No local band has more to lose from MP3.com's recent decision to close its virtual doors than the Yards. The Lawrence instrumental ensemble has been one of the site's biggest benefactors, garnering more than 100,000 plays from listeners around the globe during the last year or so. Those Net surfers were obviously onto something; no mere pigment-challenged neofunkateers, the Yards kick it decidedly old school, centering their sound on founder Brad Hoopes' sublime organ grinding, which recalls Booker T. Jones. Given the Yards' sporadic gigging schedule, the group's occasional shows always offer welcome relief from the heshers and hip-hoppers. Just don't look online for bootlegs anytime soon.
