Yes - Keys to Ascension

Rating:
Summary: Problems abound here. Blame the video Production company
Review: The Key's to Ascension show apparantly was a two night event and may have been brought together in such haste that this video suffers. There is a noticable delay in Audio and video that in some instances Jon Anderson is not in sync with his video. It almost feels like they attempted to mesh the two performances together because they had some better angles to use. On the positive side though, the live version of Turn of the Century was well done. I heard an interview with Chris Squire where he mentioned that the middle section is so difficult to perform due and the 1st nights performance fell apart. What we hear in this version is actually the 2nd nights performance of the song and they got lucky.....very lucky.....sounds remarkable. Another memorable highlight is The Revealing Science of God.....Strange though, in Many parts no one is giving backup vocals and they have apparantly have been added in the studio. To Sum up, buy it for the music content and not the video, or just buy Keys to Ascendion 1 and two on audio. David Carlin [e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: Great set of songs and nice audio mix, but TERRIBLE visuals.
Review: Keys To Ascension is a perfect example of a quality product destroyed by the over ham-handedness of an amateurish video production team. This would have been an awesome DVD if the viewer did not have to be subjected to the annoying superimposed visuals that pop up at nearly every moment. Sure, this looks cool to a lot of people, and an example of what you can do with this kind of technology, but to me it is just done to the point of overkill. It would have been much better if some other aspects of the DVD technology had been used, most notably multiple angle capability. When watching a concert, either live or on video, I much prefer to look at the musicians as opposed to cheesy visuals. And when the viewer is not being subjected to the amateurish visuals here, we are left with mostly wide shots from what appears to be the back of the theater. What few close-ups there are get destroyed in post-production, ruining what spontaneity there is. The only reasons I give this 3 stars is the set list (a dream for a classic Yes fan), the performance by the players (Steve Howe especially), and the audio production and mix, which is superb. Every instrument is well-balanced in the mix, which is something I cannot say about the House of Yes disc (just not enough low end). These strengths save this from being a total disaster, but are not nearly enough to rate this as even a good disc in light of the terrible video production. In comparison to House of Yes, I would say this has the clear edge in material and slightly betters it in performance quality, and I would recommend it based on those two aspects. But for video and extra features (of which this has absolutely none), stick with House of Yes until something more worthwhile comes along.

Rating:
Summary: Just Say "No" to This Yes Release
Review: Unfortunately, this DVD follows in a long line of poor videoreleases from this great band. I'm always excited to see a newoffering from Yes, fondly remember their fabulous liveperformances. But they seem to have the uncanny ability to release thepoorest quality product on video. Sound-wise, this disc does not makefull use of the Dolby Digital potential - not even close. Thesound is thin and uneven, with poor imaging and a diminishedsoundstage. I've seen these guys live, and the dynamic range of theiraudio presentation is always vast - none of that is evident on thisdisc. Little use is made of the rear channels for ambient effects orwidening of the soundstage. Video-wise, the presentation isamateurish at best. Far too much use is made of cheap editing tricks(ghost image overlays above or around the performers) in place of goodcamera work and quality production values. It's sad to see suchconsummate musicians and performers put out such dreck. This DVDwon't make anyone's top 10 list - if anything, it'll be at theother end of the scale. This one's for only the most diehard Yesfans, otherwise, save your money.

Rating:
Summary: 'great'
Review: Yes does a great job with a great setlist. As another reviewer stated an obsercation about other singers/musicians offstage...I disagree. I believe that there was some 'post-production' work with the band to tighten up vocals and botched notes. There are two schools of thought on this, but whatever the case, YES are playing and playing well. That's the the true statement. Overall, a great performance.

Rating:
Summary: Better mix but weaker visuals than HOUSE OF YES.
Review: I was at this show in SLO Town. I am not aware, as the other review states, of any other musicians or vocalists off stage. I admit the visuals are kind of weak but the performance and mix blow away the house of yes show. I felt the house of yes dvd had good visuals but had no bass in the mix and kept losing Howe. I feel this is a good buy, I have the laser disc and plan to get this dvd as well.

Rating:
Summary: Visual Traffic Accident
Review: More than an unfortunate pairing of brilliant musical performance with amature video production techniques, this DVD is an absolute travesty. Yes fans will have a difficult time enjoying this important live event until they turn off the picture. The Dolby 5.1 surround mix (thank you Billy Sherwood) allows the listener to enjoy this collection of Yes masterworks as they were intended - as a "total immersion" experience, but the video production itself is unforgivable.

Why Producer/Director/Editor Steve Mitchell thought that die-hard Yes fans would prefer to watch his high-school video production exploration rather than the concert itself is a mystery. Very little time is dedicated to documenting the actual musical performance. The live camera work is poor, additional footage is ill-conceived and amature in every way, and like any neophyte videographer, Mr. Mitchell over-uses every cheesey and tastless video effect available to him in his low-resolution video post-production suite. Finally, the compression of the DVD itself is atrocious - off-the-shelf home DVD-authoring software, I'd venture to guess.

