battling brothers Ray and Dave Davies surprised everyone and briefly reunited onstage on Dec. 18, much to the delight of Kinks fans everywhere, rumors of a Guns 'N Roses reunion – now officially confirmed as a go, with a performance scheduled at the famed Coachella festival – gained unstoppable momentum and Phil Collins declared he is back ... for better or worse.

As is the case every year, a slew of incredible rock albums issued forth in 2015, bravely facing a music industry still in a state of flux and fighting for relevancy against tough odds, as a celebrity-infatuated public continues to genuflect at the pedicured feet of Adele, Taylor Swift and Bruno Mars. Here is Part 1 of our list of the Top 10 rock albums of 2015.

Stryper - Fallen 2015
10. Stryper – Fallen: Heaviness is next to godliness for Stryper these days. On Fallen, the Christian metal stalwarts keep thickening their sound and toughening gnarly riffs without sacrificing the sweet, uplifting melodic sensibilities and transcendent vocal blends adored by fans of their '80s output. More lyrically ambitious than past efforts, Fallen finds Stryper taking more risks, while refusing to abandon the signature elements that have always called the faithful to worship.

9. Lamb Of God – VII: Sturm Und Drang: Appearing rejuvenated, with Randy Blythe's terrifying legal ordeal in the Czech Republic behind him, Lamb Of God emptied their bag of tricks on the wild ride that was VII: Sturm Und Drang, proving that the disappointing Resolution was an aberration and thankfully not a trend. The words "controlled fury" get thrown around way too often, but that's what Lamb Of God engage in here, with brawling, savage riffs, titanic chugs and catastrophic breakdowns making beautiful chaos. There is great vitality and energy to VII: Sturm Und Drang, things that have been missing from recent Lamb Of God efforts. Blythe's personal journey out of hell seems to have lit a fire under the band he fronts.

Cattle Decapitation - The Anthropocene
Extinction 2015
8. Cattle Decapitation – The Anthropocene Extinction: Pollution is choking earth to death, and nobody is really doing much about it. That makes Cattle Decapitation very angry. On The Anthropocene Extinction, the extreme metal idealists paint an ugly apocalyptic vision of severe ecological devastation, and their rage at the apathy and corruption of mankind is manifested in some of the most intense, disorienting aural madness recorded in recent memory. And while it all seems to come dangerously close to going off the rails, Cattle Decapitation skillfully orchestrates a frenzied, enormous riot of pulverizing beats, violent riffs and diseased vocals designed to shock and awe. Welcome to Thunderdome.

Iron Maiden - The Book of Souls 2015
7. Iron Maiden – The Book Of Souls: A bit long-winded perhaps, with three songs clocking in at more than 10 minutes in length, The Books Of Souls dares to go places that Iron Maiden has rarely ever ventured. As their approach continues to grow increasingly progressive, resulting in some of the most complex and dramatic creations of their career, Maiden still indulges in the kind of thrilling, thunderous gallops and soaring, twisting harmonies that have always driven their most stirring anthems. And while that's a comfort to their legions of fans, as is the fact that they haven't lost any of their instrumental brilliance, The Book Of Souls also shows they're still eager to broaden their horizons and deeply explore new lyrical themes.

6. Killing Joke – Pylon: At war with the forces of oppression and greed, these post-punk veterans go for the jugular on the exciting, heart-pounding Pylon. Surging with great momentum from start to finish, while enveloped in swirling, expansive darkness, Pylon is a spiritual and political uprising for Killing Joke, a deep forest primeval of tribal drums overrun by modern electronic and industrial insurgency. In the distance, the powerful, echo-laden voice of Jaz Coleman sounds the alarm for mankind, delivering poetic tidings of the peril and calamity that should befall us if we fail to heed these warnings.

CD Review: Billy Sherwood – Citizen

CD Review: Billy Sherwood – Citizen
Frontiers Music srl
All Access Rating: A-

Billy Sherwood - Citizen 2015
Filling the shoes of the late, great Chris Squire as the bassist in Yes is an almost impossible task. And yet, Billy Sherwood – handpicked by Squire as his replacement in the legendary progressive-rock outfit – isn't shying away from taking on other herculean projects, such as his latest LP Citizen.

Like all the scripts from "Quantum Leap" all rolled into one sprawling concept album, the Frontiers Music srl release Citizen imagines "a lost soul reincarnated into various periods of history" that isn't Scott Bakula. Still, the cast of Citizen is impressive, as Sherwood draws on the talents of prog-rock innovators Geoff Downes, Steve Hackett, Steve Morse, Rick Wakeman and Jordan Rudess – just to name a few – to bring his vision to life. What's more, Squire actually plays on the triumphant and expansive title track, thought to be his final recording.

Sherwood's "citizen" finds himself either caught up in a series of cataclysmic world events, such as the Great Depression and World War I, or witnessing the birth of paradigm-shifting scientific discoveries, once as a friend to Galileo or another time as an assistant to Charles Darwin. All the while, Citizen's sweeping, slow-developing melodies, layers of harmonies, soft instrumental interplay and breathtaking, cinematic beauty seem attuned to the somber and surreal artwork that graces its cover in standout tracks "No Man's Land," "Just Galileo and Me" and "The Great Depression."

More watery and ominous, "Empire" turns starry and its choruses grow wider, while "Trail Of Tears" – a song about the forced migration of Native American peoples in the U.S. – is an edgier puzzle of sharp confusion sussed out in a manner signifying rage at the ruinous cruelty and injustice of such a monstrous policy. Lighter and more lively, with some splashes of funk thrown into the mix, "Age of the Atom" practically dances about, as Sherwood's bass lines, so plush everywhere else, offer contrasting melodic forays, but in the end, it's the accessibility and drive of "Man and the Machine" that wins the day. Not so different from the music of Yes, the compositions here, while cut from the same cloth, are more lush and elegantly designed, even if Citizen does tend to infuriatingly dawdle at a somewhat leisurely pace. That won't matter to those with a lot of time on their hands; their patience will be rewarded with an immersive experience, both lyrically and musically. If Citizen is any indication, Squire has left Yes in good hands with his protege.
– Peter Lindblad

CD Review: Yes – Like It Is: At the Mesa Art Center

CD Review: Yes – Like It Is: At the Mesa Art Center
Frontiers Music
All Access Rating: A-

Yes - Like It Is: Live At The
Mesa Art Center 2015
Those who didn't get their fill of Yes playing its landmark albums in their entirety in concert with Like It Is – Yes at the Bristol Hippodrome can go back for a second helping. In this companion audio/visual release, with its warm sound, the progressive-rock masters – now missing dearly departed bass virtuoso Chris Squire – perform 1971's exalted Fragile and 1972's equally acclaimed Close to the Edge with colorful panache, faithfully recreating that hallowed original material with pleasant reverence, joyous whimsy and deft precision.

Weaving their way through the complex, multi-part pieces that have become the stuff of prog-rock legend, Yes displays its virtuoso chops in gracefully traveling the well-worn, shape-shifting passages of some of its most distinguished, and adventurous, works. The contrast of gentle, inside-out dissonance and cloud-bursting beauty – courtesy of swirling vocal harmonies, Steve Howe's guitar intrigue, melodic flights of fancy, flowering instrumental jams and time-signature mischief – is magical as Yes wanders through the wondrous mini universe of "South Side Of The Sky" and expands the already cinematic title track to Close to the Edge. The breezy, summery intro to "Siberian Khatru" morphs into an furious march, and Squire's signature bass motors through a lightly bouncing "Long Distant Runaround" and propels "Roundabout" into Geoff Downes' dancing keyboard spirals and sunny merriment, while the dream logic of "And You And I" mesmerizes, as singer Jon Davison negotiates the sweeping emotions and sonic puzzles of Yes with expressive aplomb. And the nostalgia trip that is Like It Is: Live At the Mesa Art Center, a Frontiers Music release, sends the faithful home smiling.
– Peter Lindblad

CD Review: Yes – Like It Is: Yes at the Bristol Hippodrome

2 CD/DVD Review: Yes – Like It Is: Yes at the Bristol Hippodrome
Frontiers Music Srl
All Access Rating: A-

Yes - Like It Is: Yes at the Bristol
Hippodrome 2014
The path's been pretty well beaten by now, the progressive-rock elders of Yes having performed live the favorite songs of 1970's The YES Album and 1977's Going for the One so often they could be forgiven for being bored to death with them. On its spring 2014 tour of the UK, Europe and Canada, Yes pledged to play both of them in their entirety, however, delving ever deeper into two of the most iconic records of their extensive catalog.

Playful and eager to engage in extended jams stretching the boundaries of famously complex arrangements, Yes breathes new life into dusty old compositions on the engrossing and expansive two CD/DVD set "Like It Is: Yes at the Bristol Hippodrome," the venerable masters taking liberties with subtle, nuanced alterations. A rollicking, extended piano run here, some extra guitar noodling there, and a gorgeous blending of vocal harmonies thrown in everywhere make for a joyous, captivating listen – the sound so vivid and clear, emphasizing the band's full-bodied instrumental flourishes and calculated precision, off-kilter melodic shifts and wonderfully interwoven vocal harmonies.

