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Today, we’re going to delve into the excellent Leeds, West Yorkshire, England post-punk Yard Act. The foursome, comprised of vocalist James Smith, bassist and backing vocalist Ryan Needham, guitarist and backing vocalist Sam Shipstone, and drummer and percussionist Jay Russell, has been creating some incredible music since 2019. Their fabulous debut full-length album, The Overload (2022), saw the band garner legions of new fans along with widespread critical acclaim. The album received a lot of airplay in the UK, placing high on year-end charts, and was followed by a Mercury Prize nomination for Best Album of the year (UK and Ireland act). The album’s melodies were propulsive, and its lyrics blunt, witty, and critical. Truly a great start to the band’s discography. SWT wasn’t around for that release, but we were here for the band’s second album, Where’s My Utopia (2024), and we were among many media outlets that praised and acclaimed it. The dance-punk album featured more disco melodies than the previous releases, with fantastic lyrics and vocals. It ranked among Josh’s favorite albums of the year as well as mine. The latter was never published online, but it did garner 4.5 Scum Drops from me in the link above. If you haven’t checked out those two albums yet, it’s a great time to explore them after you finish this review.
As the press release for their newest album, You’re Gonna Need A Little Music, which is out via Island Records on Friday, July 17th, for your listening pleasure notes about the group’s lyrics, “The journey of Smith’s lyrics across each of their albums, Shipstone muses, has always been quite Faustian: ‘It’s someone who’s seeking a goal, and then makes a pact with the devil to get the goods they want, but when they get them they’re corrupted so they get the rewards but also this bitterness too.’ ‘And how does Faust end?’ questions Needham. ‘Oh, not well…’
This release, as Smith mentions, is the first time the band crafted an album together, live in the same room. “The first two records were both laptop records essentially,” says Smith. The Overload was written alongside Needham before the band had fully formed; its follow-up was carved out in snatches of time on tour buses and hotel rooms, amongst a relentless schedule of “slinging [all our gear] in the rehearsal space, going back home, and then a week later piling it back into a van again.”
Explaining the process of creating this new album some more, the press release states, “If their last record was created like a game of Exquisite Corpse, each member taking the track and adding their part in turn (‘I always thought that was a really over the top name for a piece of folded down paper…’ Needham notes), then this time they laid down roots and gave themselves time. Russell kitted out their new studio in Leeds with everything they required to track the band live at the same time throughout the writing process, including an old piano passed down from Smith’s late aunt that would become integral to the process. For the first time in a long time, Yard Act were able to settle into an ‘uninterrupted five-month period’ of creativity, crafting ’40 or 50 songs’ and allowing themselves to follow their ideas with no external pressure. ‘It felt like freedom,’ says Smith. ‘It felt like everything I’d wanted from being in a band – to be able to make enough money to be left alone.'” A shared goal of many bands that countless artists don’t see. As a fan and media member, you love to see it happen when it does, though. Which is why we do our best to advocate for musicians on SWT.
Reflective and waxing poetic, members of Yard Act note, “I think most bands’ best stuff comes around the 3rd or 4th album where they really outgrow their influences and become their own thing,’ muses Smith as Needham chips in: ‘I keep saying, it’s like Blur. This is Parklife. The first album they were doing the genre-y thing; the second one was a kick against that, but they didn’t really know what they were doing, and then they made Parklife, which was the perfect distillation of it all.” Music historians and listeners, what are your thoughts?
In the press release, Smith leaves us all with some parting thoughts about You’re Gonna Need A Little Music, “I felt like I’d taken it to its logical extreme on ‘Blackpool Illuminations’ [on the last record], and I didn’t want to tread old ground. I think the album is about multiple realities and how individualism has led us, in the modern world, to question if there even is a shared reality anymore because everyone just believes what they want now, this is the price we’ve paid for pursuing neoliberalism, ultimately.” And thoughts like this are explored in their lyrics, mixed with the melodies they craft, which are perfectly balanced, which is why so many love Yard Act. While listening to multiple of their albums, the band does not come off as pretentious to me, which makes the experience all the better.
