Yard Act Share video for new song “We Make the Hits”
Where is my utopia? It will be released on March 1st via Republic
January 15, 2024
Photo by Phoebe Fox
British post-punk band Yard Act release new album, Where is my utopia?, on March 1 through Democracy. Now they've shared another song from it, “We Make the Hits,” via a music video. Check it out below, followed by the band's upcoming tour dates.
Yard Act frontman James Smith said of the song: “'We Make Hits' started like most Yard Act songs these days, in Ryan's spare room. He had recorded some bass lines and I went to throw some words on top to see what might happen. I was thinking about how things had changed so much for us in the last few years when I realized they were sitting around a laptop trying to laugh, pouring black coffee and sticking our heads out the window to smoke cigarettes every hour or so. , the only thing that had really changed in the writing process was that, thanks to my baby, we were at Ryan's house instead of mine, and that Ryan had his own place now, which was nice. Despite the blasting of the exterior, behind closed doors, we were the same, and I'm grateful for that. You can see the cynicism and silliness on the surface of “We Make Hits” without much effort, but at its core, to me, it's really an ode to friendship and the unfiltered joy you feel when you make music with the people you hold dear in your life. Meanwhile, back in the Yardiverse, we get the origin story of the killers Dynamite Dave and Dudley Sunglasses. An authoritative parable about the pitfalls of late capitalism and the compromises we have to make to survive sometimes.”
On Facebook, the band collectively also had this to say about the song: “Cynical, silly, but ultimately full of heart if you ask us. It's the origin story of Yard Act and it's a love letter to making music with the people you love and how good it feels. No doubt some people will misinterpret its many meanings, no doubt the clothiers among us will heuristically dismiss it, but in the end you're all wrong and only positive opinions matter. No need for irony.”
Regular collaborator James Slater said of directing the song's video: “For 'We Make Hits' I took a song that captures the band's origin story and used it to tell the story of two hapless murderers who have just received an eviction notice in their student bed they begin a job search that eventually leads them to gainful employment as assassins for the Holy Global Enterprise. As always with the Yard Act videos I've made, this video is part of an ever-expanding cinematic universe—a continuation of the Visitor journey we began with 'The Trench Coat Museum'.
Where is my utopia? is Yard Act's second album, the follow-up to their 2022 Mercury Prize-winning debut album The Overload.
Where is my utopia? features “The Trench Coat Museum,” a new eight-minute song the band shared in July that reached #1 on the Songs of the Week chart. Then, when the album was announced, they shared its second single, “Dream Job,” also via a music video (and also one of the songs of the week). They then shared their third single, “Petroleum”, via a music video starring British comedian/actress Rose Matafeo (creator/star of the acclaimed Max's Stellar).
Where is my utopia? it's less post-punk and more finds the band embracing an upbeat dance-rock vibe.
“The main reason 'post-punk' was the vehicle for the first album was because it was really accessible to do, but we've always loved other music so much and this time we had the confidence to embrace it,” Smith explains. in a press release.
The press release cites Fela Kuti, Ennio Moricone and Spiller's 2000 single 'Groovejet' as influences on the new album. Remi Kabaka Jr. of Gorillaz co-produced the album with Yard Act. The band also features bassist Ryan Needham, guitarist Sam Shjipstone and drummer Jay Russell.
For the new album, Smith says he's reached deeper within himself for lyrical inspiration, relying less on the character studies that filled the songs The Overload. “You can commit to the idea that we're just animals that eat and fuck and then die, and that's fine,” he says. “But for me, creativity always seems to be the best way to articulate the ultimate minefield of what human existence is.”
Read our print magazine interview with Yard Act at The Overload.
Read our rave review for 9/10 The Overload.
Yard Act tour Dates:
Marry. March 13 – Norwich, UK @ The Nick Rayns LCR (UEA)
Thu March 14th – Nottingham, UK @ Rock City
Fri 15 Mar – Glasgow, UK @ O2 Academy
Sat. March 16 – Manchester, UK @ O2 Apollo
Sun. March 17 – Newcastle, UK @ Northumbria University
Tue 19 Mar – Belfast, UK @ Mandela Hall
Marry. March 20 – Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street
Fri 22 March – Liverpool, UK @ Invisible Wind Factory
Sat. March 23 – Bristol, UK @ O2 Academy
Mon 25 Mar – Brighton, UK @ The Dome
Marry. March 27 – London, UK @ Eventim Apollo
Thu Apr 4 – Nantes, FR @ Stereolux
Fri Apr 5 – Paris, FR @ Cabaret Sauvage
Sat. April 6 – Bordeaux, FR @ Rock School Barbey
Mon 8 Apr – Lisbon, PT @ LAV
Tue April 9 – Madrid, ES @ Mon
Thu Apr 11 – Barcelona, ES @ La 2
Fri April 12 – Lyon, FR @ Le Transbordeur
Sat. April 13 – Bologna, IT @ Locomotiv Club
Sun. April 14 – Milan, IT @ Santeria Toscana 31
Tue 16 Apr – Zurich, CH @ Mascotte
Marry. April 17 – Munich, DE @ Muffathalle
Thu Apr 18 – Berlin, DE @ Festsaal Kreuzberg
Sat. April 20 – Stockholm, SE @ Slaktkyrkan
Marry. April 24 – Hamburg, DE @ Uebel & Gefährlich
Thu Apr 25 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso Main Hall
Fri 26 Apr – Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje
Sat. April 27 – Cologne, DE @ Kantine
Sun. April 28 – Brussels, BE @ Les Nuits Botanique
Thu May 30 – Solana Beach, CA @ Belly Up Tavern
Fri May 31 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Regent Theatre
Sat. June 1 – Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy and Harriet's
Mon June 3 – Santa Cruz, CA @ The Catalyst Atrium
Tue June 4 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
Thu June 6th – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios
Fri June 7 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre
Sat. June 8 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
Sat. August 3rd – Leeds, UK @ Millenium Square
from our partners at http://www.undertheradarmag.com/news/yard_act_share_video_for_new_song_we_make_the_hits