Summery and cheery, "Starship Trooper" culminates with a spiraling crescendo, the entwined machinations of guitarist Steve Howe and bassist Chris Squire sending wordless messages heavenward, while "Yours Is No Disgrace" motors through complicated twists and turns with easy grace. The proggy hootenanny of "Going for the One" is an aural ballet of elongated movements, the swooning "Wondrous Stories" and "Turn of the Century" are beautifully rendered to win over even the most jaded of audiences and "Awaken" swells majestically. And if it's intricate acoustic guitar picking you want, Howe obliges, with his folksy, whimsical turn on the lively instrumental "Clap."

Occasionally, he strains to reach certain notes, but otherwise, vocalist Jon Davison handles the material with warmth and skill, while Geoff Downes' keyboards add symphonic color to and shade in grand arrangements and Alan White glues it all together with intuitive rhythmic dynamics. Doing just one classic album in a concert setting seems to be passe for Yes, who've taken the concept to a whole new level. Not long afterward, they would attempt three on another series of live outings. Would it be too much to ask for four?
– Peter Lindblad

DVD Review: Yes – Songs From Tsongas: The 35th Anniversary Concert

DVD Review: Yes – Songs From Tsongas: The 35th Anniversary Concert
Eagle Rock Entertainment
All Access Rating: A-

Yes - Songs From Tsongas:
The 35th Anniversary Concert
It does the heart good to see Jon Anderson and the rest of Yes so happy together, especially in light of the bitter divorce to come in 2008.

Four years earlier, there were no signs of bad blood between the two sides when the cosmic progressive-rock voyageurs' classic lineup traveled through the past at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts, and closed out their 35th anniversary reunion tour.

Adding to the slew of Yes live releases over the years, an effervescent and exhilarating special edition two-disc DVD set containing an expertly filmed version of that blissful virtuoso performance, as well as a separate 70 minutes of live footage from a rainy night of Yes playing at the Estival in Lugano, Switzerland, is out now, released by Eagle Rock Entertainment.

The two stagings couldn't have been more different, the spartan set-up at Lugano a sharp contrast to the vivid, trippy spectacle of colored lights and alien, amorphous scenery – dreamed up by the one and only Roger Dean – that surrounded Yes at Tsongas, a joyous occasion highlighted by Anderson unabashedly running out into the crowd to belt out a stirring rendition of "Rhythm of Love" that's a veritable flood of silvery synthesizers, harmonized vocals, bubbling bass and sonic exuberance bursting forth.

Shooting the band from a variety of angles and smoothly pulling in tight for unobtrusive close-ups, the camera work is well-organized and clever, capturing the chameleon-like complexity and power of Yes as a whole and allowing individuals to shine on their own. Rick Wakeman's piano practically dances during his solo turn on "The Meeting," and Steve Howe deftly works out "Second Initial," his chance to go it alone, as Howe jumps between country, folk and rock genres like a world-class gymnast throughout, with Anderson's ageless vocal panache, Alan White's drumming is on point and Chris Squire's bass rambles on with precision and grace.

And Yes does justice to its legacy of innovative musicianship and compositional intrigue, gracefully navigating all the enigmatic time changes, unfolding drama, expansiveness and shifting melodic pathways of favorites such as "Your Move/All Good People," "Going for the One," "Starship Trooper," "And You And I" and a stunning version of "South Side of the Sky" – among others – with skillful finesse, a magical imagination and warm emotion.

Making the Tsongas performance even more special is a seven-song acoustic segment, where the quintet gathers in a close sitting, joking and smiling as they dive into winsome, charming readings of "Long Distance Runaround," "Owner of a Lonely Heart," "Time Is Time" and "Wondrous Stories" with the easy nature of old friends in the throes of strong drink and nostalgia. Even the shuffling blues treatment they give to "Roundabout" steps lively, and when a laughing Anderson proclaims he can't remember the words to "This Is Time," the gentle ribbing he gets from his comrades is delivered with good humor.

Out in the wet streets of Lugano, Yes runs through a condensed version of the Tsongas set, their energetic treatments of "Long Distance Runaround," "Roundabout," "Owner of a Lonely Heart" and a rollicking "Going For the One" ringing out in the rain. Shot in a more basic fashion, the show, nonetheless, is just as transcendent as Tsongas, if a bit shorter in duration. For Yes fans, it doesn't get much better than this.
– Peter Lindblad

CD Review: Yes – Heaven & Earth

CD Review: Yes – Heaven & Earth
Frontiers Records
All Access Rating: B-

Yes - Heaven & Earth 2014
Flashes of the old Yes,the one capable of grandiose symphonic brilliance and sublime pop artistry, appear throughout Heaven & Earth, the progressive-rock institution's uneven 21st studio LP, released via Frontiers Records.

One such display is "Subway Walls," 9:20 of delightful left turns, a jazzy instrumental passage that flexes Chris Squire's muscular bass lines and is gilded by Steve Howe's imaginative, stealthy guitar exercises, and a beautifully engineered chorus that sounds surprisingly fresh and vibrant.

So does "The Game," this bright, mellifluous river of flowing, flooding pop sounds barely contained by artfully constructed guitar puzzles and expertly woven vocals, and despite its inane lyrics, the rising swells of piano, strummed guitar and Jon Davison's impassioned singing in "To Ascend" are particularly affecting. Jon Anderson's vocal doppelganger is in fine form here.

Too often, though, Yes seems uninspired, even goofy, on Heaven & Earth. And producer Roy Thomas Baker, so instrumental in helping Queen soar to great heights, doesn't appear willing to edit them. "Step Beyond" is a strange gum ball machine of bouncy synth blips that could be playful and child-like, but instead, it comes off as unfinished and lacking sophistication, as if Yes needed to fill time. And the lukewarm "Believe Again," the inactive opener, has extended periods of flatness, blank spaces of subdued, aimless noodling that's content to remain in the background, where it belongs.

While their Utopian ideals, warm nostalgic thoughts and dreams of a world where love extinguishes hate and selfishness are wonderful and high-minded, the New Age sentimentality of Yes occasionally goes too far, snuffing out the enigmatic whimsy that made the Yes of the early 1970s more likable. But when they shake off their torpor and find that spark of uninhibited creativity that's served them so well lo these many years, as they do on the ever-evolving, wildly original "Light of Ages" and "It Was All We Knew," Yes shows it's still capable of blending accessible songwriting and instrumental complexity in ways nobody – not King Crimson and certainly not Emerson, Lake & Palmer – else can, somehow managing to match the effusive color and alien imagery of Roger Dean's cover art with visionary, dynamic keyboards, crisp drumming, motoring bass and Howe's bottomless bag of guitar tricks.

Were they rushed in completing this record? It feels as if they were. Heaven isn't too far away for Yes here, but then again, neither is hell.
– Peter Lindblad

CD/DVD Review: Toto – 35th Anniversary Tour: Live in Poland

CD/DVD Review: Toto – 35th Anniversary Tour: Live in Poland
Eagle Rock Entertainment
All Access Rating: B+

Toto - 35th Anniversary Tour:
Live in Poland
Europe got its fill of Toto in 2013, as the neo-progressive soft-rock idealists celebrated their 35th anniversary with a glorious 29-city tour of the continent that included a stop in Lodz, Poland, where a packed house greeted them with unabashed joy and exuberance.

Toto returned the favor, putting on a spectacular two-hour performance that was joyous, poignant and entirely free of soul-sucking cynicism, traipsing through a life-affirming set list of expected hits and a few forgotten treasures that prove deserving of reassessment. 

Vividly filmed for a DVD release that comes with a nicely edited, engaging, career-spanning set of interviews, "35th Anniversary Tour: Live in Poland" is also available on Blu-ray, as a two-CD set and a deluxe edition from Eagle Rock Entertainment, and it is a vivid spectacle of sound and vision. With superb camera work that alights on Steve Lukather's breathtaking, uniquely engrossing guitar solos, focuses the spotlight on Joseph Williams' commanding vocals and dynamic stage presence, and glows with warmth, "35th Anniversary Tour: Live in Poland" is a dazzling, intoxicating showcase of Toto's ability to connect with its fans on a level that's not exactly intimate, but it is powerful.

Superb camera work captures the sterling interplay of Toto's core members, these veteran session musicians, whose contributions are found on an astonishing 5,000 albums, ably balancing progressive-rock ambition with jazz fusion and R&B influences, and transitioning to lush pop soundscapes without missing a beat. Theatrical at times, as they revel in the keyboard bombast of the Yes-like "St. George and the Dragon," where keyboardists David Paich and Steve Pocaro set off a glorious aural display, Toto also eases comfortably into the tropical pop longing of "Africa" with grace, injects energy and passion into "Rosanna" and builds dramatic tension in another crowd favorite, "Hold the Line."

Whether its the languid Spanish guitar Lukather expertly negotiates on "The Muse" or the proggy time changes so deftly navigated throughout a stirring version of "Better World," Toto can still gently break hearts with aching, affecting renditions of "I'll Be Over You" and "99" while managing to maintain a seriousness about their craft. And the watery "Hydra," with its light funk grooves, prove that prog and R&B can coexist.

