The Gates of Delirium takes up side one on Yes's Relayer album. It is based on Tolstoy's War and Peace, although I sometimes interpret it as the listener being in a near state of delirium due to the often incomprehensible lyrics of many Yes songs. I am a fan of Yes, but I just say no to lots of other prog rock, like ELP, Gentle Giant, and Van Der Graaf Generator. Much of it is over the top pretentious. I think Yes added enough rock elements to their music to keep me interested, in spite of their esoteric lyrics. Do you know who was a big prog rock fan? Sherman Hemsley, the actor who played George Jefferson. 😲
This song curves through lots of little sections. The music is generally excellent, although there are a few brief detours into twee elf music here and there, particularly in Patrick Moraz's keyboards during the opening five minutes; e.g., the 0:54 mark (little elves dancing about?), 2:20-2:30; and Jon Anderson's little hobbit vocals.
But this is all kind of nit-picky. I think it's a brilliant composition, a showcase for the musicians, particularly Steve Howe and Chris Squire, and it contains a number of interesting and/or transcendent passages. Here are some of the parts that appeal to me:
1) Steve Howe's guitar during the beginning, from 0:11-0:25 - the harmonics mixed with fast picked runs.
2) From 1:51-2:02, this sudden haltingly spazzo section of guitar and bass. It just pops up from nowhere, a bridge to the opening verse:
Stand and fight we do consider
Reminded of an inner pact between us
3) 4:53-5:45 - excellent interplay between Howe and Squire during this part.
4) 6:45-7:30 - the same as 3) but here Alan White's drums have a cool hook up with the bass.
5) 8:04-10:21 - part one of the 'battle' sequence, lots of great guitar parts, drums and bass, although the keyboards can be a bit annoying.
6) 10:21-12:38 - part two of the 'battle' sequence, not as good as part one, but more sinister elements, interesting sound effects, a woozy swaying section.
7) 12:39-14:50 - this part kicks off with a mighty Alan White drum flourish, gathering everything in for a final statement on the battle scene. The keyboards swoop up and down with pitch bends and phasing. Steve Howe's slide guitar knocks the keys away at 13:44, playing the same melody as the keyboards, Chris Squire jamming his bass in there too, rising and falling.
By 14:50, the field is strewn with bodies from the intense fighting. The survivors stumble around, blinking and disoriented as first light appears at 16:07. This is the beginning of 'Soon', the final section of the song, which was released on its own as a single. It is an achingly gentle prayer for peace. Steve Howe plays a volume pedal with delay on the guitar to create the plaintive mewing. Patrick Moraz layers it all with mellotron.
Soon oh soon the light, pass within and soothe this endless night...
8) Finally, I love Howe's steel pedal guitar at 20:32 and 20:58. Nice little guitar moments at the end of the song.
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