YES – Aurora Album Review
A Beautiful, Uplifting New Chapter From A Band Still Moving Forward
This is a very special one for me. YES are not just another progressive rock band in my collection; they are part of the fabric of my musical life. I first saw them in 1977 on the Going For The One tour at Stafford Bingley Hall, and I have been with them ever since — from The Yes Album through all the different chapters, line-ups, reinventions and musical journeys that have followed.
To now be here in 2026, reviewing a brand new YES album, having interviewed Steve Howe, Geoff Downes and Jon Davison for Now Spinning Magazine, feels genuinely humbling. It also makes this review feel personal, because Aurorais not just another late-career album by a legendary band. For me, this is the strongest album YES have made in this current era.
I am going to push the boat out here: I think Aurora is the best album from this line-up so far.
It is beautiful, uplifting, positive and full of light. In many ways, it feels like exactly the album we need at this point in time.
YES themselves describe Aurora as an album that emerged from loose, exploratory ideas rather than a fixed concept, with fragments gradually finding their shape and becoming part of a cohesive whole. That really comes across in the listening experience. There is no sense of a band trying to recreate the past, but there is absolutely the spirit of YES running through it — the melodic optimism, the instrumental colour, the vocal layering, the shifts in mood, and that sense of movement towards something bigger than the song itself.
The current YES line-up is Steve Howe on guitars and vocals, Geoff Downes on keyboards, Jon Davison on vocals, guitars and keyboards, Billy Sherwood on bass and vocals, and Jay Schellen on drums. The Czech National Symphony Orchestra also appears on the album, and the orchestral textures are not just decorative; they feel woven into the music.
That is one of the great strengths of Aurora. The orchestra does not sit on top of the band. It becomes part of the same musical landscape.
Aurora
The title track opens the album in cinematic fashion. There is beautiful piano, an orchestral sweep, and then Steve Howe’s guitar enters with that unmistakable tone and touch. It feels expansive straight away.
Jon Davison’s vocal floats across the verses, and the chorus has a positive, uplifting quality that feels completely in tune with the title of the album. This is light breaking through the clouds. It may sound poetic, but the phrase I wrote down while listening was: “a summer’s day in the darkest of winters.” That is what this track feels like.
There are moments of jazz-inflected guitar, synth textures from Geoff Downes, and strings that move with the band rather than simply decorating the arrangement. Billy Sherwood’s bass is strong throughout, locked tightly with Jay Schellen’s drums, and Steve Howe’s production gives the whole piece a lovely sense of space.
This is one of those YES tracks where you can imagine the live version opening up even further. The final section has that feeling of a piece that could stretch, breathe and take on a life of its own on stage.
Turnaround Situation
“Turnaround Situation” is written by Jon Davison, and it is a real reminder of what he brings to this band. He has now been with YES for well over a decade, and the enthusiasm, warmth and positivity in his voice remain such an important part of this current era.
This song has a lovely feel — bright, melodic and rhythmically engaging, with guitars dancing around the vocal. There is a slight funkiness to parts of it, but it still sounds completely like YES.
That is one of the key things about Aurora. It sounds like YES, but it does not feel like a band trapped by its own history. Progressive rock should not simply be a template. You should not always be able to predict what is coming next. This album moves forward while retaining the personality and spirit of the band.
Love Lies Dreaming
“Love Lies Dreaming” brings in more of Steve Howe’s acoustic and classical guitar textures. This is pastoral, uplifting and full of colour. It has that English countryside feel, but with something slightly more expansive and European in its orchestral flavour.
There are lovely bass lines, melodic vocal sections and a sense of effortlessness. The music is complex in places, but the performance never sounds laboured. It feels as though all five members are completely connected — like the fingers of one hand moving together.
That sense of unity is one of the things that makes Aurora so strong. Every track has its own character, but nothing jars. The whole album flows like one journey.
Counter movement
“Countermovement” is the epic of the album, running at nearly fourteen minutes. On the vinyl edition, it takes up the whole of side two, and it absolutely earns that space.
It begins with an upbeat feel, dramatic chords and some great slide guitar from Steve Howe. Steve also takes the lead vocal at the start, and it works beautifully. His voice sounds natural and characterful, and when he and Jon Davison sing together, the blend is very effective.
This is a track that rewards active listening. Put the phone down, stop scrolling, and let the music take you somewhere.
Around the middle section, you start to hear little echoes of classic YES — not in a copyist way, but as if familiar shapes are appearing through the curtains. There are guitar motifs, vocal textures and moments where the music brushes against the spirit of The Yes Album era, particularly in the way the vocals become part of the instrumentation.