Both respected for their musicianship and derided for their overly sentimental pop excesses, Toto has always left itself open to criticism that's both fair and just, and yet, they continue down the road as they always have, taking the paths they want to take and not giving one jot for those who find them cloying or insincere. Though completely over the top and so slickly produced that it comes off as glitzy as Vegas, this cinematic extravaganza could win over new converts.
– Peter Lindblad

Yes sets release date for 'Heaven & Earth'

Prog-rock giants have big summer tour planned

Yes - Heaven & Earth 2014
Among the world’s most influential, ground-breaking, and respected progressive rock bands, Grammy Award winning, YES are proud to announce they will release their  new studio album,HEAVEN & EARTH, July 22 on Frontiers Records. Having sold nearly 40 million albums in a career that has so far spanned more than four decades, HEAVEN & EARTH sees YES continuing with its tradition of symphonic progressive rock that remains timelessly fresh and innovative.HEAVEN & EARTH is available now for pre-order on Amazon here:http://smarturl.it/YES_Amz_Preorder.

HEAVEN & EARTH contains eight new tracks, each of which boasts the unique musicianship and craftsmanship that have come to be known as “the YES sound.” YES’ distinctive layered music, swirling arrangements, brilliant vocals and harmonies are all in abundance. HEAVEN & EARTH is an album sure to please both long-time and new YES fans. For HEAVEN & EARTH, YES teamed up with legendary Grammy Award winner, Roy Thomas Baker (Queen, The Cars, Guns N’ Roses, Foreigner, Smashing Pumpkins, Alice Cooper, etc.), who handled the production and Billy Sherwood (Toto, Paul Rodgers, Air Supply, etc.) who mixed the album. Also onboard is long-timeYES artist, the world-renowned Roger Dean, who again brings his masterful artistic creativity to the album’s cover art and packaging.

Tracklisting for Heaven & Earth:
1. Believe Again
2. The Game
3. Step Beyond
4. To Ascend
5. In A World Of Our Own
6. Light Of The Ages
7. It Was All We Knew
8. Subway Walls

To coincide with the release of HEAVEN & EARTH, the multi-platinum progressive rock band--bassist CHRIS SQUIRE, guitarist STEVE HOWE, drummer ALAN WHITE, keyboardist GEOFF DOWNES and singer JON DAVISON – announced in March they’ll launch their 35-date summer tour featuring YES performing, in their entirety, 1971’s groundbreaking album FRAGILE for the first-time ever and a repeat performance from last year’s tour of 1972’s CLOSE TO THE EDGE, followed by an encore of the band’s greatest hits.

The album FRAGILE is considered to be their U.S. breakthrough album peaking at #4 on theBillboard Album charts in the U.S. The RIAA-certified double platinum album has sold over two million copies and features YES’ hit single “Roundabout” and other classics likeLong Distance Runaround” and “Heart of the Sunrise.” It also marks the band’s first collaboration with artist Roger Dean on cover art, who has designed many of the band’s album covers and logos. The band’s album CLOSE TO THE EDGE  widely regarded as one of the greatest progressive rock albums ever recorded--was on the U.S. charts for 32 weeks, peaking at #3. A Rolling Stone review noted, “Yes’ colors are subtle, almost imperceptible tints, but the main strokes are bold and thick, applied with sureness and natural instinct.” Inspired by Siddhartha and their “state of mind” at the time, the Gold-certified album featuring epic suites such as “Close To The Edge” and “You And I” was named one of the “100 Greatest Guitar Albums of All Time” by Guitar World (2006). Track listings for both albums listed here: http://www.smarturl.it/qcbcnm.

Spend “An Evening with YES” this summer in the following cities:
DATE


CITY

VENUE
Tue
7/8

Boston, MA

Blue Hills Bank Pavilion
Wed
7/9

New York, NY

Radio City Music Hall
Fri
7/11

Wallingford, CT

Toyota Oakdale Theatre
Sat
7/12

Westbury, NY

NYCB Theatre at Westbury
Sun
7/13

Newport, RI

Newport Yachting Center
Tue
7/15

Washington, DC

Warner Theatre
Wed
7/16

Hampton, NH

Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
Fri
7/18

Salamanca, NY

Seneca Allegany Casino
Sat
7/19

Philadelphia, PA

Tower Theater
Sun
7/20

Munhall, PA

Carnegie Music Hall
Tue
7/22

Rochester Hills, MI

Meadow Brook
Wed
7/23

Northfield, OH

Hard Rock Live Northfield Park
Fri
7/25

Madison, WI

Overture Hall
Sat
7/26

Chicago, IL

Copernicus Center
Mon
7/28

Nashville, TN

Ryman Auditorium
Tue
7/29

Louisville, KY

Louisville Palace
Wed
7/30

Atlanta, GA

Symphony Hall
Fri
8/1

Hollywood, FL

Seminole Hard Rock Live
Sat
8/2

St. Petersburg, FL

Mahaffey Theater
Sun
8/3

Orlando, FL

Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre
Tue
8/5

Houston, TX

Bayou Music Center
Wed
8/6

Grand Prairie, TX

Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie
Thu
8/7

Kansas City, MO

Arvest Bank Theatre at The Midland
Sat
8/9

Denver, CO

Paramount Theatre
Mon
8/11

Tucson, AZ

Rialto Theatre
Tue
8/12

Mesa, AZ

Ikeda Theatre at Mesa Arts Center
Wed
8/13

Albuquerque, NM

Legends Theater at Route 66 Casino
Fri
8/15

Las Vegas, NV

The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Sat
8/16

Anaheim, CA

City National Grove of Anaheim
Mon
8/18

San Diego, CA

Humphrey’s Concerts By the Bay
Tue
8/19

San Jose, CA

City National Civic
Thu
8/21

Tulalip, WA

Tulalip Amphitheatre
Fri
8/22

Grand Ronde, OR

Spirit Mountain Casino
Sat
8/23

Lincoln, CA

Thunder Valley Casino Resort
Sun
8/24

Los Angeles, CA

Greek Theatre

YES is proud to provide special show packages, which include near-stage seating, a meet and greet with the band, exclusive limited-edition gifts from YES, and much more. For more information on prices, on-sale dates and to purchase YES packages/tickets, go to www.yesworld.com.

Rush show 'Grace Under Pressure'

A look at the paradigm-shifting album that just turned 30
By Peter Lindblad

Rush - Grace Under Pressure 1984
Signals was polarizing. Songs of teenage isolation in suburbia and the uneasy transition from an analog world to a digital one, a heavy dependence on synthesizers and sequencers at the expense of Alex Lifeson's guitars ... reggae? What in the name of John Rutsey was going on?

While Rush was embracing the modern technology of the 1980s and adapting to a quickly changing musical landscape, where New Wave was all the rage and classic progressive-rock was all but extinct, a large portion of its fan base was pining for elaborate concept albums and a renewed emphasis on the word "power" in Rush's fundamental power-trio format.

Some hadn't even stayed with Rush past the transitional Moving Pictures, where the integration of keyboards and a focus on composing shorter, more compact songs with self-contained stories, rather than long, drawn-out storytelling with vague resolutions, was still under construction. Those clinging to the hope that Rush would come to their senses and return to "real" guitar-driven prog-rock would run screaming for home upon hearing 1984's Grace Under Pressure, click their heels and throw on Caress of Steel or 2112 and chant, "There's no place like Toronto. There's no place like Toronto."

Rush's 10th album, Grace Under Pressure turned 30 years old on Saturday, and for those who not only hated the band's new direction, but took it as an outright betrayal, it was the final straw. Geddy Lee's synthesizers continued to push forward, becoming a dominant element in Rush's transformation, and it was clear they weren't going away. That was a bridge too far for some. The Rush they had come to know and love was gone. They were now new world men.

There were loyalists, though, who appreciated Rush's artistic fearlessness and willingness to experiment with new sounds and work in seemingly incongruent mediums like ska and reggae. And it's entirely possible that Rush did win over a new audience that had previously dismissed them as relics of the past, although that's debatable. Most of the punk and New Wave crowd was never going to accept Rush in any form. Their minds were made up.

So, revolution really was in the air when Grace Under Pressure came out. To hardliners, anything past Hemispheres or maybe Moving Pictures was heresy. There were no record burnings or a mob that "moves like demons possessed. Quiet in conscience, calm in their right, confident their ways are best." Those lines are from "Witch Hunt," of course, and in a sense, there was a somewhat similar atmosphere of fear and dread in Rush's fandom as to where the band was going next.

Not quite oblivious to it all, but certainly not in a mood to make any kind of artistic retreat, Rush calmly practiced its craft, forging ahead creatively with a sense that what they were doing was an essential and logical next step. What gets lost in conversations about Grace Under Pressure is that it's one of Rush's most accessible and well-constructed albums. With all of the critical worship that 2012's Clockwork Angels received, and rightly so, it being a record that brought some of the lapsed believers back to the faith, it's not as direct or as fluid as Grace Under Pressure.

Seamlessly, Rush toyed with ska on "The Enemy Within," the clipped rhythmic stabbing of Lifeson's guitar adding energy to the track. And "Afterimage" had a more languid reggae feel to it, but on the whole, Grace Under Pressure was almost futuristic, its clean, contemporary sound shaped by a new producer, Peter Henderson. After Signals, Rush amicably divorced itself from the only producer they'd ever had to that point in Terry Brown, who had butted heads with Rush during the making of Signals. Brown wasn't convinced they were on the right path either.

Heavy subjects like the holocaust and nuclear war were addressed in the  "Red Sector A" and the briskly paced "Distant Early Warning," respectively, with "Red Sector A" taking much of its inspiration from Lee's mother's horrible experiences in Nazi concentration camps. Some have described Grace Under Pressure as a dark record, and with Neil Peart exploring the impact of pressure on human behavior, it's not an LP that's all sunshine and lolly pops. Even the affecting vulnerability of "Kid Gloves" has a world-weary quality to it.

