Regardless of how you may feel about their straight-from-the-’70s style of progressive rock, you have to give Yes credit for pushing the technological envelope. At their concert Saturday at the World Music Theatre, the group will unveil a few new tech-related wrinkles for its fans.
First of all, the concert will feature quadraphonic surround sound. According to Yes guitarist and chief technophile Trevor Rabin, the sound will be a far cry from the “quad” hype of the ’70s-one of the high-fidelity world’s all-time flops.
“We’ve been working very hard on providing sound in a way that people haven’t experienced before at a concert,” he said. “This won’t be just a stereo thing with a couple of cheap throw speakers behind you every now and then. It’s going to be a pretty comprehensive and integrated quadraphonic experience. We’ll also have subwoofers everywhere. The people on the lawn will experience the bottom end just as the people right in front will.”
The other new technological wrinkle will be what the group has dubbed “Concertsonics.” In a nutshell, the audio mix direct from the concert soundboard will be broadcast as an FM signal, giving fans with Walkman-type personal stereos at the concert the ability to tune in to a special frequency to hear the sound exactly as the band’s sound mixer does. WCKG will be awarding special “Concertsonics” headsets to listeners as well.
“The whole idea is to make sure the audience enjoys the show,” said Rabin of the band’s techno approach. “If the audience isn’t enjoying themselves, then the band can’t. These things are experiments, but if they work out they’ll be incredible. If they don’t, at worst they’ll still be interesting.”
The last time Yes toured was several years ago, with an unwieldy lineup that featured not only current Yes members Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Tony Kaye, Alan White and Rabin, but former members Steve Howe, Bill Bruford and Rick Wakeman. While the lineup may have pleased diehard Yes fans, Rabin said that it was a bit of a mess onstage.
“With this tour and album, there’s really a genuine enthusiasm in the band for what we’re doing,” he said. “It’s amazing. Even Chris, who is usually three hours late for everything, has been here on time for rehearsals.”
Rabin says the band’s show will include all the material from the group’s new “Talk” album as well as vintage Yes songs. As for those who charge that ’70s “dinosaurs” like Yes are irrelevant in the ’90s, well, the band doesn’t see it that way.
“Someone asked me the other day about where Yes fits in with today’s music,” said Rabin. “I told him, `I don’t think it does.’ We’re like a pair of Levis. We’re never in fashion, but we’re also never out of fashion.”
Other concerts of note
Whitney Houston, Saturday at the Rosemont Horizon: Don’t hold those incessant commercials for “The Bodyguard” featuring her overwrought wailing on “I Will Always Love You” against Whitney Houston forever. The epitome of the pop music diva, Houston doesn’t seem to have suffered much from the advent of such would-be successors as Mariah Carey and Toni Braxton. Houston’s show will be a relatively stripped-down affair musically, with just a seven-piece band and three backup singers accompanying her.
Metallica, Sunday at the World Music Theatre: Mosh pit superstars Metallica headline the summer’s major heavy metal show. The band’s recent “Live S—: Binge and Purge” package included three complete concerts on CD and videotape, all packaged in a facsimile of a tour case and retailing for about $100. But Metallica fans are nothing if not faithful, and they ought to flock to see their heroes in person at this show. Opening are Danzig and Suicidal Tendencies.
Squeeze, the Lemonheads and Poi Dog Pondering, Monday at the Petrillo Music Shell at Grant Park: WXRT’s annual free 4th of July concert presents a typically top-notch lineup. Hopefully Squeeze will fare better playing an acoustic set than they did last time at Grant Park, when co-leader Chris Difford was MIA. In frontman Evan Dando the Lemonheads have both an alterna-hunk sex symbol and a first-class flake, albeit one who writes some potent pop-ish tunes that go down as smoothly as the band’s namesake candy. Also appearing is Chicago-based Poi Dog Pondering, whose music reflects various world music influences.
Jeff Buckley, Tuesday at HotHouse, Wednesday at the Green Mill: Singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley is getting heaps of press raves of late for his hypnotic four-song EP, “Live at Sin-E.” He may be the son of the late folk legend Tim Buckley, but Jeff’s style is truly original. And while his introspective and free-form music occasionally bubbles over into self-indulgence, there’s an original voice at work here.
Barry White and the Love Unlimited Orchestra, Tuesday at the Petrillo Music Shell at Grant Park: As with the Eagles, the Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan, Barry White was a major part of the sound of the ’70s. Who can forget White’s lascivious basso profundo raps on hits like “I’m Gonna Love You Just a Little More Baby” and “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Babe” that were designed to turn women into quivering mounds of jello? What male who grew up in the ’70s didn’t secretly wish to be Barry White-if only for a few hours? See if the “Walrus of Love” still has it at this free concert.
Collective Soul, Wednesday at Metro: Collective Soul has emerged from virtually nowhere-well, from rural Georgia to be exact-to become one of 1994’s rock ‘n’ roll success stories. Spurred by the success of the single “Shine,” the group’s awkwardly titled “Hints, Allegations, and Things Left Unsaid” album has entered the Top 20-not bad for a new act. The band’s music is a mixture of hard rock with hooks and harmonies to burn and acoustic-flavored tunes with a country tinge. All in all, it’s a winning sound.
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The Band, Roger McGuinn, and Jesse Colin Young, Wednesday at the Petrillo Music Shell at Grant Park: A great free concert with three acts whose roots as recording artists are in the ’60s. The Band sounded great at Park West late last year, playing both their classic Robbie Robertson-era fare and tunes from their recent “Jericho” album. Former Byrds leader Roger McGuinn released a fine solo album in 1991 but has been fairly low-profile ever since. Jesse Colin Young is a name you may not have heard in a while. A founding member and lead vocalist of the Youngbloods of “Get Together” fame, he has just released a pretty decent new album, “Swept Away,” on his own Ridgetop Music label.