New album and
into 2010
Asia have finished recording their new studio
album, Omega (12 tracks, ~60 min.s duration), due 16 Apr in Finland, 23 Apr in the
rest of Europe and 4 May in the
US; release dates elsewhere are expected soon. Tracks: "Finger on the
Trigger" (remake of the Icon song on Rubicon;
free
download available),
"Through
My
Veins", "Holy War", "Ever Yours", "Listen Children", "End of the World", "Light the Way", "Emily" (bonus track with first pressing
DigiPak only), "Still the Same", "There was a Time", "I Believe", "Don't Wanna Lose You Now". Further samples
are
available
here. The album includes two
Howe/Wetton compositions. The
album was produced by Mike Paxman (ex-Judie
Tzuke, worked
with
Uriah
Heep, Status Quo,
Nick Kamen) with Steve
Rispin returning as engineer and Roger Dean returning to do art (shown
here), which references the Chinese Year of the Tiger. On 5 Feb,
Wetton said on
his website forum, "Recording has officially ceased for Omega, next it
is mixed, mastered,and placed in the shrink wrap. So, apart from
liaising with Daniel [Earnshaw] and Mike Inns with lyrics and credits,
my job is over as far as the album is concerned." Later that day, he
continued, "I just got the mp3s of all the tracks, the whole album as
rough mixes, and I think you might just like it. [smiley]" Mixing began
on 8 Feb and, on 17 Feb, Wetton said, "I am told by Mike Paxman that
mixing, and mastering, will be
complete by the end of next week. I've heard the first five mixes, and
bar a few tweaks, they are superb."
Work on the album began mid-2009: in
a Sep
2009
article, Palmer said they "are just in the middle of
finishing a new Asia album." One Jul
post by Wetton suggested work on the next Asia album was to begin on 1
Sep. In a
22 Oct tweet, Downes said,
"Got 8
tracks down so far. Steve doing guitars, sounding great. CP on drums
next week." Wetton responded to this on his forum on 10 Nov saying,
"Actually we have 10 (possibly 11) tracks now. There were two
'sleepers'. GD was here today in Bomo, and I will be in Wales on
Thursday, when we will format the two (or 3) new ones."
On 29 Oct, Wetton said:
I
was last in putting guide vocals on a week ago, and since then,I know
Steve and Carl have been in adding guitar and drums, but it all has to
be edited before any vocal of keyboard overdubbing can be done. This
gives me a chance to review melodies,lyrics,write lyrics, and write
more stuff--Geoff and I meet again here in BoMo early November
for a brainstorm/update and to see what more material is required/what
do we have in our pocket? Usually around now some new ideas start to
form from the activity of actually starting the recording. I
guess the seeds of this one were sown during the last US tour, where GD
and I had 3 writing days--California,Kansas City, and
Philadelphia-we had a memorable lunch at the Capital Grille in NYC just
before we returned home to Blighty.
In late Nov, Wetton said on his website forum:
the
new
album
is
starting
to
leap,
rather
than creep (or sleep) in terms of
progress. This week I have two completed lead vocals, with complete
harmony/chorus voxes on three. It's just me, Geoff, Steve R[ispin], and
Mike Paxman in the studio--- Carl is pretty much all done, Steve H[owe]
is half done, and returns to the fold after Yes tour.
In late Dec, Wetton said, "All
sounding very good." On 13 Jan
2010, Downes tweeted:
"In the studio with Steve Howe today (& tomorrow), laying down some
axes on the new album. Sounding good right now..." Wetton has also
continued with updates through Jan, including this rather odd message
on 25 Jan:
I
can tell you this-I've never felt so detached from a record, ever.
That's not pointing any fingers, but between record company and
producer, I feel almost no connection with this album, despite having
injected a fairly considerable slice of myself into its fabric. It's
like it is evolving by other hands, and it's a weird feeling.
Followed by:
I'm
not
trying
to
scare-monger,
or
point
fingers
at
all----Mike
Paxman
is
working
incredibly
hard
on
this
record
(as
is our tireless engineer,Steve Rispin), I'm just
expressing my lack of connection with the recording, the distance
between myself and what's happening, and the fact that I will never
record like this again.