Lee has said of Rush's past lyrical concept journeys that "what you have to say ends being very nebulous." Not so with Grace Under Pressure, which featured compelling stories and ideas that made their points clearly and succinctly. Instrumentally, Lifeson pops up everywhere, his solos so pure of tone, so piercing and agile, and his flashing riffs dynamic and moving with inspired purpose, while Peart's precision and energy startles, Lee's rolling bass lines and complex figures brimming with momentum and natural drive.

And then there's that cover art by Hugh Syme that was so imaginative and alien, juxtaposing turbulence and calm in a way that was perfectly in sync with its music, the urgency and tension of "Distant Early Warning," "The Enemy Within" and "Between the Wheels" providing such striking contrast to Lee's watery synth floods and the occasional airy oasis-like clearings of breathtaking beauty you'd come across. There's an earnest intelligence to Grace Under Pressure that's a breath of fresh air in this age of irony and cynicism, and the melodic topography of the record is not at all flat, but rather it has expansive scenery and interesting peaks and valleys.

Grace Under Pressure continued Rush's evolution, and, on a personal level, it paralleled my own musical exploration. I was getting into The Police at that time. I was listening to the Talking Heads. I was questioning whether or not to hold on to the past and hold close those records I loved from Led Zeppelin, from Yes, from Uriah Heep ... the list goes on and on. U2, Ultravox, The Replacements, and all manner of U.K. and U.S. punk and New Wave acts were taking me further away from my roots, and that was exciting.

Rush would always stay with me, and the plot twists to their career were continually interesting and never boring. I saw them live only one time, and that was on the "Grace Under Pressure" tour, and it was, as it always is with Rush, an awakening. Lifeson has said of Grace Under Pressure that it is the "most satisfying of all our records." For me, it's Moving Pictures, but who am I to argue with Alex freaking Lifeson!

CD Review: Asia – Gravitas

CD Review: Asia – Gravitas
Frontiers Records
All Access Rating: B+

Asia - Gravitas 2014
As reflective and almost solemn an album as Asia has ever produced, Gravitas is perhaps the perfect word to describe a recording that examines matters of the heart with such overarching drama and lovelorn longing.

Still technically a super group, although guitarist Steve Howe has seemingly departed for good to concentrate on his work with progressive-rock icons Yes, Asia welcomes a newcomer into the fold in Sam Coulson, joining lead vocalist/bassist John Wetton (King Crimson, UK), drummer Carl Palmer (ELP) and keyboardist Geoff Downes (The Buggles). 

It was Mr. Big's Paul Gilbert who recommended Coulson, and the match is a good one. Coulson's melodic leads and fluid playing fit like a glove, although at times it seems he's straining at the leash to really let loose here and shred like there's no tomorrow. Or maybe he's simply trying to force Asia out its comfort zone, maybe inject some fresh blood into a body that's been in need of a transfusion, even if nobody realized it until his arrival. And the band does seem rejuvenated, making big sweeping epic compositions that have all the hallmarks of past Asia outings.

Immediately apparent is the attention to detail Asia gives to crafting lush arrangements and exquisite, windswept vocal harmonies on the airbrushed Gravitas, such as those that usher in the soaring first single "Valkyrie." Suffused with light and full of amiable hooks, "Nyctophobia," "Heaven Help Me" and the dazzling flood of synthesizers, rich piano, pulsating bass and serrated guitar that make up the bombastic title track are bright, intoxicating aural paintings, all of them written with tighter structures than Asia's prog-rock brethren would ever dare to attempt. If only their tempos weren't so damn sleepy.

Lyrically, Gravitas, out now on Frontiers Records, is extraordinarily introspective, addressing subjects like regret and loss with candor, emotional vulnerability and a graceful ennui that comes with maturity, although it's rather clinical sonically and not at all warm. A particularly harsh self-excoriation, the soul-baring, golden slumber of "Joe DiMaggio's Glove" becomes a metaphor for a soft heart, while the spindly acoustic guitar and Old World imagery of "Russian Dolls," with its trains and vauxhalls, lends an air of mystery, intrigue and forlorn hopelessness to an album that, at times, has a heavy heart. The aching piano ballad "The Closer I Get," so reflective and tender, seems especially sad. 

Some will always dismiss Asia's overblown romanticism, their earnest sentimentality and their lightweight pop inclinations, which always belied their instrumental complexity. Gravitas has all of that. And the scornful might scoff at the fantastical cover art of Gravitas, as Asia has always gone for that Roger Dean look but with a slightly less sci-fi influence and more mythical serpents and dragons, although this one appears to have come straight out of "Avatar." Still, there was a time in 1982 when they were as big as anybody in music, their debut album surprisingly becoming Billboard's No. 1 album of the year. The people have spoken when it comes to Asia, who sound more and more like the Moody Blues every year. And there's something about them people seem to like.
– Peter Lindblad


CD/DVD Review: Saga - Spin It Again! – Live in Munich

CD/DVD Review: Saga - Spin It Again!  Live in Munich
earMUSIC/Eagle Rock Entertainment
All Access Rating: A-

Saga - Spin It Again Live!
Germany's love for Saga still runs as deep as it ever has. Glorious in design and execution, 2012's 20/20, the most recent album from the Canadian prog-rock puzzle makers, somehow managed to claw its way into the top 10 in a country that snatched up tens of thousands of copies of Saga's debut LP when hardly anybody outside of Canada knew who they were.

Charting that high, no matter where, is no mean feat these days for a group like Saga, who experienced its greatest success in the late 1970s and early '80s, but Germany has always respected and admired Saga's sonic artistry.

It should come as no surprise then that on the final night of their 2013 sold out European tour in support of 20/20 Saga would end up in Munich, treating an adoring crowd to a thrilling two hours of old favorites and strong newer material. Out on Blu-ray or as a two-CD release, Spin It Again!  Live in Munich documents, in vivid and immersive audio and video, a night of passion that reunited Saga with its most ardent paramour, as the band whirls through its back catalog with a rush of adrenaline.

Munich welcomed back the classic Saga lineup with open arms, taking great delight in lead vocalist Michael Sadler, having reunited with Saga for 20/20 after a five-year hiatus, delivering good-humored stage banter in both English and fluent German. In full throat, the audience sang the chorus to the soaring Saga classic "Wind Him Up" word for word, as Sadler took a break to soak up what was surely a transcendent moment for him and the band.

The time Sadler spent apart from Saga did him and the band some good. 20/20 was an inspiring piece of musical engineering, still as melodic and as daring as ever, but also darker and heavier in spots than past Saga efforts with some of Ian Crichton's cycling through some of his angriest and most compelling guitar riffage. In some ways, it was a throwback to years past, when Saga's resounding guitars and epic synthesizers crashed up against arty, literate storytelling full of the kind of terrific tension, unusual drama and skewed insight into the human condition found in Rod Serling stories.

Drinking in Saga's euphoric, carnivalesque performance, Munich seemed to take as much interest in newer pieces as it did in Saga's past, the audience and performer connecting intimately and with unabashed joy. "Six Feet Under" and "Spin It Again" are especially captivating, swept away on surging melodic flourishes and veering off down magical little detours that seem like doorways to places of mystery and strange beauty. There is cleverly disguised menace in the smiling countenance of "The Perfectionist," a stylish song about the murderous Ellery Snead, and the tantalizing "Anywhere You Want to Go" and "Mouse in a Maze" are powerfully addictive, while "The Flyer" is presented as a breathtaking trapeze act.

As vibrant and intoxicating as the first disc in the CD set is, the second one is more diverse, with the affecting piano exercises "Time's Up" and "Scratching the Surface" sounding naked and alone, but also thoughtful and warmly nostalgic. And then there's the buoyant "Humble Stance," which almost sounds like a bounding beer hall polka all gussied up with Saga's chrome-plated progressive bombast, and a storming version of "On the Loose" that tingles with excitement.

Long ago, Saga discovered the missing link between the crunching hard rock and progressive tendencies of countrymen Rush and the altered consciousness and shape-shifting, classically influenced arrangements of Yes. Given all that, it follows that Saga's musicianship should be incredibly entertaining to behold in concert, and it is, as Germany well knows.

Germans get that the dynamic interplay of guitarist Ian Crichton's flights of fancy – his complex riffs, mushrooming plumes and those searing, exacting and yet unpredictable leads of his that go only where he knows the way – with the spiraling of Jim Gilmour and Jim Crichton is not only absolutely dazzling, but also has a synergy that, to borrow a phrase from Rush, crackles with life. Germans get that Sadler's wonderfully expressive and strong, cloudless vocals make him one of the most underrated singers on the planet. And maybe the people of Munich, in particular, get Saga in a way others don't. Should the rest of the world gives Spin It Again! - Live in Munich, the perfect companion piece to 20/20, a chance, they'll get it, too. http://www.ear-music.net/en/news/ and http://www.eagle-rock.com/

- Peter Lindblad





CD Review: Oliva – Raise the Curtain

CD Review: Oliva – Raise the Curtain
AFM Records
All Access Rating: A-

Oliva - Raise the Curtain 2013
Jon Oliva makes a grand entrance on Raise the Curtain. Out of the shadowy wings of the stage he steps, drinking in the triumphant, twirling synthesizers and well-sculpted guitar lines of a grandiose title track that could introduce royalty at some gala event. 

