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Yob: Atma
23/08/11 || The Duff
Yob have been a band to be reckoned with for years now, one of the powerhouse doom metal bands with almost cult-like status; me, honestly, I dig them but no more – seems to me that many hold their first comeback album since a temporary split in 2006, “The Great Cessation”, as the band’s peak, but honestly I didn’t find all too much more to appreciate beyond what I’d heard on albums “The Illusion of Motion” and “The Unreal Never Lived”. More so, I thought the album sacrificed the short-cut nature of previous albums to its detriment, the slow-paced sludge taken to an extreme in almost parodying fashion. Well, “Atma”, album number two since the reforming and the 6th altogether is to me the strength of albums such as “The Unreal Never Lived” in that hypnotic, trance-y and atmospheric, heavy rhythms combined with the more appropriate duration of “The Great Cessation”.
The chief reason for which I think this might well be Yob’s defining hour (or just shy thereof) is largely because the vocals have been improved upon, hence breaking up any monotony that may have hindered past records. The riffs and bluesy, entrancing leads of “What would happen if we slowed Iommi down to a trawl?” are close to identical, the production, a mixture of dirty and resounding, is much near the same if not appearing a touch drier, the plodding drums hold the sway of the rhythmic riffs but little else, not in the slightest bit subtler or more adventurous than on past recordings. But sweet Jesus’ knackers not only has Mike Scheidt become more torturous, more twisted and ominous, overall more varied and confident a singer, but we also have Scott motherfucking Kelly providing several guest appearances.
His performance on “Atma” is hair-raising, a fine example being “Before We Dreamed of Two”, a 16 minute doom/sludge epic if ever there was one; when sinking down into the low, maddened and drawn out of classic Neurosis (although not sure if this is Scheidt or Kelly) just before the halfway mark the track is already soaring, but then we get the cleans, both pensive and disturbing, the light, whiskey-choked drawl as experienced most on “The Eye of Every Storm” overlaid eerie, reverb-heavy, disquieting guitar lines. With my blind adoration of all things Neurosis, the overall effect is goddamn fucking awesome before we’re hit with the track’s summit of derangement, pure doom/sludge goodness in straight-up Neurosis fashion that closes out on Scott’s purest agonizing howls and Mike’s LSD-fused echoes that conjure thoughts of roiling oceans and freaky shit in the night. It’s an emotional height I’ve never experienced with Yob, and while I’m all for congratulating them the skeptic in me can’t help but think it’s because of a following in the footsteps of greater sludge bands.
That said, I can’t deny that the rest of Yob’s usual recipe is most complementary to the centre-piece around which the album revolves. I said not a difference to the songwriting, but that was a half-truth simply because I wanted to splooge all over a track that has made the wait for the follow-up to “Given to the Rising” that much easier. In all honesty, the instruments seem to progress off of each other far more rewardingly on “Atma”, swirling, ebbing and flowing to reach peaks of atmosphere whereas on past records I felt the music developed in a very linear manner, played at slow tempos in order to form cuts of standard sludge/doom length with a non-too-striking ambient, depressing tone, enjoyable due to the swing but little else; tracks on “Atma” end ten minutes in without the realization of where the time’s gone.
As on past records, there are the Eastern-influences in the Candlemass-vein, but they seem to be a mere flavored hint here; with the exception of the galloping-triplet theme of the title track, the album trudges but at a good pace, it is a consistent record with a slight dip at the beginning and end tracks, both a touch excessive on the repetition/build-ups. A fantastic atmosphere that is very fitting with the artwork, honestly it feels like I’ve been slapped around the head in so far as my thoughts on Yob are concerned encouraging me to give more attentive listens to past albums originally brushed aside – “Atma” may very well pinch a spot in my top five at the end of the year, it’s that good.
- Information
- Released: 2011
- Label: Profound Lore Records
- Website: Yob MySpace
- Band
- Mike Scheidt: guitars, vocals
- Aaron Reiseberg: bass
- Travis Foster: drums
- Tracklist
- 01. Prepare the Ground
- 02. Atma
- 03. Before We Dreamed of Two
- 04. Upon the Sight of the Other Shore
- 05. Adrift in the Ocean