The result, if I haven't been clear by this point, is unwatchable. Seriously. And I love this band. Buy it for the music. Buy it to support Jon and the boys. But PLEASE don't watch the video... it'll take hours of Yessongs and House of Yes (perhaps even therapy) to reverse the damage.

Rating:
Summary: KTA, what the Yes fans have been waiting for.
Review: A fascinating dvd that does use psychedelic montages, but also features excellent performances by the band members. There are many closeups of the individual performers, esp. Steve Howe & Rick Wakeman. Some of the visions superimposed upon the band do detract somewhat, however the artwork is normally unobtrusive. The music is extraordinary; IMHO, the music is better than it has ever been. Many individuals who appreciate Yes, will be pleased by the "classic" Yes lineup. When sitting at a concert, the audience member is ordinarily unable to see more than a few musicians. This dvd remedies that situation. The only drawback to this video is the fact that the Roger Dean artwork is not animated. Additionally, I would have been interested in seeing some other montage for the "Awaken" segment. However, it best approximates the actual look and feel of a real "Yes" concert.

Rating:
Summary: Yes - Keys to Ascension
Review: Let me start by saying, that I've been a Yes fan for over 25 years but I have to admit, that I was very disappointed with new Yes DVD. My first impression was - how could such a highly professional band as Yes hire amateurs to film their concert? And I'm not talking about sound and selections, but video! The video is absolutely horrible: angles the band members were shot, annoying and absolutely unnecessary MTV-ish nature clips, video editing. If you plan to own at least 1 Yes DVD it should be either 'House of Yes' or 'Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman, Howe. An Evening Of Yes Music Plus' and if you you still want 'Keys to Acsension' go buy double CD and enjoy live concert plus studio recordings not included on any other CDs.

Rating:
Summary: Decent concert ruined by amateurish production
Review: The program content consists of footage shot of a March, 1996, Yes concert in the Fremont Theatre, San Luis Obispo, California. Here we see the classic lineup of Yes, fronted by vocalist Jon Anderson, guitarist Steve Howe, bassist Chris Squire, keyboardist Rick Wakeman, and drummer Alan White. I say "fronted," because there are also one or more vocalists, and possibly instrumentalists, offstage. This is extremely disquieting to us dedicated Yes fans, who have grown up with a band who had up until then prided itself on performing all parts live and onstage.

The song list is quite impressive, including some of the great Yes numbers. Here is the complete list:

Siberian Khatru

Close to the Edge

I've Seen All Good People

Time and a Word

And You and I

The Revealing Science of God

Going for the One

Turn of the Century

America

Onward

Awaken

Roundabout

Starship Trooper

While this sounds like a dream come true, don't get your hopes up. The best that can be said for this program is that the audio mix is adequate, much better than that in YESSONGS and YES LIVE IN PHILADELPHIA 1979, but not nearly so good as the most recent Yes concert video, HOUSE OF YES. The video production is absolutely atrocious. Most of the shots consist of long views of the band, in which the musicians line the bottom of the screen, while "psychedelic" montages are superimposed on the wall above them. Worse, other shots show the musicians double-exposed against the artwork. There are few shots that show any of the technique of these fine instrumentalists. You can hear some great Wakeman chops, but only rarely will they show you his fingers executing them.

I found it agonizing to get through this program. I had to listen to one song at a time over a period of days. I doubt I'll ever play the disc again. I suppose hard-core Yes enthusiasts will want to own the disc, but for everyone else, I can't recommend it. If you want some good Yes music on video, get HOUSE OF YES.

Rating:
Summary: this one should have stayed in the vault
Review: I have nothing against legendary bands from the 70's getting back together to make a few bucks but I wish they'd think long and hard about how it affects their legacies. Yes was one of THE legendary bands of the 70's, a remarkable live act and probably the best musicians ever to call themselves a rock band. Keys to Ascension features the same band lineup that created Yessongs(1973), considered by many to be the best live rock album ever. So why is it such a disappointment? As a lot of others have said, the animated lanscapes and Roger Dean hokum that fill your screen when you watch this DVD are really annoying and seem very dated in the 21st century. As for the music, Anderson, Wakeman, Squire, White and Howe do a better job than most 50 year old rockers of recreating their 70's classics but something's missing here and anyone who saw these guys perform in the 70's should know what it is. Even though the dazzling musicianship is still there, the incredible raw energy this band generated on stage back then is missing. It's a little too much to expect that from 50 year olds. If you're new to Yes, skip this one and buy a copy of Yessongs to hear this great band at their peak. If you're a Yes fan from the 70's, skip this one because it will make you feel your age. In either case, don't bother with Keys to Ascension. Yes doesn't deserve to be remembered like this.