The Yets

I’ll start 2023 with a blog about the band The Yets and their eponymous debut EP. I will dive right in and look at the first track, Waterline. This track starts with shimmering guitar hooks from Craig Anderson Snook built around smooth synths and a bass that leads the drums that lead to the soaring vocals of Robin Wilson. The remainder of Waterline is about keeping our heads above the water, even in our turbulent times. I’ll sneak in a brown M&M shout-out to my brother, Terry, who works on the waterline of the Fraser River.

The Yets are the combined musical musings of Robin Wilson on vocals and guitarist-producer Craig Anderson Snook. I have to tip my hat to the production of this EP. Much of the lack of quality in today’s top ten music stems from the lack of quality production; much of it sounds like a mono sludge. Not so on The Yets EP. Craig Anderson Snook uses the two channels well, and the songs dance between the speakers.

Track two should be the rallying cry of the baby boomer generation. Remember. Well, actually, no, I do not remember. I do not remember much short-term, but I can spin yarns about the good old days till the cows come home. A great song about entering “the twilight of our days,” “Who will remember?” This song conveys a lot of what I have been living through recently. A cousin of mine recently passed away, but before he went, he carefully journaled and wrote extensively about his life and those around him. He remembered so that others could keep those memories alive for a while longer. Remember? And please do not keep asking those of us with fading memories if we remember. No, I do not remember. But, I too have done extensive writing to try and push the envelope further when the question is asked, “Who will remember?”

I remember that The Yets are based in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina,”Somewhere at the intersection of sound and emotion lies the description of those things we all treasure the most, ‘Letter To A Boy’ is about that special feeling a mother has for her son. It’s unique and difficult to express. It’s extremely hard to put so much feeling into so few words. Lyrically, it’s the most challenging I’ve ever done. It’s also the most rewarding,” says Robin Wilson.

“In a very general sense, this album is about life: the passage of time, relationships and the consequences of the choices we make along the way. I’ve always wanted to bare my musical soul, but never had the right vehicle. That musical soul has always wanted to speak to the world, but never had the right voice. The Yets is that vehicle, and Robin is that voice,” says Craig Anderson Snook, who has performed semi-professionally since he was 13. His musical passion led him beyond cover bands into composition, arrangement, audio engineering, production and ultimately to running his own Royal Terns Records label and studio, where he recorded, mixed and produced the new EP.

The passing of time is measured out colourfully in the song Fades To Gray.

Hansa

Hansa is a beautiful, brilliant shade of yellow

Veridian …

Fades to gray

(Viridian is a blue-green pigment)

Cadmium …

Fades to gray

(Cadmium is a silvery-white metal )

Alizurin…

Fades to gray

(Alizarin is a prominent red dye)

And the hairs on our heads fade to grey, even the blue-green ones; they may even be silvery-white or bright red. And the beautiful, brilliant yellow sun goes down and another life goes with it.

Fades To Gray

After being immersed in the music scene in high school, Robin found her way to the University of South Carolina in Columbia, where she fronted the goth-rock band Bachelors of Art (B.O.A.). Upon relocating to Atlanta, Georgia, she fronted the female alt-rock group Skirt, touring the USA extensively and supporting numerous high-profile acts.

“My previous musical endeavors were always hard rock-based. I wasn’t involved with the actual songwriting except for my vocal melodies and lyrics. With The Yets, I’ve broken that mold, helping to compose and produce a whole new sound. I’ve combined my artwork and media arts degree into the whole creative package. We recorded and produced our own CD in our own studio. We created our own videos and designed and built our own website,” says Robin Wilson.

The EP closes with what sounds like a personal rant, Happy Now. Are you happy now? I’ve done all that I could!

Craig Anderson Snook and Robin Wilson have done all they could to make a lovely recording for us, and I am happy now. My ears are delighted. I love this recording. It carries me through a gamut of quick emotional sound bites, happy, sad, struggling, remembering, giving in, and love. “Faith, hope, and love. The greatest of these is love.”

‘The Yets’ EP is out now, streamable via Spotify and available to order, digitally or on CD, directly from the band via Bandcamp.

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