Yard Act have today shared their new track and video “Rich,” the final single off their debut album The Overload, available January 21 via Zen F.C./Island Records.

Yard Act recorded The Overload with Ali Chant (PJ Harvey, Perfume Genius, Aldous Harding) at his Bristol studio, those prolific demos have been sharpened down into something that speaks to the times we live in, creating a statement of intent that survives on nuance – a record of retro influences, recorded in a modern way. The Overload is a political record, but in the same way that all great observations of human nature are – a messy, complex, knowingly hypocritical snapshot of our current state of play.

“Lyrically, I think it’s a record about the things that we all do – we’re all so wired into the system of day to day that we don’t really stop and think about the constructs that define us,” says Smith. “But also beyond that, it’s kind of exciting, because there’s still so much we don’t understand; how a hive mindset is forged, how information spreads, how we agree and presume things without thinking. Some people think more than others, but a lot of this sloganeering – ‘I’m on the left, I’m not wrong’ – doesn’t achieve anything. Gammons, Karens, Snowflakes, whatever – I find it all so boring. I’m just not into that.”

Speaking about the new track, James Smith explains: “‘Rich’ is the natural successor to ‘Payday’. That’s the end of the story right? Success! Status! Security! Except, there’s always more money to be made, and you’re deemed a failure if your life starts to head back in the direction it came from. It’s about being so lost you’re sure you know exactly where you are and how you got there. I also wrote it because I thought it would be quite funny if Yard Act made a shit ton of money after I’d written an anti-capitalist concept album. It’ll be funny if I’m singing this song on stage when I’ve made my mint.”

He elaborates: “At worst it makes no sense, at best it comes off as pretentious, but that’s the point I’m trying to make when I write anything really. Things only really make sense if you exclude the bits that don’t back up the point you’re trying to make. I’m a hypocrite just like everyone else. I don’t have the answers and I’m just trying to do the best I can. It’ll never be good enough though. Enjoy the ride, life is short and you never know what’s round the corner.”

Having grown from relatively casual pub acquaintances to roommates, Smith and Needham found living together to be conducive to a high work rate, racking up demos in quick succession. Settling into a system of programming, looping and layering, the alchemy between the two created a base from which to build their narrative world. “Ryan is a vibe guy, whereas I overthink everything,” laughs Smith. “It’s been the greatest creative partnership I’ve ever had. When you find a groove that works, it just kind of looks after itself.”

Yard Act
The Overload
Track List

1. The Overload
2. Dead Horse
3. Payday
4. Rich
5. The Incident
6. Witness
7. Land Of The Blind
8. Quarantine The Sticks
9. Tall Poppies
10. Pour Another
11. 100% Endurance

Yard Act
2022 Live Dates

21 Jan | Rough Trade East, London, UK 12pm
21 Jan | Rough Trade East, London, UK 6pm – SOLD OUT
22 Jan | Sister Ray / 100 Club Outstore 1pm
22 Jan | Pryzm, Kingston-Upon-Thames, UK 9pm
23 Jan | Pie and Vinyl Instore, Southsea, UK 1pm
23 Jan | Resident Music Instore, Brighton, UK 6pm – SOLD OUT
24 Jan | Truck Music Store, Oxford, UK 1pm
23 Jan | Rough Trade, Bristol, UK, 6:30PM – SOLD OUT
27 Jan | Rough Trade, Nottingham, UK – SOLD OUT
2 Feb | L’Aéronef, Lille, FR
3 Feb | Trix, Borgorhaut, BE
4 Feb | Paradiso Kleine Zaal, Amsterdam, NL – SOLD OUT
5 Feb | Molotow, Hamburg, DE
6 Feb | Stengade, Copenhagen, DK
7 Feb | Plan B, Malmö, SE
9 Feb | Badehaus, Berlin, DE
10 Feb | Blue Shell, Cologne, DE
11 Feb | Rotondes, Luxembourg, LU
12 Feb | La Boule Noire, Paris, FR
17 Feb | Village Underground, London, UK – SOLD OUT
18 Feb | Patterns, Brighton, UK – SOLD OUT
19 Feb | The Joiners, Southampton, UK – SOLD OUT
21 Feb | Exchange, Bristol, UK – SOLD OUT
22 Feb | Clwb Ifor Bach, UK Cardiff – SOLD OUT
23 Feb | Bodega Social, Nottingham, UK – SOLD OUT
24 Feb | The White Hotel, Salford, UK – SOLD OUT
25 Feb | The Trades Club, Hebden Bridge, UK – SOLD OUT
26 Feb | Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, UK – SOLD OUT
1 Mar | The Cluny, Newcastle, UK – SOLD OUT
2 Mar | The Caves, Edinburgh – SOLD OUT
3 Mar | Mono, Glasgow, UK – SOLD OUT
4 Mar | Whelans, Dublin, IE
14 Mar – 20 Mar | SXSW, Austin, TX
22 Mar | Union Pool, Brooklyn, NY
23 Mar | Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA
24 Mar | TV Eye, Queens, NY
25 Mar | The Sinclair, Boston, MA
27 Mar | The Garrison, Toronto, ON
29 Mar | Sleeping Village, Chicago, ILL
5 Apr | Earth, London, UK
15 Apr | The Casbah, San Diego, US
18 Apr | The Crocodile, Seattle, US
19 Apr | Doug Fir Lounge, Portland, US
21 Apr | Rickshaw Stop, San Francisco, US
30 Apr | Liverpool Sound City, UK
11 May | Trinity, Bristol, UK
18 May | Rescue Rooms, Nottingham, UK – SOLD OUT
19 May | Zanzibar, Liverpool – SOLD OUT
20 May | Irish Centre, Leeds, UK – SOLD OUT
21 May | Band on the Wall, Manchester, UK – SOLD OUT
22 May | The Foundry, Sheffield, UK – SOLD OUT
26 May | O2 Academy, Leicester, UK
27 May | Arts Centre, Norwich – SOLD OUT
28 May | Wide Awake Festival, London
22 Jul | Truck Festival, Oxford, UK
24 Jul | Tramlines, Sheffield, UK
29 Jul | Deer Shed, Thirsk UK
30 Jul | Ynot Festival, Derbyshire, UK
5-7 Aug | Off Festival, Katowice, PL
9-13 Aug | Oya Festival, Oslo, NO
24 Nov | O2 Academy, Leeds
25 Nov | O2 Ritz, Manchester