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I need to admit upfront: I had never heard of Mike Schmid before listening to this album. In hindsight, that may have been part of the appeal. Schmid's sophomore effort The High Cost of Living certainly exudes indie-cred on the outside, being a self-produced release by a relative unknown artist. Even the cover and liner notes were designed, photographed and illustrated by Schmid and his wife. It was to my surprise then, to find a mix of radio-friendly pop tunes upon first giving this disc a spin.

Stylistically, Schmid straddles influences from a wide gamut of artists. Familiar nuances from Ben Folds (on "Crazy"), Frou Frou ("The High Cost of Living"), even Over the Rhine ("Method Acting") make cameo appearances on this project, but ultimately, Mike Schmid is his own songwriter. With relative ease, the album zig-zags across genres, from "At Gunpoint"'s dark electronic feel, through to the bombastic love song "To Show You My Love." Unfortunately, I was unable to shake the sense that Mike has yet to reach full potency as a songwriter. While the songs were undeniably well crafted as stand-alone items, the CD didn't have enough strong melodic or thematic threads to hold together as a concept album.

The High Cost of Living is a hidden pop gem and certainly worth a listen. Although with potential still for further growth as a songsmith, I look forward even more to future projects from Mike Schmid.

Linus Boman (31 May 2006)