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Sheafs Race For The Prize With Bizarre Video

  • Published in News

“Who would win in a sprint between a Wizard, a Lion, a Soldier, a Mime, and a Clown?” It may sound like the kind of chat you’d expect from a band who’ve spent weeks holed-up on a tourbus together, but in Sheafs’ new video for ‘Care Less’ they put this very question to the test. In their new video co-directed with Sam Crowston (The Blinders/No Hot Ashes), Sheffield’s fastest rising five-piece dig out the fancy dress box and hit the running track of Sheffield Hallam University for a showdown like no other. Expertly synced to the break-neck tempo of ‘Care Less’, the clip is a bizarre and brilliant accompaniment to the band’s latest sonic offering.

Fielding ideas for the new video, Sheafs explain how they finally landed upon its fittingly novel concept, plus some of the hurdles they encountered along the way: “Essentially the costumes were used to emulate the attitude of caring less about your image and running a race in those outfits seemed like a fun idea! The running also mapped well to the tempo of 'Care Less' and it is pretty upbeat…It was shot in 30 degree heat and one of the lads had stitches in their leg”

Clocking in at a neat 2’30, ‘Care Less’ is a rush of adrenaline from the moment go. Produced by Dead Nature main-man and Spring King-pin: Tarek Musa, the track was quickly laid down in a matter of days at Whitewood Recording Studio, Liverpool, with additional mastering by Mike Cave (whom recently mixed and mastered Lewis Capaldi’s latest chart topping album).

The ‘Care Less’ track and video swiftly follows a Summer of frenetic activity for the quintet, that seen them release their sensational recent single ‘Popular Music’, win over crammed halls at Dot2Dot in Nottingham, Manchester and Bristol, but also play to a big hometown crowd at Tramlines Festival in Sheffield. Sealing the deal on a summer of groundbreaking shows, Sheafs were also crowned ‘UK Talent Winners’ at Mad Cool Festival in Madrid this year.

Following a stint of high profile support slots with the likes of The Amazons, The Coral, and Idles, plus their recent tour with US rockers Greta Van Fleet which saw them win over audiences all over Europe and at packed-out room at London's Electric Ballroom, Sheafs now look forward to a headline tour of their own. Slating-up gigs this Autumn at prestigious venues such as The Foundry in Sheffield and Rescue Rooms in Nottingham, don’t miss the band as they blow the roof of some of their biggest shows to date.

SHEAFS - AUTUMN HEADLINE TOUR DATES

27th September               The Foundry, Sheffield

2nd October                  Colours Hoxton, London

5th October                    Night & Day Cafe, Manchester

11th October                 Rescue Rooms, Nottingham

12th October               Think Tank?, Newcastle

 

 

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Festival Coverage: Y-Not Festival 2018

  • Published in Live

With last year’s festival leaving little more than a bad taste in the mouths of returning regulars and festival virgins, organisers of this year’s Y-Not Festival needed to not only pull out all the stops in order to make it memorable, but address at the litany of issues that surrounded last year’s ill-fated iteration.

Though many people assumed, and espoused, that 2017 was the final nail in the festival’s coffin, either for them personally, or for the event as a whole, organisers promised profusely in the lead up to this year’s festival that last year’s shitshow wasn’t going to repeat itself.

Thankfully, much of those promises came to fruition, and with the exception of bouts of bad weather that evoked strong feels of déjà vu, 2018 was, by and large, a success.

Even seconds after arriving at the festival site, it’s clear that improvements have been made. Temporary roads/walkways have been installed across the drop-off point, and security seem thorough but friendly – a welcome change from last year’s arrogance and indifference.

Once inside, the first noticeable change is just how different the layout is to previous years. Gone are the separate areas that provided their own personalities but stymied the festivals geographic flow. Instead the main stage sits at the bottom of a hill, in the centre of the arena, with other stages, bars and the usual festival miscellany scattered around the outside.  

The result is a festival that flows much better and has the added advantage of a gentle slope providing good visibility towards the Main Stage, often regardless of where you’re stood. The acoustics also carry far better than previous years, something we found out on Thursday Night as Razorlight took to the Main Stage to entertain those of us eager to kickstart the weekend early.

Friday is where the change in atmosphere, at least compared to last year, is most noticeable. Spirits are both high and flowing from the outset. And where last year’s atmosphere harboured an edge that was difficult to put your finger on, this year feels more in keeping with the “small, fresh and loud” tagline of previous years.

Exacerbated by the heat, it doesn’t take long for true festival merriment to take hold, as the beers start to kick in and Nottingham’s Vega Bay take to the quarry stage. With a set of easy going indie-pop that perfectly matches the weather, it’s the ideal way of start proceedings.

Elsewhere across the weekend, the likes of The Lancashire Hotpots, Everly Pregnant Brothers and Beans On Toast return for their annual appearances, amusing and entertaining crowds across Friday and Saturday respectively. And headline appearances from The Libertines, who start shaky but end on a massive high, and Catfish And The Bottlemen prove that indie is still alive and kicking, even if it is starting to go grey.

Of course, Y-Not’s always been about offering a platform for up and coming bands, with stages like The Allotment devoted to just that. This year is no different. And bands on the cusp of breaking such as DECO, No Hot Ashes and Sheafs all proving that while indie royalty might be greying, they’ll always be fresh-faced new blood jostling for their crown.

It wouldn’t be Y-Not, nor would it be the Peak District, without howling wind and sideways rain, and Saturday and Sunday definitely don’t disappoint. And though tents, tshirts, jeans and just about everything else might be dampened, spirits certainly aren’t. And while Y-Not may not feel like the same convivial festival it once was, it’s still family-friendly and good natured, and most importantly, more than made amends for the year before. 

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