Yak – “Fried” [Video]

London trio Yak have shared the video for “Fried” from their their sophomore album Pursuit of Momentary Happiness, which is out tomorrow via Third Man Records / Virgin EMI. The video, which features frontman Oli Burslem as the co-host of a demented faux cooking show. In fact, we may not be able to eat fried chicken for awhile after this show!

The creation of Pursuit of Momentary Happiness saw frontman Oli Burslem stand on the precipice between obsession and self-destruction. He sacrificed everything for his artistic vision, including his own financial security and mental health. Who invests every last penny into recording, to the point where they become homeless?

Yak had blazed a trail through the indie rock scene with their debut album Alas Salvation and ended that era of their career with a landmark show at London’s Scala. Burslem and drummer Elliot Rawson were eager to make a second record, but bassist Andy Jones departed for a new life in Australia. A chance meeting with Jay Watson from Tame Impala’s touring band resulted in Burslem hatching a plan to rehearse together in Melbourne before quickly recording the album at Tame mainman Kevin Parker’s studio in Perth — with Burslem stopping in Tokyo to focus on writing.

It didn’t work out. Burslem returned to the UK with no home, no money and no album. 18 hazy months passed, during which Yak found their new bassist Vinny Davies and then a fresh focus. Yak were introduced to Spiritualized chief Jason Pierce through his bandmate John Coxon, and Pierce encouraged them that they still had something worth pursuing. That resulted in new deals with Third Man Records and Virgin EMI, and Burslem committed to sorting out his personal situation… just as soon as he’d finished the album.