Yard Act “Where’s My Utopia?”

sfilzen — Wed, 08 Jan 2025 19:09:41 +0000

Yard Act “Where’s My Utopia?” 2024. Island Records, limited edition “Utopian” orange vinyl. The Leeds-based genre-bending, post-punkers/dancy art rockers’ second LP; included in this limited edition release a glossy fold-out insert and nerdy-cool sticker sheet.

While I don’t love this album as much as their debut The Overload, it’s still ultra-original and very, very fun (except when it’s depressing but not in a bad way); it went to #4 in the UK and has been included in many Best of ’24 lists, including those complied by Rolling Stone UK, Rough Trade and Allmusic. Yard Act played a bunch tracks from Where’s My Utopia when we caught them at the quite small X-Ray Arcade this past October (such a fantastic show). Two of my top picks (and ones that made me dance up a frenzy at the show) are the singles “We Make Hits” and “Dream Job,” both high energy punk-disco ass-shakers. Also performed and released as singles were “Petroleum” (which has a darker and more subtle groove) and the upbeat-yet-depressing “When the Laughter Stops” (I have no idea if any of these singles charted), plus the non-singles “Fizzy Fish,” “Down by the Stream,” and “A Vineyard for the North.” There’s a bit too much spoken-word on the record for my tastes (ie “Blackpool Illumination“), but in their spirit of anything goes, that fits Yard Act’s non-classification.

The post Yard Act “Where’s My Utopia?” appeared first on Vinyl From The Vault.

Yard Act “The Overload”

sfilzen — Fri, 04 Oct 2024 19:53:26 +0000

Yard Act “The Overload” 2022. Island Records. Limited edition “Ghetto Lettuce” green vinyl. We caught Yard Act last night at X-Ray Arcade (Cudahy) and holy sh*t what a show! Sold-out, energy to the ceiling, non-stop dancing (I estimate I danced about 1.5 miles from the number of steps my watch tracked). Definitely one of the top performances we’ve seen this year, probably ranks in the top 50 of all time. Lyrically heavy with social commentary, they make politics an all-out party with a combo of funk, disco, no-wave, alt-dance and a stage chock-full with musicians (James Smith-vocals, Ryan Needham-bass, Sam Shipstone-guitar, Jay Russell-drums, Chris Duffin-sax/keys) and two stellar backup singers/dancers/hype-women Lauren Fitzpatrick and Daisy Smith. Fitzpatrick and Smith also provided rhythm backup with tambourines and some device that had the Prince symbol Ƭ̵̬̊ I have no idea what it does or really how to explain it but it was very cool.

The Overload is Yard Act’s debut LP (they released an EP in 2021); it went to #2 in the UK. Just like the show, it’s almost a non-stop party but smart, a little biting and, at times, arty/weird. They played a bunch of tracks from The Overload last night, fortunately all of my favorites. They led off with “Dead Horse” (a sharp critique on capitalism and racism, to a great groovy beat!), followed by another favorite “Payday” and “Land of the Blind.”

My absolute top pick is the title track “The Overload” – I’m pretty sure this one put me over the mile mark for dance steps and by this time I was absolutely dripping with sweat (as was the band); they followed it up with “100% Endurance” (the album closer). Not shown on the set list was the encore, “Witness” – another favorite – which was short, punky, fast and brilliant.

They also played several songs from their latest release, Where’s My Utopia? (2024), also fantastic. Hoping to see Yard Act again soon – though I’m not sure it will be at such a small venue again.

The post Yard Act “The Overload” appeared first on Vinyl From The Vault.

yard act Archives - Vinyl From The Vault

Yard Act “Where’s My Utopia?”

Yard Act “The Overload”