Assembly Now

Assembly Now

21 July, 2008
by: Marcus

Assembly Now at the Monto Water Rats 15/05/2007.

The last time Assembly Now graced the stage at the Monto was over a year ago, having only played a handful of gigs on the London scene since their inception at Goldsmith's College in early 2005. Fast forward to mid-2007, and they have sold out their first two singles, been played on Radio One and Hollyoaks, and toured the country supporting the Wombats.

Odd then, that they should be playing second fiddle to a Swedish electro-folk act, in front of a room less than half full in their home town. A hint of low quality perhaps? Well, no, not at all, in fact there are few bands on the scene now with such a knack with a snappy indie-pop tune.

Even with the loss of frontman Gavin Dwight's considerable guitar skills to a wrist strain, they play with a deftness that most bands these days would give their last groupie for. With nuggets of sonic brilliance such as 'Leigh on Sea' and 'Out on 24s', they look for all the world like it comes natural to them.

You quickly realise that it is their undiluted enthusiasm, which is difficult not to reciprocate, that makes them so riveting live. The rhythm section play tight and hard, backing up the frenetic guitars and Dwight's earnest, impassioned vocals, his choral leaps recalling a youthful Robert Smith.

There are cliches; a big RAWK drum outro here, bass solo there, but somehow with this lot it doesn't come across as hackneyed. The energy is positively visceral, as if they came from the womb specifically to do just this.

With no breaks to tune up or look cool on stage, the sparse crowd are barely given time to breathe between songs, and as the sound filters through to the bar, the gig room fills up. The four-piece manage to win over a few stragglers, and it is notable that a few of those who elected to stay at the bar at the start of the set are singing along to the final choruses.

They finish with 'Its Magnetic', easily one of the great undiscovered singles of last year. Despite fairly innocuous lyrics about rollerskates, Virginia Woolf and salt (??), it comes across as an anthemic statement of intent, more than merely a fine tune; somehow it just sounds essential.

For those of us who have been following this band's fortunes for the last year or so, it is a surprise they are not headlining in larger venues than this. The hype has been rumbling for a while, when they find the catalyst for the inevitable explosion, its frightening to think what they could achieve. When a band plays such good tunes with such unrivalled passion and belief, they don't stay small time for long.

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Marcus