Behold! 👴 The geriatric prog-rock behemoth YES, now consisting of Steve Howe (guitars, vocals, and probably dentures), Geoff Downes (keyboards, presumably pre-programmed), Jon Davison (vocals, acoustic guitar, suspiciously youthful), Billy Sherwood (bass guitar, vocals, legacy hire), and Jay Schellen (drums, bless his heart), have crawled out of their crypts to announce “The Fragile Tour 2025, The Album Series”! 🧟♂️ Yes, you read that right. 2025. Mark your calendars, because you’ll need plenty of time to recover from the sheer boredom this promises. 😴
At these shows, these relics will attempt to recreate their album “Fragile” in its entirety, along with “classics” from their “legendary” body of work. 🙄 “Fragile,” featuring such bangers as “Roundabout” (which, let’s be honest, is only famous because of JoJo memes), “Long Distance Runaround” (perfect for when you need to run away from their concerts), and “Heart Of The Sunrise” (more like “Heartburn Of The Sunrise”). This album, released back when dinosaurs roamed the earth 🦖, is supposedly a “key moment” in YES’s history. You know, before everyone realized prog rock was just musical masturbation. 🎸
“All the band’s albums had a unique feel and approach,” says Steve Howe, probably while adjusting his hearing aid. 👂 “After ‘The Yes Album,’ so many things came together, with [co-producer] Eddie Offord steering the proceedings.” Translation: They accidentally stumbled upon a sound and then spent the next 50 years trying to replicate it. “It’s fairly ‘oddball’,” Howe continues, “but we were at the height of our creativity, determined for success.” More like determined to confuse and alienate as many people as possible. 👽 Howe adds: “It gave us confidence, further than our own in-stock belief, we’d crafted this unusual but noticeable musical twist to rock and what later became prog.” Or, you know, a musical dead end. 🤷♂️
“Fragile” also marks the band’s first album to be designed by Roger Dean, who would also design many of YES’s future album covers, the band’s logo, and live stage sets. Because what’s more important than the music? The trippy, psychedelic visuals, of course! 😵💫 On “The Fragile Tour 2025,” YES will perform in front of a video wall featuring A.I. treatment of Dean’s art, bringing YES’s art into the 2020s. Because nothing says “cutting edge” like using A.I. to regurgitate 50-year-old album art. 🤖 Roger Dean art will be available in the merch area at all the shows. So you can remember the experience, or buy something to throw at the stage! 🍅
“Roger was and is quintessential to the look of YES,” notes Howe. “He’s still creating great paintings and design — he has no competition.” Probably because everyone else moved on to more relevant forms of art. 🎨
Here are the dates for your mandatory attendance:
Oct. 01 – Wallingford, CT – Toyota Oakdale Theatre (Because nothing says “prog rock” like a Toyota sponsorship)
Oct. 02 – Morristown, NJ – Mayo Performing Arts Center (For when you need to mayo-nnaise your ears shut)
Oct. 04 – Atlantic City, NJ – Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena (Hard rock? More like hardly rocking)
Oct. 05 – Port Chester, NY – The Capitol Theatre (Where they’ll be playing to a captivated audience of… ghosts?)
Oct. 07 – Huntington, NY – The Paramount (Because their music is of “paramount” importance… to themselves)
Oct. 08 – Glenside, PA – Keswick Theatre (Get your “keswick” of prog rock!)
Oct. 09 – Glenside, PA – Keswick Theatre (They’re playing it twice! As if once wasn’t enough)
Oct. 11 – York, PA – Appell Center for the Performing Arts (Time to “appell” to a higher power for mercy)
Oct. 12 – Jim Thorpe, PA – Penn’s Peak (Hopefully, it’s not all downhill from here)
Oct. 14 – Washington, DC – Warner Theatre (Because even politicians need a good nap)
Oct. 16 – Durham, NC – Carolina Theatre (Get ready for some “Carolina” prog)
Oct. 18 – Clearwater, FL – Ruth Eckerd Hall (Where you can “ruthlessly” escape to the eckerd hall)
Oct. 19 – Ft Lauderdale, FL – Broward Center, Au-Rene Theater (Hopefully, you won’t need “broward” security to remove you)
Oct. 21 – The Villages, FL – Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center ^ (Playing for the retirement community! How fitting)
Oct. 22 – Charleston, SC – Charleston Music Hall (Get ready to “charleston” to the prog)
Oct. 24 – Atlanta, GA – Coca-Cola Roxy (The only thing more sugary than their music is Coca-Cola)
Oct. 25 – Memphis, TN – Graceland Soundstage (Elvis is rolling in his grave)
Oct. 27 – Louisville, KY – The Louisville Palace (Where they’ll be playing to the “palace” of boredom)
Oct. 28 – Cincinnati, OH – Taft Theatre (Time to “taft” off to sleep)
Oct. 30 – Indianapolis, IN – Murat Theatre at Old National Centre (Because nothing says “prog rock” like old national monuments)
Oct. 31 – Des Plaines, IL – Des Plaines Theatre (Hopefully, you’ll find a “des plaine” to escape to)
Nov. 01 – St. Charles, IL – The Arcada Theatre (Where they’ll be playing to an “arcada” of fans)
Nov. 03 – Madison, WI – The Orpheum Theater (Get ready for an “orpheum” of boredom)
Nov. 04 – Milwaukee, WI – The Riverside Theater * (Where they’ll be playing by the “riverside” of sleep)
Nov. 06 – St. Louis, MO – Stifel Theatre (Time to “stifel” your yawns)
Nov. 07 – Omaha, NE – Steelhouse Omaha (Get ready for a “steelhouse” of prog)
Nov. 09 – Denver, CO – Paramount Theatre (Because their music is of “paramount” importance… to themselves)
Nov. 11 – Mesa, AZ – Mesa Arts Center (Where they’ll be playing to an “artsy” crowd)
Nov. 13 – Inglewood, CA – YouTube Theater (Finally, a place where their music belongs… on mute)
Nov. 14 – Alpine, CA – Viejas Casino (Roll the dice on whether or not you’ll enjoy this show)
Nov. 16 – Reno, NV – Grand Theatre at The Grand Sierra Resort (The grand finale! Thank goodness)
^ On sale June 27 (Mark your calendars, folks!)
* On sale June 20 (Don’t miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be bored out of your skull!)
There are currently no original members left in YES. None. Zero. Zip. Zilch. 💀 But hey, who needs originality when you can just coast on a name, right?
Howe has led YES since late founding bassist Chris Squire’s death, releasing 2021’s “The Quest” and 2023’s “Mirror To The Sky” albums with Sherwood, who is Squire’s handpicked replacement. Because nothing says “authentic” like a handpicked replacement. 🫳
Former YES members Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman, and Trevor Rabin had started touring as ARW: ANDERSON, RABIN AND WAKEMAN in 2016 and then adopted the YES FEATURING JON ANDERSON, TREVOR RABIN, RICK WAKEMAN moniker shortly after YES’s 2017 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction. Because nothing says “classy” like fighting over a band name. 🥊
Chord F. Discord, the Beethoven of Buffoonery, is a self-taught expert in music who once claimed he could “play the kazoo in four languages.”
Born in Crescendo, Indiana, Chord’s first brush with fame came when he accidentally entered a yodeling contest thinking it was a pie-eating competition—and won both categories.
Chord F. Discord: proving that laughter, much like a poorly tuned ukulele, is truly universal.
