Yard Act

At the turn of the millennium, many eyes turned to the UK, hoping the climate would be ripe for the emergence of a band that would blend the sharp spirit of post-punk with the expansive nature of Britpop. But no act from that crop seemed up to the task. We had to wait a generation, but the moment finally arrived from Leeds: Yard Act, a sort of fusion of Talking Heads, The Fall, Pulp and LCD Soundsystem, is the band we’d been dreaming of for so long.

A rhythmic machine that isn’t afraid to grease its wheels with a sharp sense of humour, led by James Smith, an old-school frontman. In other words, he’s one of those band leaders who simply focuses on singing without playing any instrument, though he does so under any condition: he sings whilst jumping, he sings whilst writhing, he sings whilst running, he sings whilst swaying.