Search - Assemblage 23 :: Failure, Assemblage 23

Depressing lyrics with engaging hooks !!

fxwei | Here & there. | 08/18/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is a very emotional Assemblage 23 album. "Failure" brought us all to a territory not many musicians often do. Just as the title said, the album narrates a struggle of the lead singer after the death of his own father of a suicide. You'd think this topic would make this album full of grudging melody & glaring electric guitars. If you thought so, think again, cos' this album is filled with a beautifully written lyrics & captivating harmony. Slighty dark synthpop? Yes. But I wouldn't call this a hardcore either. It borders in between melodic synthpop & slighty "dark" industrial music. This is as dark as I could go when it comes to synthpop/industrial music. I'm not a fan of EBM stuff, so this album is definitely not a hardcore EBM. If you like a slighty "darker" synthpop but still filled with catchy tunes, this is a great album to get. Give it a listen & as I did, you'd be in for a surprising treat !! Peace !!"

The Letters on the Signs Have Long Since Faded

TastyBabySyndrome | "Daddy Dagon's Daycare" - Proud Sponsor of the Lit | 01/28/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Tom Shear happens to have everything that it takes to be a superb musician. Not only does he have the taste in consturcting electronic beats and the skill to utilize the components necessary to manufacture something to capture the mindset, but he also has the voice to produce strains of emotion on planes that listeners can understand. Driven sometimes by anger and sometimes by sadness, those little hints come out in what he sings and they power the articles crafted. On top of that, he also has the mind of a composer when his beats are measured lyrically; the content capturing the moods of the moment whenever it is displayed. And, when it comes to Failure, that mood almost hurts to listen to.When looking through the liner of the album, you'll notice something along the lines of, "In loving memory of my father, who took his like Thursday, October 28th, 1999." Listening, you'll also find in many of the songs, from telltale traces of it laying in tunes hinting toward what Tom was thinking to the powerful, tear-provoking "Disappointment." Quite a few of the songs on here are like that, actually, but none are quite like this song because of the way it all pieces together. Sometimes I hear the lines, "though you are gone, I am still your son. And while your pain is over, mine has just begun," and I can't really compose my thoughts because its all so raw and a wound to be captured here. Other songs on the album worth listening to would be most of them, but I'd pool out "Naked," "Divide," "Silence," "Awake," and "King of Insects" as ones I'd tout. "Naked" has a tempo that moves along fairly well at 125 BPM, has a nice sound within it, and I personally like the decree in it stating, "Nothing can touch me, I've nothing left to take, For I am naked but I can never break." "Divide" is also a fairly-driven song with a 126 BPM count and a beat I really enjoy when it gets to the chorus. I personally like what Tom did with his voice on this track, too, and I also like the lyrics as well because they're pretty solidly constructed. They may actually be one of the more challenging pieces as far as wording goes, and I like the pictures he manages to paint while forging it. "Silence" is a little more BPMed at 135 and it has a different style to it than the other songs on the album. Instead of sorrow or pain, it is a song done with a darker form of voxing on the voice and seething within the lyrics. It harbors hatred in those words, running through and through, and its done to a nice tempo change as well. "Awake," clocking in at 138 BPMs, is a song about confusion and being lost, and it captures so much emotion as it plays out. It's a sad and somber song and one that speaks with a voice lost both in "the now" and in "the past." And its that emotion powering it that makes it one that almost everyone can relate to from at least one time in their lives. "King of Insects," the lowest BPM count on the album at 70, is actually one of my favorite songs because of the way it is also constructed. Not only is the beat one that is basic and yet expressive but the wording is so full while it plays out. It's a song of a challenging nature, confrontational in its decree, and its nicely constructed on all levels.As far as Assemblage 23 is concerned, the body of work speaks for itself. In the three albums released and the three Assemblage 23 songs uniquely found on Addendum (plus the version of And I Ran, which is catchy when covered by Assemblage 23, and in the production job he did for another band as well), there are so many things worth praising. The mastery of lyrics and the assembling of songs are merely motions in a changing sea, however, and there are sure to be more things to come. So, when buying, check them all out because it's all worth tasting."

Naked in a field of flowers crying tears of blood

Beau | St. Louis, MO USA | 11/11/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"That's how i'd describe this CD. I was plastered- PLASTERED- to my floor after hearing this. I had heard the samples on amazon, read reviews, and heard good things, but this turned out to be incredible.



I think this is the most incredible example that i have seen of a person channelling their pain, confusion, and anger into a form of art that could be enjoyed countless times by anyone. And the art form he chose was music, and it literally vibrates with emotion. This music feels like it's almost alive. The feeling penetrates the veil of the normal coldness in electronic music, and the result is something... just incredible.



"My eyes divide the sky, as sirens sound in heaven

My will brings down the moon, and shatters it to pieces"

Tom Shear is a genius. He wields stainless steel while others are mashing together cheap bronze."