In a voice as radiant and angelic as Jon Anderson’s, the Savatage co-founder and vocal wizard demands the crushed velvet drapes be pulled aside so the drama can begin. Somebody’s been listening to Yes, the Rick Wakeman era in particular.

Oliva’s solo debut, Raise the Curtain is a great experiment, a wildly diverse progressive-metal epic that combines all of Oliva’s musical tastes in one extravagant movable feast, where the keyboards are as prominent as guitars and Oliva's theatrical indulgences are properly sated. On the menu is a generous helping of ‘70s prog, heaving surges of power metal and flourishes of jazz – the colorful and ebullient “Ten Years,” with its full-throated horns, being most reminiscent of the Broadway-style arrangements found on Savatage’s transformative fifth album Gutter Ballet.

Some of the most compelling material on Raise the Curtain also happens to be the heaviest stuff, such as “Soul Chaser” and “Big Brother.” The bass lines in both are remarkably strong and thick, circling around and around with sinister intent as driving guitar grooves push the action forward. An evil carnival of apocalyptic images, doom-laden sounds and crazily spinning instrumentation, “Armageddon” is by turns majestic and hellish, but “Soldier” is an affecting, melodic ballad, fleshed out with heartrending flute and piano, that sympathizes with a warrior finding it difficult to return to normal life. “Can’t Get Away” is similarly cast, but a little bluesy and more wistful, a modest cut with subtle charms.

Delighting in subverting audiences’ expectations with completely unexpected twists and turns, Oliva and crew – including Jon Oliva’s Pain drummer Chris Kinder – pull off a bait-and-switch on “Stalker,” as the mellifluous intro gives way to thorny, menacing verses that hack their way through incredibly intricate guitar work. And it continues to go off into different directions, once again becoming a wonderful flow of keyboards and six-string magic. Somewhat more Gothic, “The Witch” embarks in a similar journey, going down strange and wonderful paths and then running off into dense sonic thickets before emerging in bright, expansive clearings.

Composed and created with the help of friend Dan Fasciano and born of his still lingering sadness over the death of Jon Oliva’s Pain guitarist Matt LaPorte in 2011, Raise the Curtain also purges the vault of Criss Oliva’s final writings. Although it comes off as unnecessarily fussy and overblown on occasion, the album’s sheer bombast is awe-inspiring, even brilliant. Amid the prog pageantry are powerhouse riffs and forceful, evocative vocals that ground these shape-shifting works. Take a bow, Jon Oliva.http://www.afm-records.de/
– Peter Lindblad

Steve Howe steps away from Asia


Prog-rockers recruit new guitarist, plot new record

Asia - Sam Coulson, Geoff Downes, John Wetton
and Carl Palmer
Steve Howe is leaving Asia. The renowned guitarist announced his intentions to step away on Thursday, saying he needs to do so in order to focus more fully on other projects.

“Myself and the band wish to thank their fans for the enthusiasm shown during the original members’ reunion,” relates Howe. “I will continue with Yes, and with my trio and solo guitar work. I wish my friends continued success.”

Moving quickly, Asia has already found Howe’s replacement. They have hired newcomer Sam Coulson, recognized throughout the guitar community as a virtuoso performer. With Coulson in tow, Asia plans to perform at Sweden Rock 2013 and work on a new studio album, titled Valkyrie, for Frontiers Records.
“Asia is ready to take its next steps along this remarkable road,” says Asia’s lead vocalist and bassist John Wetton, known also for his work with King Crimson and U.K. “We cannot wait to perform again for the fans and also to unveil some of the new material, of which we are very proud.”

Keyboardist Geoff Downes, who has also played with Yes and the Buggles, added, “We look forward to writing another chapter in Asia’s history,” while drummer Carl Palmer, of Emerson, Lake and Palmer fame, chimed in, “We’re all looking forward to the next decade of great Asia music.”

The original members of Asia reunited in 2006 for a U.S. tour, several jaunts across the European continent and four the spanned the world, while also managing to release three new studio albums, three DVDs, and a number of live records. Asia’s exposure grew exponentially when their song “An Extraordinary Life,” off 2008’s Phoenix LP, was picked as the theme music for the TV show “America’s Got Talent.”

One of the biggest-selling super groups of all-time Asia began in the early ‘80s, when Howe, Wetton, Downes and Palmer agreed to join forces. Their self-titled debut album arrived in 1982 and spent nine weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. It remains one of the three most successful albums, in terms of record sales, in the history of Geffen Records, along with the likes of Guns ‘N Roses and Whitesnake. Their song “Heat of the Moment” was a smash hit, and an MTV phenomenon. Their ability to make videos that combined storytelling with compelling messages resulted in heavy MTV rotation for tracks like “Wildest Dreams,” “Only Time Will Tell,” “The Smile Has Left Your Eyes,” and “Don’t Cry.” And “Heat of the Moment” has appeared in TV shows and movies including “40 Year Old Virgin,” “South Park,” “Cold Case” and “The Matador.”

Visit OriginalAsia.com for more information.

Saga on the loose again with '20/20'


