Bechtolt was born in Astoria, Oregon and began playing music as a teenager, dropping out of high school to play drums in his brother's touring punk band. He started working with electronics in the late 1990s and began releasing solo records under the name YACHT in 2003. Nearly all of his recordings have been distributed by both Marriage Records and States Rights Records.
Claire Evans came of age playing in bands in the underground noise scene of Los Angeles, and was part of the Portland-based The World Court. She has presented her PowerPoint performances at MoMA PS1, The Kitchenand the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art and has collaborated with Bechtolt on literally hundreds of projects since they met in 2004.
In 2003, Bechtolt was commissioned to create a full length audio/visual electronic pop opera by the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA). He performed with his group The Badger King with bandmate Marianna Ritchie (a Wolf Colonel and Dear Nora alumnus who went on to record alone as Manta, and then Mantar).
In 2006, Bechtolt collaborated with Khaela Maricich as half of the pop group The Blow to release Paper Television. Bechtolt toured extensively with The Blow, providing beats and backup vocals until quitting the band in 2007 in order to focus on his work in YACHT.
In January 2006, Bechtolt was commissioned for two performances for the New York based art and technology platform Rhizome, as part of their "Crap-tops vs Laptops" show. In February 2006, he performed at the Museum of Modern Art's P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center and produced an hour-long internet radio program with Clear Cut Press; a Northwest-based publisher of new literary work.
In 2007, for the release party for YACHT's album I Believe In You. Your Magic Is Real, Bechtolt performed a concert on an actual yacht on the Willamette River in Portland.
The 2009 release, See Mystery Lights, was the first to feature Claire Evans as a group member.
YACHT live performances include dancing as well as elaborate PowerPoint presentations. Bechtolt documents his professional and sometimes personal life via video, text, and images on his blog.
In 2010, YACHT expanded to include The Straight Gaze; a backing band of 2 additional members. Bobby Birdman plays bass guitar and sings backing vocals while Jeffrey Jerusalem plays drums. In this incarnation Bechtolt and Evans both play instruments.
Bechtolt is a co-founder of the Portland-based popular blogging web community Urban Honking as well as the producer, editor, cameraman and a writer of The Ultimate Blogger.
Both Bechtolt and Evans are vegans.
Sites: YouTube, SoundCloud, Discogs, Wikipedia, Twitter and www.teamYACHT.com
Dystopia
Yacht Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We don't have no daughter,
Let the motherfucker burn!
We are hungry, we are all tired.
Our tongues they are all on fire.
The walls that we build are higher, higher, higher, higher.
You aren't afraid of the dark dark dark dark
When it's where you walk walk walk walk,
When it's where you learn to talk.
Every day the sky gets lower, lower, lower, lower,
And every day the tide is blacker, blacker, blacker,
And every day the flames get higher, higher, higher,
Yeah, every day the flames get higher, higher, higher!
The Earth, the Earth is on fire!
We don't have no daughter,
Let the motherfucker burn!
The Earth, the Earth is on fire!
If we cut off the water
Then the jackals would return.
We live like lions, we live our lives
With no more husbands,
No more wives,
We let our children multiply 'cause we're afraid of dying.
Every day the sky gets lower, lower, lower, lower,
And every day the tide is blacker, blacker, blacker,
And every day the flames get higher, higher, higher,
Yeah, every day the flames get higher, higher, higher!
The Earth, the Earth is on fire!
We don't have no daughter,
Let the motherfucker burn!
The Earth, the Earth is on fire!
If we cut off the water
Then the jackals would return.
The song “Dystopia” by YACHT protests against the environmental and political conditions that result in global warming, and by extension, the degradation of humanity's living conditions. From the onset, the lyrics describe an apocalyptic scenario with the Earth literally on fire. Instead of offering any hope or potential solutions, the lyrics are almost apathetic in their presentation. It is hinted that the Earth has reached a point of no return, and nothing can be done to prevent the dystopian future that awaits humanity. The natural world is personified as a mother, that humanity has chosen to neglect, and the lyrics suggest the only possible course of action may be to let it all burn.
The chorus seems to shift focus from solely the environment to issues that plague society, such as fear and a lack of respect for the natural world. The line “we don't have no daughter” invokes thoughts of the future and legacy human beings will leave behind. The chorus also presents a hypothetical situation - if humans were to cut off the water supply, they would effectively bring about their undoing. It is a warning that environmental recklessness could have unthinkable consequences.
Overall, the lyrics of “Dystopia” by YACHT paint a grim picture of the future. The apocalyptic nature of the song reflects the desperation of human beings grappling with the consequences of their environmental recklessness, while the chorus highlights how modern society has neglected nature and sets up the potential for an even more dystopian future.
Line by Line Meaning
The Earth, the Earth is on fire!
The world is in a state of chaos and destruction.
We don't have no daughter,
We have no hope for the future.
Let the motherfucker burn!
We are resigned to accepting the downfall and destruction of society.
We are hungry, we are all tired.
We are worn out and struggling to survive.
Our tongues they are all on fire.
We are unfulfilled and yearning for something more.
The walls that we build are higher, higher, higher, higher.
We are trapped and unable to escape the struggles of our existence.
Strange days lead to strange nights.
Times are changing in unexpected and frightening ways.
You aren't afraid of the dark dark dark dark
You are not afraid of facing the unknown and the uncertainties of the future.
When it's where you walk walk walk walk,
When you are navigating through the challenging paths of life.
When it's where you learn to talk.
When you are learning to communicate and express yourself in difficult situations.
Every day the sky gets lower, lower, lower, lower,
The world is becoming more oppressive and crushing.
And every day the tide is blacker, blacker, blacker,
Our outlook on life is becoming more and more pessimistic.
And every day the flames get higher, higher, higher,
The problems we face are becoming increasingly severe and difficult to overcome.
Yeah, every day the flames get higher, higher, higher!
Things are getting worse and worse with each passing day.
If we cut off the water
If we lose access to the basic necessities of life,
Then the jackals would return.
The worst of humanity would emerge and take over in a state of desperation.
We live like lions, we live our lives
We try to live boldly and courageously despite the difficulties we face.
With no more husbands,
We are alone and facing the struggles of life on our own.
No more wives,
We lack the support and companionship of a partner.
We let our children multiply 'cause we're afraid of dying.
We continue to have children even in a world where the future looks bleak because we fear for our own mortality and need to feel like our legacy will continue.
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: CLAIRE LOUISE EVANS, JONATHAN WARREN BECHTOLT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jacob Shepherd
That bass line in Utopia turns my spine into an icicle.
Nik Myers
I love how Jona starts strumming a guitar when there isn't one in the song
Kitt Aunne
Utopia felt like a a bad trip that doesn't get too far out. And i loved it.
Jeremy Koleske
Why wasn’t this the top of the pop charts, it’s fuckin brilliant
Dan Crawshaw
utopia has the best bassline of heard all year, love it
Ali Johnston
Love your decision to make the transcendent Triangle your symbol. Suits your band quite perfectly.
Nolan
Thanks NPR for the Tiny Desk concert alerting me to the greatness of Yacht.
victorsounds
JUst love it! The music and the video are awesome!!!! The earth is on fire !!!!
Live 15:13
I don't enjoy Utopia but I love Dystopia.
Chanc Swann
forever in love with this