Where is my utopia?

Yard Act

Where is my utopia?

Democracy

March 1, 2024
Web Exclusive

By Michael James Hall

Leeds, England's poetic post-punkers Yard Act enjoyed massive success and acclaim with their 2022 debut album, The Overload. Their often funny, catchy, funky social commentary proved a welcome, if dark, tonic for post-lockdown Britain. Anchored by bassist Ryan Needham and fueled by vocalist James Smith, the band turns their gaze inward on their sophomore record. Where is my utopia?

It's a very, very ambitious record, which should be applauded. With a bigger budget, as well as a wider array of influences and instruments, this yields mixed but often interesting results. Between the tape's distortions, relentless spoken word intervals, reverse loops and chords, it starts to feel overwhelming. Maybe that's the point.

The sly hooks of their debut sensation seep in from a cart of musical colors, a thousand ideas leap from the speakers, realized in many but sometimes ineffective ways: Smith aptly extols the joy of invention and creation, the title chanted in a huge shoutout of “We Make Hits” amusingly followed by, “but not like Nile Rodgers, we're just not hooked on the fans.”

The fundamentals of funk-punk, driven by the rhythm section of Needham and Jay Russell are enough to hold the songs in the face of this extravagance, particularly the exciting “An Illusion” and the brilliantly abrasive, nonsensical “Fizzy Fish”.

Smith's lyrics, half-spoken, half-sung, and largely reflecting the fragile territory of the band's newfound fame, can be great. “Blackpool Illuminations” is a long, talkative memoir that shifts seamlessly into hypnotic staccato poetry: “My beautiful family and my dream job, no more a dream.” This is further carried into “Dream Job”, where he asks “it's ace… why can't we travel business class?” and delivers “Step into my office / All night long” as the tune evolves into a pure '80s dance hit. “Grifter's Grief” and the wonderful “When the Laughter Stops” have similar lyrical territory, albeit darker, less tempered with wit.

The bleakness of “The Undertow,” where Smith asks, “What's guilt worth if you choose it when you feel it?” after a pleasant shake of disco beats he rises to the bittersweet closer, “A Vineyard for the North”, where Smith desperately tries to see a bright side of global warming before concluding: “I quit the band / I wanna buy some acres / Live off the fat of the land.” It's funny, really sad stuff.

Where is my utopia? it's an album that overflows, both in excess and excellence, the former sometimes costing the latter. The last word, though, should go to Smith, on “Blackpool Illuminations”: “I've reached perfection / So why the hell was I wondering what you fans of album two would think?” (www.yardactors.com)

Author Rating: 8/10