Michael Sadler returns to Canadian prog-rock institution
By Peter Lindblad
Saga 2012
Germany has taken its fair share of abuse from comedians for its deep and abiding love of the sonic artistry of David Hasselhoff. What people tend to forget is that, along with a thorough understanding and appreciation of the works of the giants of classical music, the country also was the first to throw its wholehearted support behind an upstart band from Canada called Saga that would engineer some of the most intriguing and dramatic progressive-rock anybody had heard since the heady days of prog’s golden age.
Heirs of a tradition – started by the likes of King Crimson, Yes and Genesis – that prized daring experimentation, unusual creativity and skillful musicianship as much as melody, Saga was formed in 1977 from the ashes of the Canadian rock outfit Fludd, taking Jim Crichton, Steve Negus and Peter Rochon to start with. A friend of Crichton’s, singer Michael Sadler, would also join up, and before long, Ian Crichton, Jim’s guitarist brother, came aboard. Rochon eventually departed, and Greg Chadd was shuffled in, until he was replaced by Jim “Daryl” Gilmour – rounding out the classic Saga lineup.  
Sinewy, labyrinthine guitars, a solid and oftentimes melodic rhythmic underpinning, Sadler’s striking vocals and dreamy synthesizers all contributed to the Saga sound that caught on immediately in Germany and, of all places, Puerto Rico. In Germany alone, Saga sold more than 30,000 import copies of their debut album, while in Puerto Rico radio advertisements for a local stereo equipment store were buoyed by the single “Humble Stance,” which propelled Saga’s first LP to surprisingly strong sales there.  
As for America, Saga had to wait until 1981 to make a dent in the States, as the gripping hooks and accelerated pace of the New Wave-tinged Worlds Apart – the band’s most commercially successful and critically acclaimed LP – and its driving singles “On the Loose,” now a staple of classic rock radio, and “Wind Him Up” practically hunted down a greater U.S. audience. Now, more than 20 years later and with Sadler back in the group after leaving in 2007, Saga – comprised of all the original members, except for new drummer Mike Thorne – is experiencing a resurgence of popularity, as anticipation for the upcoming release, 20/20, not so coincidently Saga’s 20th album, seems to grow hotter by the day.
Sadler recently talked about all matters Saga, both past and present, in this interview.
Why was it the right time for you to come back in 2011? What prompted the reunion?
Michael Sadler: When I left, although it was meant to be a permanent thing, I’m pretty sure if I search myself that I left the door open to perhaps one day, somewhere down the road, that I could return if it felt right. I don’t that there was anything specific. Jim Crichton and I kept in touch after I left and I kept tabs on what the guys were doing, because you can’t just walk away from something after 30 years and not have a vested interest in how it moves forward. I don’t know if I can nail it down to one specific time when we decided it was a good time [for it], but I do remember being on the phone with Jim in early January – I was speaking with him most of the time when I was gone and following the career of the band. I don’t know whether it was he or I … we were discussing how things were going for them and this and that, and one of us said jokingly, or I may have said, “You know what, maybe I should just come back and you can make a record with me and we’ll do sold-out halls again and be rich and famous again,” just for a laugh. And he went, ‘Yeah, ha, ha, ha.” And I think that kind of stayed with us, in our heads, and I think a week or two went by, and we talked again. And then I think maybe around the third call, Jim said, “Remember what you said a few weeks ago? I wonder … do you think maybe …” and one thing led to another, and we said, maybe it is the right time, and “Do you think it’s the right time?” We went back and forth.
I discussed it with my wife, obviously, because the initial reason for leaving … the decision to leave was a family one, to be with the family, to have a child of my own, and after 30 years – which is a nice round number – I thought it was time to get off the road and focus on that. I’d always wanted a child and I never wanted to be in a position where I was on the road when he or she took their first step or said their first words. I made it a point of waiting. I thought it was the time to do it. I discussed it with my wife, and I said to Jim, “Before we take this any further, before even thinking about it, run it by the other guys,” because if not everyone is onboard with the idea, then it makes no sense to do it. So once he’d run it by them, and I had discussed it with my wife, looking at the future … I mean, she turned around to me, and honestly, she looked at me and said, “You know what? Your son knows who you are and now he knows you’re a singer, and he knows you have to leave sometimes to do concerts, so you’ve got that bond in place.” He’s four and a half, or he was four at that time. And she just looked at me and she said, “It’s who you are. It’s what you do, and you’ve accomplished what you needed to do with your son, and if you feel the time is right with this band – not necessarily with Saga – it’s time you go back out and do what you do.” So, it was a green light across the board, with the both of us looking at the family side of things, and the guys saying, “Yeah, let’s do it,” I said, “Yep.” They had actually already started on the new album.
Oh, they had.
MS: You know, it was kind of weird, because … I mean, fortunately, Rob Moratti, had not really delved into it too far, as far as I know. I think he was working on preliminary melodies and one or two sketches of songs. When it was decided that I was coming back, and when we decided to make the announcement, I was basically handed pretty much a finished record, which was odd for me because I’d always been, since the beginning, a fairly integral part of the writing. For me to be handed music that I couldn’t touch was, “Oh, really …” (laughs) Every once in a while, I’d go, “Oh, I think that part should have been six bars instead of four,” or “maybe that should have been …” So, on one hand it was slightly frustrating; on the other, as a singer, being handed a blank slate like that and just being able to do whatever I wanted on top of it, it was very inspiring actually, because I was hearing the record like someone in the audience would hear it or one of the fans would hear it for the first time. So I was completely objective about it, because when you write something – and it takes a long time for the whole process and the recording of it and the arranging – you get a little bit too close. So hearing it fresh like that and singing it was great, because it was like I had the luxury – unlike most singers – of going in and in the headphones, it was pretty much a finished and almost mixed product. So to sing to it was very inspiring, and it worked out well.  
Being away for a few years, did the time off give you a new perspective on songwriting or your role in the band? Did you want to address new themes in your writing?
MS: I don’t know consciously, but I would have to believe those four years, with the different things that I did, and just the fact that I suddenly had a child of my own, it had to have. I’m sure subliminally … I know I came back into the band with both guns blazing. There was a renewed energy in me, and the fun factor was way, way up there. Really, I was more than ready, but at the same time, a little apprehensive. I showed up for that first day of rehearsal not really knowing what to expect. Four years is a long time. You don’t know what people expect. Everyone’s going to change a little bit, but if you’re not changing along with the group, as it were, mindset-wise, then who knows? Have I grown apart? Am I seeing life differently … blah, blah, blah, that kind of thing. But I think what ended up happening was I brought all the positive things that ended up happening to me, subconsciously, into the band and within the first song, I felt like I had been away for two weeks. It just felt completely natural again, right from the get-go. So I knew at that moment that we’d all decided to do the right thing. 
There’s a real weight to this new album that I really like, a real strength to everything from the keyboards to the guitars …
MS: You know what? Somebody called it “muscular” last week.
That’s a good word for it actually.
MS: I know what you mean. It does have some substance to it. I recognize that.
Was that your reaction to it when you first heard the record?
Saga - 20/20
MS: I did, to a degree – yeah. My initial reaction was I listened to it … like I said I’m hearing it fresh, like any listener for the first time. And my overall impression was, I used the word “vintage,” but without referring to something old-fashioned. So it sounded like vintage Saga, but very fresh and very 2012. In other words, in terms of vintage, I was recognizing elements of the signature sound that got people excited in the first place, but juxtaposed into today’s framework, as it were, or mindset and approach to the way the record sounds. So, it sounded to me like the perfect blend. I thought, first of all, that the fans are going to be very happy and I do believe there is the possibility we could pick up a new fan base with this record. It just felt, like I said, substantial to me and I was very excited.
In many respects, 20/20 seems to be a classic Saga album in that there’s a real balance between the keyboards and guitars, with perhaps the guitars being more prominent than they’ve been in a while. Is there a sort of creative tension that exists between the two entities or has Saga always been able to get them to work together without too much divisiveness?
MS: Never, never. It’s always been the balance between the two, the good-natured wars between the two, but that’s built into the song. It’s like a “dueling banjos” kind of vibe but with keyboards and guitar. But, yeah, again, that goes back to the signature sound, the point being that we have always done that, and it’s not a matter of vying for position. What ends up happening is what is more suitable in that section of the song to put across the emotion that’s taking place in that particular moment. Is that better suited played by a keyboard or a guitar? Usually, it makes itself known pretty quickly in the writing process. It’s really not a conscious thing; the instrumentation makes up its own mind, as it were, what the song needs. 
I know you came in a little late to the recording process this time, but what’s made the writing and recording process work for Saga in the past and have those same methods been utilized in the making of 20/20?
MS: As far as I know, from what I’ve been told by the guys when I asked them the same kind of question – because, obviously, I was curious – it appears to me it was pretty much the ideal situation that we like to have, the format being when you finish a tour or the downtime starts, in terms of when you start thinking about a new record, everyone does writing on their own. There are phases to the process, and everyone goes home and just writes whatever they want, as much as they possibly can, whatever inspires them – no parameters, no guidelines. It doesn’t matter. It can be slightly country in nature if that’s what you feel like. Whatever, you just come armed with all your ideas, bits and pieces, sections – not even full songs. Ian will show up with some great licks, and songs will be written around that – whatever. And we kind of review everything everybody’s been doing and find the most significant pieces that move everybody collectively. That’s the thing it’s always been, from Day 1, a democratic process in terms of what we decide to work on. It doesn’t matter who wrote it or who wrote that section, or whatever, because everybody’s going to contribute to the eventual song anyway. It’s just really a matter of all five have to like it and be inspired by it. We learned that a long time ago and live by that sentiment.
Say three people in the band really dig working on this particular song, and the other two are just playing it because they’ve been outnumbered. Those two are not going to give, first of all, their full creative input. Second of all, they probably won’t play it with as much passion when it comes time to record their part. So it’s much better all around for the sake of the song, for the sake of the band, and just the overall sound of the track that if everyone feels really strongly about it, that’s going to translate to the recording process. So, yeah, it’s just really a matter of a collective soul, to steal a phrase, but it really is that, and we put all the ideas on the table and it’s like a jigsaw puzzle putting parts together. And sometimes it’s a whole section, and you go, “Oh, you know what? That lick that Ian wrote, that one in E Flat for whatever, that could sit really nicely in that song.” So, yeah, and then we just take it from there, and we decide on which 10, 11 or 12 … depending on how many tracks are on the record. Then, the next process, obviously, is honing those 10 or 12 songs to the best possible recording level and off we go. 
Was there a song on the record that was most challenging vocally?