He explained further on 27 Jan:
"Oh, it will be good, alright---I don't want you to get the impression
that there are any bad vibes, there aren't. Everyone is working super
hard, engineer, producer, band, management, but I'm saying I've never
felt so detached from an album, which really should have been put to
bed by Xmas." Downes tweeted on 27 Jan: "In studio putting final final
keys parts on new Asia album." He had tweeted on 15 Jan that "Album
gotta b done by 21.02.09!" On 1 Feb, Wetton described the album and
explained the name:
it
is
the
natural
balance
to
Alpha---the
yin and yang now complete, nearly three
decades later. Despite the title of one of the lead tracks, it's
a very up, optimistic
record----but then, so is Alpha. For anyone who thinks it means the
last one, I would say "-but
then Alpha was not the first".
Wetton also described a song about
sapphism being rejected for this
album by Frontiers Records, although he would like to use the song
elsewhere at some point. A Feb 2010 report described Howe as
"VERY enthusiastic" about Omega.
Asia
is
an
English
prog-rock
band with a pop edge, always has been, and
hopefully always will be. Accessible, melodic, anthemic songs with
great playing, luxuriating in a bed of lush orchestration, with lyrics
that strike a sympathetic chord in even the most cynical heart. There
you have it, Omega is a themed album in Asia's fine tradition, without
the millstone of a concept.
The songs always have a message, hopefully positive. My songs are
almost always autobiographical, so there is hope and experience in
there, too. The lyric will never leave you on a negative thought.
The title 'Omega' [...] no more means 'final' than 'Alpha' means 'the
first' (which it wasn't). It's a great sounding/looking word, and a
bookend to 'Alpha'. In many ways, musically and conceptually, the two
albums share commonality.
With Downes saying: "We were
looking to create something different with Omega [...] the sound of the
4 band members of Asia will always have a certain hallmark when we play
together [...] But we approached the song writing with a mind to
getting a degree of variety into these compositions. Hence, you will
hear areas of textures where arguably we have never gone before."
In the aforementioned CRP...P
article, Howe answered: "There's such a harmonious feeling, so long
as time is put aside for the other things and there are still happy
faces in the audience, this could continue for quite some time." Downes
answered: "I've reached the conclusion that if it wasn't the
[original] four anymore, I would no longer want to do it."
Touring Live dates in 2010 are planned,
with a Jul 2010 festival appearance announced
at which the band plan to play [SPOILERS—highlight
to
read] Asia in its entirety. On his
website forum, Wetton described dates in Europe in Apr, Japan in May
and North America in Jul/Aug, which he described in Dec 2009 as
"hypothetical" and "my educated guestimate". Five dates 13-18 May in
Japan have now been announced, as
have European dates 24 Apr-9
May (comments from Wetton suggest
these dates constitute the first half of a European leg). Frontiers
Records later announced a US tour in "late summer of 2010". (Note Yes
are touring in Jun/early Jul.) As for the
set list, Wetton said in Feb: "We've talked about shuffling the
pack, but we'll get into specifics
once we decide what new material to play (from Omega), and see what
pops up."
Touring
in support of Phoenix
continued in 2009; the band were
represented by the William Morris agency in negotiations with
promoters.
Asia supported
Yes on a US tour Jun-Aug—see
details
on the main
Yes
page. The typical set was "Wildest
Dreams", "Only Time will
Tell", "An Extraordinary Life", "Video Killed the Radio Star"
(originally by The Buggles), "In the Court of the Crimson King"
(King
Crimson), "The Smile has Left Your Eyes" (semi-acoustic),
"Don't
Cry"
(semi-acoustic),
"Fanfare
for the Common Man" (ELP's
arrangement, with Palmer drum solo), "Sole Survivor", "Heat of
the Moment". At the
three shows 28-31 Jul, Ian
McDonald (ex-King Crimson, ex-Foreigner, 21st Century
Schizoid Band) joined the band on flute and backing vocals on
"In the Court of the Crimson King". In his blog, ELP
archivist Tony Ortiz described filming the 28 Jul show for a future DVD
release. He manned one of three digital cameras used.
