Review by Wil Denneman
After releasing their wildly successful debut album ‘The Overload’ in January 2022, Yard Act quickly became “one to watch” and took over the alternative scene with their politically relevant, catchy album discussing the topics of capitalism, gentrification and social class using dark humour, cynical storytelling and a magnificent blend of genre-binding elements in their music.
‘Where’s my Utopia?’ is the follow-up record by the critically acclaimed band from Leeds, to be released on March 1st 2024. With just a few days remaining before the album’s release, expectations are high – after such a whirlwind of success following their debut album; being shortlisted for the Mercury Prize, national radio playlisting’s and ‘The Overload’ peaking at #2 in the Official Charts. With the band’s trajectory continuing to shoot upwards, what can we expect from this highly anticipated release?
Diving into the record itself, the opening track instantaneously sets the mood the way Yard Act do best; with some self-irony. ‘An Illusion’ has the flavours we are familiar with from Yard Act, catchy hip-hop-like beats, politically loaded words with a full-toned, characteristic bassline. Some almost-quirky instrumentals and choir-like backing vocals are making their acquaintance around the first chorus, and the involvement of co-producer and Gorillaz-member Remi Kabaka becomes more pronounced as the song goes on. By the end of the track, it feels like a well-rounded theatre performance for the ears.
Sooner rather than later, the beefy yet funky bass and triumphant first notes of ‘We Make Hits’ – the album’s third single – flow out of the speakers, and before I know it, I notice myself bopping, dancing, and singing along. On the first listen, it felt like the chorus simplified the depth and meaning their music is known for, but beyond the surface level the single is a critique on capitalism, housing, and being a musician in a cost-of-living crisis, using clever wordplay, rhymes, and more of their well-known ironic self-reflection. As a single, ‘We Make Hits’ undeniably sets the bar high for the expectations of the album – which up to this point do not disappoint.
Kabaka’s work on the album is once again evident as soon as ‘Down By The Stream’ starts playing, creating the crossover between Gorillaz and Yard Act I never knew I needed through synths combined with James Smith’s iconic vocals. The familiarity of this track is the first thing I notice, and whether it is the Gorillaz-esque instrumentals, or the heaviness within the strong hints of post-punk, but the track feels like the mature older brother from the songs off their debut record. As it moves over into spoken word with harrowing background noise, poetically referencing to the same ‘cycle of abuse’ from their first release ‘Dark Days’, with an almost hauntingly lullaby-like ending, the album repeatedly emphasizes that the boundaries between music, spoken word, poetry and theatrical performance are malleable to wherever Yard Act wants them to be.
Track 4, ‘The Undertow’, however poses an almost complete contradiction to ‘Down By the Stream’. After multiple up-beat, mosh-pit worthy songs, the pace slows down with this track. It starts off bass-heavy, with the occasional guitar strum, slow yet profound vocals that almost reminds me of a modern yet unique spin on mid-to-late zero’s slower paced indie-rock hits à la Arctic Monkeys – Yorkshire accent included. The hints of nostalgia, whilst still being evidently and undeniably Yard Act, has given this track great potential and a breath of fresh air compared to the previous songs – rather than using dark humour and self-irony, there are genuine themes of existential crisis, death, desperation, and yearning.
The momentum picks back up with the album’s first single ‘Dream Job’. As a single, this track was carefully chosen and teases the upcoming album whilst creating hype on the ultimate danceable tune – with plenty of opportunity for crowds to sing along to, creating even more hype for the upcoming out-store shows this upcoming week, as well as a full UK tour later in the month. The sarcastic and ironic discussion of poverty and the working class in the song so beautifully contrasts against the funky, synth-driven sounds and catchy chorus. Whilst Yard Act do not fail in making their music politically relevant and educating their audience in their own ways, sometimes you just need a fun, danceable pop song – and ‘Dream Job’ ticks off both boxes at the same time. Vocalist James Smith states ‘Dream Job’ introduces the main themes explored on the record, and said: “In part I was scrutinising and mocking myself for being a moaning ungrateful little brat, whilst also trying to address how the music industry is this rather uncontrollable beast that hurtles forward unthinkingly and every single person involved in it plays their part. Myself included, obviously. As with pretty much everything else going through my head last year, trying to find the right time to articulate the complexity of emotions I was feeling and the severity to which I was feeling them couldn’t be found – or accommodated, so instead I tried to capture it in a pop song that lasts less than three minutes once the fog had cleared a bit. It’s good and bad. I’m still glad that everything that happened to me happened.”
Having officially hit the halfway point of the album, ‘Fizzy Fish’ perfectly summarizes everything discussed up to this point. Large elements of ‘fun’ and simply a pleasure to the ears that offers substantial potential for live performances, whilst still providing commentary on society, capitalism and the environment through lyrics and added theatrical elements, combining the essence of ‘The Overload’ as a record and its roots in post-punk, with the continuous journey ‘Where’s My Utopia?’ has taken us on.
‘Petroleum’ takes us onto another path in Yard Act’s journey. Once more combining the essence of both albums into the song, ensuring Yard Act’s sound is as recognizable and iconic as ever, the pace has slowed allowing the fan to catch a breath and reflect on the journey taken – both in life as a fan, the band from Leeds as musicians, as well as the album as a product of capitalism. As a single on its own, it did not originally stand out to me as much as ‘We Make Hits’ and ‘Dream Job’ did – but after a few listens I wonder if that is the purpose of this song as a single. It is often assumed that working in the music industry is all rock ‘n roll and glamour, but at the end of the day it is still just a job. Yard Act are more than that band from Leeds who release songs criticizing capitalism and its associated struggles – we are all part of the problem, and the self-reflection and accountability this song offers stands out more than the odd phrases of accountability in other songs on the album due to the vulnerability this song offers, opposed to covering it up with funky beats and the dark humour shining through ironic lyrics.