MS: I consider them all a challenge, because I kept trying to do my style every time I opened my mouth (laughs). It is always challenging to me, fresh and whatever – a particular track? A couple of them are challenging in the sense of trying to achieve a certain thing I heard in my head, and it ended up being not as challenging as I thought. In the ballad, when the chorus hits, the choir-like voices that you hear …
“Lost for Words”?
MS: Yeah, “Lost for Words,” in the chorus, the choir there, I explained to the engineer what I was hearing in my head, and as we were doing it, we did a rough, and he listened to it, and he goes, “That’s giving me a 10cc ‘I’m Not in Love’ vibe.” And I said, “Really?” And I said, “That’s really weird, because as I was driving here, that’s what I was thinking I’d really like to achieve here,” that kind of airiness you heard in that song “I’m Not in Love” by 10cc, those voices you hear. I said, “I really wanted to get that kind of effect,” and he said, “Well, I think that’s what we’re building here.” But it was challenging to get it just right, without it sounding obvious like I stole it from that, or got the idea from there. I wanted it more to give that kind of feeling, you know what I mean? And apparently, it came across, because one journalist, unprompted, mentioned that, so I immediately said to the engineer, “Guess what? Remember ‘Lost for Words’ and that feeling? Someone picked up on it (laughs).” Someone knows where we stole that from (laughs). It was cool. But it was challenging in terms of achieving something you hear in your head is always a challenge, and when it works out, it’s great.
I want to get your feelings about a few of the songs on 20/20 and perhaps some description of how they came about, starting with “Six Feet Under.”
MS: Yeah, that was a fun song. I’m glad you picked that one. “Six Feet Under” was one of those tracks where even when I heard just the basic track with no vocals on it, it was screaming to be the first track, because you write the songs, you record the songs, and then you’ve got them all sitting there – almost the hardest part is getting the correct running order, because it’s so crucial. For example, there’s this rule that you don’t start a record with a ballad, unless it’s an album of all ballads. Then, you just pick the strongest one. But in a rock band setting, for my comeback album … yeah, let’s start with a ballad (laughs). That’ll go over well. But, yeah, it was one of those tracks, and then when I put the vocals on and I heard all the mixes, I tried about three or four different running orders, and each one of them started with “Six Feet Under.” Nothing else wanted to start the record, because to me, it was just that signature Saga – pounding bass, synth starting the song, and you put it on and you let the needle drop and you say, “Oh yeah. That’s Saga.” But, it’s funny. There’s some play on words in that song, and the title tends to make people … I guess their first impression is, “Ooooo, ‘Six Feet Under’ – that’s about being buried. This must be a really negative song.” But that couldn’t be further from the truth – it’s more like, “Six feet under? Not while I’m still breathing. Nothing’s going to hold me down” … that kind of thing. The whole record is … well, 80 percent of it is about that. It’s like, get over things and move on, move forward, be positive and reinforcing someone’s drive, and that kind of thing. There’s one line that says, “What a price to pay” or that’s what it sounds like. But actually, if you look at the lyrics, it’s “What a prize toupee.” I’m referring to someone laying on the couch, and they dress him all up and they put a nice toupee on him – little things like that are all throughout the record. Yeah, “Six Feet Under” was the undeniable opening track for sure. 
How about “Anywhere You Wanna Go”?
MS: “Anywhere You Wanna Go,” with the chorus, again it wrote itself. It just wanted to be that … in fact, I was up in Canada, not here where I am now, but up at Jim’s house, actually going through the tracks with him. It was the first chance I had to do it with him sitting down before I’d done any vocals, and he had a couple of melody ideas in one or two of the songs that he wanted to pass along to me, and one of them was the approach to the chorus in “Anywhere You Wanna Go.” And from the get-go, it sounded right to me. We refined it a tiny bit, and actually, the chorus for “Anywhere You Wanna Go,” specifically the choir chorus, was recorded in Port Stanley, Ontario, in his house … or actually, I’m sorry, his brother’s house, just down the street. We recorded those big vocals there, and when I got to L.A. to do all of the vocals, essentially, we brought up those tracks – I mean, they were sitting there as a guide, so that I would know what parts I’d duplicated. When we brought up the tracks, we realized they were strong enough that those are the original tracks you hear. I may have added one voice on each … I think there are four voices on each of the parts, but I may have added one. I don’t know. I don’t rightly remember. I just remember bringing up the tracks and going, “You know what? That sounds strong enough to me. Let’s not touch it.” Like I said, that chorus was just bursting to get out; it just wanted to do that. If nothing’s wrong, don’t fix it.  
I love the blend of heaviness and melody on “Spin It Again,” too.
MS: That takes some people by surprise, ‘cause they’re expecting [that heaviness] – especially when the verse hits, after the lick starts the song that way – but I think that’s a very quirky thing, again a signature thing that Saga does – when you least suspect something is going to happen. Yeah, we tend to do that. I like surprises, because we always have them.
How about “Till the Well Runs Dry”?
MS: That’s purely about drive – purely about passion and drive. And it can apply to … because I’ve been asked so many times – as one will, being in a band that has longevity such as Saga, going 30, 35 years – “How long are you going to keep doing this?” “Do you ever run out of ideas?” And essentially, the answer has always been the same. As long as it’s still, first of all, fun to do, as long as the creative juices are still flowing, as long as there is still something new to be done, as long as you’re still feeling creative, then forever. I’ll keep going onstage until it’s embarrassing, for example, for myself and the audience (laughs). And there will come a day, unless you don’t know when your cut-off is. Unfortunately, some entertainers don’t. It’s really about that, and I’ll keep going to the well till the well runs dry. I will never leave my sense of drive and passion, as long as there is still something to be had emotionally from what I do for a living. And I will keep going to the well and looking, and if one day I go there and I run out of ideas … if I attempt to write something and it sounds like it’s all been done before, then it’s time to go, “Okay.” I don’t foresee that actually ever happening. For me, I’ve always been in the creative arts, one way or the other. It will probably just translate to another genre or field in the entertainment business, but certainly, if songwriting dries up, then yeah, I’ll stop going to the well. I think that’s true of anybody who has that passion and drive. You keep going there and whatever it is that keeps you going, whatever strengths, whatever you need to get that strength to keep going or the passion or the drive to do it, if it’s not there anymore, then it’s time to move on or curl up and die or something.
Is “Ellery” a continuation of the story in “The Perfectionist”?
MS: It’s not really a continuation of the story, no. It’s unrelated to the story in “The Perfectionist.” It’s more a nod to Ellery and that song, and just using his name as a little “nudge, nudge, wink, wink” to the earlier fans. I mean, you could vaguely transfer it over, like, “How are you doing now? How did things work out?”… that kind of thing, but not specifically. It was left fairly vague.
What was it ultimately that made you want to be a singer and what was it that brought Saga together at the beginning?
MS: Well, Jim Crichton and I, when we formed the band, we had been in other bands, as well as another band together. I mean, personally, I had always sung. I went into a church choir when I was 8 years old, left the church choir when I was 15, as well as leaving school and home, and moved into a blues band, all of whom were a good eight or nine years older than me (laughs). This 16-year-old white kid from Oakville, Ontario, singing authentic Chicago blues – just imagine how much passion I was throwing into those tracks (laughs). I mean, I’d love to hear some recordings of that, but yeah, that was where it started. We actually progressed into kind of a more rock-y, and then rock-jazz fusion-y kind of thing. And then one day the drummer came back from the big city, came back from Toronto, and he had been to an actual record store – they still had vinyl; remember, this was the ‘70s – and came back with a record from a British band, it was an import, and it was called Three Friends by Gentle Giant. And I remember, I was home and he walked in, and he said, “Michael, I have to play something for you.”
And he put it on, and the first side went through, and I just looked at him, didn’t say a word. Then, he put on the other side, we listened to it, and then my first words were, “I don’t know what that is, but I want to play music like that.” It was my first exposure to, not just progressive-rock but also to probably one of the more ultimate progressive-rock bands on the planet. I thought, “What the …” and the funny thing is, we didn’t make the switch instantly, but it was a logical transition from what we were doing to that jazz-rock fusion thing. It lent itself to do it. And then I found out that the core of Gentle Giant was formed out of a band called Simon Dupree and the Big Sound, which was kind of a fusion-y thing. So, really, it was taking jazz fusion and adding more of a rock element to it, and it ended up being the Gentle Giant sound, if I try and dissect that.
Anyway, that pretty much put me on the road to the progressive thing, and then that band, we broke up. We did four different shows in our entire lifetime. That’s because our songs were 25 minutes long (laughs). Jim and I were in a band called Truck, which was pretty much a bar cover band, although our choice of material was Gentle Giant – anywhere from Steely Dan to Led Zeppelin to Gentle Giant. So it was a very eclectic bar band. That one broke up. I got out of the business for a year and a half – drove taxi, was a graphic artist, which just left a bad taste in my mouth because it had to do with management and being a sort of music purist, a prog snob, I hated the business side of the business and when that reared its ugly head, I ran. I said, “I don’t want to know about this.” He continued in another Toronto band called Fludd, which you may have heard of from the Toronto scene. They had two brothers – Ed Piling and Steve Piling. [Jim Crichton] was the bass player in that band in its last incarnation, and then the band broke up, and he called me one day and said, “I’ve written some songs, and I hate the sound of my own voice. Would you mind coming over with your wife? And we’ll have dinner and go into the living room and you can put your voice onto these songs for me.” I said, “Sure.” I was doing the graphic arts thing at the time and drove over, with the wife, and we had dinner, and then we left the dining room and went out into the living room, sang on a couple of songs, and I thought, “Well, that was a lot of fun …” blah, blah, blah, went home, couldn’t get it out of my head the next day during work, and halfway through the afternoon, I was going, “Yeah, I don’t know.” And I came home, and I was wearing a three-piece suit, and I said, “Who are you?” And I was thinking about the night before, and I said, “Who is this person?” And I’m looking and saying, “This is not me.” And I quit the job and I called Jim, and I said, “You want to go ahead with this, because if you do, I’m in.” He said, “C’mon down.”
So, from that, I started writing the next day, and we were using literally cardboard boxes to create the drum tracks on a reel-to-reel machine, to make sure we had drum parts. There was no such thing as polyphonic synthesizers at that time. There was only the mini-Moog. So, to create chords, pad chords, we would record one note on the mini-Moog at a time, and then figure out the chords, so we’d do the C, and then the E and then the G, and then you’d get a C Major, but we had to do it on separate tracks and then balance it all together so we’d have chords. So it took quite a long time to get the chords (laughs), but yeah, that’s where it all began. We took it from there and never looked back. We just said, I think it was unspoken at that point, but we were just going to do what made us happy for of all to play and try never to sound like anybody else, if at all possible. In fact, still to this day, if we doing any writing, we look at each other and someone says, “Oh, that reminds me of such and such,” we’ll go, “Fine, trash that part,” because we go out of our way not to try and sound like anybody else. I know that it’s going to come through every once in a while, because you cannot help but be strongly influenced by somebody and it’s going to come up. But that’s all part of your sound.
