Customer Reviews

Failure, Assemblage 23

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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 !!

This album is one of the best EBM's ever produced by far. It is just PERFECT. Many people compare A23 to VNV nation, and I strongly agree that A23 is at the same level as VNV nation. Tom's emotions can be felt by all. This album is very dancable and synth-pop oriented. It is less harsh than the previous album and its EBM at its best. Every song has been wonderfully crafted and performed by the man himself. This album is dedicated to Tom's father whom took his life away a few years ago. Most of the songs express his sadness, grief, and anger (extremely emotional). The lyrics in this album are some of the best lyrics I have ever heard in my life. Tom's talent is shown in full effect. Wonderfully orchestrated dark synth sounds along with his compelling vocals and gratifying lyrics will bring you to his state of mind. His emotions run wild in "Disappoint" which happens to be my favorate song in this album which makes me cry everytime I hear it.
You will love A23 if you like VNV nation. A must have for all EBM/synth/industrial/trance listeners.
This is Tom's MASTERPIECE.

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" will be forever the standard by which I judge other EBM/synthpop/TI music, and it's only one of the delicious aural treats that Tom Shear has in store for avid listeners on this album.

Along with being a highly congenial and very patient person with his fans, Mr. Shear is both an accomplished vocalist and an excellent composer. He avoids the traps that many TI groups--even VNV Nation, which I also love with all my heart!--fall into on Failure and indeed all of his albums of keeping his songs from becoming the same set of beats and loops with different lyrics expressing the exact same message. The brutally honest self-affirmation of "Naked" progresses to the counterculture warning of "I Am the Rain" to the heart-wrenching, elegiac "Disappoint" to "King of Insects" and its hauntingly personal warning over a gorgeous piano line. While there are some tracks I like less on this album, in large part because Shear cloaks his magnificent voice in fuzz and static ("Silence" and "Tried" come to mind), they're still enjoyable listening, and the true message of the lyrics still hit home.

Buy this. Then go buy the rest of Assemblage 23's albums.

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.

This album is phenomenal. This is their 2nd studio release, and while I loved Assemblage 23's "Contempt" album, "Failure" surpasses their previous album as sheer musical genius. This album is a bit more upbeat and dance-oriented than the previous album. Assemblage 23's sound is often compared to VNV Nation, although the band has its own unique sound. Tom Shear's father committed suicide before he started working on this album, and his lyrics reflect the pain and confusion he went through regarding his father's suicide. Assemblage 23 has become one of my favorite bands and I highly recommend this album. If you dont own it, I suggest you go buy it.

This CD is undoubtably great. The sheer ferocity, and speed of quite a number of the beats rivals anything at all by Skinny Puppy, KMFDM, Nine Inch Nails or even the most comprable act, VNV Nation. However, the keyboard and synth work is extremely melodic, and so catchy that it puts Depeche Mode to shame. Unlike many albums that do their best to make their message as idecipherable as possible, A23 puts it right in front of you.

The album focusses on Tom Shear's self-blame after his father ended his own life, and the dark, brooding feel of this continues throughout the whole album, even through the 'happier' (comparatively) tracks like "House On Fire". but when Tom pours out his emotions with such rawness and clarity, you cannot help but feel crushed.

The best tracks on the album are "House on Fire", exquisitely dance-able yet full of anger, "Divide", which is cinematically beautiful and remarably complex, and "Awake", with a long, dark feel to it and some utterly brilliant synths. However, the stand-out track, by far, is "Dissapoint". This in probably the most moody piece of electronica I have ever heard, and the lyrics are far more crushing than anything I have ever heard before, surpassing even the emotional power of "Hurt" by Nine Inch Nails.

If you have never heard EBM before, or are a Synthpop fan looking for something more 'hard' then this is a great album, although it is somewhat depressing. Still, it is VERY well constructed and a must-listen album. If you like Depeche Mode, VNV Nation, Icon of Coil, Velvet Acid Christ, or any techno act than you MUST get this.

Tom Shear is a true musical genius. His lyrics are powerful and moving, and the beats are un-paralleled. And the fact he wrote the album for his father makes it that much more intense. I would definately recommend this album to anyone with a more mature, intellecutal mind. The album goes from upbeat tracks like "House on fire" to more mellow, deeper tracks like "King of Insects." Definately worth buying.

~Bill

I just got this two days ago and it hasn't left my cd player since it arrived. It has rapidly become one of my favorite albums of this genre. Listening to it for the first time, I was amazed at the ammount of emotion that went into this release. All of the songs seem deeply personal, especially the truly heart wrenching Disappoint.
The album has a perfect mix of song styles, alternating between catchy, danceable tracks, and slower, more melencholy ones. Failure was clearly meant for the dancefloor, as the speeds of the tracks in beats per minute is printed on the back of the cd, and it certainly lives up to that expectation. There's really not a bad track here. although I haven't fully warmed up to some of the slower ones, such as Silence and King of Insects just yet.
The bottom line is, EBM doesn't get much better than this, and unless you absolutely hate electronic music, you'll almost certainly enjoy Failure.
Now I can't wait to get Contempt.

I thought Contempt was great, but I just picked up a copy of Failure, and I was beyond impressed. The lyrics were fantastic as usual, but the music felt a little different. It had so much power and emotion behind it. Tom's voice once again shines through and commands your attention. Wow... Contempt is excellent, but this one I would recommend to anybody who likes synth or industrial.