Post-punk inspired UK band Yard Act have been on our radar for a couple years, and following a string of promising singles, are gearing up their debut album, The Overload, on January 7 via Island / Zen F.C. The singles they've released so far have been terrific, especially "Land of the Blind" and the title track. The band are also on the shortlist for the BBC's Sound of 2022 award, and you can check out a few songs below.
Yard Act will also be heading across the Atlantic in the spring for their first U.S. tour, which includes SXSW and two NYC shows at Union Pool on 3/22 and TV Eye on 3/24. All dates are listed below.
Back to this year, we've been asking artists for their Best of 2021 lists and Yard Act sent us theirs, with commentary via singer James Smith and bassist Ryan Needham. Check out their list below.
Yard Act - Top 10 Albums of 2021
Little Simz - Sometimes I Might Be Introvert
My album of the year. The orchestration, the narrative, the humanity. Love it. - James
Whitney K - Two Years
This was a highly underrated record. Great songs, great voice. Love how out of tune the piano is, sounds mint. - James
Madlib - Sound Ancestors
I might be wrong, as the album liners don't really give anything away (because there aren't any) but I can really see how Four Tet has harnessed Madlib's sprawling genius into a tight little journey of a record here. - James
For Those I Love - For Those I Love
I'm not from, nor have I ever even been to Ireland, but this album really reminded me of my youth for some reason. The stories, the samples, it's a really beautiful poetic record. - James
Baba Ali - Memory Device
Groove after groove. This was probably my most played record this year. It fit every mood I was feeling at all times. - James
Gustaf - Audio Drag For Ego Slobs
A friend with v reliable taste told me to check this band ages ago and I forgot until I saw we were playing the same festival. Captivating and brilliant on stage and on record - Ryan.
Anika - Change
Loved everything from Anika so far and this album for me is a perfectly judged shift. Shifts are hard to get right. Still creepy still great - Ryan
Japanese Breakfast - Jubilee
The ‘difficult 2nd album’ thing is nonsense; album 3 is the one where it seems to get the most dicey for a lot of artists. This is brilliant. - Ryan
Mush - Lines Redacted
Mush are from Leeds but this isn’t regional nepotism because I don’t know them that well beyond saying hello in the pub. People say they’re nice though. Anyway, this record is lean and jagged and lyrically brill. - Ryan
Automatic - Signal (Remixes)
Signal album proper came out in 2019 but this remix album came out earlier this year and I didn’t know about them then. Sudan Archives, Oh Sees Dwyer, and Peaking Lights reworks are all banging but deffo check the OG record too - Ryan
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Yard Act - 2022 Tour Dates
07 JAN 22 - THE POLAR BEAR - HULL
08 JAN 22 - O2 INSTITUTE - BIRMINGHAM
09 JAN 22 - BEDFORD ESQUIRES - MUSIC VENUE - BEDFORD
14 JAN 22 - THE BULLINGDON - OXFORD
15 JAN 22 - THE SUGARMILL - STOKE-ON-TRENT
16 JAN 22 - THE CRESCENT COMMUNITY VENUE - YORK
21 JAN 22 - ROUGH TRADE EAST - LONDON
21 JAN 22 - ROUGH TRADE EAST - LONDON
22 JAN 22 - BANQUET RECORDS - KINGSTON UPON THAMES
22 JAN 22 - SISTER RAY / 100 CLUB OUTSTORE - LONDON
23 JAN 22 - PIE AND VINYL INSTORE - PORTSMOUTH
23 JAN 22 - RESIDENT INSTORE - BRIGHTON
24 JAN 22 - ROUGH TRADE BRISTOL - BRISTOL
24 JAN 22 - TRUCK INSTORE - OXFORD
27 JAN 22 - ROUGH TRADE NOTTINGHAM - NOTTINGHAM
02 FEB 22 - L'AÉRONEF - LILLE
03 FEB 22 - MUZIEKCENTRUM TRIX - ANTWERPEN
04 FEB 22 - PARADISO - AMSTERDAM
05 FEB 22 - MOLOTOW - HAMBURG
06 FEB 22 - STENGADE - KØBENHAVN
07 FEB 22 - PLAN B - MALMÖ
09 FEB 22 - BADEHAUS BERLIN - BERLIN
10 FEB 22 - BLUE SHELL - COLOGNE
11 FEB 22 - ROTONDES - LUXEMBOURG
12 FEB 22 - LA BOULE NOIRE - PARIS
17 FEB 22 - VILLAGE UNDERGROUND - LONDON
18 FEB 22 - PATTERNS - BRIGHTON
19 FEB 22 - THE JOINERS - SOUTHAMPTON
21 FEB 22 - EXCHANGE - BRISTOL
22 FEB 22 - CLWB IFOR BACH - CARDIFF
23 FEB 22 - BODEGA - NOTTINGHAM
24 FEB 22 - THE WHITE HOTEL - SALFORDS
25 FEB 22 - TRADES CLUB - HEBDEN BRIDGE
26 FEB 22 - BRUDENELL SOCIAL CLUB - LEEDS
01 MAR 22 - THE CLUNY - NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
02 MAR 22 - THE CAVES - EDINBURGH
03 MAR 22 - MONO - GLASGOW
04 MAR 22 - WHELAN'S - DUBLIN
22 MAR 22 - UNION POOL - NEW YORK
23 MAR 22 - JOHNNY BRENDA'S - PHILADELPHIA
24 MAR 22 - TV EYE - QUEENS COUNTY
25 MAR 22 - THE SINCLAIR - CAMBRIDGE
27 MAR 22 - THE GARRISON - TORONTO
29 MAR 22 - SLEEPING VILLAGE - CHICAGO
05 APR 22 - EARTH (EVOLUTIONARY ARTS HACKNEY) - LONDON
15 APR 22 - CASBAH - SAN DIEGO
18 APR 22 - THE CROCODILE SECOND STAGE - SEATTLE
19 APR 22 - DOUG FIR LOUNGE - PORTLAND
21 APR 22 - RICKSHAW STOP - SAN FRANCISCO
30 APR 22 - LIVERPOOL CITY CENTRE - LIVERPOOL
11 MAY 22 - TRINITY CENTRE - BRISTOL
18 MAY 22 - RESCUE ROOMS - NOTTINGHAM
19 MAY 22 - THE ZANZIBAR CLUB - LIVERPOOL
20 MAY 22 - THE IRISH CENTRE - LEEDS
21 MAY 22 - BAND ON THE WALL - MANCHESTER
22 MAY 22 - THE FOUNDRY SHEFFIELD - SHEFFIELD
26 MAY 22 - O2 ACADEMY 2 - LEICESTER
27 MAY 22 - NORWICH ARTS CENTRE - NORWICH
28 MAY 22 - BROCKWELL PARK - LONDON
28 MAY 22 - BROCKWELL PARK - LONDON
22 JUL 22 - TRUCK FESTIVAL 2022 - STEVENTON
05 Aug 22 - OFF FESTIVAL - KATOWICE
07 AUG 22 - OFF FESTIVAL 2022 - KATOWICE
09 Aug 22 - ØYAFESTIVALEN - OSLO
10 AUG 22 - ØYAFESTIVALEN 2022 - OSLO
13 AUG 22 - OYA FESTIVAL - OSLO
24 NOV 22 - O2 ACADEMY LEEDS - LEEDS
25 NOV 22 - O2 RITZ - MANCHESTER - BUY