Asia next headlined the Cambridge
Rock Festival in Aug. Set: "Wildest Dreams", "Only Time will
Tell", "Time Again", "An Extraordinary Life", "My Own Time", "Open Your
Eyes", "Fanfare for the Common Man", "Here Comes the Feeling", "Never
Again", "The Heat Goes On", "Sole Survivor", "Don't Cry"
(normal, electric version), "Heat
of the Moment". The show was recorded in HD
5.1 for future, as yet unspecified, use.
They played a free
show with a very similar set
in Hamm, Germany on 29 Aug, sharing a bill with Mia.
With respect to further touring,
manager Martin Darvill said this to Wetton's website in Jun 2009:
In response to disappointment
from
certain areas in the fan base, Asia has no boundaries as to where it
will visit to play. [...]
The only limits are imposed by
promoters who decide whether or not they are sufficiently financially
comfortable to offer a deal to Asia's agents.
Asia employs one of the world's
largest agencies, messrs William Morris, to negotiate with
promoters. The band is travelling many thousands of miles from
home to the venues, and between venues, and it is a precondition that
promoters are financially robust, have status, and are capable of
delivering upon commitments to enable us to bring an Asia production
from the UK to USA, Europe, Japan, South America or anywhere else in
the world.
We are sorry that some territories
have been omitted from the forthcoming Yes Asia tour. This is
because promoters have been unable to reach agreement with our agents,
or because the timing was unfortunate regarding availability of venues,
or feasibility of routing.
On the other hand, we're pleased
to be visiting new regions and look forward to meeting those of you who
will be supporting the shows.
We also confirm that the band is
already planning international activity for 2010, so if you wish to
lobby your local promoters, please go ahead.
As for set list changes, Howe has floated the possibility
of
performing
GTR's "When the Heart
Rules
the Mind".
On tour, Asia have
been promoted
as "All Four Original Members of Asia" in order to clearly define who
is
appearing; the four now jointly own the Asia name. Paul Silveira
(worked with Yes, Rick Wakeman,
Anderson
& Wakeman) was the tour manager; Tim Stark was the
guitar
tech and Ricky Nelson, keyboards tech.
On Rockline (US radio)
in Jul 2009, Palmer described Asia and Yes touring together as "a
blueprint for the future". Asked by Classic
Rock
Presents... Prog (#1, Mar 2009) whether the reunion
line-up is back for good, Palmer answered: "I think so. [...] We're
even looking at an idea of mine called Asia: Family and Friends for
[2010]." In Jun 2009, Wetton said on his
forum of this plan, "Carl has come up with an excellent and viable
idea [...] for next year [2010] which has been greeted
positively and with much enthusiasm", and then explained it would be a
UK/European joint tour featuring Asia, iCon,
the
Steve
Howe Trio and the Carl Palmer
Band. However,
it appears these plans have not come to fruition, and note also Wetton
saying in Feb 2010 that "There is no plan for any more Yes/Asia shows."
Note also that in the
Sep 2009 article, Palmer discussed plans for ELP to reform in 2010, an
idea that had been abandoned in 2009 because of Keith Emerson's medical
problems with playing. On 8 Oct, Palmer said more to
Classic Rock:
[Emerson] hasn’t been able to play
more than a 35- or 40-minute set. [...]
“The last I heard [...] [Emerson
and Greg Lake] were doing some writing together and thinking of making
an album together. I’ve got so much on my plate, but am ready to look
at any situation [...]
“I also have the idea that maybe
we could get guests singers and musicians to play with Asia, people who
have connections to the individuals in the band.
“It’d be kind of a family rock
tree, putting a show together that way. Justin Hayward would be great,
or one of the guys from Supertramp. I mean, Justin Hayward singing
Nights In White Satin with Steve Howe backing him on guitar – wouldn’t
that be marvellous?
“I thought that might be a
situation where Keith Emerson could play, and we’d have Greg Lake as
well. So we’d have those two on stage and Asia. We could play things
like Fanfare For The Common Man and Lucky Man. [...]
[...] I don’t know if Emerson
would do it, as he has an ego the size of Wembley football stadium.
