SINCE RELEASING THEIR DEBUT ALBUM The Overload in January 2022, Yard Act have secured a list of achievements that any misty-eyed band striving for greatness in their rehearsal rooms would die for. A reworking of a track with famous fan Elton John? Tick! A five-night soldout homecoming in their native Leeds? Tick! Being, er, upstaged by a rhino? Again, it's a tick.
To add a bit of context on the last point, in November, frontman James Smith found himself standing on a stage in Meanwood, Leeds, joined by the mascot of rugby side Leeds Rhinos, to turn on the Christmas lights in front of a crowd of bemused locals - which feels like a roundabout way of saying that Yard Act are something of a big deal round those parts.
It's all testament to how The Overload became an album that pricked up the ears of not just Yorkshire, but the world, cementing Yard Act's status as one of the most promising bands around. As Rolling Stone UK's five-star review of the record explained, the band were the latest in a strong line-up of British and Irish bands to spearhead a post-punk revival - but what separated Yard Act from the pack was their ability to indulge in the strange and surreal. Through Smith's lyrics, we were presented with characters like the unscrupulous landlord Graham, who helped paint an image of a Britain where altruism and compassion were in seemingly short supply.
But on Yard Act's second album, Where's My Utopia, band leader Smith turns the gaze on himself to offer a powerfully honest reflection on life at the top and the moments when longstrived-for success isn't all it's cracked up to be.
On album track 'Petroleum', which zips along with a hip-hop groove, Smith reflects on the reallife moment when burn-out from an intense tour schedule led him to dramatically turn on the crowd at a show in Bognor Regis, berating them for what he perceived as a lack of reaction.
Denne historien er fra February/March 2024-utgaven av Rolling Stone UK.
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Denne historien er fra February/March 2024-utgaven av Rolling Stone UK.
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Back to the Grind - The Clipse broke up when a spiritual path called to one of the brothers from Virginia. Now, one of the greatest duos in rap returns
In Norfolk, Virginia, a medium-size city teeming with unassuming single-family townhouses, homes and Pusha T's contemporary pad looks airlifted from the Hollywood Hills. With a waterfront view, large glass windows inviting in natural light, and state-of-the-art interior design, it's as if the architects asked him for inspiration and the self-proclaimed merchant of "high-taste level, luxury, drug raps" gave them a playlist of his songs.
Chappell Roan The Pain & Pleasure of a Pop Supernova - Do you want to bedazzle my grinder?
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The Scream Queen Next Door - In just a few short years, Hunter Schafer has gone from small-town North Carolina to global runways, Euphoria stardom, and her first lead role, in the horror flick Cuckoo
Hunter Schafer greets me with a confession. Beckoning me through a small gated fence into the winding maze of Chateau Marmont's lush, greenery-covered courtyard, she gives me a hug, then yawns. There's a lot happening right now, she says. I've barely gotten a handle on it. There's a grey vape in her hand, worn split-toe Tabis on her feet, and a wry smile on her face. To be fully honest with you, I'd forgotten this was happening.
Together in Electronic Dreams - Raphaella Lima of video game publisher Electronic Arts brings music to her childhood love of gaming to spotlight many of the most exciting emerging acts of the past two decades in the hit football game EA SPORTS FC
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The Mix - String Theory - On new album Odyssey, Nubya Garcia conducts sweeping strings over her innovative saxophone playing to mark herself out as a unique star of the UK jazz world
There are clichéd 'difficult second albums', and then there are those where you start almost from scratch. The difficulty with jazz prodigy Nubya Garcia's second LP, Odyssey, came when she decided that this new batch of songs she had written needed the sweeping majesty of a string section, before deciding to learn how to write and conduct it all herself.
Daydream Believer - Welsh techno-pop artist Kelly Lee Owens is the first signing to Dirty Hit's new dance label, dh2. She talks
Welsh techno-pop artist Kelly Lee Owens is the first signing to Dirty Hit's new dance label, dh2. She talks "transcending my bullshit" on the euphoric, thumping club tunes of fourth album, Dreamstate. While writing the new album, Owens was determined to make the art that my soul wants to make, ignoring outside influences and following a path and an energy that felt like it was coming to her from a higher place. "I always hoped that I'd find a home in a label that would carry that vision through," she says. When she met Daniel in Los Angeles, she asked him, "Do you care about the long term? How much time are you willing to invest in this project? What do you see?"
Sounding the Alert - The UK music industry is calling for the new Labour government to make essential changes to rescue British music - from halting the closure of venues to providing essential opportunities for new talent
To quote one Bob Dylan: "the times they are a-changin." After 14 years of Tory rule, 4 July saw a changing of the guard in British politics as Sir Keir Starmer stood on the steps of Downing Street to mark the start of a new Labour government and - according to the man himself - a decade of national renewal.Not that the result was ever in doubt, however. A cursory look at polls over the preceding year showed that a Labour landslide was very much on the cards, and it seemed like those aforementioned Dylan lyrics were about to ring true.
Staying Power- As they gave their first performance in the UK for five years, Rolling Stone UK caught up with Bang Chan, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, HAN, Felix, Seungmin and I.N, who together make up the record-breaking K-pop phenomenon Stray Kids
As they gave their first performance in the UK for five years, Rolling Stone UK caught up with Bang Chan, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, HAN, Felix, Seungmin and I.N, who together make up the record-breaking K-pop phenomenon Stray Kids. Here, they open up about the bonds they share between themselves and their devoted fans, as well as their common goal of super stardom
JAMIE XX WAVE AFTER WAVE
Nine years after his decade-defining debut album In Colour, Jamie xx returns with In Waves, a darker and broodier follow-up that saw him fall back in love with making music
"You can feel trapped when people perceive you as one thing"
On their career-best fourth album, Fontaines D.C. have shed their skin of old to deliver something more fantastical. Grian Chatten tells us the story behind their evolution
