Y!KES are a new alternative four-piece from Birmingham. They recently released their second single ‘The Y Factor’ following from the massive reception to their debut single ‘Uncanny Valley’.
The single, produced by singer Joby Fitzgerald and Magic Garden Studio’s Gavin Monaghan, is a showcase of the band’s ability to bring together frantic guitar licks, gritty vocals, huge drums and cutting social commentary lyricism. The video (Linked above) is a pastiche of TV shows such as The X Factor and Gogglebox which see’s the band in various different costumes and environments playing multiple characters, all being glossed with an 80’s retro feel.
The band have just completed the ‘Arch Nemesis Tour’, the last show of which saw a sold out headline show at the Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham. They have plenty more scheduled for this year, including slots at Your City Festival and Hard Rock Hell and are currently planning another set of national live dates.
TOUR DATES
20th April – Soma Festival, London
26th May – Your City Festival, Stoke On Trent
31st May – Actress and Bishop, Birmingham
12th July – Fuse Fest, Lichfield
7th November – Hard Rock Hell Festival, Great Yarmouth
Check out ‘The Y Factor’ below!
Y!KES is TJ Weston (Drums), Liam Howard (Guitar, backing vocal), Joby Fitzgerald (Lead vocal, rhythm guitar), Matt Ford (Bass)
We managed to catch up with the band as they talked about the latest single and more!
So how has the release of initial release of The Y Factor gone down so far?
The release has been awesome! We’ve had a great reception from people, they’ve really seemed to enjoy seeing the band doing something a bit more comedic and in your face as opposed to the dark, subtle nature of Uncanny Valley. We had a lot of fun making the song and the video and people seem to be having fun listening and watching.
So with the name in mind, are you fans of competitions such as X Factor, I’m guessing maybe not?
To be honest the track isn’t really a generic stab at the X Factor, it kind of goes a bit deeper than that. We all grew up watching those sorts of shows and being flaunted the idea of that being the way you ‘make it’. So for us the Y Factor was more of an attempt to revisit that time when those shows were chipping away at the industry and celebrate the redundancy and lack of influence they have nowadays. We thought it’d be a fun excuse to dress up, wrap ourselves in flashy nostalgia and combine all our 70s/80s influences with the talent show format to create our own little Y!KES TV episode.
What was your favourite moment making the video?
There were so many golden gems on that day. One bit that sticks out is when our drummer TJ came out dressed as his female judge persona ‘Selma Soul’. We all couldn’t believe it because he genuinely looked incredible! He really got into the whole thing, posing on the judges table and doing lustful facial expressions towards himself in the mirror. At one point in the video he’s playing drums as part of the band doing a call me sign to himself dressed as Selma, which had us all in hysterics. We saw a different side to him that day that we’re not entirely sure we want to see again or not!
How does this single compare to your last single Uncanny Valley?
Uncanny Valley was a much more angsty straight down the line grunge tune. It’s more anthemic and bouncy, lyrically it’s super bitter. Y Factor’s a lot more fun, it’s frantic and catchy, the lyrics are really tongue in cheek. All the singles we’re releasing at the moment are totally different, we’ve got a dance song and a ballad amongst the upcoming releases. It contrasts a lot more than it compares, and that’s quickly established the diversity of Y!KES.
What gig are you most looking forward to coming up?
We’ve got Soma Fest coming up in London with some awesome bands such as Moses and The Pagans SOH. We’re really looking forward to getting back in the capital. Your City, Fuse and Hard Rock Hell are gonna be mental, particularly HRH because we’re all massive fans of Buckcherry, it’s kinda crazy being on the same line up as then. We’re mostly looking forward to packing out the Actress and Bishop on the 31st May with the guys in Heavy Rapids and Earls. They’re both wicked bands and that’s already promising to be a sell out show. The last Bham date was a knockout so we’re hoping to go even bigger this time round.
What’s the alternative scene like in Birmingham at the moment?
It’s absolutely kicking off! Bands like Ivory Wave and Riscas are out there tearing up the indie scene whilst Failure Is An Option, A Titan A Deity and Straight for the Sun are keeping the cities metal roots at large. We’re honoured to be somewhere in the middle and be able to play shows with softer bands like VEDA, alternative bands like Dearist, heavier bands like Second Cities, dance bands like Waved etc. It’s really awesome to have that ability where we aren’t so easily categorised, we get to share the stage with and hang out with so many awesome people on the journey we’re on.
What’s the plan for your next single, can you tell us anything?
The next single is a grunge dance song and the video is being filmed in about 7 weeks. Like the past two videos it is also completely and utterly ludicrous. We can’t wait to get cracking with it!