CD Reviews July CD YOSO - 'Elements' (Frontiers Records)
| YOSO - 'Elements' (Frontiers Records) |
 |
 |
| CD Reviews |
| Written by Russ P |
| Saturday, 03 July 2010 05:30 |
 My first reaction when our own Johnny H told me about a new 'supergroup' consisting of members from Toto and Yes called YOSO was that he was bullshitting me. I was less surprised at the collaboration than the name itself. YOSO. That had to be a joke. It's the kind of name that tribute bands choose in order to avoid getting into legal difficulties. But, alas it's true, it's no joke.The merging of Toto and Yes comes down to two original members of each band. Bobby Kimball was perhaps Toto's most well-known singer having provided vocals on the first four albums including the Grammy Award-winning and international smash 'Toto IV'. Kimball did return to the Toto fold in the late 90s where he remained until the band broke up. Meanwhile Tony Kaye, original keyboardist in Yes, played on the first three Yes albums before being replaced by Rick Wakeman. Kaye, like Kimball, returned to his former band many years later most notably playing on '90125'. However I won't go into any further discussion on the Yes family tree as it's quite impossible to follow - I don't think that even the band themselves can quite work out all the permutations. Oh yeah, YOSO bassman Billy Sherwood also played with Yes in the 90s and I don't think he had a clue what his role in the band was either. And, talking of tribute bands, YOSO's touring line-up is indeed rounded out with drummer Scott Conner and guitarist Johnny Bruhns who each come from tribute bands - Genesis and Yes respectively. The album starts slickly. Which in this case can be read as both musically competent and conversely as slippery as an oil spill. 'Path To Your Heart' certainly has the trade-mark studio musician sound that so defined Toto. The solo by guitarist Johnny Bruhns illustrates this to good effect. But the song wavers unsteadily from the off with an uninviting jazzy melody that undermines the musical confidence. By the chorus the band finally hit the spot and finally deliver the expected goods. Second song in 'Where You'll Stay' seems a little misplaced to me and would've suited being placed later in the album. As it is this album is finding it hard to transition from strolling pace to jogging pace let alone running pace. 'Walk Away' is more like it. It has a 'Rosanna'-type swing to it overlaid with a more typically Yes guitar line. It sets out their stall perfectly as a Toto-Yes hybrid. Johnny Bruhns turns out a solid and dependable Lukather-esque solo and all is right with the world. Follow-up track 'The New Revolution' proves to be the best song on the album. It's the rockiest on the album and it has the driving force that permeated so much of Toto's 'Isolation'. Billy Sherwood takes the lead vocals on 'To Seek The Truth' a slow number that is not a million miles away from Sabbath's…wait for it…don't get too excited…Sabbath's 'No Stranger To Love'. Or should that read Black Sabbath featuring Tony Iommi? Sorry to get you so excited. I apologise. Anyway Billy Sherwood sounds remarkably similar to Gary Jules on this one - he has that kind of vulnerability to his voice. 'YOSO' starts off with what I consider to be typically Trevor Rabin-era Yes harmonies and is indeed a bit of a Yes-fest all-around. And, as much as I hate self-referential song titles it is one of the more sing-along songs on this album. Addictively so. 'Close The Curtain' and 'Only One' are further examples of the Toto-Yes hybrid where both influences are equally present. The remainder of the album see-saws between Yes and Toto-sounding songs which is sure to be good news for fans of both Kimball and Kaye which, incidentally, sounds a lot smarter than YOSO. The bonus CD features live recordings of YOSO, Yes and Toto songs including 'Owner Of A Lonely Heart', 'Rosanna' and 'White Sister'. 'Hold The Line' also makes an appearance and it's hard not to smile if you're a rock dinosaur like me. The word 'supergroup' is always to be viewed suspiciously. Sometimes it works as in the case of Them Crooked Vultures and sometimes it doesn't. Unfortunately with YOSO the giant shadows of Toto and Yes will continue to shade this band for many years to come. www.yosohq.com www.frontiers.it
|