Yes recently announced Aurora, the band’s 24th studio album, due June 12 via InsideOut Music/Sony Music. The album is preceded by the new single “Turnaround Situation,” which arrives alongside a visualizer created by Matt Hutchings, whose previous work includes visuals for Greg Lake, Oasis, and Iron Maiden. Aurora features artwork by Roger Dean and Freya Dean.
Vocalist Jon Davison, who has fronted Yes since 2012, said of “Turnaround Situation”: “The lyric came about from the feeling that things can become impossible and inflexible, and that sometimes the only option is to do a complete U-turn. The music itself grew from the incredible openness that the band had to be collaborative and explorative. There’s an emotional and sonic dynamism in the piece that I love.”
Aurora can be pre-order here.
Aurora began taking shape following the “Classic Tales of Yes” 2024 tour. The band worked with a modern workflow, with guitarist Steve Howe and keyboardist Geoff Downes serving as the creative axis. Howe produced the album. “It’s the album we needed to make right now,” Howe said. “We each brought our individual voices to the table, and the result is something that genuinely surprised us all.”
The current Yes lineup is Howe (guitar), Downes (keyboards), Davison (vocals), Billy Sherwood (bass), and Jay Schellen (drums). Sherwood was hand-picked by original bassist Chris Squire; Schellen worked closely with drummer Alan White in the band’s later years.
Aurora will be available as a Limited Deluxe 180g Light Green 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray Artbook & Poster, as well as a Ltd Deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray Artbook, both featuring the stunning artwork of Roger Dean and Freya Dean, as well as a bonus disc of instrumentals, and a blu-ray featuring Dolby Atmos, 5.1 Surround Sound & 24bit stereo mixes (by Curtis Schwartz). The album is also available as a Gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet, Special Edition CD Digipak & as Digital Album. It can be pre-order now here.
When Yes first began sketching out ideas for what would become Aurora, the process was loose and exploratory. There was no preconceived concept at the start, just a collection of musical fragments that gradually began to find one another and take form. Among these early sketches was a piece titled “Aurora,” and it quickly became clear that the name carried certain gravity. It suggested light, emergence, and a sense of vastness, qualities that resonated deeply with the band. Jon Davison remembers how “the title immediately resonated with Steve Howe and sparked visual inspiration for artist Roger Dean, setting a conceptual tone that would guide the project.”
Work on Aurora began almost as soon as the Classic Tales of Yes tour ended in 2024. The idea of a new album surfaced quickly and with the label’s encouragement, the band had the time to develop material organically. Rather than gathering in a single studio for months, they embraced a modern workflow; ideas were born in home studios, shaped independently, and then woven together through constant collaboration. Downes and Howe often acted as the central creative axis, with Howe, as producer, serving as the point through which all ideas eventually flowed.
Across Aurora, each track carries its own character. Some echo the classic Yes approach, others push into new territory, but together they form a cohesive whole that honors the band’s heritage while embracing forward motion. With their 24th studio album, Yes demonstrate not just longevity, but a sustained curiosity, a desire to keep exploring, keep refining and keep discovering their capacity to create.
