ALBUM REVIEWS
“I attained perfection / So why the fuck was I still wondering what wankers would think of album two?” murmurs James Smith, Yard Act’s inimitable frontman. It’s the concluding remark on ‘Blackpool Illuminations’, a seven-minute spoken-word tale that vividly recounts trips to the seaside town with his parents, eventually juxtaposed against those with his own child. Indeed, this “perfection” he refers to is not their Number Two debut album ‘The Overload’ (2022), but his son, born in amongst the pandemonium of Yard Act’s sharp rise to fame.
Musings on fatherhood and his relationship with his folks (“I think you’re most in love with your parents”) are resemblant of a changed Smith, who simultaneously wrestles with the trials and tribulations of their success on ‘Where’s My Utopia?’, the Leeds quartet’s second album. Its goal was to merely make sense of their newfound status, plucked from spare moments amidst their record-breaking, relentless touring schedule. Always destined to outgrow the shallow ‘post-punk’ label, the band flex their creative muscles on the eclectic 11-song collection that tears down the very concept of genre.
Ever ones to poke fun at themselves, Smith wastes no time doing so (“Post-punk’s latest poster boys”) on ‘We Make Hits’, a track that re-affirms their underlying motivation: four brothers who relish their shared songwriting experience: “We just wanna have some fun before we’re sunk.” The clearest example of this is lead single ‘Dream Job’, which finds its place as the record’s accidental party number. It’s far from an open-top bus parade, though Smith smiles and waves in superlatives, simultaneously taking a dig at the “game” Yard Act continue to navigate their way through: “I place a bet on a game knowing no one will score”. As they recently noted to The Times: “We’ve hit the big time but we still can’t afford a house”.
Co-produced by Remi Kakaba Jr of Gorillaz, ‘Where’s My Utopia?’ is sonically playful from the get-go. Tracks like ‘The Undertow’ could have certainly found a home on Gorillaz’ 2010 concept album ‘Plastic Beach’, scurrying between hurried string sections and a throbbing bassline. Light shades of disco and art-rock take centre stage on ‘Grifter’s Grief’ and ‘When The Laughter Stops’, the latter of which enlists Katy J Pearson to help deliver the album’s most vital message. As Smith sheds a light on the rut he once found himself in (“the victim shot dead in the cold open”), we’re reminded of the layer of vulnerability that exists between the zingers.
In between samples from their comedy pals – standups Nish Kumar and Rose Matafeo – and references to all sorts of uniquely British phenomena: from ‘Fizzy Fish’ to Calpol and, er, Milton Keynes. Where’s My Utopia?’ marks an outlandish yet assertive second chapter for Yard Act, going toe-to-toe with the peculiar world that we find ourselves in.
ALBUM REVIEWS
Grandeur sits at the heart of ‘This Music May Contain Hope’, RAYE’s second album, and the result feels nothing short of breathtaking. On this record, the singer born Rachel Keen explores a wide spectrum of sounds across its 73 minute length, moving from emotional ballads to lively funk moments and the jazz pop style she has become closely associated with. It can feel overwhelming at first, yet the magic that comes from RAYE fully committing to her vision makes the experience rewarding from start to finish.
‘This Music May Contain Hope’, a conceptual project about pushing through insecurity and heartbreak, unfolds like a lavish stage production. RAYE takes on the dual role of main character and guiding voice throughout the story. “Allow me to set the scene. Our story begins at 2:27am on a rainy night in Paris. Cue the thunder,” she says during the opening track ‘Girl Under The Grey Cloud’, which arrives with sweeping orchestral strings. Spoken passages appear across the album, helping shape the narrative and giving the project a sense of direction, almost like hearing the official recording of a Broadway show.
With this framework in place, the South London artist allows herself to fully explore the album’s diverse musical palette, and most of the time it works in her favor. Sometimes she fully embraces the theatrical side of the concept, especially during the closing section of the smooth R&B track ‘The WhatsApp Shakespeare’. Other moments are delivered more straightforwardly, such as the emotional slow building ballad ‘I Know You’re Hurting’. She also revisits her earlier dance influences with the impressive house track ‘Life Boat’.
Across the entire album, two things stand out clearly. RAYE’s flexible vocals sound better than ever, and her songwriting feels sharper than it has before. Take the playful highlight ‘I Hate The Way I Look Today’, a swing jazz inspired track reminiscent of Ella Fitzgerald, where she admits “I’m okay to be lonely / If I’m lonely and skinny / I have such silly self-loathing thoughts, it seems”. Then there is the emotional storytelling in ‘Nightingale Lane’: “It was right there, early June / Next to Old Park Avenue / Standing in the rain, I watched him walk away”.
Despite all the vulnerability and emotional struggles explored throughout the record, RAYE ultimately reaches a place of optimism, staying true to the album’s title. She gathers her close friends on ‘Click Clack Symphony’ with support from Hans Zimmer, finds closure with guidance from Al Green on the smooth seventies soul inspired ‘Goodbye Henry’, and reaches toward something greater alongside her sisters Amma and Absolutely on the uplifting ‘Joy’ as she searches to be “free of all the pain and every fear”. After the stormy opening imagery of that “rainy night” and “thunder”, RAYE eventually realizes that “the sun exists behind the clouds”, as she shares on ‘Happier Times Ahead’.
‘This Music May Contain Hope’ shows RAYE performing at her absolute peak. The album feels huge in scale and emotionally powerful, yet it remains rooted in honest experiences and real feelings. Yes, it asks a lot from the listener, but that is also what makes it so special. Every dramatic moment and musical shift feels like RAYE claiming her independence and finally creating music entirely on her own terms.
