There comes a point in the lifespan of every legendary band where survival alone becomes the story. The albums turn into footnotes, the tours become celebrations of memory, and the music itself often struggles beneath the weight of legacy.
Yet somehow, against all reasonable expectations, YES continue to defy that route with astonishing grace. “Aurora”, the band’s 24th studio album, is not merely another late-career release from progressive rock royalty — it is the latest proof that YES remain a living, breathing creative force nearly sixty years into their existence.
And perhaps we still do not fully grasp how extraordinary that is.
After the devastating loss of founding bassist Chris Squire in 2015, many assumed the story had effectively reached its emotional conclusion. For he was not just a founding member; he was one of the defining sonic architects of progressive rock itself. His bass tone, harmonic instincts and unmistakable musical personality were woven into the musical core of YES so deeply that imagining the band continuing without him felt almost impossible.
Yet what has unfolded over the past years deserves immense recognition. Beginning with “The Quest” (Inside Out, 2021), going on through “Mirror to the Sky” (Inside Out, 2023), and now continuing with the magnificent “Aurora”, the current incarnation of YES has quietly built one of the strongest late-era creative streaks in the band’s entire history. This is no nostalgia machine mechanically replaying old triumphs. This is a group rediscovering purpose.
Being part of the band for more than half a century, Steve Howe comments:
“Making this record was joyful, a chance to play, explore and give everything to the music. It’s always been about collaboration, somebody can write a song, but 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”.
When YES first began sketching out ideas for what would become “Aurora”, the process was loose and exploratory. There was no preconceived concept at the start, just a collection of musical fragments that gradually began to find one another and take form. Among these early sketches was a piece titled “Aurora”, and it quickly became clear that the name carried certain gravity. It suggested light, emergence, and a sense of vastness, qualities that resonated deeply with the band. Singer Jon Davison remembers:
“The title immediately resonated with Steve Howe and sparked visual inspiration for artist Roger Dean, setting a conceptual tone that would guide the project.”
The chemistry between Jon Davison (lead & duo vocals, guitars), Steve Howe (guitars, mandolin, harmonica), Geoff Downes (synth, organ, piano, mellotron), and Billy Sherwood (bass, backing/duo vocals) has evolved into something genuinely inspired, while the addition of Jay Schellen on drums across the latter two albums injected a renewed vitality and dynamic flexibility into the band’s sound. What could have easily become a respectful continuation instead transformed into a genuine renaissance.
“Aurora”, with the participation of the Czech National Symphony Orchestra (conducted by Vladimir Martinka), feels like the fullest realization of this era so far.
Work on the album began almost as soon as the ‘Classic Tales of Yes’ tour ended in 2024. The idea of a new album surfaced quickly and with the label’s encouragement, the band had the time to develop material organically. Rather than gathering in a single studio for months, they embraced a modern workflow; ideas were born in home studios, shaped independently, and then woven together through constant collaboration. Geoff Downes and Steve Howe often acted as the central creative axis, with Howe, as producer, serving as the point through which all ideas eventually flowed.
Some musical seeds had been planted years earlier. A few pieces dated back to the sessions for “The Quest”, including “Ariadne”, which finally found its completed form during the “Aurora” sessions – one of my personal favorites, by the way. This sense of continuity helped ease the transition into the creative process, giving the band a familiar foundation from which to explore new territory.
Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, Billy Sherwood and Jay Schellen held dedicated jam sessions, generating grooves, motifs, and rhythmic ideas that would later be folded into the album. Sherwood often describes the band as “consistently creative”, with new ideas emerging almost immediately after finishing the previous record. Schellen recalls the writing as “a continuous process, evolving alongside touring and gradually taking shape over the following year”.
As the music developed, it became clear that YES were not attempting to recreate something already known. What was emerging, and what the band did not hesitate to embrace and finally implement, was the epitome of going even further; planting your feet firmly in the past to make a great leap into the future.
