New Yorkshire
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New Yorkshire is a musical movement identified by UK music magazine NME in 2005, in response to the success of Yorkshire bands such as Arctic Monkeys, The Cribs and Kaiser Chiefs.
Focusing mainly on Sheffield and Leeds, the bands cited by the magazine were generally young guitar bands. They included Sheffield bands Milburn, Harrisons, Bromheads Jacket, and The Long Blondes, and Leeds bands ¡Forward, Russia!, The Sunshine Underground, The Pigeon Detectives, The Research and Black Wire.
Other bands that fall into this genre include Buen Chico, O Fracas, Dead Disco, Stoney, This Et Al, The Ivories, Monkey Swallows the Universe, Tiny Dancers, Little Man Tate, Bhuna, Solar Powered Butterflies, Reverend and The Makers, Duels and Little Ze.
The Sheffield sound tends to include simple guitar riffs and witty lyrics, often singing about the day-to-day life of young Working Class people today, portrayed perfectly by Sheffield's most famous exports, Arctic Monkeys. Other bands such as Bromheads Jacket, Little Man Tate, Reverend and The Makers and Milburn have similar qualities - but each retaining their own individual sounds.
On the other hand, the Leeds scene appears to model a new genre, described by NME as "disco-punk" and "dance-metal". Typical traits are frantic guitars, fast paced rhythms, a layered and often complex wall of music and vocals sang over the top - ¡Forward, Russia!, who describe themselves as "Math rock influenced pop miniatures wrapped in a coating of chaos disco" are perhaps the pioneers of this, with other bands such as The Sunshine Underground creating a less extreme, but equally innovative, sound. Another new genre developing in Leeds is that of 'Surf Pop' which is best typified by Buen Chico whose harmony laden, indie pop bounces along in a deceptively happy way. Their tunes worm their way into your brain and then you realise that the lyrics have a serious, eco-friendly, message too which is very appealing.
These developments have caused glowing vibrations through Sheffield, Leeds and the whole of Yorkshire, giving bands in that area the feeling that you can make it on your own, and that you don't need a London Record Label to find you. Various record labels have worked on DIY releases up and around at the same time, including The Laundrette, Thee Sheffield Phonographic Corporation and Spoonjuice Records. The Leeds label Dance to the radio was formed by ¡¡Forward, Russia!! and its recent release "What We All Want" showcases a number of New Yorkshire bands, including The Playmates, The Lodger, Bam Bam Francs and Voltage Union, giving birth to more varied sounds from Yorkshire, a place which has always been known for its eclectic produce and 'Yorkshire Beat'.
Although good exposure for the cities and bands featured, some criticised the way the magazine focused purely on guitar bands, ignored other regions of Yorkshire, and lumped together two very different cities' music scenes as one.
[edit] See also
- Music in Leeds
- Music from Sheffield
