Review by Jake McCune
I’ve often read the assessment that great doom is just as much about being quiet as it is about, you know, being pretty fucking loud. The vacuum of space that exists between thundering bass, drums and guitars is key in creating the kinds of moments that cause grown adults to hold up imaginary citrus in the air and lower their heads. I’m also hard pressed to think of a band that better exemplifies this notion than Portland’s beloved YOB, and their newest record Clearing the Path to Ascend is as good a proof as any.
The four-track album is YOBs seventh, and third since reuniting in 2009. That the trio of Mike Scheidt, Travis Foster and Aaron Riesberg has straight up never written a bad song is a testament to the band’s enlightened understanding of the doom’s dynamics
To wit, the best part of any YOB song is when things get quiet. When the cacophony of riffs ceases, and the band gently tucks the listener into a blanket of lush, pretty, drawn out chords that slowly but inevitably build to that pregnant pause right before Mike Scheidt brings the hammer down on the listener. This is essential for the aforementioned orange throwing magical moments of music. The quiet sections of opening track “In Our Blood” and every other track on the album, are great examples of this aural phenomenon that YOB has honed into a devastating technique over the years.
Another highlight is a genuinely different approach to songwriting for YOB in second track “Nothing To Win”. The band increases the tempo to “maybe slightly fast” and puts a surprisingly poppy structure with a triumphantly written chorus front and center, to great effect.
2014 has been a great year for doom so far, with incredible debut albums from newcomers like Forn and highly anticipated follow-ups like Pallbearers latest, not to mention the first new Sleep song in twenty years. But Clearing the Path to Ascend stands out even among the incredible slew of releases thus far, and YOB have proven themselves once again to be one of the greatest bands making music today.