Giving credit where it’s due. Here are the album credits for You’re Gonna Need A Little Music:
- James Smith – vocals, piano, percussion, synth, handclaps, congas, electric piano, finger clicks
- Jay Russell – drums, percussion, synth, programming, electric piano
- Samuel Shipstone – guitar, backing vocals
- Ryan Needham – bass, backing vocals
- Justin Meldal-Johnsen – drum programming, hand claps, synth, percussion, backing vocals, electronic drums, background vocals
- Christopher Duffin – organ, synth, flute, saxophone, sound design on “Janey Said” and “Redeemer”,
- David Ralicke – tenor and alto Saxophones
- Jordan Katz – trumpet
- Vikram Devasthali – trombone
- Strings/Brass Arranger: brass arranged by David Ralicke on “New Beginnings”
- Producer: Justin Meldal-Johnsen
- Recording Engineers: Derek Coburn, Matt Peel, Danny Blackburn, Jay Russell, and Justin
Meldal-Johnsen - Assistant Recording Engineer: Danny Blackburn
- Mixer: Derek Coburn
- Mastering Engineer: Felix Davis at Metropolis Studios
- Recording Studios: Nave Studios in Leeds & Chez JMJ in Los Angeles
The time is now. For some hype for your ears and eyes via Yard Act’s YouTube channel:
Let’s first take a look and listen to the video for the song “New Beginnings”. As you’ll see, it is a video with some great live studio footage:
(All credits and rights to Yard Act)
A video with some unnerving cuts and imagery, but it is all brilliantly done. The video for the song “Redeemer”:
(All credits and rights to Yard Act)
While it doesn’t have the dance-punk of their previous album or as much art-punk as their debut, You’re Gonna Need A Little Music stands proud on its own. That being said, I’m not one to think a band needs to achieve the same sound on each album or explore the same themes. On some level, kudos to those bands and artists who can replicate it album after album to create an easily digestible signature sound that fans grow to expect. Yet, where’s the creativity and music freedom in that if you never stray away? Right? A question many music fans and bands ask and explore. At some level, in the creative world, especially amongst artists, achieved creativity must be at least acknowledged and praised when deserved.
I think this album slides into an equal level as Yard Act’s acclaimed two albums. To those who have listened to all three, what do you think? With many memorable songs and earworm moments throughout the album, a listener will not be disappointed. There are moments of chaos, and others of more calm. The overall genre mood is heavy, but the melodies, lyrics, and vocals come together for each song. There’s a lot of bluntness, spoken word deliveries, propulsion, and introspection that we’ve come to expect with a Yard Act release. And we continue to love them for it. As we should. There are moments of snark, righteousness, and catharsis. In terms of abstraction and exploration, I feel this is the band’s most ambitious and impressionistic release so far, as they venture into new sonic and thematic territory. And they do so to the point that it is pleasing to the ear. Kudos on the songcraft found within this album. Some of the choices that stand out to me include, but are not limited to, the vocal harmonies, the overall quality of musicianship, and the use of instruments across the brass, string, woodwind, and percussion families.
Exploring some songs in detail, I loved the ending to the opening track ‘Empty Pledges’ when Smith notes, “Coz when you’re this self-obsessed / It’s no wonder no one up on high gives a fuck / By now you’re either with us or you’re not / So you can sit down shut up and listen / Or switch this shit off.” It’s the first of several songs on the album. In fact, I found myself loving more songs on this album than not.
In the press release, Smith notes of the last song, “‘Over The Barrel’ [as a saying] can have multiple meanings. The choice is yours. But, personally, I still have a bit of hope in me for how it all works out.” And this mindset shows up from the first song to the last, one that even in the bleakest moments, when you’re weary, questioning existence, and not all that optimistic, you realize there’s a bit of hope that remains.
For all those reasons and more, You’re Gonna Need A Little Music firmly falls into the 4.5 out of 5 Scum Drops territory from me. As always, this rating is relative to all new full-length albums this year. This album is another fantastic record in the incredible discography of Yard Act that comes out of the gates strongly and also grows on you upon repeated listens. They’ve already achieved what many bands never do in their excellent trio of full-album releases to date. Any one of which could be a band’s magnum opus. This album should be in many people’s top 100 albums of the year, but definitely within the top 50 as well. Don’t be surprised to see it in some people’s top 10 lists for this year. Add it to your collection on the formats of your choosing.
I’ll always advocate that you take the time to listen to every album in its entirety. The listening process with You’re Gonna Need A Little Music will take just over 40 minutes from start to finish. Along the way, you’ll discover your own favorite songs without the influence or bias of others. After several listens, I found the songs highlighted in green below to be my favorites on this album.
The tracklist for You’re Gonna Need A Little Music (song length)
- Empty Pledges (4:25)
- New Beginnings (3:27)
- Tall Tales (3:51)
- Fiction (2:40)
- You’re Gonna Need A Little Music (4:40)
- Cherophobe Rock (2:52)
- Thrill Of The Chase (2:30)
- Janey Said (4:51)
- Redeemer (3:59)
- Talky Talky People (3:56)
- Over The Barrel (4:33)
Total runtime: 41:44
Yard Act’s merch store and upcoming tour dates supporting the new album are available here. Visit their comprehensive Linkree, along with their Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube pages.
Thank you for reading and supporting good music.
Until next time,
Alex
Scummy Water Tower Productions co-founder, reviewer, business manager, and editor. Thank you for visiting this site, scummywatertower.com, and YouTube for Water Tower Sessions and SWT Interviews. And all of our socials.
Questions, feedback, or more? Contact me: alex@scummywatertower.com
