Our Raw Heart

Our Raw Heart is the eighth studio album by American doom metal band YOB. It was released June 8, 2018 by Relapse Records.[8]

Our Raw Heart
Studio album by YOB
Released	June 8, 2018
Recorded	2017–2018
Genre	Doom metal[1] stoner metal[1] post-metal
Length	73:16
Label	Relapse Records
YOB chronology
Clearing the Path to Ascend (2014) Our Raw Heart (2018)

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	82/100[2]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Exclaim!	(8/10)[3]
Metal Injection	(9/10)[4]
Metal Storm	(8.0/10)[5]
Pitchfork	(8/10)[6]
Rolling Stone	(3.5/5)[7]

Production

The album was produced by Billy Barnett.[9] The album was inspired by a serious health issue suffered by singer and guitarist Mike Scheidt in early 2017,[6] and most of the music was written while he was in a hospital bed.[7] The album has been described as a cross between the band's two previous studio albums, mixing the aggression of Atma (2011) with the psychedelic experimentation of Clearing the Path to Ascend (2014).[6]

Critical reception

Our Raw Heart was met with "universal acclaim" reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, this release received an average score of 82 based on 10 reviews.[2] Aggregator Album of the Year gave the release a 83 out of 100 based on a critical consensus of 9 reviews.[10]

Metal Injection called the album "engaging and revealing, immediately appealing but with subtle nuances and layers that only become apparent after subsequent listens. It's a powerful and cathartic release,"[4] while Rolling Stone praised the band for "subvert[ing] doom's bleak conventions, painting the genre's slowpoke churn with uplifting melodies, cosmic textures and Scheidt's existential howl like a dreampop Dio."[7] NPR Music said about the album: "the lightness is devastating."[11]

Accolades

Publication	Accolade	Rank	Ref.
Decibel	Decibel's Top 40 Albums of 2018	1	[12]
Consequence Of Sound	Top 25 Metal + Hard Rock Albums of 2018	1	[13]
Metal Injection	Top 20 Albums of 2018	5	[14]
Vulture.com	15 Best Albums of 2018	12	[15]

Track list

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Ablaze"	10:13
2.	"The Screen"	9:49
3.	"In Reverie"	9:43
4.	"Lungs Reach"	5:39
5.	"Beauty in Falling Leaves"	16:27
6.	"Original Face"	7:03
7.	"Our Raw Heart"	14:22
Total length:		73:16

Personnel

• Mike Scheidt – vocal, guitars
• Aaron Rieseberg – bass
• Travis Foster – drums

Additional musicians

• Billy Barnett – piano

Charts

Chart performance for Our Raw Heart

Chart (2018)	Peak position
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[16]	20
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[17]	37
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[18]	9
US Vinyl Albums (Billboard)[19]	3

References

1. Jurek, Thom. "AllMusic Review". AllMusic. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
2. "Metacritic Review". Metacritic. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
3. Tremblay, Mark (June 6, 2018). "Exclaim! Review". Exclaim!. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
4. Bowar, Chad (June 5, 2018). "Album Review: YOB, Our Raw Heart". Metal Injection. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
5. "Yob - Our Raw Heart review". Metal Storm. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
6. O'Connor, Andy (June 8, 2018). "YOB: Our Raw Heart". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
7. Weingarten, Christopher R. (June 7, 2018). "Review: Yob's 'Our Raw Heart' Is Dreamy, Uplifting Doom Metal". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
8. "YOB Release 'Our Raw Heart' on June 8 via Relapse, Announce North American Tour". Relapse Records. June 8, 2018. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
9. "YOB: Credits, Our Raw Heart". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
11. Heller, Jason (May 31, 2018). "On YOB's 'Our Raw Heart,' The Lightness Is Devastating". NPR Music. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
12. Mudrian, Albert. "SPOILER: Here Are Decibel's Top 40 Albums of 2018". Decibel. Retrieved 2018-11-18.
13. Heavy Consequence Staff. "Top 25 Metal + Hard Rock Albums of 2018". Consequence Of Sound. Retrieved 2018-12-10.
14. "Metal Injection Writers' Collective Top 20 Albums of 2018". Metal Injection. 2018-12-28. Retrieved 2019-01-08.
15. "The 15 Best Albums of 2018". Vulture.com. 2018-12-03. Retrieved 2019-01-08.
16. "Yob Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
17. "Yob Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
18. "Yob Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
19. "Yob Chart History (Vinyl Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 1, 2020.