Yards - Yards

  by Dixie Ernill

published: 19 / 4 / 2005

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It’s very difficult to review someone’s new band without reference to their old one, so let’s get the history lesson out of the way first. The Yards frontman, Chris Helme, provided the vocal tapestry to John Squire’s guitar licks in his post Stone Roses combo the Seahorses. They had a few hits and caused a bit of a stir in the late 1990’s, but then disappeared almost as soon as they had arrived.  Prior to forming the Yards with Stu Fletcher, Chris Farrell, John Miller and Jon Hargreaves, Helme took time out to embark on fatherhood. The break didn’t dampen his passion for music and the Yards were born.  The Seahorses fans will not be disappointed with opening track, 'Forget Your Regrets', but this LP is certainly no identikit of the aforementioned. If anything it nods more towards fellow Yorkshiremen and comeback kings, Embrace (whose resurgence is both phenomenal and unfathomable in equal measures). Their influence is particularly prominent on tracks like 'Get Off My Back', 'Crime' and 'On The Inside'. Lighters aloft anyone? Elsewhere, the Yards aren’t afraid to rock out on 'The Devil Is Alive And Well In D.C.', which has an agreeable Doors feel or to branch off on their own flights of fancy on album highlight 'Superhuman.' A decent opening salvo, all told, but I’m not sure how they will fit into rock’s current jigsaw. I fear they are either just too late to grab Coldplay’s coat-tails or too early to start their own revolution. Either way, I wish them well, but I think there is some distance left to travel !       

Track Listing:-

1 Forget Your Regrets
2 Get Off My Back
3 Devil Is Alive And Well And In DC
4 Only Myself To Blame
5 Crime
6 On The Inside
7 Superhuman
8 Pure
9 California
10 Fireflies
11 Up 'Til Dawn

Label Links:-

http://www.snappermusic.com/

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