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| Source: Promo |
With Halloween just around the corner, it feels hauntingly right to introduce Yard Arms, the transatlantic duo comprised of Noah Villeneuve and Billy Golding, centred around the euphoria of the late nineties and a melancholy expression of heartfelt despair. Their upcoming EP, 'A Glossary of Broken Humans & Beating Hearts' is due for release on the first of November, already itching to be released into the gloomy air of this waning year.
Leading track, 'Idea of Me & You' plaits rough instrumentation with brooding vocals, weaving elements of rugged fragility throughout the entirety of the effort. This song is reminiscent of raindrops trickling from the hair of a tipped head or a pearly shimmer that brims below bleached cliffs. The rest of this release follows suit, stumbling from 'Keep On Laughing', to 'Comfortable', before concluding with 'Heavy Silences'.
Between their cackling drums and rumbled vocal deliveries, Yard Arms have crafted themselves an eerie broth of sorrow, woe, and iridescent hope, packaged in a leathery grey box. Few artists nowadays so brazenly depict dejected emotions, but the charm that these guys offer alongside their melancholy content is alluring to audiences. Sometimes it's nice to just have a good, deserved cry to music that reinforces your low spirits.
Despite 'A Glossary of Broken Humans & Beating Hearts' not being Yard Arms' debut release (as it follows 2018's 'Maiden') it appears to be their most moulding and sensical to date. This EP focuses primarily on an outward portrayal of the human condition, mental health, and trauma, allowing for a metaphorical catharsis for a hazy audience to revel in. Coupled with their shadowed aesthetic too, I feel like Yard Arms embody this needed environment wholly. You could wring out both Noah and Billy and receive nothing short of howling passion and a deep, dark froth.
Below, I chat to Yard Arms regarding the production and release of 'A Glossary of Broken Humans & Beating Hearts', the future plans of the band, and theft?
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| Source: Promo |
Introduce yourselves! What is the first thing you want a potential new audience to know about yourselves and the band as a whole?
Listen to our songs, that's all you need - they speak for us.
If the only way to describe your aesthetic as a band was through film, which movie would you want your audience to watch and why?
Anything written or directed by Mark Duplass, Cameron Crowe or Michel Gondry. Romantic art house indie flicks.
In a scenario where you had to rename the new EP with the first thing that comes to mind right now, what title would it actually be released under?
'Yard Arms made more happy-sad songs that you should listen to because they are emotional and good for your health.'
Which song from the EP did you write first, and did it spark the rest of the release or was it more of a gradual coming-together?
The tracklisting follows the order they were written, 'Idea Of Me & You' was finished first. It was a gradual coming together - however, the writing of that track definitely inspired a more carefree approach to the whole process going forward. We stopped second-guessing ourselves and let it become much more organic than ever before.
Steal your favourite lyric that was written by someone else and fit it somewhere into the EP. What lyric would you each choose, who wrote it, and what song would you want to put it into?
'It takes an ocean not to break' by The National. I'd slot it into 'Heavy Silences', it seems fitting.
Did you always envision the EP cover to look the way that it does, or were there other ideas or options beforehand? If so, what were they, and if not, what gave you the conceptual idea for the cover that you chose in the first place?
Leading up to this EP we had solely used the work of one photographer friend, and the abstract darkness seemed consistently appropriate. However, we had a press shoot with Amber Smithwick for this campaign a few months back and there was just this one shot that seemed so suited to this record, so we decided to run with it for the cover - simple as.
What are the future plans for Yard Arms, both imminent and long-term? Tell me about your goals!
Release this EP. Play more shows. Record the next release. Play more shows. Write more. Play more. Write more. Play more. Enjoy it all.
Keep up with Yard Arms' imminent activity on Twitter, Facebook and Spotify.
Listen to our songs, that's all you need - they speak for us.
If the only way to describe your aesthetic as a band was through film, which movie would you want your audience to watch and why?
Anything written or directed by Mark Duplass, Cameron Crowe or Michel Gondry. Romantic art house indie flicks.
In a scenario where you had to rename the new EP with the first thing that comes to mind right now, what title would it actually be released under?
'Yard Arms made more happy-sad songs that you should listen to because they are emotional and good for your health.'
Which song from the EP did you write first, and did it spark the rest of the release or was it more of a gradual coming-together?
The tracklisting follows the order they were written, 'Idea Of Me & You' was finished first. It was a gradual coming together - however, the writing of that track definitely inspired a more carefree approach to the whole process going forward. We stopped second-guessing ourselves and let it become much more organic than ever before.
Steal your favourite lyric that was written by someone else and fit it somewhere into the EP. What lyric would you each choose, who wrote it, and what song would you want to put it into?
'It takes an ocean not to break' by The National. I'd slot it into 'Heavy Silences', it seems fitting.
Did you always envision the EP cover to look the way that it does, or were there other ideas or options beforehand? If so, what were they, and if not, what gave you the conceptual idea for the cover that you chose in the first place?
Leading up to this EP we had solely used the work of one photographer friend, and the abstract darkness seemed consistently appropriate. However, we had a press shoot with Amber Smithwick for this campaign a few months back and there was just this one shot that seemed so suited to this record, so we decided to run with it for the cover - simple as.
What are the future plans for Yard Arms, both imminent and long-term? Tell me about your goals!
Release this EP. Play more shows. Record the next release. Play more shows. Write more. Play more. Write more. Play more. Enjoy it all.
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| Source: Promo |
