micgtr71 Posted April 1, 2012 Share Posted April 1, 2012 Just finished listening to Relayer this afternoon. The Gates of Delirium is a flawless piece of music. There is nothing else I can say about it. Side two is great, but there are some things that mar it a bit-compared to side 1. I love Sound Chaser and think that it is some of Squire's best bass playing. I even find the cha cha cha part ok. To Be Over has some great moments...especially the end. The song is about five minutes too long though. Still, I love this album. Thanks to the OP for reminding me to give this a spin. CTTE on deck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powderfinger Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 It has arrived! The packaging is awesome (I got the Rhino reissue with the gatefold digipak and extensive liner notes). I started listening to it on the way to a gig last night, was pretty blown away by the first five minutes or so, but then realized I wasn't ready to engage it the right way. I wanted to wait until I could sit down and listen to the whole thing with no distractions. But I think I'm going to love it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rushman14 Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 QUOTE (Powderfinger @ Apr 3 2012, 09:05 AM) It has arrived! The packaging is awesome (I got the Rhino reissue with the gatefold digipak and extensive liner notes). I started listening to it on the way to a gig last night, was pretty blown away by the first five minutes or so, but then realized I wasn't ready to engage it the right way. I wanted to wait until I could sit down and listen to the whole thing with no distractions. But I think I'm going to love it... good job getting the Rhino remaster! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metaldad Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 QUOTE (Powderfinger @ Apr 3 2012, 11:05 AM) It has arrived! The packaging is awesome (I got the Rhino reissue with the gatefold digipak and extensive liner notes). I started listening to it on the way to a gig last night, was pretty blown away by the first five minutes or so, but then realized I wasn't ready to engage it the right way. I wanted to wait until I could sit down and listen to the whole thing with no distractions. But I think I'm going to love it... Crank it.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tommy Sawyer Posted April 5, 2012 Share Posted April 5, 2012 Nice - the digipak Rhino remasters are awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bastille Dave Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 QUOTE (Tommy Sawyer @ Mar 29 2012, 05:20 PM) In my mind, Relayer is the Yes equivalent of Hemispheres. At the top of their game in instrumental proginess. Whether you like it or not, Hemispheres is Rush's Relayer. Hemisphers vs. Relayer - the epitome of prog rock values, huge epics, amazing instrumental passages I'm listening to Relayer right now for the first time (I found a vinyl copy recently, and bought it based on this thread and everyone's opinion of it). I have to say this album is WAY OUT THERE. But I love it. So prog that it's beautiful and confusing at the same time. I think I could love this with more listens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bastille Dave Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 uh...ok...so Soundchaser is a very phenominal track. My brain is being overloaded with prog musicianship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I know i'm going bald Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 The Gates of Delirium is in my top three fave Yes tracks ...which is quite an achievement given the quality of the Yes catalogue. Manic and Moving Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metaldad Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 QUOTE (Tommy Sawyer @ Mar 29 2012, 05:20 PM) CoS vs. Fragile - many epics, disjointed sound 2112 vs. Close to the Edge - huge epic on side 1, in many ways a breakthrough, landmark prog albums I gotta go with Yes on these Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rushman14 Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 QUOTE (metaldad @ Apr 9 2012, 12:46 PM) QUOTE (Tommy Sawyer @ Mar 29 2012, 05:20 PM) CoS vs. Fragile - many epics, disjointed sound 2112 vs. Close to the Edge - huge epic on side 1, in many ways a breakthrough, landmark prog albums I gotta go with Yes on these yeah, those 2 Yes albums are masterpieces, not that 2112 isn't... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rushman14 Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 still waiting on Powder's review Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powderfinger Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Apr 9 2012, 06:33 PM) still waiting on Powder's review I'm flattered I'll weigh in soon. It needs a little more time to digest. I love it, but I've needed more time with it than I did with CTTE--not that CTTE isn't overwhelming in its own right upon introduction. I can say with certainty that Gates of Delirium is brilliant. I've got that one down. I'm still working on Sound Chaser and To Be Over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozzy85 Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 Hard nut to crack... Soundchaser is psycho. Want a challenge? Love this album. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Union 5-3992 Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 This thread has inspired me to listen to Relayer. God Damn! I'm just wrapping up Gates of Delerium. That song fits right up there with my favorite epics; Anesthetize, Close To The Edge, Thick As A Brick, Hemisphers..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metaldad Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Apr 11 2012, 10:17 AM) This thread has inspired me to listen to Relayer. God Damn! I'm just wrapping up Gates of Delerium. That song fits right up there with my favorite epics; Anesthetize, Close To The Edge, Thick As A Brick, Hemisphers..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powderfinger Posted April 13, 2012 Author Share Posted April 13, 2012 Sound Chaser is finally starting to click. I'm really falling in love with the record. You have to understand that CTTE has been an absolute obsession over the past month or so, and during that period probably became my favorite album of all time. Relayer is going to have a tough time climbing out from under that shadow. But it's a different album in many ways. It doesn't entirely warrant comparison. I'm still digesting it, as mentioned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rushman14 Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 QUOTE (Powderfinger @ Apr 12 2012, 05:51 PM) Sound Chaser is finally starting to click. I'm really falling in love with the record. You have to understand that CTTE has been an absolute obsession over the past month or so, and during that period probably became my favorite album of all time. Relayer is going to have a tough time climbing out from under that shadow. But it's a different album in many ways. It doesn't entirely warrant comparison. I'm still digesting it, as mentioned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rushman14 Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 QUOTE (metaldad @ Apr 11 2012, 08:24 AM) QUOTE (Union 5-3992 @ Apr 11 2012, 10:17 AM) This thread has inspired me to listen to Relayer. God Damn! I'm just wrapping up Gates of Delerium. That song fits right up there with my favorite epics; Anesthetize, Close To The Edge, Thick As A Brick, Hemisphers..... http://builtbywill.com/bweb11/images/backpain-1292835351.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Union 5-3992 Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 I listened to it in full again today. The first half is phenomenal (I loved the random crashing of car parts). Though the other half seems a bit forgettable for me compared to Close to the Edge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goose Posted September 24, 2013 Share Posted September 24, 2013 Listening to this amazing piece of work right now...guided by this review:Review Summary: Yes's 1974 effort brings new life to the band with a very jazzy feel, unlike anything that the "big four" of progressive rock had seen yet. 4 of 4 thought this review was well written In 1973 Yes released their most pompous, overblown, and over-the-top effort ever, Tales From Topographic Oceans. Although fans were now somewhat used to longer songs by Yes, four 20 minute songs was not what they had in mind. After the commercial disappointment and mixed reactions from fans, Rick Wakeman decided to leave the band in order to pursue his solo career. This left a large void in Yes, as Wakeman's lead keyboard work was a huge part of the band as we had been shown in such masterpieces like Close to the Edge and Siberian Khatru. The man to replace him was an entirely different type of player, one that would take Yes's sound to a new level that they had not seen before. Coming from a jazz background, Patrick Moraz was not as much of a lead player as Wakeman was, but he was perfect at completing everything that was going on. By the time Moraz had joined the band, most of the material for the album had been written, so much of his influence is not shown with the exception of the frantic jazz-fusion bazed Sound Chaser. One huge characteristic of this album is that the guitar takes a very leading role along with the drumming, making Relayer the "Steve Howe/Alan White" show. Many of the sounds on Relayer are far more aggressive than previous albums with the guitar at center stage, which is by no means a bad thing. From the get go with The Gates of Delirium, Steve Howe shows us that his leadership can produce great tracks and a great Yes album in general. This opening track is based off of War And Peace, and is divided into three (or four if you'd like) large sections. Kicking things off we instantly notice a more raw sound to this cd, with Steve Howe's guitar dibbling over a small Patrick Moraz background does a great job of emulating a buildup of some sort. Jon Anderson kicks in with his classic vocals, this time dealing directly with the topics war. Throughout this whole song, there is always a lot going on. Even at slower points, Steve Howe's guitar can run at a frantic pace, and Alan White's drumming is always at a top notch level. Moraz throws in his lead keyboard lines from time to time to continue driving the song forward. Then at 4:30 we see a repeat of keyboard line, but Moraz's