There’s a great story about Rupert Hine making you crawl up on the barn where Worlds Apart was being recorded to inspire you to sing a certain way for “On the Loose.” Talk about what led up to that and what you remember about being up there and singing.
MS: Oh, I’ll tell you a number of things Rupert did (laughs). He was so eccentric in terms of … I don’t know if you’ve ever heard his solo records, but my gosh, it’s pretty much whatever it takes to get what he’s hearing in his head. There were two stories regarding the vocals: one was “On the Loose,” and the studio itself, Farmyard Studios, the old barn is the live room, with the beams and it’s great for drum sounds obviously, and any ambient sounds, it’s fantastic. But, it had the beams and the roof and he wanted a sense of angst in that song, which you can put on like an actor does, when they play a role or whatever – “Sing this with angst.” Fine. But, you know what? To really get it right I want to put you in a precarious position, so he had me balanced on one of the beams, and they rigged the microphone up there, and you can see the picture on the inside of the vinyl sleeve – me in my beard and hanging onto a beam and singing “On the Loose” from up there.
The other thing he did on the complete reverse of that was in the middle of “Wind Him Up,” when the song breaks down and it gets very, very quiet, and there’s some very quiet singing, signing the chorus in a very low key. It just knocks it down, but it’s sung in very low-key in terms of delivery, he wanted a very intimate, “just woke up,” smoky … whatever kind of voice, not even thinking about it either – almost like humming to yourself but you’re singing the words. He wanted to get that effect across, so we did a few, and it was getting near the end of the day, and we tried a few, and then he said, “Okay, that’ll do for today. We’ll review it in the morning.” So, I went to bed, and the living quarters were across from the driveway – I guess they were the old stables, for the horses – but across the driveway, I’d say a good 50, 60 yards from the main building. And in the morning, I heard this slight tapping on the door, the kind where you’re not even sure someone is there or not. I didn’t say anything, and the door creaked open a tiny bit and in came the tape operator with a mic stand and boom. And he just looked at me and said, “Don’t move.” And down came the microphone to my face, head still on the pillow, he put the headphones on my head, closed the door, and immediately upon the door closing, I heard, “Good morning, Michael.” So, I tried coming up and he said, “Just sing when you know where you are. Here we go.” And I went, “Uh.” So it was like an eight-bar lead up, and then the tape op came in and I sang it, and then [Rupert] said, “Thanks very much. See you in a minute.” And I went, “Uh, huh.” And then the tape op came back in, took the headphones off, took the microphone away, closed the door, and I went, “What just happened?” Put my housecoat on, walked across to the studio, and there was Steve [Tayler], the engineer, and Rupert, and he said, “Morning, Michael. Listen to this.” And he played it back, and I said, “Oh my God, that’s exactly what you wanted, isn’t it?” And he said, “Yep.” And of course, preparing for it is not the same. That’s why they said absolutely nothing to me. That’s exactly what they wanted, and that’s exactly what they got. In fact, it was one take.      
It’s like you needed a stunt man for that album.
MS: (laughs) Among other things, yeah.
Was there a moment during the making of Worlds Apart where it became apparent that you were working on something special?
MS: You know what? It did have a vibe to it. I think what sealed the deal in terms of what you’re talking about is, we were sitting around working on … well, let’s put it this way: “On the Loose” was finished, except for the chorus … everything. The verses were sung, and I was still not quite happy with what I saying in the chorus. The melody was set in stone. I still wasn’t quite happy with it. So, we were actually sitting around in the lounge area and just kind of bouncing around ideas, just throwing these phrases out. And I remember the manager, at that moment … it was one of those things where he is not strictly a musical person, in terms of knowing how to play or understanding what it takes to play or anything like that. He’s not like that. He’s just one of these people, like most of the people on the planet, who just knows what he likes, knows what he likes coming out of the speakers, and it’s a pretty good gauge of what other people like. And he’s looking at it that way. And I remember he turned to us, he knew we were working on “On the Loose,” trying to get it right, and he said …and he, in fact, looked at us and said, “You know gentlemen, I know …” – he didn’t say, “I think”; he said, “I know” – “… if you get the chorus for this right, you’re going to have a hit.” And he said the whole record is starting to lean this way. “I know if you get the chorus right, this will be it.”
And he was right. We weren’t thinking, during the process of making the record that, “Oh my God, we’re working on a hit record here.” But by the same token, in retrospect, when I think back there was a definite vibe around that studio. There was some fairy dust flying around that … there was something intangible that was being attached to this record as we were making it that you can’t describe, that you can’t plan, that you can’t manufacture. There are millions of records like that … well, not millions. But there are lots of hit records through history like that that were not … a person or persons, or a band, didn’t set out to make a hit record, but it just clicked. And those are classic records. And each one of those people will probably tell you that something was going on in the studio that was beyond their control. It became an entity of itself. It takes on a life of its own, and everything you’re doing is feeding it, and you’re doing it naturally. It’s undeniable. So, yes, there was a degree of that going on, but do you think you’re working on a hit record? No, because it’s almost like you don’t want to … it’s almost as if that word were mentioned it would take away the magic. Then it becomes a thing, where “Oh, yeah, we’re working on a hit.” No, you’re just being taken in and then going along for the ride with this thing. You have no control over it anymore. 
How do you remember hearing that your debut album had really taken off in Puerto Rico?
MS: Here’s the thing … well, Germany was the first. We released the debut album, and you know what it’s like: you put out a record, you cross your fingers, and you hope somebody likes it. In fact, I remember going into Sam the Record Man on Yonge Street in Toronto. I just wanted to see it in the bin. I knew for sure that it wouldn’t have its own section yet, because it was only one record, so it was going to be in the miscellaneous “S.” I went in there to have a look at it, just to see it sitting there and be really proud. Some guy came in, walked straight past me and walked up to the S’s, found it, walked to the desk, and I watched him put down his money and walk out the door with the record, and I was like, “Wow! It works!” (laughs)
But, we were in a meeting or something and we were being told that it was beginning to sell a “significant” – that’s the word that was used – number of import copies in Germany – specifically, Germany. And we thought, “Wow!” I know that seemed very, very exotic to us – a different country, somewhere in Europe … I knew a little bit about Germany, but not a lot. And we’re like, “Wow, cool.” You know, you go where your market is. You don’t try to understand it until maybe you get there, and then you try to figure it out, and you go where the market is. You find that it’s not happening at home first, but hey, you go. At the same time, very close to us starting to cultivate over there and starting to think about physically going over there and making an appearance, we found out the same thing was happening in Puerto Rico. And, okay. The same reaction – “Whoa, that’s really exotic, too.” And then we go, “Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Why …?” Over the years, we’ve been asked many times why those two countries? What could those two cultures possibly have in common? And still for the life of me, I don’t really completely understand it. My best theory is I guess the orchestral side of the band and the use of strings, the chord changes, and the orchestral feelings of some of the tracks appeal somehow to the rich history of classical music that is just completely inbred in people, that you’re surrounded by in Europe, especially in Germany. Perhaps, that takes care of that element of the story, that’s what makes it that appealing. And because Saga is not your typical ethereal prog band – in fact, sometimes I don’t even consider us prog, per se, in the purest sense; we’re far too rock-y for some peoples’ tastes in the prog world – maybe the rhythmic side of the band is what appeals in Puerto Rico.
I remember the first time going down there, we went down there to do a concert – that was already a shocker, that we were selling enough records to do a concert on a tiny island in the Caribbean – and I remember sitting around on the beach with one of the guys from the crew, and we’re just sitting there, minding our own business. I’m trying to take it all in and makes sense of the whole thing in this Caribbean climate. And I start hearing some familiar music happening and it’s starting to sound more and more familiar. I’m trying to figure out where it’s coming from. And this young Puerto Rican, probably 16 or 17 years old, has a huge ghetto blaster on his shoulder, and he’s getting closer and closer, just bopping down the beach, and it’s “Humble Stance” from the first album. And I’m like, “What’s wrong with this picture?” It was the most confusing image (laughs), but his head is bobbing, and I’m going, “Oh, okay. It does have quite a bounce to it.” I’m not going to say it’s because of the rhythm, but you’ve got to understand, imagine you’re being told that you’re selling a lot of records in Germany and in a Caribbean island, basically a holiday vacation spot … “Okay.” That’s my best guess, but culturally, they have nothing to do with each other at all. 
What album in the Saga catalog do you think deserves more attention than it’s received and why?
MS: Well, obviously, everybody talks about Worlds Apart. In North America and in the U.S., specifically, it was big, the biggest seller in terms of profile and presence of the band. My personal favorite is an album called Behavior that we did in Munich and Switzerland, half and half. For me, it’s just one of those records … now this is a personal thing. It has to do I think with how I was feeling at the time, what was happening in my life, the sound of the record, and the vocal performance, the nature of the songs – that’s just one of those records for me that … it did fairly well, but I think it deserves a second look. The funny thing about Behavior is, I went on Amazon.ca, just to have a quick look to see what was happening with 20/20, which was hovering very nicely between Nos. 1 and 3 a couple of weeks ago, which is a very positive sign. Anyway, I went to the music selection of Amazon in Canada and found, in the progressive-metal category of AllMusic, that Behavior was No. 2. I thought, “You know what? Something is going on here,” and it was confirming a kind of groundswell that is happening for the band right now, and the nice thing about it was the strength of 20/20.
It is reminding a lot of people that we still exist … you know what? Americans are completely forgiven for thinking that we had broken up a long time ago, and rightly so. Why would they think otherwise? Thank God for the Internet. Thank God for anything that can explain that (laughs) and the strength of the new record. It’s reminding people like that that we’re still around and [it’s] directing people to older material, stuff that they may not be familiar with. And anyone picking up Saga for the first time because of 20/20 now has this wealth of older material to play catch-up on. And they’re finding, “Wow! This is great. I didn’t know about this.” Blah, blah, blah … so, it’s great. It’s really, really great. I actually think Behavior is a very, very, very, very strong record.
Now that you’re back in Saga, where do you see the band going?
MS: Oh, you know, I don’t look too far ahead. More than something that’s there right now, this record, I mentioned there’s a groundswell and momentum for the record that we’re still feeling that is fresh. Unless something drastic happens, I don’t see this new energy and newfound … I don’t want to say new life in the band. It’s just perhaps my return and the strength of the new record has sparked something that’s been quiet for a while. But, I don’t know. I don’t foresee any stoppage in the near future. I see one … at least one, two records of this nature and of this caliber. I know that it’s in us. Live, I’m having way too much fun to slow down anymore. I’m having more fun now than I did in my twenties. And I’m looking at a calendar now going, “Okay, I just turned 58. Okay.” I think there’s at least a decade in this band before it starts to become embarrassing from a live point of view (laughs).