Yob, the Oregon doom trio will be following 2014’s ‘Clearing The Path To Ascend‘ with the new album ‘Our Raw Heart‘ which is scheduled to be released June 8th via ‘Relapse‘. This is an album that looked as though it might never come when singer/guitar player Mike Scheidt faced incredible odds following a life-threatening medical emergency . Thankfully, Mike has recovered because ‘Our Raw Heart‘ is a beautiful and emotional piece of music that is a modern Metal masterpiece!
Prior to ‘Our Raw Heart‘ I was actually not overly familiar with the music of Yob. They were on my list of bands to check out, but for one reason or another I was never able to find the time to get around to it. After listening to this album though I can guarantee that I will enjoy going through their back catalogue! Yob do not play doom metal in the style of Saint Vitus or Candlemass, in fact they have more in common with a band like Neurosis than they do with Black Sabbath, BUT it’s evident from repeated listening that the spirit and integrity of Doom Metal is present within the band. Listen to a song like “The Screen.” It is a ten minute track that is hard hitting and relentless from the first note and it doesn’t let up until the songs end! Album opener ‘Ablaze‘ is another example of this. This track starts off with an epic riff and thunderous bass and drums (courtesy of bassist Aaron Rieseberg and drummer Travis Foster) before moving into the truly haunting vocals of Mike Scheidt. Speaking of vocals, the high point of this album is the depth and range which Mike possesses . All the vocals on “Our Raw Heart” are full of anger, fear, and sadness. This had a profound affect on myself and I suspect that it will affect others as well because listening to Scheidt express so many feelings over the course of seven tracks is truly therapeutic. “Beauty in Falling Leaves” is the longest song on “Our Raw Heart” at 16:28. This is a slow song with many progressive as well as shoe gaze elements. It’s very spacious during the verse(s) but it all leads up to a grand chorus that is brilliant in its structure! ‘Our Raw Heart‘ is a heart felt album. It’s very rare these days that you get music that is this “Real” but it’s exactly what the masses require during this time.
Yob is:
Mike Scheidt – Vocals & Guitars
Aaron Rieseberg – Bass
Travis Foster – Drums
Tour dates:
May 25 Vancouver, BC Modified Ghost Festival
June 14 Oklahoma City, OK 89th Street
June 15 Austin, TX Austin Terror Fest
June 16 Little Rock, AR Mutants of the Monster 2018
June 17 Memphis, TN Hi Tone
June 19 Birmingham, AL Saturn
June 20 Atlanta, GA The Earl
June 22 Orlando, FL SoundBar
June 23 Wilmington, NC Reggies
June 24 Asheville, NC Mothlight
June 25 Raleigh, NC King’s
June 27 Baltimore, MD Metro
June 28 New York, NY Le Poisson Rouge
June 29 Philadelphia, PA Underground Arts
June 30 Boston, MA Middle East
July 02 Montreal, QC La Sala Rosa
July 03 Ottawa, ON Mavericks
July 04 Toronto, ON Mod Club
July 06 Pittsburgh, PA Rex Theatre
July 07 Detroit, MI El Club
July 08 Chicago, IL Reggies
July 09 Chicago, IL Reggies
July 10 St. Paul, MN Turf Club
July 11 Omaha, NE Lookout Lounge
July 12 Denver, CO Bluebird Theatre
July 13 Salt Lake City, UT Urban Lounge
July 14 Boise, ID Neurolux
September 6 Sacramento, CA Harlow’s
September 7 Santa Cruz, CA Catalyst
September 8 Pioneertown, CA Pappy & Harriet’s
September 9 Los Angeles, CA Teragram Ballroom
September 12 Albuquerque, NM Sister
September 13 Mesa, AZ Club Red
September 14 San Diego, CA Brick by Brick
September 15 Oakland, CA Metro
