Album Review #1 Asia - Asia (1982)
Album Review #1
Artist:
Asia
Album: Asia
Year of Release:
1982
Grade: 5/5
Band Members
John Wetton (Bass, Vocals)
Steve Howe (Guitar)
Geoff Downes (Keyboards)
Carl Palmer (Drums)
Background
To be honest, this album came out of the blue for
me. I was heavily into music – primarily
in the standard rock vein. The term
supergroup was tossed around at the time but to be honest, the only one of the
band members that I had heard of previously was Carl Palmer (of Emerson, Lake,
& Palmer fame). Joining him were
guitarist Steve Howe (of Yes), Geoff Downes (of Yes and The Buggles), and John
Wetton (of King Crimson, UK, Uriah Heep, and Roxy Music).
This was the biggest selling album of 1982 in the US.
Track Listing
1.
Heat Of The Moment (Wetton, Downes)
2.
Only Time Will Tell (Wetton, Downes)
3.
Sole Survivor (Wetton, Downes)
4.
One Step Closer (Wetton, Howe)
5.
Time Again (Wetton, Downes, Howe, Palmer)
6.
Wildest Dreams (Wetton, Downes)
7.
Without You (Wetton, Howe)
8.
Cutting It Fine (Wetton, Downes, Howe)
9.
Here Comes The Feeling (Wetton, Howe)
10.
Ride Easy ** (Wetton, Howe)
** B side later added as a Bonus track
Review
Looking at the background of these members, it pretty
much screams “PROGRESSIVE ROCK” but in actuality, it was melodic rock with
sprinkles of progressive rock without all of the excesses of prog rock. The opening track starts with the huge hit “Heat
Of The Moment”. With its fantastic
guitar riff that almost everyone recognizes these days, the vocals surprise
everyone with Wetton’s great voice that were often hidden or not prioritized in
his previous stints as lead singer in King Crimson and to some extent UK. The interplay between guitar, keyboards, and
vocals is a huge strength and punctuated with Palmer’s drums. This is Asia’s biggest and most well-known
song.
Rolling right from Heat Of The Moment, it continues on
with the keyboard driven (and second single) “Only Time Will Tell” with
drums and guitar filling out nicely. It
starts with a rocking introduction but then drops down to almost a ballad
without feeling like a ballad before getting back to its rock roots. The song itself is almost a sequel to “Heat
Of The Moment” where the singer apologized for his bad behavior to “Only Time
Will Tell” where the singer warns the departing lover that the grass isn’t always
greener. The flow from rock to ballad
and back and forth really makes this a great gripping song.
The third song (and third single) off the album is “Sole
Survivor”. I used to love this song
but as time has gone on, I am less thrilled by it. It is a crowd favorite in concert. I remember
it got lots of airplay when it came out.
It definitely has a more prog/pop feel to it. The instrumentation leans more prog while the
vocals are more poppy.
The next song is “One Step Closer”. It seems to be a heavy Steve Howe influenced
song with lots of guitar focused (and a little showy in my opinion). Wetton’s vocals turn this song from album
filler to a decent song. The guitar
playing feels like discarded Yes riffs. Downes
quiet keyboards also provide an additional layer to the song. It isn’t a bad song but after the three
previous songs, it feels like a let down or maybe a breather.
The fifth song is the dynamic and powerful “Time Again”. Everything lacking on “One Step Closer” is
thrown in your face on this track. Lots
of great guitar, pounding drums, with the keyboard highlighted in riffing with
the Howe’s guitar. Wetton’s vocals are
more “angry” than on other tracks but that is the nature of this song and plays
well. Howe’s guitar solo is the middle
of the song is very intricate and adds another texture to the song. The harmonies on the chorus really stand out
in a great way.
The next song is another powerful song called “Wildest
Dreams”. This is somewhat an
anti-war song about the powerful elite of politicians and generals sending
soldiers into war and fighting that war over the media (TV) then abandoning
those same soldiers and civilians. This
is a fantastically performed song and had a video shot even though it wasn’t a
single. This is another song that
received a lot of airplay. This could
easily have been an additional single.
Perhaps the most underrated song on their debut album is
“Without You”. It starts out slow
and builds from there. Wetton’s vocals
again pull the song from what could just be filler to something more. The vocal aches with disappointment and
heartache. Howe’s guitar solos are
typical great tone and melody to themselves. Palmer’s percussion is understated
as it is on the whole album but it lays a bedrock on which all the other
instruments and vocals can build on.
Once again after a mellower song, Asia rebounds with the
harder edged “Cutting It Fine”.
It begins a simple guitar and builds onto a crescendo rocking tune. Howe’s scaling solos add the perfect element
to the song and really is the hallmark to the song. Bass and drums are more to the front on this
track to me than on some of the others.
The original album closer “Here Comes The Feeling”
is always a tune that I loved. It was
first recorded when Wetton was in French rock group Atoll but the song did
nothing. When Asia recorded it, it had
the punch that it needed. It is a big
song finale! It starts out with the
keyboards and drums then Steve Howe comes in with his trademark guitar licks
which transitions into a bit of a bass riff.
Wetton’s vocals are in perfect form.
They move from heartache to elation within a couple of lines and back again.
The bonus track of “Ride Easy” was originally the
B side to “Heat Of The Moment” single. I
never picked up the single so I never heard it.
It is a crime that this song was left off the original album. It has an infectious chorus, some great
guitar work, and some pounding bass. It
is a fantastic song. It was on some
compilations but the first time that I heard it was when I saw Asia for the
first time in 2012 on their XXX tour.
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