From its opening title track, the album radiates a sense of wonder that only YES can truly achieve. There is an unmistakable grandeur here — not pompous, not self-indulgent, but deeply uplifting. The melodies seem to stretch toward the horizon while Howe’s guitar lines glide with that uniquely lyrical fluidity that has defined entire generations of progressive music. Roger Dean and Freya Dean’s artwork once again proves visually inseparable from the YES experience itself; the music sounds exactly like those impossible floating worlds look.
What makes “Aurora” so compelling is how naturally it celebrates the entire progressive rock tradition without sounding trapped inside it. This album understands prog not as a museum piece, but as a living language still capable of evolution, emotion and surprise. YES are not attempting to recreate anything. Instead, they once again channel the adventurous spirit to newly forged, timeless musical vision.
Let me start with “Countermovement”, a LARGER-THAN-LIFE track that I really loved! Stretching close to fourteen minutes, it stands among the finest epics the band has crafted in decades. The arrangement flows with remarkable confidence, moving through intricate instrumental passages, symphonic textures and soaring vocal sections without ever feeling fragmented. It captures precisely what modern progressive rock so often misses: complexity serving emotional momentum rather than technical exhibitionism.
So beautiful, words truly fail to describe its HAUNTING elegance!
Elsewhere, tracks like “Love Lies Dreaming” and “Ariadne” reveal the softer, more celestial dimension of YES — music that feels illuminated from within. Meanwhile, “Outside the Box” and “Emotional Intelligence” show that the band still possesses a playful curiosity, still willing to experiment with rhythm, structure and atmosphere even after nearly six decades of existence.
And this is the central miracle of “Aurora”: the album does not sound like a band surviving on accumulated prestige. It sounds like musicians who remain genuinely excited about creating progressive rock.
That matters enormously!
In an era where a big part of classic rock has become commodified heritage, YES continue to offer something far rarer: continuity of artistic spirit. Few bands in history have maintained this level of ambition, refinement and emotional sincerity across such an immense timespan. Fewer still continue delivering albums of this quality deep into their sixth decade.
Perhaps we should pause and truly recognize what we are witnessing here.
Nearly sixty years after their formation, YES are still releasing expansive, imaginative, beautifully crafted progressive rock records that do not merely honor their legacy — they actively enrich it. This is PRICELSS, existing far outside the world of ephemeral glory and the glitter of expendable musical trends. This is a testament to a CLASSIC rock legacy—classic meaning exactly what it was originally intended to mean.
It is important to note that songwriting remained a collective effort. Some pieces emerged from collaborative jams, others arrived fully formed. “Countermovement” for example, grew through shared input, while “Watching the River Roll” remained true to Billy Sherwood’s original concept as a quiet, reflective moment that required little further shaping.
When the band reflected on highlights, they tended to emphasise the album’s breadth rather than any single track. Steve Howe gravitated toward “Turnaround Situation”; Geoff Downes admired the complexity of “Emotional Intelligence”, while Jon Davison viewed each song as its own distinct entity. Billy Sherwood praised “Countermovement” as “a powerful piece, with layered complexity”, while Jay Schellen pointed to the album’s contrasts from the energetic peaks to the calm resolution of its closing moments.
Steve Howe’s production approach resembled assembling a mosaic — drawing on the inspired creative contributions of each member, directing the flow of ideas and drawing them all together into a composite whole, while encouraging and developing those ideas with the involvement of all of the writers with the ultimate goal of creating an album befitting the stature and legacy of YES.
“Aurora” is therefore more than just another excellent YES album. It is a celebration of progressive rock itself: its imagination, its emotional depth, its refusal to accept limitations. Only YES could create something so unapologetically grand while making it feel so effortless and sincere.
Many legendary bands have already become monuments while still playing.
YES, incredibly, still feel alive.
“Aurora” will be released on June 12th on several different formats by Inside Out Music, including CD, DLP, Limited Deluxe DLP & DCD plus Blu-Ray Artbook, and DLP Booklet edition, and Limited Deluxe DCD & Blu-Ray Artbook Edition.
Check the discussion about the album in our forum pages.
You can pre-order the CD, the LP and all the special editions here.
