With the fourteenth Asia album released only days ago --- technically the fourth under the new/old lineup, but minus Steve Howe --- and considering how disappointed and dismayed I was by the previous outing, 2012’s godawful “XXX”, I thought it might be time to revisit what I consider one of Asia’s best albums, the seventh in an almost unbroken line that stretches back to their debut in 1982 and the last truly great album to feature vocalist, singer and songwriter John Payne. To my mind, Asia struggled with their next release, got it together with 2008’s “Phoenix”, did okay with the followup but then blew it with “XXX”. What the current one will be like I have yet to hear, but this reminds me of a time when Asia were a band you could always rely on to turn out consistently brilliant albums. The end, perhaps, of an era, did we but know it?
Aura --- Asia --- 2000 (Recognition)
You can say what you like, and laugh all you want, but I really feel Asia began to lose their way when they abandoned the idea of titling albums with words that began and ended with “a”. From their self-titled debut in 1982 we’ve had “Alpha”, “Astra”, “Aria”, “Arena” and then this one, after which they called the next album “Silent nation”, and since then they’ve really disposed of the idea, although 2010’s “Omega” does kind of retain echoes of the old days, both in title and quality. Now it’s probably, almost certainly coincidence, but it’s hard to argue against the fact that the first seven albums (I don’t count “Then and now”, as it’s half a greatest hits album, nor “Rare”, which is all instrumental) showed the band at their height, and even with a lineup change halfway when Payne took over for 1992’s “Aqua”, a kind of comeback album as prior to that the band had not released any material since 1985 -- again, I don’t count 1990’s “Then and now” --- the quality remained, indeed improved as the albums mounted up.
It’s hard for me to pick out a favourite Asia album. Many of them suffer from the odd weak track (I find “Astra” in particular to fall into this category) but almost all have powerful, strong ones to keep them interesting. Probably my alltime favourite would be “Alpha”, their second album, followed perhaps by “Aqua”, but this is certainly high in the rankings. I won’t say it’s a return to form for the band as the previous album, “Arena” was pretty damn special too. That album featured what I believe is the first, and to date only, example of Asia starting with an instrumental that then leads into the title track. But I’ll probably review that later at some point.
“Aura” is the first, and only, Asia album to credit only Geoff Downes and John Payne as the actual band, with everyone else who plays on it shown as “additional musicians”. But then, there are so many of these: Pat Thrall, Guthrie Govan, Michael Sturgis, Ian Crichton, Elliot Randall, Chris Slade, even Steve Howe, though I assume that’s because he played on older tracks that were used? I can’t confirm that though. He had surely not rejoined the band at this point, though he would later. Some of the above musicians would indeed join the main band and feature on 2004’s “Silent nation”, on which there would be, again, additional players.
The artwork, any Asia fan will be able to tell you, is by Roger Dean, who had created the art for the covers of the previous albums since the debut, but who would not be involved in the somewhat lacklustre and very un-Asia cover for “Silent nation”. Perhaps realising how deeply he was tied in to the band, or perhaps because Payne had been replaced by original singer John Wetton by then, Dean would return to create the artwork for all further albums from “Omega” onwards.
A drum roll takes us into a sprightly keyboard line as “Awake” opens the album, Payne singing about his hopes for humanity if only we can put aside our prejudices and hatred. The song is apparently based on a poem but I don’t know it so can’t comment. It’s very upbeat though, with restrained guitar and some fine vocal harmonies, a chorus that consists of only one word but Payne puts a universe of emotion into those two syllables. Some nice piano work from Downes, who handles all keyboard duties. There are tons of guest guitarists but no way is he allowing anyone to steal his thunder! And who can blame him? The man’s a keyboard genius and Asia would certainly not be the same without him. This, among other songs on the album, really showcases though how strong a singer John Payne is, and how, over a short period from 1992 to 2004, he really made Asia his, no mean feat when you consider he was trying to almost erase the memory of the original vocalist. And more or less succeeded. Even now, he tours with his own band, Asia featuring John Payne, and they do great business.
A superb turn from David Grant’s Gospel Choir, taking the song into the realms of the spiritual and leading into “Wherever you are”, on which Payne and Downes are assisted by 10cc alumni Graham Gouldman and Andrew Gold. It’s a nice mid-paced song, though it’s a little pedestrian after the explosive opener. It has a nice tinkly keyboard line and some
pizzicato strings synthwork with a decent rhythm, a fine solo from Payne and some crashing guitar from him near the end. Asia seldom if ever cover another artiste’s song but this is what they do next, with a version of 10cc’s “Ready to go home”, a striding, emotional desire to see one’s homeland, perhaps, starting out on a low, whistly keyboard line with an impassioned vocal from Payne and some great backing vocals too.
