Assemblage 23
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Assemblage 23 is a synthpop/EBM musical group from Seattle, WA (US); its sole member is Tom Shear.
The group's name is often abbreviated as A23.
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History
Prior to starting Assemblage 23, Tom Shear experimented with music at home under the name Man on a Stage in the 1980s. Lacking the confidence to sing, most of Shear's music at this point was instrumental; the quality of the music itself was highly questionable by his own admission. Shear eventually began to add vocals to his music; all the while, Shear was also playing bass in a live band called the Advocates.
Assemblage 23 was officially born in 1988, after Shear experienced the industrial dance music played by an opening DJ for Depeche Mode. The style of this genre deeply impressed Shear; he believed he had finally found the sort of sound he wanted for his music. Even so, the project was more of a hobby for Shear at this point; it took until 1998 for Assemblage 23 to gather enough positive acclaim to attract the attention of record labels. The group was finally signed for a full-length album in 1999, when it struck a deal with Canadian label Gashed to release Contempt in November. The album Failure followed in March 2001, released by Gashed in North America and Accession Records in Europe.
The single from Failure, "Disappoint", was released on Accession in October 2001. The song dealt with Shear's sense of loss after his father's suicide on October 28, 1999.
After a falling out with Gashed Records following Failure, Assemblage 23 signed with US label Metropolis Records (US) later in 2001; Metropolis re-released Contempt and Failure in November. A remix release, Addendum, was also released in November only on Accession. By this point, the group had become fairly popular within the EBM genre; a third album, Defiance, was released in October 2002 on Metropolis and Accession. The single from Defiance, "Document", was released in September of that year.
Assemblage 23 released a fourth album, Storm, in October 2004; the first single from that album, "Let the Wind Erase Me", was released in August of the same year. The second single, "Ground", was released in November.
Discography
Albums
- Contempt (1999)
- Failure (2001)
- Addendum (2001)
- Defiance (2002)
- Storm (2004)
Singles
- Disappoint (2001)
- Document (2002)
- Let the Wind Erase Me (2004)
- Ground (2004)
External links
- Official website (http://www.assemblage23.com/)
- Accession Records (http://www.accession-records.de/)