Stay Awake

Not what one would expect from the leader of the psych-doom master of Yob. Soulful and thought provoking. Worth a listen.

My interest was more than piqued when I heard that Mike Scheidt, the frontman, guitarist and vocalist of the Doom/Sludge/Stoner Juggernaut 'Yob', had put out a solo acoustic album.Those of you who have seen Yob live know that the men behind the music are just as eclectic and profound as the colossal highs and gut-wrenching lows that Yob evokes in it's listeners. So, to you, prospective listener, I ask you this:Before you hit play, you need to take a deep breath, and treat this as something exclusive from all other works. It is not, in any way similar to not only those styles, but the emotions evoked. It is an entirely different animal-- no, it's an entirely different species; life form, maybe. This, to some, should come as no surprise.What we have here is something that's not necessarily 'powerful' in the sense that a listener would be used to-- you have to hunt for it, a bit. If you're an audiophile like I consider myself, this should come as no surprise. Good music grows on you-- sometimes like a sickness, sometimes like a deep, profound joy. This album kind of did both.There is definitely something altogether eclectic and strange about Scheidt's lyrical presence in this record-- his first two tracks have sparse instrumentals, and mainly focus on him setting the stage for this emotional journey. He constructs, presents, and confronts-- although a bit abstractly- a lineup of his own demons, and kills them systematically with kindness, joy, love, and pure emotional vulnerability. It's alien flower-power, but it also displays exactly where one would imagine Scheidt's soul to reside-- and this is what I think separates Scheidt's vision from a good lot of other artists and musicians: Scheidt's biggest weapon (and in Yob, too) is his ability to turn anything into lead. His airy, shy vocals in this album give way sometimes and the sheer profundity of the narrative is a bit staggering at times. Some won't like this style from Scheidt, some will be indifferent, and others will accept it with, just as he presents it, open arms.I find myself having a difficult time quantifying this album-- I don't think it should be critiqued the way that other albums so helplessly rise and fall. It's designed to be intimate-- to be personal, so while I have an idea of how I would, hypothetically, quantify it, I'm going to leave it at a 4 star rating, not because it's good or great or, but because it asks to be heard in such a way that I think anything less wouldn't be doing Scheidt any justice.

Grande album