It kicks up in intensity shortly, but remains a slow song, almost a prayer in a way as Payne sings
”Lord shine a light for me/ I’m waiting to be born.” Powerful, stirring organ from Downes paints a sepulchral backdrop as Payne sings in almost, but not quite, a gospel style, and the choir from the opener return for a fine performance. A fine guitar solo too from Guthrie Govan, who would go on to become a permanent member of the short-lived band which would only record one more album before being pushed aside in favour of the original lineup in 2008.
The tempo rises then a little for “The last time”, with a bouncy synth melody leading us in and a busy bassline from Payne, while Steve Howe handles the guitars. As I say, I don’t know whether this is because he recorded original sections of this song, as in, it’s an older Asia song, but I doubt he would return only to perform on one track. Anteater can probably tell us. There’s a very typical Asia vocal harmony on this, recalling the best from “Alpha” and “Aqua”, and you can certainly hear the influence of the original guitarist and founder on the track. A very stirring bridge as Payne sings
”All these fields/ That once were green/ Have turned to smoke and steel/ The sun will fall, and the last moon rise/ Don't turn this tide away.”
A dramatic synth line then with bubbling keyboards in the background and a rising guitar as “Forgive me” nods back in the direction of previous album “Arena”, with a jaunty line in the melody which belies the lyrical theme, which seems to be another of Asia’s many eco-related ones but may also have something to do with TV evangelists as the line
”I am direct salvation/ Just send in your donation/ I can promise that you'll be saved” would seem to indicate. Great beat in the song and again a fine, fine performance from Payne. One of my favourites on the album is up next, as “Kings of the day” opens strongly with a rhythm that’s hard not to nod your head or tap your feet to. Some nice sparse fretwork from Govan again, and Payne sings like a man possessed as Downes lays down the soundscape against which his bandmate bares his soul.
If any track on “Aura” can be described as funky, Govan’s guitar here makes this the closest they come, but the strong keyboard presence from Geoff Downes keeps things decidedly progressive rock oriented. It’s not really even AOR, which is a label that befits some other Asia albums: this is pure prog rock. Super little guitar solo halfway through, again quite funky and jazzy, while the final two minutes or so of the song are taken by an extended instrumental that displays both Payne and Downes at their best. There are a few words thrown in, but basically it’s enough of an instrumental to me to qualify for the label.
“On the coldest day in Hell” opens on gentle acoustic guitar and breathing synth with a reflective idea in the lyric as Payne asks
”Do you remember years ago? /All our hopes would ebb and flow/ We thought we'd find a promised land /Our footprints in the sand.” It’s probably the closest to a ballad on the album, which, given Asia’s propensity for two or three on an album, is surprising. Payne’s voice is soulful as a fallen angel here and Michael Sturgis does really well on the percussion here, holding it back and making it very tasteful. Great synthwork from Downes complements a lovely acoustic guitar solo from Govan and a sublime vocal from Payne to end the song as it starts to fade out, but then ends on a dramatic keyboard passage.
This takes us into the longest song on the album by far, almost nine minutes of “Free”, which is certainly also the rockiest, kicking the tempo right up and bringing back memories of tracks like “The heat goes on” and “Rock and roll dreams”. Downes goes crazy on the keys here, squealing and twiddling all over the place, with Steve Howe back on guitar, joined by Pat Thrall and Ian Crichton, and with Payne himself that makes four axemen: you can really hear it in the guitar attack! Despite being the longest and hardest rocking track, “Free” is far from my favourite on the album, in fact it comes in close to the one I like least. But there’s no denying the energy and passion in it. I’m not quite sure why it needs to be as long as it is though: I think a five or six-minute version would have worked just as well.
There are of course several guitar solos in the song, including one on what sounds like Spanish guitar, but Payne throws down a really nice bassline in about the fourth minute too as the thing builds back up to a crescendo and heads into the sixth. I’m glad however to report that, although as I say, “Free” is not my most liked track here, “Aura” does not suffer from the “midpoint syndrome” that so many albums do. It’s consistently good all the way through, and despite the oddly pop nature of the next track, “You’re the stranger” is still a very good and very much Asia track, with whining synth and interesting percussion from Luis Jardim. Great vocal harmonies too; the song is mid-paced and somewhat restrained after the finger-blurring fretwork and speed of “Free”, but in ways it’s just what’s needed, as the chance to catch your breath after that monster is definitely welcome.
