STEVE HOWE Quits ASIA

Guitarist Steve Howe has left ASIA in order to concentrate fully on other projects.

Howe, who co-founded in 1981 with John Wetton, Geoff Downes and Carl Palmer, says in a statement: “Myself and the band wish to thank their fans for
the enthusiasm shown during the original members’ reunion. I will
continue with YES, and with my trio and solo guitar work. I wish my friends continued success.”

YES will perform three of its classic albums in their entirety, all in one concert, on a special tour in 2013: 1971’s “The Yes Album”, 1972’s “Close To The Edge” and 1977’s “Going For The One”.

ASIA was forced to cancel its 30th-anniversary U.K. tour last month due to drummer Carl Palmer coming down with a severe case of E. coli.

ASIA released its latest studio album, “XXX” (pronounced Triple X) via Frontiers Records on June 29, 2012 in Europe and July 3, 2102 in North America. The record, produced by Mike Paxman, which is being hailed as ASIA’s best album since its classic early ’80s releases, was made available as a CD, collector’s-edition CD/DVD (featuring new music videos and
behind-the-scenes footage), and on vinyl (limited edition Europe only).
Original artwork for “XXX” was created by Roger Dean.

In addition, ASIA has also released “Resonance”, a DVD concert film of the group’s 2010/2011 Omega World Tour, captured live in Switzerland. The effort came out at the end of November.

Source: E-prog