The album’s final single ‘When the Laughter Stops’ featuring Katy J Pearson is a captivating narration of mental health, failure, and meeting societies impossible expectations. The song beautifully combines brutal honesty and vulnerability discussing a topic most of us still fail to verbalise, whilst having a strong instrumental arrangement and Yard Act’s trademark irony hidden in plain sight. The catchy beats and melody, on top of the powerful contrast between Pearson and Smith’s voices, could turn this song into an approachable discussion on mental health that is danceable enough to be played in clubs.
The next track only continues the catchy club-like atmosphere. ‘Grifter’s Grief’ is the synth-heavy track the album was still missing – complete with wind instruments, a brass solo and the creative dynamics in the song reminding me of Pink Floyd’s historic playfulness with different sounds and tricking the listener through diversion, the element of surprise, and the famous ‘broken record player’. These days, technology has ensured the ‘broken record player’ technique is not as successful as it once was, but Yard Act still beautifully encompass this playfulness by tricking me in believing I may have sat on the remote of my stereo, or accidentally skipped through part of the song – an experience I have not authentically had listening to music in the modern age, but only heard of from older generations. Nearing the end of the record with just two songs left to enjoy, ‘Grifters Grief’ has confidently taken the top spot as favourite song on the album thus far.
The 10th track on the record, and thereby the second to last, starts off with a story of the band’s trips to Blackpool. A story packed with honesty, vulnerability, and what it’s like to be growing up. The instrumentals create an ambience as if I am sitting around the table with them in the local pub, digging deeper into the relationship this album is building with the listener, as well as the bending of the aforementioned boundaries between music, poetry, spoken word and theatre. A song, as per its definition, is not defined by its instrumentals, but is rather a poem or set of words to be set to music or sung. Centering ‘Blackpool Illuminations’ around the poetry and spoken word, rather than the modern definition many of us have when we think of a ‘song’ is already social commentary without listening to the words spoken. The track is an experience on its own and proves why this record should be listened to front to back in full, rather than shuffled or as a few songs in a playlist. ‘Where Is My Utopia?’ is an experience, a glimpse into the minds and lives of Yard Act, that is now passed on to the world to give their own meanings to.
After ‘Blackpool Illuminations’, I was not sure if there was any track that could add to the narrative and journey of this album. It felt like the perfect ending to the story and answer to the question ‘Where Is My Utopia?’. However, as the final track ‘A Vineyard for the North’ is playing, I can see why ‘Blackpool Illuminations’ was not chosen as the last track of the record, and that ‘A Vineyard for the North’ is an excellent closing track. A slow build up whilst still holding onto that intimacy and ambience from the previous track, but also re-introducing the hints of nostalgia, notes of funk and disco, and catchiness to just bop along to, wrapping up the journey of social commentary and self-reflection that ‘Where Is My Utopia?’ brought us, ‘A Vineyard for the North’ establishes that no matter how much you discuss a topic, emotion or experience, sometimes you just need to keep it real, feel the music and the emotions, and let yourself disappear into the sound until it all becomes one. Regardless of being early on in the year, ‘Where’s My Utopia?’ is album that is well on its way to make the ‘Album of the Year’ lists. It once again proves that Yard Act are masters at making political discussion accessible through their music but have balanced joy, danceable tracks and peaceful ambience alongside the heavy topics discussed on this album through a blend of genres – an art that most artists is still struggle to craft but Yard Act effortlessly seem to accomplish.
‘Where Is My Utopia?’
1. An Illusion
2. We Make Hits
3. Down By The Stream
4. The Undertow
5. Dream Job
6. Fizzy Fish
7. Petroleum
8. When The Laughter Stops (ft. Katy J Pearson)
9. Grifter’s Grief
10. Blackpool Illuminations
11. A Vineyard for the North
Upcoming tour dates:
29-Feb-24 London Pryzm, Banquet Records
1-Mar-24 Bristol Rough Trade
3-Mar-24 London Rough Trade East
5-Mar-24 Nottingham Rough Trade
6-Mar-24 Birmingham HMV Vault
7-Mar-24 Liverpool Jacaranda Baltic
13-Mar-24 Norwich The Nick Raynes LCR
14-Mar-24 Nottingham Rock City
15-Mar-24 Glasgow O2 Academy
16-Mar-24 Manchester O2 Apollo
17-Mar-24 Newcastle Northumbria University
19-Mar-24 Belfast Mandela Hall
22-Mar-24 Liverpool Invisible Wind Factory
23-Mar-24 Bristol O 2 Academy
25-Mar-24 Brighton The Dome
27-Mar-24 London Eventim Apollo
3-Aug-23 Leeds Millennium Square
Role: Photographer, Reviewer
Qualifications: First Class BA (hons) degree in Music Business at BIMM Bristol, first year certificate (Propedeuse) in Journalism at the University of Applied Sciences Utrecht
Available for: gigs, shoots (mainly portraits) and tours!
First gig attended: technically Guus Meeuwis when I was younger (Dutch pop artist), first gig I bought a ticket for with my own money was One Direction on their Where We Are tour, but first ‘proper’ gig was Foals and Everything Everything in Amsterdam in 2016!
First shoot: Frank and Beans at The Crofters Rights early 2022, but first photo pass was Mayday Parade, Real Friends and As It Is at the Marble Factory on June 1st 2022
Dream gig: there are a couple of line-ups that I would love so it’s hard to choose, but I’d love to shoot Harry Styles one day
