New/First solo album from Tony Kaye!

[bondegezou]

The word out there is that Tony has rewritten, rerecorded & remixed this work in the last 10 years since the YouTube video. As he mentioned in that February Rolling Stone interview, Kaye was just finishing up the mixing.

Kaye explained to one Yes fan: "There's some tracks the same (as 10 years ago) but it is now 1 hr & 10 mins long with new music. I remixed it and it was remastered by the great Maor [Appelbaum]."

I liked the YouTube version. I think it's an ambitious and at times evocative piece. The visuals of the piece, however, completely bought into a neocon interpretation of 9/11: celebrating a militaristic patriotism and seeking to justify the second Gulf War as an appropriate response. (So, kinda similar to "The Unknown" on the second Conspiracy album.) I don't know whether more time since the events has led to a more reflective piece.

Henry

[bondegezou]

I lived through that day. It was traumatic. I don't visit the memorial. I don't watch documentaries about it. I'm sure the music is heartfelt and emotional and good. I don't think I can do it.

Sure. I think your view here and the similar sentiments from several others in the thread are understandable. I doubt Kaye would want you to re-live the traumas! This album was Kaye's way of responding to what happened, and he's donating a share of the profits to charity. It has clearly been a labour of love for him.

One of the best albums I know is Towering Inferno's Kaddish, which is about the Holocaust. I don't listen to it very often. It is not light background music. I can likewise understand if some people just wouldn't want to engage at all with that album. But great art can be inspired by terrible events, and I admire Towering Inferno for tackling the topic and delivering an album that does justice to the subject matter. Likewise, Kaye has set himself an ambitious task. I'll judge the album when it arrives, but I admire that ambition.

Henry

[aith01]

[...] completely bought into a neocon interpretation of 9/11: celebrating a militaristic patriotism and seeking to justify the second Gulf War as an appropriate response. (So, kinda similar to "The Unknown" on the second Conspiracy album.)

Wow, I never realized that's what "The Unknown" was about.

[Digital_Man]

Good for Tony. Maybe he will actually use both hands this time.

[rdclark]

Dr Torchia -- I skimmed some of her PhD thesis and it looked like a perfectly sensible PhD to me -- has written one song in the suite and contributes vocals to another. I think that's it. Jay Schellen plays drums. The rest is composed/performed by Kaye.

Reassuring, I think. Thanks. I did not know they were married. That spins things differently. Brian Wilson and Eugene Landry definitely weren’t married.

[Digital_Man]

Reassuring, I think. Thanks. I did not know they were married. That spins things differently. Brian Wilson and Eugene Landry definitely weren’t married.

I believe Tony was at one point married to(or at least involved with) one of the daughters of Chris Squire. Did I get that right Henry?

[bondegezou]

I believe Tony was at one point married to(or at least involved with) one of the daughters of Chris Squire. Did I get that right Henry?

He was dating Carmen Squire. I think they got engaged, but they didn't marry. Carmen was Chris's stepdaughter: he raised Carmen having her married her mother, Nikki, but Carmen was the product of an earlier relationship of Nikki's.

Henry

[Dan Roth]

I believe Tony was at one point married to(or at least involved with) one of the daughters of Chris Squire.

Chris' former manager was interviewed here and mentioned the scenario with Chris' adopted daughter in the '90's.

"[Chris] had terrible problems with [keyboardist] Tony Kaye. Tony went off with Carmen [Squire’s stepdaughter] and Chris found it difficult going on stage with him. He’d say: “I’m playing in a band with a possible future son-in-law who’s the same age as I am!” Thank God that Tony and Carmen broke up in the end. "

[Paulrus]

But great art can be inspired by terrible events

Hasn't Steven Wilson built his reputation around writing memorable music about less than savory topics? On tour he would often say something along the lines of "The saddest subject matter often inspires the most beautiful art."

[dropforge]

Chris' former manager was interviewed here and mentioned the scenario with Chris' adopted daughter in the '90's.

"[Chris] had terrible problems with [keyboardist] Tony Kaye. Tony went off with Carmen [Squire’s stepdaughter] and Chris found it difficult going on stage with him. He’d say: “I’m playing in a band with a possible future son-in-law who’s the same age as I am!” Thank God that Tony and Carmen broke up in the end. "

Yuck. Tony should've known better.

[bondegezou]

More Carmen Squire background: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0820084/bio

Henry

[ytserush]

Dr Torchia -- I skimmed some of her PhD thesis and it looked like a perfectly sensible PhD to me -- has written one song in the suite and contributes vocals to another. I think that's it. Jay Schellen plays drums. The rest is composed/performed by Kaye.

PhD thesis at: https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/3546/

Henry

Who plays bass?

[bondegezou]

Who plays bass?

I think it's all synth bass by Tony.

Henry

[Dan Roth]

First song released:

[arj]

Check out episode "Tony Kaye – YES" of podcast "The Strange Brew - artist stories behind the greatest music ever recorded".

https://podcruncher.co/play/4CMS

[Sean]

Tony and I discussed the album a few weeks back, along with lots of other topics.

[Crystal Plumage]

Yuck. Tony should've known better.

Hold on. The woman was a grown up lady by then and a 17 year age difference isn't really a big deal nowadays and it hasn't been a big deal in the 90s..

[bondegezou]

My copy has arrived. It's an interesting album. Kaye has talked about his love of Vangelis and you hear bits of that. It's largely "narrating" the day, as opposed to a perhaps more emotional reaction (compare Towering Inferno's Kaddish). Even without the old YouTube video, it's still quite a political album in a way. People who just want something like Wakeman's The Red Planet, it's not that sort of thing.

Henry

[dropforge]

Hold on. The woman was a grown up lady by then and a 17 year age difference isn't really a big deal nowadays and it hasn't been a big deal in the 90s..

It's not about their age difference, dude.

[BarryLI]

It's not about their age difference, dude.

Don't defecate where you eat kinda deal I reckon'.

[Splicer]

I'd love to listen but only to those songs without actual voices from 9/11 - I can't listen to that stuff. Are there only one or a few songs featuring that?

[bondegezou]

I'd love to listen but only to those songs without actual voices from 9/11 - I can't listen to that stuff. Are there only one or a few songs featuring that?

There's not much of that. I think there's only two pieces with 9/11 audio, and another with post-9/11 audio.

Henry