ELP have since announced a one-off
reunion for a London festival in
Jul 2010 and Asia will also be appearing at the festival as part of
touring
plans Apr-Aug. However, Wetton is planning work on a new
solo album from around Sep.
Phoenix Phoenix is out
in Europe on Frontiers
Records; in North
America on
CD and digitally through EMI America Records;
and
in
Japan
through
King
Records.
(Distribution
in
other
countries
is
here.)
Tracks:
"Never
Again"
(written
by
Wetton/Downes),
"Nothing's
Forever"
(Wetton),
"Heroine"
(Wetton/Downes),
"Sleeping
Giant/No
Way
Back/Reprise"
(Downes,
Wetton/Downes,
Downes
respectively),
"Alibis"
(Downes/Howe/Palmer/Wetton;
a
development
of
the
piece
"Jodie"
rehearsed
by
Asia
in
1982),
"I
will
Remember
You"
(Wetton/Downes),
"Shadow
of
a
Doubt"
(Wetton/Downes),
"Parallel Worlds/Vortex/Déyà" (Wetton, Downes, Wetton
respectively),
"Wish I'd Known All Along" (Howe), "Orchard of Mines" (Fayman/Pursey;
cover of
Globus song—see under Larry Groupé
for
details), "Over and Over" (Howe), "An Extraordinary
Life" (Wetton/Downes). There is a limited edition, alternate European
release with a bonus track of an acoustic version of "An Extraordinary
Life", while a Japanese release
has a bonus track of an acoustic "I will Remember You". The album was
produced by Asia, co-produced by Steve Rispin. Hugh McDowell (ex-ELO,
iCon;
'cello) guests
on two tracks.
Cover art by Roger
Dean. See details in Yescography.Early versions of "Wish I'd Known All
Along" and "Over and Over" are can be heard on Howe's Homebrew 4
release.
Live releases and past touring
The band toured Europe/US/Japan in 2008 (read
my review of the 16 Mar 2008
London
show here). Several dates sold out; the Phoenix, AZ show had
an
audience of
over 1000. There were 2 sold out shows in
Tokyo, one at the
International Forum with a 4900 capacity. The set list was close to
that in 2007, but with some changes:
new to the set were the
two Phoenix songs, "Daylight"
and "Voice of
America". They
altered the set later on, playing a first set with the covers and songs
from Alpha and Phoenix, and then a second set
consisting of
all of the debut album Asia.
As part
of an Official Bootleg
series, there have been multiple live releases from the band: 5 have
been announced through The Store for Music Limited (dist.:
Plastic Head Music Distribution):
announced as SFMCD150, but that number has already
been used by Live in San Francisco
Out in UK & on iTunes
"Never Again", "Roundabout",
"Time Again", "Bolero", "Clap", "Book of Saturday", "The Smile has Left
Your Eyes" (acoustic), "Open Your Eyes", "Fanfare for the Common Man",
"Without You", "An Extraordinary Life"
"In the Court of the Crimson
King", "Video Killed the Radio Star", "The Heat Goes on"/drum solo,
"Heat of the Moment", "Don't Cry", "Sole Survivor"; bonus tracks:
"Daylight", "Only Time will Tell", "Wildest Dreams"
Out in UK and available in US; on iTunes; a
branded
USB
bracelet containing the evening's performance as MP3s was available
shortly after the show too
"Daylight", "Never Again", "In
the Court of the Crimson King", "Video Killed the Radio Star",
"Roundabout", "Fanfare for the Common Man", "Clap", "Voice of America",
"The Smile has Left Your Eyes" (acoustic), "An Extraordinary Life",
"The
Heat Goes on"/drum solo
"Heat of the Moment", "Only Time
will Tell", "Sole Survivor", "One Step Closer", "Time Again", "Wildest
Dreams", "Without You", "Cutting It Fine"/"Bolero", "Here Comes the
Feeling", "Open Your Eyes"
"Time Again", "Wildest Dreams",
"One Step Closer", "Roundabout", "Without You", "Cutting It
Fine"/"Bolero", "Clap", "Fanfare for the Common Man", "The Smile has
Left Your Eyes", "Don't Cry"
"In the Court of the Crimson
King", "Here Comes the Feeling", "Video Killed The Radio Star", "The
Heat Goes on", "Only Time will Tell", "Sole Survivor", "Ride Easy",
"Heat
of the Moment"
