Yard Act have shared a new single, ‘Petroleum’, with an accompanying video starring comedian Rose Matafeo.
The single marks another taste of their forthcoming second album ‘Where’s My Utopia?’ which is due out on March 1, 2024 via Island and serves as the follow-up to the acclaimed Mercury-nominated 2022 debut ‘The Overload‘.
Per a press release, the band explained that ‘Petroleum’ was written after an incident on tour.
“I lost it with the crowd in Bognor Regis and told them I was bored and I didn’t want to be there,” recalled frontman James Smith. “Me and Ryan [Needham, bassist] had a row after, and Ryan rightly dressed me down for the way I acted. It got me pondering the idea that, now this is a job, what are the requirements of it? People think they want honesty but they don’t, they want me to portray the version of honesty that they’ve paid to see and that’s part of the illusion.”
The video features a recurring character in the band’s videos, The Visitor, stumble across a biker gang called The Utopians. Starstruck creator Matafeo stars as the group’s leader.
“‘Petroleum’ finds The Visitor as she stumbles into the hideout of a fearsome Biker gang called The Utopians. She’s still on the run from the H.G.E agents. It was a lot of fun shooting this video, and a joy to watch our friend Rose Matafeo bring the leader of The Utopians to life,” Smith continued.
“Though the story isn’t being told in a linear format, I hope that the journey of The Visitor through the last three videos is starting to come together and reveal that we’re working on something bigger here. More to come!”
Matafeo added: “I screen most of my phone calls, but when the phone flashes up ‘JAMES YARD ACT’ you’re gonna pick that up straight away. To feature in a Yard Act video has been on my bucket list ever since I added it to my bucket list after they asked me so I could have the satisfaction of crossing it off my bucket list. The overall vision for this album is so creatively ambitious and fun and cool and I’m so stoked to even be a little part of it. Sorry for my bad accent. Not sorry for the line dancing.”
Check out ‘Petroleum’ below:
Yard Act previously told NME that the album takes a particular interest in the idea of getting everything you’ve ever wanted but not feeling quite right about it.
“For me, for my entire adult life, a big part of me has been very content with finding love and having a child – that’s another big element to the album – but there was another part of me that was so certain that this is what I wanted,” said Smith. “I was, and I am sincerely so happy with everything that happened, but it was a journey and a struggle. The last two years have been quite a lot, and I couldn’t afford myself the time to process as it was happening. I’ve learned a lot more about it after the fact.
“Even in early conversations when I started telling the band what I was writing about, they were like, ‘Oh, you’re writing about how hard it is being in a successful band? This isn’t going to go down well, James…’”
The band will be touring the UK, Europe and North America next year. The run of shows includes a huge Londno show at the Eventim Apollo on March 27 and an even bigger outdoor homecoming show at Leeds’ Millennium Square on August 5. Visit here for tickets and more information.
MARCH 2024
13 – The Nick Rayns LCR, Norwich, UK
14 – Rock City, Nottingham , UK
15 – O2 Academy, Glasgow, UK
16 – O2 Apollo, Manchester, UK
17 – Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK
19 – Mandela Hall, Belfast, UK
20 – Vicar Street, Dublin, IE
22 – Invisible Wind Factory, Liverpool, UK
23 – O2 Academy, Bristol, UK
25 – The Dome, Brighton, UK
27 – Eventim Apollo, London, UK
APRIL 2024
4 – Stereolux, Nantes, FR
5 – Cabaret Sauvage, Paris, FR
6 – Rock School Barbey, Bordeaux, FR
8 – LAV, Lisbon, PT
9 – Mon, Madrid, ES
11 – La 2, Barcelona, ES
12 – Le Transbordeur, Lyon, FR
13 – Locomotiv Club, Bologna, IT
14 – Santeria Toscana 31, Milan, IT
16 – Mascotte, Zurich, CH
17 – Muffathalle, Munich, DE
18 – Festsaal Kreuzberg, Berlin, DE
20 – Slaktkyrkan, Stockholm, SE
24 – Uebel & Gefährlich, Hamburg, DE
25 – Paradiso Main Hall, Amsterdam, NL
26 – Doornroosje, Nijmegen,NL
27 – Kantine, Cologne, DE
28 – Les Nuits Botanique, Brussels, BE
MAY 2024
30 – Belly Up Tavern, Solana Beach, CA
31 – The Regent Theater, Los Angeles, CA
JUNE 2024
1 – Pappy and Harriet’s, Pioneertown, CA
3 – The Catalyst Atrium, Santa Cruz, CA
4 – The Independent, San Francisco, CA
6 – Mississippi Studios, Portland, OR
7 – Rickshaw Theatre, Vancouver, BC
8 – Crocodile, Seattle, WA
AUGUST 2024
3 – Millennium Square, Leeds, UK
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