genuious shines and we see an awesome intro to this line. After one more round of classic Jon Anderson, we begin to enter into the "battle" section. Starting with a guitar line that we have heard already, it becomes perfect when Moraz repeats the D minor chord from the behind and Steve Howe adds just a little bit more to put it over the top. The battle section is an intense fury of music, Chris Squire finally shines in this part putting in his best bass work, and Alan White comes in full force with perfect drumming alongside some quick Patrick Moraz keyboard work. Throughout this part quick changes come along as Steve Howe will go off on the guitar with a fantastic flurry of notes that is quickly succeeded by Moraz with more lines of keyboard goodness. Eventually this all explodes into one final burst that brings up an ascending keyboard line that just keeps climbing higher and higher until it finally shifts to Steve Howe, who puts it over the edge and sends into the section named "Soon". This section is a large departure from the earlier parts of the song in that it is entire soft, but it is also entirely beautiful. Jon Anderson's vocals shine here and round off this song, making The Gates of Delirium one of the greatest progressive rock tracks ever written. It is incredibly hard to follow up a song like that, and the only track that could possibly follow it up is Sound Chaser. This extremely jazzy piece contains most of Moraz's influence on the album, and it obviously shows. We see some small improvising at the beginning before Steve Howe kicks in with a speedy guitar line, which then goes into the most frantic part of a song that I have ever heard. Between Jon Anderson's vocals, Steve's guitar, Alan White's drumming, Squire's bass and Moraz's keys, I cannot understand what the hell is going on in the verse, but I definitely love and think that it is amazing. Howe once again shows us his guitar flair with a solid solo in the middle, and the whole band shows their technical prowess in this track. Sure, the "cha cha cha's" are somewhat annoying, but it is still a great song. To Be Over is a much softer track with a lovely intro and some great pedal steel guitar all the way through. Not one member of the band really shines here until the Steve Howe show comes to town, although the vocal melodies really put a nice calm touch on the song, settling down the choatic mood that was summoned from the previous two tracks. Steve Howe comes in with another guitar solo over top of a very atmospheric backing and keeps the guitar going until some more beautiful Jon Anderson melodies come back set up some Patrick Moraz noodling, and then the song finally ends on some light lead guitar work with some almost Christmas-like vocals coming about to bring a very wintry feel to the end of a classic album. Any fan of progressive rock should pick this album up, as it is one of the two strongest Yes albums along with 1972's Close To The Edge, and is also one of the best progressive rock albums. The jazzy feel makes it unlike any other prog album and puts it above more generic sounding bands and works by Yes. Unfortuantely, this lineup would only last for this one album, as Rick Wakeman soon rejoined the band, and they began an effort to phase Patrick Moraz out of the band. On 1977's Going For The One, all that Patrick Moraz saw for his work with the band was being at the top of the "thank's to..." list. But many prog and Yes fans will never forget his great contribution to a great band. Yes - Relayer19744.5/5 http://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/11160/Yes-Relayer/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
custom55 Posted September 26, 2013 Share Posted September 26, 2013 (edited) http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w276/custom55/moorglade.gif I have a lot of history with this album. Bought it the first day it came out and played the hell out of it. The gatefold was perfect for rolling, well you know. :smoke: Steve's slide guitar on Gates=goosebumps. I saw Yes tour with this album at Roosevelt Stadium, NJ. http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w276/custom55/teresabankst_632876357036343750_yes2_zpsbcf22dca.jpg Edited September 26, 2013 by custom55 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goose Posted September 27, 2013 Share Posted September 27, 2013 http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w276/custom55/moorglade.gif I have a lot of history with this album. Bought it the first day it came out and played the hell out of it. The gatefold was perfect for rolling, well you know. :smoke: Steve's slide guitar on Gates=goosebumps. I saw Yes tour with this album at Roosevelt Stadium, NJ. http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w276/custom55/teresabankst_632876357036343750_yes2_zpsbcf22dca.jpgI get Me-bumps, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sitboaf Posted September 27, 2013 Share Posted September 27, 2013 Though I will always despise Pat Moraz for his role in ruining my favorite band (The Moody Blues) in the '80s, Relayer is undeniably awesome.Gates of Delirium is epic and Sound Chaser is perfectly harnessed chaos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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