Lyrically, “Countermovement” feels very connected to the modern world, especially in its observations around AI, identity and what happens when technology starts to chip away at our sense of humanity. This is a theme I found especially powerful. Machines do not breathe. Human beings make mistakes, feel things, create things and sometimes get things wrong — and that is part of what makes music so important.
Musically, the track moves through classical guitar, jazz-fusion sections, stop-start grooves, biting guitar work and atmospheric synth passages. Nothing feels surplus to requirements. It is one of the best things YES have done for years, and for me, it is a future classic.
Ariadne
“Ariadne” begins with the orchestra and has a very classical feel before the band enters and the whole thing opens up. The strings are strong, rhythmic and beautifully integrated, and when YES join the arrangement, the sound becomes huge.
There are moments here that reminded me of the atmosphere of Going For The One — not the title track specifically, but the overall feeling of that album: bright, spacious, melodic and full of momentum.
The orchestral arrangement is superb, and Steve Howe’s guitar work is equally strong. This is one of the pieces where Aurora really shows how well the band and orchestra are working as one.
All Hands On Deck
“All Hands On Deck” is only just over three minutes long, but there is a lot packed into it. It may also contain one of the heaviest guitar sounds Steve Howe has had on a YES record for quite some time.
It has a jazz-rock feel, a strong melodic centre, a cool keyboard solo and some excellent dual vocal work from Steve and Jon. It is short, sharp and intense — a compact burst of another side of YES’s personality.
Outside The Box
“Outside The Box” is one of my favourite pieces on the album. It almost works as an instrumental, even though there are vocals, because the vocals are largely wordless and used as another instrument.
This is something YES have always done brilliantly — voices becoming part of the arrangement rather than simply carrying lyrics. The harmonies weave in and out of the music, creating something instantly recognisable as YES.
There are exciting instrumental sections, heavier guitar moments and a very expressive synth solo. It is a composition full of feel and character.
Emotional Intelligence
“Emotional Intelligence” opens with a lovely vocal over piano and acoustic guitar before the full band enters. The chorus is uplifting, the bass and drums are again beautifully locked in, and there is some wonderful pedal steel guitar from Steve Howe.
Jon Davison’s vocal here is pure and clear, and the song adds another emotional shade to the album without breaking its flow.
Jambustin’ and Watching The River Roll
The final two tracks are listed as bonus tracks, but I do not hear them that way. To me, they belong to the family of Aurora. They do not dilute the album or feel like extras tacked on at the end.
“Jambustin’” is one of the most enjoyable tracks here. It starts with an almost rock and roll energy, before moving into unexpected instrumental sections. The lyrics are observational and very much of our time, with lines about trolls, fame, fear and identity. It is clever, quirky and full of life, with a little touch of late-70s YES eccentricity.
“Watching The River Roll,” written by Billy Sherwood, closes the album with a lovely rolling rhythm, strummed guitars and synth textures. It is positive, gentle and reflective, and it fades away in a way that feels completely natural.
One of the most impressive things about Aurora is that even when different members bring in different songs or ideas, you do not feel the joins. Everything becomes “YES-ified” — and yes, that is now a word.
The Vinyl, Pressing and Presentation
The black vinyl gatefold edition is beautifully presented, and InsideOutMusic deserve real praise here. The pressing is superb. With YES music, you need a quiet pressing because there are so many moments of space — isolated piano notes, acoustic guitar details, atmospheric pauses and dynamic shifts. Any clicks or pops would stand out immediately.
On my copy, I took the records out, put them straight on, and they played perfectly.
InsideOutMusic also continue to use poly-lined inner sleeves and package their vinyl with real care. The records are placed outside the main sleeve during shipping, which helps prevent seam splits. This may sound like a small detail, but for physical music collectors it matters.
There is also a deluxe edition with Blu-ray, including Dolby Atmos, 5.1 surround and 24-bit stereo mixes. This is an album that feels made for surround sound. With the orchestral arrangements, acoustic textures, keyboard layers and vocal harmonies, I can only imagine how immersive the Atmos mix will be.
Aurora is a stunning album.
It is uplifting, beautifully produced, full of melody and light, and it shows a band still creating, still exploring and still moving forward. This is not YES trying to become a museum piece. This is YES in 2026, carrying their history with them but still looking ahead.
For me, this is the strongest album from the current era of the band. I have enjoyed the recent YES albums, but Aurorasits at the top.
It is joyous, positive and deeply musical. It feels like taking your medicine — but in the best possible way. It lifts you up. It brings a smile to your face. It invites you to sit down, stop rushing, pour a cup of tea — because tea goes very well with progressive rock — and lose yourself in the music.
Aurora by YES is out now, and it is stunning
Phil Aston | Now Spinning Magazine
