You can’t swing a dark trench coat these days and not swat a few UK post-punk bands in the process, a population that shows no signs of abating. But as long as they have the swagger, the skills and the songs of outfits such as Yard Act, I’ll keep my complaining to a minimum. The Leeds-based band touched down at The Sinclair for their third time, finishing off their eleven date American tour at their favorite Boston-area venue. There’s something to be said for catching the final show of a band who’s on their way home after the gig, a sense of looseness and fun as all the kinks have been worked out and it’s smooth sailing from there.
While Joy Divison is the most obvious template the current crop of bands use as inspiration, Yard Act owes a debt to the highly danceable rhythms of Gang Of Four, albeit without the feral guitar tone of Andy Gill. Their third record, the timely-titled You Could Use A Little Music is another strong entry in their discography, and “Empty Pledges” is likely the only song to name-check both David Gedge and Howard Devoto.
The stream-of-consciousness lyrics are impressive, deep and poetic, and it’s also a wonder that singer James Smith can keep all of those words sorted in his brain for quick and accurate access. The band had an impressive grip on the Sunday night crowd, and it was underscored when they launched into “Pour Another” and the crowd clapping in unison response was organically sourced, without any sort of prompting from any of the band members; that try-hard Wayne Coyne should take heed.
The band returns to North America in September for a few shows in the Midwest before picking up a more substantive string of dates back in Europe and closing down in the UK so check your calendar and mark it, especially for fans of Fontaines D.C. or Viagra Boys who are unfamiliar with Yard Act.
The Armed barely had enough space on stage for all the members and the gear, so it wasn’t really that surprising that two different forays down to the venue floor occurred as their sonic mayhem detonated across all walls of the club. Featuring two lead singers who rarely sang together and two guitarists who did, the band fired off in unpredictable directions like a deflating balloon careening through the air. I don’t think a lot of Yard Act fans knew what they were in for, but the band did have a hardcore cadre of fans right up front who vacated their spots when the set was over.
