It’s an evening prioritising celebration and love.
Words: Neive McCarthy.
Photos: Anthony Harrison.
“Send that love and make sure they hear it from Harehills, to Horsforth, to Beeston, to Guiseley,” shouts Yard Act frontman James Smith over the din of a rapturous crowd in Leeds’s Millenium Square. It’s the biggest hometown show of the band’s career thus far, and it comes on a day that has been dark and difficult for the city. Amidst riots and tensions, a lyric from the band’s 2022 song ‘Dead Horse’ comes to mind: “I’m not scared of people who don’t look like me, unlike you.” The band have been offering relief and solidarity for the span of their career, and tonight is no exception. It’s an evening prioritising celebration and love – one that many of the crowd will gladly welcome.
It’s a lineup drenched in talent, and Ultimate Thunder are the first of the evening to grace the stage – introduced by Yard Act as the best band in Leeds right now, the excitement quickly builds. Fresh from the release of their second album, the band deliver a passionate, enigmatic set that has the early audience enraptured – it’s raw and rowdy, and above all else a perfectly lively beginning to the evening.
If ever there was a band to get a crowd going, Fat Dog are it. They cut their teeth on unruly live shows, and this evening is no exception. On the verge of their debut album, ‘WOOF.’ being unleashed on the world, Fat Dog are bringing their A-game, and it involves the usual throwing themselves into the crowd, mid-set dance routines and general tomfoolery. ‘All The Same’ is a real highlight and display of the kind of frenzy that Fat Dog are capable of inspiring.
In a week that saw English Teacher gain a Mercury Prize nomination, playing their adopted home of Leeds under the sun is the cherry on top of the musical cake. Opening with ‘The World’s Biggest Paving Slab’, the four-piece are immediately mesmerising – their guitar lines are slick and satisfying, Lily Fontaine’s vocals are better than ever, and their lyrics are hitting particularly hard. This a band riding the high of the whirlwind year they’ve had, and it leaves the audience suitably warmed up for the band that follows.
Yard Act don’t mess about – as soon as they’re onstage, it’s straight to the bangers. They do make hits, after all. ‘The Overload’ kicks off proceedings, and it’s non-stop from there. The band have become masterful at toeing the line between fierce guitar lines and danceable beats, and their set is a reflection of that. They never fail to have the 5,000-strong crowd jumping along with them, revelling in the delight of witnessing a band in their prime.
Thoughtful and tender but formidably fun, they dip between both of their albums to create a full-throttle set with no sign of slowing down. The explosive instrumentals of ‘Fizzy Fish’ are ferocious live, whilst ‘Dream Job’ is a real highlight – vibrant, sparkling and inspiring pure joy in the horde of Yard Act fans present; it’s a completely gratifying moment. ‘Down by the Stream’ sees them enlist their friend Dean – yes, the very Dean that is namedropped in the song – onstage, before he promptly throws himself into the crowd – it’s equal parts daft, special and poignant.
‘100% Endurance’ live is a deeply affecting moment in the set – it’s enough to drive you to tears as the crowd recite every single lyric back to the band. Those lyrics seem to be leaving a mark more than ever – it feels filled with hope and resonance, and it becomes immediately clear how emotional and special this gig is for the band and crowd alike.
It is a final blast of energy that closes the set with ‘The Trench Coat Museum’ – passion and glee are radiating from the venue in droves at this stage, and it’s a perfectly triumphant ending. Yard Act will soon resume their long tour of the festival circuit, but it will be hard to replicate the emotions and energy in Millenium Square this evening – it is a set to remember and hold onto.
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