Poll: Best Yes-related album of the first half of 2011

74 votes in total for our latest poll.

1. Jon Anderson: Survival & Other Stories - 46 (62%)
2. Asia: Live at the London Forum (w/ Howe, Downes) - 9 (12%)
3= Blackfield: Welcome to My DNA (w/ Horn) - 6 (8%)
3= Trevor Rabin: I am Number Four - 6 (8%)
5= Mars Hollow: World in Front of Me (w/ Sherwood) - 3 (4%)
5= any of various King Crimson archival releases (w/ Bruford) - 3 (4%)
7. Jonathan Elias: Prayer Cycle 2: Path to Zero (w/ Anderson) - 1 (1%)
8= David Mark Pearce: StrangeAng3ls (w/ O. Wakeman) - 0
8= dB-Infusion: Muso & Proud (w/ Banks) - 0
8= Ant-Bee: Electronic Church Muzik (w/ Banks) - 0

I nearly didn't include Survival & Other Stories in this poll as it first had a limited release last year (and, indeed, came second in the poll for the second half of 2010). This general release through Gonzo was trailed as having additional tracks and being remixed, but in the end, seems to have been identical to the prior version. Still, with nearly 2/3 of the total vote, it comprehensively trounced the alternatives.

A distant second place was another of Asia's beat-the-boot-like live releases. I was at the show in question, notable because the shows before and after had to be cancelled because Howe had a back problem, not that you can tell from the great performance.

I'd like to say that some of the lower scoring albums here are very good and well worth getting. I discussed Muso & Proud and Electronic Church Muzik in a recent blog post. Prayer Cycle 2: Path to Zero is another strong release from Jonathan Elias, which I think successfully charts a midway between the more accessible and political American River and the more ethereal first The Prayer Cycle album. The album I voted for, however, was Mars Hollow's The World in Front of Me, produced by Billy Sherwood, a great new prog album that recalls the likes of Yes and ELP, but very much has its own style too.