Elliot Randall this time joins Guthrie Govan on the guitar, and rips off a fine solo as the song powers along, more ecology themes in it as Payne asks
”Where the eagle used to fly/ They carve their concrete in the sky /Tearing at our mother's skin /Taking all her blood within /Remember how it used to be?” A powerful guitar then punches in as “The longest night” almost winds up the album with a strong, stirring vocal and ominous keyboard, the tempo slowing down but this is no ballad. Based on the Wilfred Owen poem, the song decries the futility of war, as Asia have done down their career with songs like “Too late” and “Countdown to extinction”, as well as “The day before the war” and others. It’s a powerful indictment, Payne giving it all he has on his final outing on the album. The closer is a typical Asia instrumental, and also the title track. It’s a fast upbeat piece with as you would expect plenty of input from Downes on the piano and keys, and flourishes from Payne on the guitar. More great percussion from Sturgis and a sort of choral vocal with the synth complements a really nice organ sound. One last solo from Payne and we’re out of here.
TRACKLISTING
1. Awake
2. Wherever you are
3. Ready to go home
4. The last time
5. Forgive me
6. Kings of the day
7. On the coldest day in Hell
8. Free
9. You’re the stranger
10. The longest night
11. Aura
Note: there are three bonus tracks on my CD, but as per my usual MO I won’t be talking about them. In addition to detracting from the purity of the album itself I find it takes long enough to write these reviews and I always have one eye on how many more tracks are left, so including bonus tracks just makes more work for me. For the record, of the three, the best is probably “Under the gun”, though the other two aren’t bad. As is often the case with additional material though, the quality of none of the three is quite up to the overall level of the album itself, another reason why a) they’re bonus tracks and b) I don’t review them.
Despite what I said in the introduction earlier, for a while I used to approach a new Asia album with the smallest amount of trepidation. Every one had been great, I would think, up to this. Surely this one will be the one that breaks that pattern? And when you’re paying full price for a CD as I used to, that’s something of a gamble to take. But I always felt in my heart confident that Asia would deliver, and they always did. I suppose it’s ironic that the first time they failed to was with a digital download, so that although “XXX” fell far below the standard I had come to expect from this band, it only cost me a dollar or so to find that out. Still, it was a huge disappointment, sort of like the first --- and so far, only --- time Marillion let me down, or when I suffered through “Abacab” by Genesis. You just don’t want your favourite bands to turn out bad albums, even if you get them for free. It’s part pride I guess and part a feeling of being cheated, even if it’s not out of money. There’s also the fear that this is the tip of the iceberg, the point at which the artiste’s material will begin to nosedive in quality and that the next album or albums you get from them you can expect all to be as poor as this one, or worse.
I haven’t, as I say, listened to “Gravitas”, the latest offering from the new/old/new Asia yet, but my expectations have been battered down after the last one, so I’m not really expecting all that much. I may be overstating the case, but I feel that after this album the shine began to rub off a band which had existed for nearly twenty years at that point, and though they achieved something which is rare enough in music, a second rebirth with the album “Phoenix” and the reassembling of the original 1982 lineup sixteen years after they released their debut on the world --- an album which still contains their only hit singles ---the only way from here was down.
“Silent nation” did not overly impress me, “Phoenix” was admittedly excellent and “Omega” a decent followup though nothing terribly special, while quite possibly the death knell for Asia was sounded two years ago with the album that marked, ironically, their thirtieth anniversary. John Wetton, far from revitalising Asia (which didn’t need revitalising anyway and was doing quite well under John Payne, thank you very much) seems almost intent on destroying his legacy, taking apart a decade of great music and leaving us with only the older albums to enjoy. That said, “Gravitas” could be their best album yet, though I think I see a pig flying … oh no wait, I’ve reviewed “Animals” already, haven’t I?
If the latest album is to be Asia’s last gasp, and if it’s anything like “XXX”, maybe it’s better they give it up as a bad job now, before we’re subjected to a string of substandard albums. Personally, I’d rather they made “Gravitas” their finale and left us with superb albums like this one to remember, and try to block out the awful memory of “XXX”.