"Daylight", "Only Time will
Tell", "Wildest Dreams", "Never Again", "Roundabout", "Time Again",
"Bolero", "Clap", "Voice of America", "The Smile has Left Your Eyes",
"Ride
Easy"
"Open Your Eyes", "Fanfare for
the Common Man", "Without You", "An Extraordinary Life", "In the Court
of the Crimson King", "Video Killed the Radio Star", "The Heat Goes
on"/drum solo", "Heat of the Moment", "Don't Cry", "Sole Survivor"
"Daylight", "Only Time will
Tell", "Wildest Dreams", "Never Again", "Roundabout", "Time Again",
"Bolero", "Clap", "Voice of America", "The Smile has Left Your Eyes"
(acoustic)", "Ride Easy" (acoustic)", "Open Your Eyes"
"Fanfare for the Common Man",
"Without You", "An Extraordinary Life", "In The Court of the Crimson
King", "Video Killed the Radio Star", "The Heat Goes on"/drum solo",
"Heat of the Moment", "Don't Cry", "Sole Survivor"
Despite the variations in
labelling, I believe all the performances of "The Smile has Left Your
Eyes" and "Ride Easy" were acoustic-style (Wetton on
12-string guitar, Howe on lap steel or electric guitar respectively,
Downes on synth piano and Palmer
on drums), and all the performances of "The
Heat Goes on" included a drum solo. "Voice of America" was a solo by
Wetton on 12-string. "Bolero" is Downes' solo based on "Cutting It
Fine". An additional
Japanese-only released in 2009 was Best
of
Phoenix
Tour
2008.
Fantasia—Live in Tokyo (Eagle Rock
Entertainment)
is a live CD (Eagle Records, EDGCD359) and DVD (Eagle Vision, EREDV634)
mixed by the band (with a few studio
overdubs
recorded in early Apr 2007); mixing engineer was Steve Rispin. Bonus
material on the DVD includes interviews with the four band
members. A Blu-ray
version
of
the
DVD followed in 2009.
Other news
Wetton and Downes are also continuing
with
their Icon project in parallel to Asia with a third album out, which
was supported by live
dates—see
details
under Downes. Live sets
included Asia material.
In May
2007,
Payne/Govan/Schellen announced the formation of Asia Featuring
John Payne (MySpace
page), with Erik
Norlander
(ex-Ayreon) later announced on keys. Both
these groups play Wetton-era and Payne-era Asia material live. The Asia
Featuring John Payne name was
contractually agreed with the reunion band in May 2006.
In late 2005/early 2006,
Downes/Payne/Govan/Schellen had been working on a new Asia album for
InsideOut to be
called
Architect
of Time, with tracks including "City of Lost Angels",
"Written
on the Wind", "I Believe in Yesterday" and "Since You've Been Gone". Some of this material was
recycled
for Window to the Soul, although
Downes was not credited on that
album. For example, the last three of
those
songs appear on the GPS debut. In an Apr
2007 interview, Payne said:
Interviewer:
Were
some of the songs on ‘Window To The Soul’ originally planned as Asia
songs?
Payne: Yes, some of
the songs
were originally written for Asia. If they had been recorded as Asia
songs,
they would have been shorter with bigger harmonies and smoother
production.
We decided that, with a few days rehearsal, these songs could be made
to
sound very different to Asia songs. About 50% of the songs were
actually
written for ‘Architect Of Time’.
Interviewer: If it
had been
completed, how would ‘Architect Of Time’ have sounded?
Payne: It would have
been
basically in the style of previous Asia albums but we had made an
attempt
to stretch the songs a bit longer and to make the sound more retro, a
bit
more seventies. The actual track ‘Architect Of Time’ was completed with
Ryo playing keyboards, though I don’t know if it will ever be released.
It’s a very long track, about eight or nine minutes long. Maybe one day
it will be released.
[...] [Schellen] was very
keen to
play in different time signatures. Jay is very influenced by UK, so I
imagine
‘Architect Of Time’ would have been a mixture of classic Asia and UK.
