Alpha

Alpha is the second album on which ASIA turned toward more compact, refined songs centered on grand keyboards, smooth guitar and John Wetton’s emotive singing. As a supergroup gathering members from prestigious bands such as King Crimson, Yes and ELP, they prioritized making the outline of big melody stand out over showing off technique. Following the previous album’s worldwide success, the band deepened a more song-centered approach. On “Don't Cry,” “The Smile Has Left Your Eyes,” “The Heat Goes On” and “Eye to Eye,” brightness and wistfulness rise at once, with memorable choruses and neat playing joining ideally. Songs like “Never In a Million Years,” “Open Your Eyes” and “True Colors” breathe the band’s high writing too. Delivering the singing straight within a large sonic image, it is an ASIA-style full work that sublimated progressive-rock experience into refined pop rock.