MUSIC REVIEW: Yes - Aurora

Дата публикации: 05-05-2026 21:45:48

24th studio album from prog legends.

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All bands have their own sound. Yes and Pink Floyd are perhaps the best and longest-running examples of that idea—and the Floyd stepped away from new music in the early 90s.

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Aurora, the 24th studio album from Yes, picks up where 2023’s Mirror to the Sky left off. This time around, the band leans more into radio-length songs rather than the sprawling prog epics that built their legacy. The title track and first single, Aurora, stands out as one of the strongest pieces on the album, set for release June 12.

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The signature elements are still there: the echo of Chris Squire’s bass tone, soaring vocals, Steve Howe’s intricate guitar work, and rich keyboard textures. With Squire long gone, Howe, Geoff Downes, and Billy Sherwood now carry the veteran core. Since 2011’s Fly From Here, the band has been building what feels like a third—or even fourth—chapter. The Roger Dean artwork remains, and with Howe and Downes’ Asia connection, there’s still creative fuel in the tank.

At 7:25, Aurora is the second-longest track and a strong blend of prog structure, guitar phrasing, and orchestral sweep. It avoids the usual pitfalls of longer tracks—never feeling repetitive or bogged down.

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Turnaround Situation follows. Downes’ influence is clear; he’s arguably one of the most important pop writers of the past 40 years. The intro is a bit uncertain, but once the full band kicks in, it lands as a classic Yes track—lush, layered, maybe even a touch crowded. Still, each instrument is distinguishable, and it fits the band’s tradition of building songs around a strong central phrase: “turn around.”

The opening stretch of songs is as strong as anything on Mirror to the Sky, and recalls moments from Drama or Relayer.

Love Lies Dreaming comes next and feels like another potential single—especially if trimmed slightly at the front. Howe’s guitar work stands out, even alongside some unusual instrumentation choices. Structurally, it’s one of the most 70s-evoking tracks here. The melody carries it forward before the band stretches out midway through.

Across the last three studio albums, Heaven and Earth, The Quest, Mirror to the Sky, and now Aurora, Yes continues to lean into an almost otherworldly tone—arguably even more so than in their early years. This is, after all, the band that gave us Starship Trooper.

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There’s also a case to be made that the band should rethink its live approach. Rather than leaning heavily on legacy albums, why not flip it—play the new record front to back, then follow with a greatest hits set? With artists like Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, The Rolling Stones, and Peter Gabriel all releasing new material, there’s precedent.

The centerpiece for longtime fans is Countermovement, a nearly 14-minute track that lands fourth in the lineup. This is Yes in its comfort zone—expansive, exploratory, and rooted in the tradition of Close to the Edge and Tales from Topographic Oceans. It highlights one of the band’s enduring strengths: collaboration. These songs feel built, not assembled—discovered through playing rather than dropped in as pre-finished ideas.

If there’s a cut to be made, though, it’s Ariadne. The orchestration and musicianship are solid, but the lyrics lean overly dramatic, bordering on cliché. At times, it feels unintentionally theatrical. It comes across as an old Saturday Night Live skit – Red Ships of Spain with Will Ferrell and Alec Baldwin.

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All Hands on Deck kicks in with energy before settling into familiar Yes territory, with some of the strongest Asia-like influences on the record. It’s a strong, accessible track and an obvious single. The back half of the album leans more heavily into shorter, radio-friendly material—and it works. Outside the Box, an instrumental, is a welcome shift.

Emotional Intelligence stands out as one of the most modern-feeling tracks—arguably the most “2026” piece here. It’s also one of the strongest, balancing complexity with accessibility. There’s even a version of it that could work stripped down to acoustic and piano, though it already carries plenty of layered guitar work.

Downes has pointed to the song as a highlight, while Sherwood has praised Countermovement for its scope and depth. Howe, now both guitarist and producer, emphasizes that Aurora is a true group effort:

“Until everybody puts their contribution in, it isn’t really a Yes song. We’re not trying to echo the past—we’re carrying the spirit of Yes forward and turning it into something new.”

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At just under 50 minutes (excluding bonus tracks), Aurora is relatively tight by Yes standards. Trim Ariadne, and you might be looking at their strongest studio album in 30 to 35 years.

Readers: Steve Howe and Geoff Downes, in addition to being members of Yes, also co-founded the supergroup Asia in the early 1980s. Downes is also one half of The Buggles – the first band on MTV. If you could ask either Downes or Howe a question or two – what would it be?

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