After the split with Downes, it was initially
announced
that Payne/Govan/Schellen were continuing to work on the album for a
possible release on InsideOut,
but
probably not under the Asia name. Subsequently, Architect
of Time material was used for the GPS album and no more was heard
about
an Architect of Time release for a period. In
Sep 2007, it emerged that Payne is planning to release an album under
the Asia Featuring John Payne name of that name, but it has been
unclear how a
release now of this album will
handle
the use of material on Window to the Soul, or whether Downes
will receive any credit. In a Nov 2007 press release, the band said
they had
"commenced recording"the album
and in early
Feb 2008, it was reported that
Payne has been writing with Norlander.
By
Jun
2008,
GPS
webmaster
Michael
Milbourn
said, "Work on the new album is still progressing, but John [Payne]
says there is a lot of work to be done. I believe all the songs are
written. Now they are being record[ed]". In Sep 2008,
Payne said they had completed 3 tracks for the album and were
currently
working on recording another, entitled "Strange Days". Rodney
Matthews is to return to do the cover. AFJP have signed to Sony in
Japan and to Favored Nations
in the US, with release now due Jun/Jul. In Oct 2009, it
was announced that the
new album was to be called Arcana
instead, with Payne using the
'Architect of Time' name for an unrelated solo project, although Payne has since said he may use another
name.
In an Apr
2008
interview, Norlander's comments suggested a long-term future
was planned for Asia Featuring John Payne:
John
Payne emailed me late [2007] and told me that he had parted ways
with Geoff Downes, but that he still wanted very much to continue with
ASIA. John asked if I would like to join the band as keyboardist and
co-writer. [...] John and I have been writing songs for the new album,
and I'm very excited about what we've come up with -- this is some very
quality stuff. Very high energy and compelling music with both nice
melodic and symphonic elements. There is so much great ASIA from the
past, from both John Payne's era and from the 80s, I feel very
privileged to carry on with this band and hopefully move it forward
into a new era. We have a lot to say, musically, and we're all excited
to get this new music out there very soon. Tour dates are in the works
Payne himself said in Jun 2009:
ASIA
FJP want to tour all over the world but where we play is not under my
control. I would be happy touring 11 months of the year. However
touring is really expensive, flights alone for the band and crew can
cost thousands and then agents, management and promoters need
paying. Also gone are the days where record companies gave tour support
money, in fact they now try to get a percentage of the concert fee.
Since the split of GD and myself there have been legal issues that are
now resolved but it has taken a while to get back up to speed
An EP
has been recorded with new recordings by the band; tracks: "Military
Man (USO mix)",
"Military Man (radio edit)", "Long Way from Home", "Long Way from Home
(radio edit)",
"Neurosaur"
(composition originally on Norlander's solo album Threshold). Artist
recording royalties are benefitting the USO.
Release
through
Payne's
DevGel
label
(on
Voiceprint)
has
been
long
delayed,
but
the
EP
is
now
out.
Asia
Featuring
John
Payne
play
live
with
a
set
list
covering
both
the
Payne
and
Wetton-eras
of
Asia,
although in comments to a fan in
Jun 2008, the band indicated they plan to
phase out the Wetton-era material in future.
Their first ever show under this name was in Jun 2008. A 14 Nov show
was attended by Billy
Sherwood, Tony Kaye and Keith
Emerson. Govan left the band in 2009. AFJP
played 12 US dates Jul-Sep 2009, with Mitch
Perry (worked with
Aerosmith, Cher)
now on
guitar. Set on 14 Jul: "Long Way from Home", "Only Time will Tell",
"Who will Stop the Rain?", "Silent Nation", "Days Like These",
"Desire", "Go", "Time Again", "Neurosaur"/Schellen drum solo, "Don't
Cry", "Different Worlds", "Military Man", "Heat of the Moment", "Sole
Survivor". Official tour promo
video here.
Payne
also
performed
a
few
Asia
songs
("Desire",
"Who
will
Stop
the
Rain?")
while
guesting
live
with
Norlander's
the
Rocket
Scientists
in
Mar
2009.
Jul 2010 US
dates have been announced, with more expected. On to CIRCA: and related projects news On to Amazon.com
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